Samsung’s Ultra flagship is one of the most uncomfortable phones to use with one hand, and I’m ready to fight anybody who disagrees.
If we do get into an actual fight, I’d insist I use my Galaxy S23 Ultra as a weapon though. The sharp edges and considerable weight of Samsung’s premium flagship will do more damage than just about any other phone on the market.That being said, I’m not being a “hater”. In fact, I must admit there’s something quite satisfying in the square display and design of the Galaxy S23 Ultra, so I can’t say I’m totally disappointed that the Note design makes a return with the new Galaxy S24 Ultra.
So, you know what? Maybe Samsung should keep this design around. Not many phones look like this nowadays. But hold on… This doesn’t mean I’m OK with using a phone that’s uncomfortable to hold. So… How do we make a flagship like the Galaxy S24 Ultra usable for people who don’t like carrying bricks in their pockets?
Galaxy S24 Ultra: People want and need a smaller version of Samsung’s premium flagship – iPhone 15 Pro is proof
6 out of the 10 best-selling smartphones in 2022 had 6.1-inch displays (or smaller). Five of them were flagship phones. None of them were made by Samsung.
Smaller premium flagship phones are still more popular than large ones
I can’t possibly be sitting here thinking I have a better understanding of the smartphone market than Samsung, but the numbers highlighted prove a smaller version of the premium Galaxy Ultra flagship might not be a terrible idea.
Samsung’s already making two sizes of its vanilla flagship, and I strongly believe the company might be leaving some money on the table by ignoring offering more choice in the Ultra (premium) Galaxy range.
More Galaxy flagships to choose from is always a good idea
But again – numbers aren’t everything, and with companies of Samsung’s size and reputation, selling phones should be about making sure those who buy/consider buying your phones will find exactly the one that appeals to them.
And (back to the numbers), by the looks of it, many would prefer a more reasonable in size premium flagship phone. Of course there are exceptions to the rule, and the most obvious one would be the iPhone mini (which happens to be my primary phone).
After poor sales (especially for Apple’s standards), the tiny 5.4-inch iPhone 12 and 13 mini gave Apple a very clear indication that Cupertino’s (great) idea of making small flagship phones cool again was a few years too late.
Of course, the difference between a 5.4-inch and a 6.2-inch display is massive, so I wouldn’t be worried about my imaginary 6.2-inch Galaxy S24 Ultra selling poorly (for Samsung’s standards).
A cheaper Galaxy S24 Ultra model would be more attainable for some people
Another good reason to make a smaller Galaxy S24 Ultra is that the smaller version will most definitely be more affordable than the larger one. Using Apple’s iPhone 15 Pro as an example, a 6.2-inch Galaxy S24 Ultra would likely start at $1,000 compared to $1,200 (the rumored price of the Galaxy S24 Ultra).
Depending on how you buy your phones (carrier/full price upfront), a $200 price difference can be rather negligible, or a major selling point. For example, I’m a sucker for a great deal (whether I’m buying a new phone or a toaster), so getting a smaller phone that’s also cheaper would be a double win in my book.
Either way, just like in the case of Apple’s Pro iPhone, a $1,000 entry point into the premium Galaxy universe sounds quite a bit better than a $1,200 one.
The 6.2-inch Galaxy S24 isn’t premium enough to compete with the Galaxy S24 Ultra
Last but not least, I’m sure some of you are thinking the Galaxy S24 is the 6.2-inch one I should buy if I want a compact Samsung flagship, but I’d beg to disagree.
For one, the vanilla Galaxy S24 is expected to have a noticeably different design than the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which I happen to find rather bland. Also, the Galaxy S24 Ultra will have a titanium frame – a first ever for a Samsung flagship, and the Galaxy S24… won’t.
In a less subjective comparison, the Galaxy S24 will most certainly have a noticeably different, weaker camera system than that of the Ultra; only 128GB of storage; less RAM, and a far smaller battery.
Sure, the vanilla S24 is going to be a nice offer for those who want a great compact flagship but let’s be honest – it’s far from the most premium flagship phones on the market.
What would a smaller Galaxy S24 Ultra look like, and what’s stopping Samsung from making one?
This is what the smaller version of the Galaxy S24 Ultra could look like.
Another relevant point of hesitation on Samsung’s end might be the fact that the battery size of a smaller Galaxy S24 Ultra will have to be significantly reduced to accommodate all components necessary to make a premium Ultra flagship. In the end, making the phone smaller doesn’t mean it should be half as good as its larger sibling. However, given Qualcomm’s super-efficient flagship chips and the perfectly good battery life found in phones like the iPhone 15 and Samsung’s own Galaxy S23, the battery excuse is also weak.
The last technical reason I can think of is the camera system in a flagship like the Galaxy S24 Ultra, which is expected to be up there with the best and most flexible flagships on the market. No modern smartphone has both a quad camera system (with large sensors) and a compact display. Nothing comes even close.
But who said a smaller Galaxy S24 Ultra needs to have four cameras? If the phone is cheaper than the larger S24 Ultra, it can do away with the 3x zoom camera, while keeping the new 5x snapper. So, I’d say this speculative excuse also fails to convince me making a smaller Galaxy Ultra is a bad idea. In the end, the iPhone 15 Pro also has “only three” cameras.
Galaxy S24 Ultra will never be able to compete with the compact iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro
It’s easy to forget that the 6.8-inch Galaxy S24 Ultra can only compete with Apple’s 6.7-inch iPhone 15 Pro Max – not with the (very popular) 6.1-inch iPhone 15 Pro.
Why? Well, the 6.1-inch, curvy iPhone 15 Pro and 6.8-inch, rectangular Galaxy S24 Ultra are in two totally different categories solely due to the huge disparity in their size, weight, and design. And you simply can’t ignore the fact that many (if not all) people choose their new phone based on how comfortable it is to hold before they think about anything else. In fact, I can give you an example with my iPhone 15 Pro Max…
Sure, I have an iPhone 15 Pro Max and I use it… But that’s only because I should be testing the best, most premium iPhone available, and it just so happens that, this year, this phone is the largest, heaviest iPhone.
For the record, (and thankfully), if the rumors are to be believed Apple is very much expected to give the smaller iPhone 16 Pro exactly the same general hardware as the iPhone 16 Pro Max.
Either way, one thing is certain – we aren’t getting a smaller Galaxy S24 Ultra. But I hope my pitch won’t go to waste. Galaxy S25 Ultra (mini), please?
