S24+ / S24 Ultra, or…?

[davek_964]

I mentioned on another thread that App updates are beginning to cause me problems because they no longer work with my phone (Note 9) - so I'm considering a new phone. The problem is, I don't really want one so need a little convincing.
My Note 9 was already being phased out when I bought it in 2020, but I bought it because features I wanted didn't appear on the newer models (SD card, headphone socket, status LED) so I got the last model "new" phone I could that had those (although I don't use the headphone socket these days).

I prefer Samsung - I have a Samsung watch and tablets, but might be persuaded by other brands if they offer me something positive. However, it's very unlikely I'd buy Motorola - I had their "premium" phone (Startac) many years ago and it was utter garbage.

Since there is no SD card, I want at least 512GB.
If you can still buy them, I'd consider S23s - but since I'm having to replace mine due to lack of support - buying an "old" model seems like a dumb idea.

So the favourites are S24 Ultra and S24+. Problem is - I like having the stylus (even though I use it rarely) which means Ultra over plus, but the Ultra is one of the ugliest things I've seen. The plus is a much better form factor.

I don't care about camera quality - I rarely take photos and as long as they're adequate I'm happy.
I don't care about 5G, although I assume I'll get it anyway with a newer phone - although I'm unlikely to upgrade my plan.

I would like dual SIM support with eSIM as the second SIM. We're going to Barbados later this year, and EE don't do any roaming deals there which means the phone is pretty useless. A local eSIM might be handy.
It must have fingerprint as biometrics - face recognition is rubbish.

Any suggestions for why an S24 Ultra or S24+ would be a good thing - or something else that would be better? I feel like I need to spend a chunk of money and not really get anything new that I need - simply to get my apps working again. That - plus the hassle of setting up a new phone - make me a bit reluctant to bother, even though I should be excited about a new shiny phone!
I could also wait for S25 next year, but I suspect that will basically be a slightly shinier S24 that still doesn't offer anything I want but costs more.

I do not want iPhone.

[BlueJazz]

Have you considered a Galaxy Fold? They too use the stylus (need to option it in and pick a suitable case) and have a much bigger screen due to the folding. The camera system isn't much to write home about but works well in most circumstances.
A new model is due soon so there's plenty of opportunity for discount or getting a refurbished one.

[Mammasaid]

Pixel 8 Pro - 7 years of updates, can do dual sim, has option of fingerprint as well as face unlock (which is very good, btw), and doesn't come with loads of bloatware.

https://store.google.com/gb/config/pixel_8_pro?hl=...

[davek_964]

BlueJazz said:

Have you considered a Galaxy Fold? They too use the stylus (need to option it in and pick a suitable case) and have a much bigger screen due to the folding. The camera system isn't much to write home about but works well in most circumstances.
A new model is due soon so there's plenty of opportunity for discount or getting a refurbished one.

I have actually - and that would make it more like a new toy. I've seen people using them and I do like them.

I'm not sure I fully trust the screen to last - and I think I'll find it too thick to fit comfortably in my pocket - but I do need a proper look at them.

Sadly - if the new model is released in a couple of weeks, it's likely I'd buy that

ETA : I just happen to have a laptop power dock thing which is roughly the same dimensions as the Fold 5 - certainly the same thinkness, albeit very slightly shorter / narrower.
That fits in the pocket fine - and the Fold 5 is actually shorter and narrower than the Note 9 anyway - so I don't think it will be a problem.

Thanks for the suggestion. Read a few Fold 5 reviews this morning, and I think there is a very good chance I'll be buying a Fold 6 in a few weeks....... rather than being reluctant, I'm actually quite excited at the prospect now! Even though the price has probably just jumped significantly.

I was also waiting for the Watch 7 to be announced, so July might be a rather expensive month.....

Edited by davek_964 on Friday 28th June 10:14

[Brother D]

davek_964 said:

BlueJazz said:

Have you considered a Galaxy Fold? They too use the stylus (need to option it in and pick a suitable case) and have a much bigger screen due to the folding. The camera system isn't much to write home about but works well in most circumstances.
A new model is due soon so there's plenty of opportunity for discount or getting a refurbished one.

I have actually - and that would make it more like a new toy. I've seen people using them and I do like them.

I'm not sure I fully trust the screen to last - and I think I'll find it too thick to fit comfortably in my pocket - but I do need a proper look at them.

Sadly - if the new model is released in a couple of weeks, it's likely I'd buy that

ETA : I just happen to have a laptop power dock thing which is roughly the same dimensions as the Fold 5 - certainly the same thinkness, albeit very slightly shorter / narrower.
That fits in the pocket fine - and the Fold 5 is actually shorter and narrower than the Note 9 anyway - so I don't think it will be a problem.

Thanks for the suggestion. Read a few Fold 5 reviews this morning, and I think there is a very good chance I'll be buying a Fold 6 in a few weeks....... rather than being reluctant, I'm actually quite excited at the prospect now! Even though the price has probably just jumped significantly.

I was also waiting for the Watch 7 to be announced, so July might be a rather expensive month.....

Edited by davek_964 on Friday 28th June 10:14

Sort of same position- think I'll wait to see what July brings - often some good deals

[davek_964]

I'm hoping the fold 6 will be a more conventional form factor.

I am a little wary of the screen - I accept it will be a fragile part but there seem to be a lot people saying that Samsung refused warranty claims because there was a tiny tiny scratch or chip somewhere else on the phone

[gangzoom]

davek_964 said:

I'm not sure I fully trust the screen to last - and I think I'll find it too thick to fit comfortably in my pocket - but I do need a proper look at them.

My Fold 4 developed a screen issue after about 16 months of use, Samsung however have a 2 year warranty and honoured the repair with no issues, they essentially replaced everything on the phone apart the front screen. Whilst the Fold was repaired I picked up a cheapo slab phone which had a better camera, honestly couldn’t wait to get back to the Fold 4.

I often end up having to do Teams calls when travelling across sites, reply to emails etc on the move, the extra screen space is really useful. The folding bit also makes for a very sturdy stand/support for watching stuff on whilst you rest it on pretty much any surface.

It would be interesting to see what changes to the Fold 6, as the 3/4/5 have all been pretty similar spec bump updates.

[the-norseman]

I'd be looking at the S24's and The Pixel 8 Pro.

[Luke.]

Had a Fold 3 and now on a Fold 5. Brilliant devices and a bit of a game changer. The 6 is going to be a couple of mm wider and with squarer corners. Same camera and battery as the 5, so nothing to write home about really.

I picked my 5 up from GiffGaff as used but in new condition for £799. It arrived absolutely spotless with the protective plastic coverings in place. So worth having a look around. The 6 is likely to be ££££....

[Scabutz]

I wouldn't completely discount the S23. I still have an S20 and it's still supported and regularly get updates pushed out to it. Although I understand this is the last year of support.

https://www.androidpolice.com/samsung-four-year-up...

According to this S23 has 4 years ahead of it still.

[Brother D]

davek_964 said:

BlueJazz said:

Have you considered a Galaxy Fold? They too use the stylus (need to option it in and pick a suitable case) and have a much bigger screen due to the folding. The camera system isn't much to write home about but works well in most circumstances.
A new model is due soon so there's plenty of opportunity for discount or getting a refurbished one.

I have actually - and that would make it more like a new toy. I've seen people using them and I do like them.

I'm not sure I fully trust the screen to last - and I think I'll find it too thick to fit comfortably in my pocket - but I do need a proper look at them.

Sadly - if the new model is released in a couple of weeks, it's likely I'd buy that

ETA : I just happen to have a laptop power dock thing which is roughly the same dimensions as the Fold 5 - certainly the same thinkness, albeit very slightly shorter / narrower.
That fits in the pocket fine - and the Fold 5 is actually shorter and narrower than the Note 9 anyway - so I don't think it will be a problem.

Thanks for the suggestion. Read a few Fold 5 reviews this morning, and I think there is a very good chance I'll be buying a Fold 6 in a few weeks....... rather than being reluctant, I'm actually quite excited at the prospect now! Even though the price has probably just jumped significantly.

I was also waiting for the Watch 7 to be announced, so July might be a rather expensive month.....

Edited by davek_964 on Friday 28th June 10:14

Sort of same position- think I'll wait to see what July brings - often some good deals

[davek_964]

Luke. said:

Had a Fold 3 and now on a Fold 5. Brilliant devices and a bit of a game changer. The 6 is going to be a couple of mm wider and with squarer corners. Same camera and battery as the 5, so nothing to write home about really.

I picked my 5 up from GiffGaff as used but in new condition for £799. It arrived absolutely spotless with the protective plastic coverings in place. So worth having a look around. The 6 is likely to be ££££....

Yeah. Rumours seem to suggest that it will probably be over £2k, especially for the 512GB / 1TB versions.

If the fold 6 was a bit more conventional size when folded, and integrated the s pen - I might be willing to spend that. But it looks like it won't be significantly different from the Fold 5 - that's the same kind of money as the S24 Ultra at ~£1,350. The fold 6 needs to be significantly better to justify me spending an extra £1k, especially since that would cover the watch 7....

[SP_]

The S24 Ultra is available with some incredible deals at the moment
https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/samsung-ultimate-...

[gangzoom]

Steam sale is now on, combined with some more interesting F1 racing reminded how versatile the Fold is. Paying £2k for one is mad, but there always good deals on the older versions which in reality are all just incremental spec bumps.

Running every setting on max using GFN, turns the Fold into a decent mobile gaming rig.

[davek_964]

Currys don't even list the fold 5 now but a local CEX had one so we went to take a look.

Quite nice to hold and the folding / unfolding felt good - it was stiffer than I expected it to be. I'm not a big fan of the outside screen form factor though.
By chance, the salesman had previously owned a fold 5 and was very helpful. He pointed out something that I'd noticed in reviews - that even unfolded, because of the aspect ratio you end up with big black bars above / below videos which means that the viewable area is barely larger than a traditional phone - particularly the S24 Ultra.
That would be a bit annoying because it would mean when flying short hall - which we do 4 or 5 times a year - I'd probably still want to take a tablet and that's a bit of a big negative.

Unfolded would work well for browsing etc, although the salesman said he did that less than he expected and used the front screen most of the time simply because it was there / quicker.

I'll see what the 10th July brings - I suspect it won't be different enough from the 5 to convince me and I'm not sure I'd order a 5 in preference to S24+ or ultra. But I have 10 days to think about it.

[SP_]

Perhaps look at the OnePlus open. It has a more usable form factor, better cameras, etc

[davek_964]

SP_ said:

Perhaps look at the OnePlus open. It has a more usable form factor, better cameras, etc

I do like the look of it - but it doesn't have wireless charging, and these days I don't think I could live with that.

[gangzoom]

davek_964 said:

Unfolded would work well for browsing etc, although the salesman said he did that less than he expected and used the front screen most of the time simply because it was there / quicker.

It all depends on what you want/use the phone for. For me ‘Typing’ on the larger virtual keyboard is easier, the Outlook app in particular is almost/if not better than the desktop version. Teams, and Acrobat/Word on the Fold are also games changers for me compared to using a slab phone. I turn up to face to face meetings these days with just the Fold rather than the laptop, though sometimes if there are very detailed documents that’s need sighting I’ll use the iPad. But for ‘on the go’ productivity the Fold is an absolutely monster.

I think if all I wanted to do with view media, it’s probably not that much different to a slab phone. I often use it folded up for the stand when using YouTube in the background when cooking etc.



But don’t underestimate how good the inner screen is, games on it look amazing, either emulators or streaming etc, with a few addons you really do get an amazing mobile gaming rig, it’s just a shame these days I simply don’t have time for games. If tech like the Fold existed when I was doing my GCSEs I don’t think I would have done any work!

[davek_964]

I play games on a PS5, but I never play games on my phone or tablet and doubt I ever will.

I think that part of the appeal of the fold phones is that I don't really want to upgrade my phone - especially since I don't really like the look of the S24 Ultra - and at least the fold is different, and hence gives me "something" back for having to change.

Most of my use is listening to music (where it would be folded), and then browsing / email / spreadsheets / banking etc. - all of which would be good with it in tablet form. Videos when flying, and as I said - the fact that won't be much better than a phone might be an issue.

The OnePlus does seem to be a better phone from the reviews - and perhaps I could even live without wireless. But I'm a bit wary of buying something that seems a bit niche. I can't buy it from Amazon / Curry's - and equally, while I could buy a 100 different cases etc. for a Samsung, that's not going to be the case with the OnePlus.
I will do some more research over the next few days though.

[justin220]

I'm another fan of the Samsung Fold. I currently have the 3, and no major issues to report of over the last three years. I mainly use it for media when travelling and things like Netflix/Youtube are brilliant on it. I've not felt the need for a tablet since I bought it. Its fantastic having the inner screen open for multitasking.

I don't agree that the screen isn't much bigger than the slab phones, I guess it depends on how much bigger you need. Sure it will never be a full size tablet, but its noticeably bigger than my wife's iPhone when watching video.

The real disappointment with the Fold's are the cameras. The 3 is OK at best, its a real shame Samsung don't put the S24 ultra camera into them, and its significantly better. Again as a comparison to my wife's iPhone, hers is miles ahead.

Tempted to upgrade to the Fold 6 when its launched, but the camera is holding me back. I'd massively miss the screen however if I go for the S24+