Galaxy S24 vs. Galaxy S22: Worth upgrading?

Here's the outright pricing for the Galaxy S24 range:

If you choose to upgrade you're going to be spending between $150 and $250 more for a Galaxy S24 than you did for the S22. Don't forget there's always the option of trading in your Galaxy S22 toward the value of your Galaxy S24. 

As a rough guide here are some trade-in values based on Vodafone's trade-in calculator:

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: AI

Can you release a smartphone in 2024 without jumping on the AI bandwagon? Time will tell. The S24 features the new Galaxy AI which unlocks a whole range of software features that at present we're just not sure you're going to see released backwards for your S22. Some of the features will become available on S23 models later this year. 

Galaxy AI can generate content summaries of entire webpages and notes, perform live translation and transcription that goes both ways for phone calls, it can translate messages and much more. There are also AI photo editing features we'll touch on in a second. 

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: Camera

There hasn't been a massive change in camera quality over the years between the Galaxy S22 and S24. On the rear, both phones feature a 50MP main lens, 12MP ultrawide lens and 10MP 3x zoom lens. The S24 does feature a 12MP front-facing camera compared to the 10MP camera on the S22. As with most features, you should see a noticeable improvement in your photography with faster processors under the hood. 

Similar to what Google brought to the Pixel 8, Galaxy AI also has a variety of photo editing tools. This includes moving objects around an image or generating images beyond what you captured in your original snap. There are also more familiar tools for simple retouching. 

Come back to WhistleOut to check out our reviews when we've had some hands-on time with the Galaxy S24 to test cameras thoroughly. 

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: Connectivity

Both Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S24 support 5G connectivity with the Sub 6 5G frequency.

Keep in mind that to take advantage of 5G speeds you'll need to be in an area where there's 5G coverage. You can use our coverage checker when searching for a new phone plan by entering your address. 

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: Design

By and large the overall aesthetic of the S24 is very similar to that of the S22. You will notice there's no camera bump on the S24, another interactive change that was made last year on the S23. 

The size of the S24 is ever so slightly bigger coming in at 0.1-inch larger than the S22. In terms of water resistance, there's no change but the new phones come with new and improved Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and Gorilla Glass Armor for the S24 Ultra - which also does get a titanium frame this year. Armor is even stronger than Victus 2 with notable improvements in scratch resistance. 

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: Display

As we've mentioned the new S24 has a slightly bigger display than the S22, probably not enough to notice the difference. What you will notice is the display is now flat rather than curved. 

The S24 base model comes with a dynamic high refresh display which it has inherited from previous Ultra models. This should help extend battery life as the phone can slow down the refresh rate when you're not using it.  

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: Performance

The Galaxy S24 comes with a faster Exynos 2400 processor than the S22's Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. Snapdragon chips tend to be faster than the equivalent Exynos chips. In this case, the Exynos 2400 should fare better as it's a much newer processor. 

The Galaxy S24 will naturally perform much better than the Galaxy S22. 

Galaxy S22 vs. Galaxy S24: Battery

You should see a significant improvement in battery life on the Galaxy S24 over the S22. It sports a 4,000 mAh battery compared to the S22's 3,700 mAh. However, the battery is still smaller than any of the Plus or Ultra models in recent years. 

As with the cameras and processors, we'll know more about battery life once we've tested the phone out for ourselves. 

Should you upgrade to Galaxy S24?

As is more often than not the case with premium smartphone brands this is another interactive update focused on optimising the existing form of Galaxy smartphones rather than going in a bold new direction. Of course, some of the biggest changes are the Galaxy AI functions. 

If money is no object, and you're AI-curious (or all-in on the technology) then it could be worth upgrading to the Galaxy S24. However, if your S22 is running well and serves your needs it might work out in your favour to cool your jets and see if a bigger upgrade arrives in 2025.