Without AI, there wouldn't be much to say about Samsung's Galaxy S24 Ultra. While overall it's a nice Android phone, it's not significantly different from last year's Galaxy S23 Ultra. The new titanium frame, flat display, and minor upgrades in brightness and processing power can't shake the feeling of similarity. The true novelty of the S24 Ultra lies in its software, where Samsung has introduced a range of generative AI features. These include the ability to summarize web pages, rewrite text messages, improve handwriting, and translate phone calls in real time. The AI camera tricks, such as object repositioning and adding smooth slo-mo to videos, are also interesting. However, the AI additions don't make the phone markedly better. Learning to use the AI features can be cumbersome, and many of them aren't practical enough to warrant the extra effort. Currently, the phone's performance still outweighs the novelty of AI. One of the major drawbacks of Samsung's new AI features is their association with Samsung apps that are not universally preferred. For instance, web page summaries only work with Samsung's stock browser, which lacks history syncing with other devices and heavily promotes Samsung Pass password manager. The summaries themselves are brief and lack room for follow-up queries, making them unappealing. The Chat Assist feature, which can rewrite text messages with emoji suggestions, is promising but falls short in practice due to unintelligent gesture typing recognition. Although Samsung's Notes app offers noteworthy AI features, such as auto-formatting and editing text, other note-taking apps like Obsidian remain preferable.

The generative AI editing features for photos have some advantages, but they are not easily accessible and yield mixed results. While being able to remove unwanted objects from photos is a great feature, it can produce peculiar outcomes in less than optimal conditions. Repositioning people in photos is also challenging to execute seamlessly, even though it sounds appealing in theory. The shadow and reflection removal features are impressive but are hidden and difficult to find. The Instant Slo Mo feature, utilizing AI frame generation to slow down videos without sacrificing smoothness, is the standout among the photo tricks. Unfortunately, Samsung falls short on the audio recording app, as it lacks the integration of handwriting alongside transcripts, a feature that would greatly enhance utility. Overall, Samsung's AI features feel more like add-ons that could easily be fulfilled by third-party software. If Samsung aims to make generative AI a significant aspect, it should consider deeper integration across the board. Instead of a summarize feature limited to Samsung's browser, a universal shortcut for summarizing any document would be more versatile. Making AI rewriting compatible with any text field, irrespective of the keyboard in use, would be a notable improvement. Additionally, exploring the potential of using AI to automate actions on apps and websites, as seen with Rabbit, could elevate the experience. However, it's worth noting that such additions could also impede user experience, and part of the appeal of Samsung phones lies in their minimalist approach. Samsung may eventually monetize AI features, but currently, they are not compelling enough to justify purchasing the phone exclusively for them. Being able to disregard or choose not to use the AI features is not necessarily a drawback, especially considering the phone's other favorable qualities.