Samsung Galaxy S24 FE – The value S24+ (smartphone review)

The $1099, 6.7” Samsung Galaxy S24 FE is a value version of the $1699 S24+. It is an everyday phone that does everyday things very well.

In fact, this year, both use the Samsung Exynos processor, so raw CPU/GPU performance is similar.

The FE edition is in response to fans asking for certain features at the expense of others to meet a price point. For example, it has a 1080p AMOLED screen (1440) but is not as bright at 1900 nits HDR peak (2600). It has Wi-Fi 6E (not 7), 8GB RAM (12), slower UFS 3.1 storage (4.0), smaller 4700 25W battery (4900 45W), lower camera specs, etc. On the plus side, it inherits a 2+7+7 Warranty/OS/security patch policy, which makes it more desirable.

Australian Review: Samsung Galaxy S24 FE, 8/128GB, single sim/eSIM, SM-712B

Brand	Samsung
Model	Samsung Galaxy S24 FE
Model Number	SM-721B
Price base	8/128 $1099
Price 2	8/256 $1199
Warranty months	24
Tier	Upper mid-range
Website	Product Page
From	Samsung Online and approved retailers
Country of Origin	Unknown – likely Vietnam
Company	Samsung is a South Korean multinational manufacturing conglomerate headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea. Samsung Electronics (the world’s largest information technology company, consumer electronics maker and chipmaker.
Test date	November 2024
Ambient temp	20-25°
Release	October 2024
Other models not for Australia (Don’t buy)*	Do not buy models ending in U, W, N or without a post-nominal.

* Grey market – no Australian warranty, and 5G may not work here

We strongly advise you to buy a genuine model with Australian firmware. Check at Settings, About Phone, Regulatory Labels and Australian RCM C-tick mark. Insist on a screen grab if you buy anywhere else.

Australian certified phones use unique Australian 5G sub-6Ghz and 5G low-band frequencies, requiring local activation first. Read Don’t buy a grey market smartphone.

Deep-Dive review format

We use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations) and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. We occasionally give a Pass(able) rating that is not as good as it should be and a Pass ‘+’ rating to show it is good but does not quite make it to Exceed. You can click on most images for an enlargement.

First Impression – Pass+

The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE is more like the Galaxy S24+ you have when you can’t quite afford it. It looks and feels premium, apart from the noticeably larger bezels. We compared the specs with the 2023 S23 FE, and the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE is impressively higher. Samsung has worked hard to make this good value and performance.

This is a phone for the people—admittedly, at $1099, the well-heeled ones. It is kind of a last-rite, pre-AI phone because while the Exynos 2400e processor has plenty of power, it is somewhat limited by 8GB of RAM and 128GB of slower UFS 3.1 storage.

Screen – Pass

It is a 1080p, 8-bit/16.7 million colour AMOLED screen—OK for the price, but most competitors now offer 10-bit/1.07 billion colour OLED screens. Samsung persists with 8-bit because it is more energy efficient, and no Samsung device supports Dolby Vision. It supports fixed 60 or 120Hz or adaptive steps between both.

The screen can produce 1900 nits in a 2% window when playing HDR10+ content. This is an excellent marketing figure, but in reality, it is 450 nits sustained – similar to most AMOLED screens.

We noticed two issues that some users may need to know.

First, it has a low 250Hz Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) frequency that will affect PWM-sensitive people and can induce migraines and nausea. Avoid this if you are susceptible to PWM.

Second, the video/photo colour preview is off courtesy of the 8-bit screen. It is only important to those wanting to do more than ‘point and shoot’ photography. Read 8-bit versus 10-bit screen colours. What is the big deal? if you need to know more.

Screen specs

Size	6.7″
Type	Dynamic AMOLED 2X
Flat, Curve, 2D, 3D	Flat with centre O-hole
Resolution	2340 x 1080
PPI	385
Ratio	19.5:9
Screen to Body %	88%
Colours bits	8-bit/16.7m colours
Refresh Hz, adaptive	60 or 120 or adaptive stepping.
Nits typical, test	Not disclosed Approx 450 nits  manual sustained brightness
Nits max, test	Claim 1900 peak Test 2050 nits in a 2% window playing HDR10+ content.
Contrast	Infinite
sRGB	100%
DCI-P3	Approx 95% of 8-bit colour gamut or 60% of 10-bit gamut.
Rec.2020 or other	RGB and temperature adjustment for basic calibration.
Delta E (<4 is excellent)	2
HDR Level	Plays SDR/HDR/HDR10/HDR10+ but not Dolby Vision.
SDR Upscale	No
Blue Light Control	Yes
PWM if known	All Samsung AMOLED use PWM 250Hz approx. – not for PWM-sensitive people
Daylight readable	Yes, but not quite bright enough for direct sunlight.
Always on Display	Yes
Edge display	Yes
Accessibility	Full suite of enhancements
DRM	Widevine L1 1080p HDR10 (most content is SDR)
Gaming	It has plenty of CPU power, excellent AMD ray-tracing GPU, and a fast-response screen. The only issue is 33% throttling.
Screen protection	Gorilla Glass Victus+
Comment	DXOMARK picked up on PWM, which severely affects 10% of the population with headaches, nausea, etc. The fact is that a far higher percentage are affected to a lesser degree by low Hz flicker, which is best avoided for constant use. Some brands have OLED or pOLED screens with PWM frequencies at 1000Hz or higher and don’t have PWM issues. It also highlighted the need for greater brightness uniformity and screen colour inaccuracy compared to photo/video colours.

AI – Passable

AI on this device is more about Call Assist, Chat assist, Interpreter, Note Assist, and things that can be done on the device. Google Circle Search is done in the Gemini cloud. In any case, using AI requires a Samsung Account sign-in, the possibility of monthly subscription fees later in 2025 and a decent internet connection.

Google has now stated that 12GB is the minimum for on-device Gemini AI Nano and is pushing 16GB as the new standard. In any case, I don’t think AI is a significant influencer for the purchase of this phone.

We have included a set of AI benchmarks. The problem is that none are directly comparable to TOPs (trillion operations per second), but we have put representative Qualcomm SD8 Gen 3 (the most powerful) results in brackets.

AI TOPS OR Multi-thread Integer Operations Per Second (INOPS) GINOPS = billion

Geekbench AI CPU 2312/2366/3522 (2429/2511/3758) GPU 1588/1361/1364 (958/1272/1278) NNAPI 307/318/1016 (444/431/948) ENN 3578/12271/22293 AI Benchmark 6 581 AiTuTu 40,315 (1,481,101) GFLOPS 21.27 (21.4) GNOPS 26.14 (26.15)

Processor – Pass+

The Samsung Galaxy S24 FE uses a Samsung Exynos 2400e (about 5-10% slower than the 2400, which is the basis of the S24+ and Google Pixel 9 Tensor G3).

The SoC performs well in synthetic benchmarks – it has heaps of power for on-device AI photograph post-processing.

It also has an Xclipse 940 GPU based on AMD RDNA. This gives hardware ray tracing and VRS (Variable Rate Shading), which applies lower shading rates in areas where they will not affect visual quality. It is excellent for mobile gamers.

This USB-C 3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps) port supports Alt DP to a monitor or TV over USB-C. However, it cannot mount external SSD storage to use as a drive, so it’s unsuitable for vloggers, videographers, etc.

Processor specs

Processor	Tests on battery and balanced mode
Brand, Model	Samsung Exynos 2400e   The link is for a faster 2400 version. Approx 5-10% slower version of the 2400.
nm	4nm made by Samsung
Cores	1 x 3.1Ghz + 2 x 2.9GHz + 3 x 2.6GHz + 4 x 2GHz 10-core
Modem	Samsung
Geekbench 6 Single-core	1941
Geekbench 6 multi-core	6064
Like	Sits between SD 8 Gen 2 and MediaTek Dimensity 9300 Benchmarks
GPU	Xclipse 940 based on AMD RDNA. Hardware-based ray tracing acceleration can show more light effects, such as the reflection and refraction of various objects in 3D graphic games.
GPU Test
Open CL	15,544 – very good
Like	Faster than an SD8 Gen 2
Vulcan	15726 – very good
RAM, type	8GB LPDDR5x
Storage, free, type	128GB UFS 3.1 (90GB free)
micro-SD	No
CPDT internal seq. Read MBps sustained/peak	628/871 – fit for purpose
CPDT internal seq. write MBps sustained/peak	1370/1910 – fit for purpose
CPDT microSD read, write MBps	N/A
CPDT external (mountable?) MBps	Won’t test. Seen by ‘Files’ as external storage but can’t mount as internal storage
Comment	Videographers and vloggers will soon run out of space without mountable storage, which is seen as internal storage.

Throttle Test – Passable

It throttles 33% under 100% load. CPU temperature did not exceed 50°, but the external case reached 43°, showing average thermal management.

Max GIPS	393107
Average GIPS	311340
Minimum GIPS	245298
% Throttle	33%
CPU Temp	50° but about 40° to touch
Comment	We re-ran the throttle test several times with similar results. Typical users will not notice but gamers should note that this could be an issue for them.

Comms – Pass+

• Wi-Fi 6E AXE reaches VT160 speeds of 2400Mbps full duplex (with a 6E capable router), holding 6GHz speeds out to 10 metres line-of-site. It then drops to 5Ghz to about 15m and then to 2.4GHz to about 30m. This shows a good antenna design.
• BT 5.3 is multi-point (can join two devices simultaneously) and holds well to about 30 metres line-of-sight. It now has the royalty-free aptX codec for better BT music.
• GPS is a dual-band with a 3m accuracy, so it can be used for in-car navigation at speed.
• It has NFC.
• DeX: It supports 1920 x 1080 (FHD) DeX (Desktop Experience) via USB-C to USB-C/HDMI/DP cable and Wi-Fi to connect monitors and smart TVs.

Comms	Internet speed test 100/20Mbps connected to 6GHz
Wi-Fi Type, model	Wi-Fi 6E AXE Tri-band VHT160
Test 2m -dBm, Rx/Tx Mbps	-36/1200/2300
Test 5m	-46/2300/2001
Test 10m	-52/1921/1793
BT Type	5.3
GPS single, dual	Dual 3m accuracy
USB type	3.2 Gen 1 (5Gbps)
ALT DP, DeX, Ready For	Yes, USB-C to HDMI or USB-C and Wi-Fi support are available for monitors or smart TVs.
NFC	Yes
Ultra-wideband	No
Sensors
Accelerometer	Yes – combo with Gyro
Gyro	Yes – combo with Gyro
e-Compass	Yes
Barometer	Yes
Gravity
Pedometer
Ambient light	Yes
Hall sensor	Yes
Proximity	Yes
Other
Comment	DeX cable and wireless support are great, but Samsung still has not implemented mountable storage (despite the SoC supporting it), so it is not for vloggers and videographers.

Tests on Wi-Fi 6E 6GHz band at 2, 5 and 10m. It is tytpcial that 2m tests report lower speeds that 5m or even 10m.

4/5G – Pass for city and suburb use

The Australian-certified version has a single SIM and an eSIM. Only one can be active at a time.

Samsung Exynos modems are acceptable for city and suburb use. It found 4G Band 3 at up to 5 pictowatts (pW)and 4G Band 28 at up to 4 picowatts. These signal strengths are far from the 20pW we see on some MediaTek and Qualcomm modems.

SIM	Single SIM and eSIM
Active	DSDS Only one at a time.
Ring tone single, dual	Single
VoLTE	Carrier dependent
Wi-Fi calling	Carrier dependent
4G Bands	B1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 66
Comment	All Australian 4G bands
5G sub-6Ghz	N1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 25, 26, 28, 66
Comment	All Australian and 5G low band
mmWave	No
Test Boost Mobile, Telstra
DL/UL, ms	54.1/14.1/25ms – above average
Tower 1 -dBm  fW or pW	Band 28 -86 to -94 and 4pW to 316.2fW
Tower 2	Band 3 -83 to -89 and 5pW TO 1.3Pw
Tower 3	Not usable
Tower 4	Not usable
Comment	The Exynos modem has improved over the S23 FE. It reliably found two towers on 4G but no usable 5G.

Battery – Pass

It is a minor point, but every recent Samsung we test has a lower capacity battery than advertised—it is called typical versus rated. We don’t deduct points as I am sure there are minor battery variances when made. The good news is that this has a 500-cycle full recharge before it drops to 80% charge retention. It also earns points for 15W Qi wireless charging.

Samsung loses points as it does not supply a charger, and this phone is particular about the volts/amps/watts it needs to fast charge. In fact, with a genuine 25W Samsung fast charger, it took over four hours to charge. We also had similar issues with GaN chargers. The 1 hour and 30 minute result below use a Google Pixel 10V/2A/30W charger and 5W cable.

Power users will get 8-10 hours; typical users must recharge daily.

Battery specs

mAh	3.88V/4.565A/17.72W Typical 3.88/4.7A/18.24W Rated 4700mAh 25W maximum charge. Rated 5-year life cycle.
Charger, type, supplied	Not supplied Tests with Samsung 25W gave excessive charge times. Invest in a multi-port 30W or higher GaN charger and a 5W cable for best results.
PD, QC level	PD QC 2.0
Qi, wattage	15W
Reverse Qi or cable	5W
Test (60Hz or adaptive screen)	Adaptive Screen
Charge % 30mins	Claim 50% in 30 minutes.
Charge 0-100%	Tends to charge at 10V/2A/20W Approx 1 hour and 30 minutes. If you use the wrong charger, it can take 4-5 hours.
Charge Qi, W Using Belkin Boost Charge 15W fast wireless charge	15W We got odd results on several 15W Qi chargers including a genuine Samsung 15W pad 7W. At this rate, it takes about 4.5 hours.
Charge 5V, 2A	4 hours 18 minutes
Video loop 50% brightness/volume Aeroplane mode	18 hours 50 minutes Samsung claims 28 hours.
PC Mark 3 battery (best indication of mixed use)	15 hours 38 minutes Accubattery 17 hours
GFX Bench Manhattan	Would not run – out of memory error.
GFX Bench T-Rex	405.7 minutes, 6.76 hours, 6685 frames
Drain 100-0% full load screen on	3 hours 38 minutes Accubattery 4 hours
mA Full load screen on	2500-3000mA
mA Watt idle Screen on	250-300mA
Estimate loss at max refresh	Up to 20%
Estimate typical use	We had odd battery results using a Samsung 25W charger. We tried two, and both seemed to be affected by some battery system settings. A 30W Google Pixel Charger gave the best results. It is pretty energy-hungry under load, so power users will get 8-10 hours, and typical users up to 24 hours.
Comment	No charger is penny-pinching. Out-of-memory error is common to the Exynos SoC and probably no issue.

Sound – stereo but mainly for clear voice – Pass

It has a hybrid stereo speaker—a top earpiece, a bottom speaker, and top and bottom mics. There is a definite volume bias towards the bottom speaker.

Speakers	Stereo – top earpiece and bottom down-firing. Volume and bass preference for the bottom speaker.
Tuning	No
AMP	2 x TFA98XX 1.6W TDH+N (5) .022 x TFA9879 MPX Class-D stereo amp and DPS 1.6, 2.65W@8, 4OHM .2% THD
Dolby Atmos decode	Downmix to two speakers
Hi-Res	16-bit/44100Hz stereo upscale to headphones only.
3.5mm	No
BT Codecs	SBC, AAC, aptX (royalty-free version), LDAC, SSC (Samsung Scalable Codec).
Multipoint	Can connect to two devices
Dolby Atmos (DA)	Yes – auto, movie, music, voice and games mode
EQ	Balanced, Bass Boost, Smooth, Dynamic, Clear, Treble Boost, and Custom make more of a difference in headphones, as the built-in speakers limit their capabilities.
Mics	2 – with background noise suppression – Care that the bottom mic is on the immediate left of USB-C and can be blocked by hand.
Test dB – all on EQ flat DA off
Volume max	78 – low but acceptable for personal use
Media (music)	75.4
Ring	75
Alarm	75
Notifications	75
Earpiece	50
Hands-free	The bottom mic is for voice only, and the top is for noise reduction. Hold the phone close, as the volume is a tad low.
BT headphones	Excellent left-right separation and DA makes quite a difference with DA content.

Sound quality – passable

It has no low- or mid-bass. High bass starts at 100Hz and builds slowly to 200Hz, so do not expect a good bass response. It keeps building to 1kHz, where clear voice resides. It is flat (good) in a narrow range from 1-5kHz, then declines to 20kHz. Technically, it is a mid-sound signature (bass recessed, mid boosted, treble recessed)—for clear voice, but music is tinny, hollow, and harsh (more Analytical).

You can read more about sound signatures and, what to look for (including test tracks) How to tell if you have good music (sound signature is the key).

Deep Bass 20-40Hz	No
Middle Bass 40-100Hz	No
High Bass 100-200Hz	Slowly building
Low Mid 200-400Hz	Slowly building
Mid 400-1000Hz	Flattening
High-Mid 1-2kHz	Flat
Low Treble 2-4kHz	Flat
Mid Treble 4-6kHz	Flat
High Treble 6-10kHz	Decline to 20kHz
Dog Whistle 10-20kHz	Decline to 20kHz
Sound Signature type	Mid: (bass recessed, mid boosted, treble recessed) – for clear voice. Music is tinny, hollow, and harsh at the mid/upper treble.
Soundstage	There is a definite bottom speaker bias. 2D is as wide as the phone. DA content gives a small bubble of sound around the phone.
Comment	Internal speakers are not the best for music – the focus is on clear voice for hands-free. Volume is below average.

Build – Very good – Pass+

Samsung has made great strides in repairability (see tear-down video later). It uses a sandwich approach, allowing the back glass and front screen to be reasonably easily removed (forget any IP rating afterwards). It is well made and scored 8.5/10 for repairability.

The phone and a 3W charging cable are all you get inbox. The warranty is 24 months.

Size (H X W x D)	162.0 x 77.3 x 8.0
Weight grams	213
Front glass	Gorilla Glass Victus+ fingerprint magnet
Rear material	Gorilla Glass Victus+ fingerprint magnet
Frame	Machined Aluminium
IP rating	68, 1.5m for 30 minutes, fresh, still water only.
Colours	Blue Mint Graphite
Pen, Stylus support	No
Teardown	Repair 8.5/10 – screen replacement requires removal of the rear panel and some motherboards.
In the box
Charger	No
USB cable	USB-A to USB-C rated 3W
Buds	No
Bumper cover	No
Comment	It’s nice to see IP68, but it’s a big, heavy phone with thick bezels.

Tear down video

Android 14 and seven years OS upgrades and OS patches – Exceed

Samsung (and Google) have a 2+7+7 year warranty, OS upgrades and security patches.  It is industry-leading but more about bragging rights than practicalities.

Analysts are already saying 8GB phones won’t be able to run 2025 Google Gemini Nano AI, and 128GB of storage is too small. The reality is that the upgrades are subject to the hardware’s ability to handle the new OS requirements. So, when you look at this, also consider other brands that may have a shorter 2+3+3 policy.

Samsung tries to draw you into its world with its Galaxy Apps, Samsung Account and Backup. There is nothing wrong with that; you can avoid these if you don’t want Samsung to know what you do. We strongly recommend using the Google app alternatives to make it easier if you ever want to exit the Samsung world.

Android	Android 14
Security patch date	1 October 2024
UI	UI 6.1
OS upgrade policy	7
Security patch policy	7
Bloatware	Samsung alternative to Google Suite. Microsoft Suite and OneDrive (requires subscription)
Other	Selection of Galaxy Apps
Comment	Excellent upgrade policy and One UI is easy to use
Security
Fingerprint sensor location, type	Optical under glass – slower than Ultrasonic found on S24
Face ID	2D
Other	Knox and Secure folder
Comment	One of the more secure Android devices

Samsung Galaxy S24 FE camera – Pass+

This is a three-sensor camera 50 (binned) +12 + 8MP—wide/ultrawide/telephoto. It is pretty much the same as the S22 FE and S23 FE. DXOMARK has rated it 133, a few steps above the S23 FE, because the processor has more AI post-processing smarts.

We found inaccurate screen preview colours for video and photographs, some bokeh issues, and a little too much noise in low-light shots. Let’s say that as a point-and-shoot camera, you cannot go wrong.

The videos were excellent; you can get 4K@30 with OIS and 1080p@60 with OIS and EIS.

Photo Test

Camera Specs

Rear Primary	Wide
MP	50MP BINS TO 12.5MP
Sensor	Samsung S5K36L
Focus	Dual Pixel PDAF
f-stop	1.8
um	1 (bins to 2)
FOV° (stated, actual)	74.1 to 86.7
Stabilisation	OIS
Zoom	10X digital
Rear 2	Ultrawide
MP	12MP
Sensor	DXOMARK 133 Same as Samsung S23/+, 24/+, Fold6, Pixel 7a, iPhone 14/+ Good overall performance, slightly reduced by inaccurate video preview, bokeh and noise in low light.
Focus	Fixed
f-stop	2.2
um	1.12
FOV (stated, actual)	123 (104.3 TO 116.3)
Stabilisation	No
Zoom	8x
Rear 3	Telephoto
MP	8
Sensor	Omnivision OV08A1
Focus	Fixed
f-stop	2.4
um	1.12
FOV (stated, actual)	29.2 to 36.1
Stabilisation	OIS
Zoom	3X Optical 30X Space  zoom
Video max	8K@30 OIS/EIS 4K@30
Flash	1
Auto-HDR	Yes
QR code reader	Yes
Night mode	Nightography
DXO Mark	DXOMARK 133 Same as Samsung S23/+, 24/+, Fold6, Pixel 7a, iPhone 14/+ Good overall performance, slightly reduced by inaccurate video preview, bokeh and noise in low light.

Samsung Galaxy S24 FE Front Camera

The selfies were natural with good dynamic range. The field of view is pretty narrow—not for group selfies.

Front	Selfie
MP	10 but produces 7.3MP cropped images
Sensor	Samsung S5K3J1
Focus	Fixed focus can result in out-of-focus shots.
f-stop	2.4
um	1.22
FOV (stated, actual)	62.9 to 73.1
Stabilisation	No
Flash	Screen fill
Zoom	No
Video max	4K@60fps
Comment	The camera is largely unchanged from the S22/S23 FE. It is a good overall performer but shows the reuse of older tech to meet a price point.

CyberShack’s view: Samsung S24 FE is Galaxy S24+ you can afford

Samsung makes good gear, and the Galaxy S24 series are its best glass slabs. While we can see the compromises made to bring the Samsung Galaxy S24 FE in at a lower price point, they don’t affect day-to-day use.

My concerns are that it only has 8MB RAM, 128GB storage, and city and suburb phone signal strength. If that does not bother you, then this is a great buy.

Competition – 6.7” OLED

At $1099 for 8/128GB, there are better value phones.

The $999 Motorola Edge 50 Pro is our pick of the year as it is the only one that met or exceeded all 15 judging criteria (read Best Android phones 11/2024). It has a 6.7” pOLED (no PWM), Qualcomm SD7 Gen 3 SoC, 12/256 RAM/Storage (plus virtual RAM), and a better camera system. It is suitable for city, suburb, regional and rural use.

The $999 Nothing Phone 2 has a Qualcomm SD8+ Gen 1 and 12/256GB and arguably a more flexible 50+50MP camera. It is suitable for city, suburb, regional and rural use. The 512GB version is $1099.

The $999 OPPO Reno 12 Plus has a MediaTek Dimensity 7300, 12/512GB, and a huge 50+50+8MP camera. It is a city and suburb phone.

Samsung Galaxy S24 FE ratings

Features	80
	Solid processor, but compromises to meet a price like UFS 3.1 and 8GB limit this phone’s future, especially for AI use. There is no microSD, charger, or 8-bit screen. It is not for PWM-sensitive people.
Value	80
	The Exynos 2400e performs well, but there are other phones in this price bracket with Qualcomm or MediaTek Dimensity, more RAM, and faster storage that perform better.
Performance	80
	We keep saying its performance is good but throttles badly, and lower-cost/speed components hamper the processor.
Ease of Use	90
	Long warranty, OS update and security patch. One UI 6.1 is easy to use
Design	80
	It is a glass slab with no distinguishing features except a coloured back.
Rating out of 10	83
Final comment	It is a worthy successor to the S23 FE with a much brighter screen and faster processor.

Brought to you by CyberShack.com.au