Samsung Galaxy S24+ vs OnePlus 12: A Battle Closer Than Expected
Samsung launched its next-generation Android flagship Galaxy S24 series earlier this year. It has three smartphones as usual and the Galaxy S24+ is the sweet spot. It does not cost a fortune like the Ultra but offers more features than the vanilla variant.
As one would expect, there are rival smartphones it has to compete against. One such smartphone is the OnePlus 12, a device that offers flagship-level specifications and performance at relatively cheaper pricing. Let’s have a closer look at how these smartphones stack up against each other.
Design and Display
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ and OnePlus 12 come with a distinctive design. Both these smartphones are easy to spot even when you put them against other devices. Starting with the Galaxy S24+, it continues the same design language seen previously in the Galaxy S series. You get a flat back panel with flat frames, glass, and a flushed triple camera setup. It also has an IP68 rating for water and dust protection.
The OnePlus 12 has a curved design with a big circular rear camera module. You get all the camera sensors and LED flash within this module. Since it is a flagship device, you get glass on the back.
The Galaxy S24+ sports a 6.7-inch Quad HD+ (1440 x 3120 pixels) Dynamic LTPO AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. It has a 2,600 nits peak brightness, HDR10+ support, Always On Display, and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection.
As for the OnePlus 12, you will get a 6.82-inch LTPO AMOLED display with 1440 x 3168 pixels resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. It offers HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 4,500 nits peak brightness, Always On Display, and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection.
Both smartphones undoubtedly have a superior display that will not leave you disappointed. However, OnePlus offers a curved display panel and higher peak brightness if you care about that.
Performance
Both Samsung Galaxy S24+ and OnePlus 12 come with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 processor in the United States. It is a 4nm octa-core flagship chipset and is currently the best one you can get from Qualcomm. There is an Adreno 750 GPU for handling graphics-intensive tasks including gaming. You should not have any issues in day-to-day tasks with any of these smartphones and also enjoy AAA mobile gaming.
You get 12GB of high-performance RAM on both flagships but the OnePlus 12 is also available in a 16GB RAM variant. Samsung offers up to 256GB UFS 4.0 storage and OnePlus gives you an option to choose up to 1TB UFS 4.0 storage.
Cameras
The OnePlus 12 has a triple camera setup featuring a 50MP wide-angle sensor, a 64MP periscope telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom, and a 48MP ultra-wide sensor. You get phase detection autofocus (PDAF) with all three sensors but only the first two cameras offer OIS support. OnePlus has collaborated with Hasselblad to tune up the camera performance which has improved from the last year.
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ also has a triple camera setup but offers a 50MP wide-angle sensor, a 10MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom, and a 12MP ultra-wide sensor. The first two cameras also offer PDAF and OIS. Both smartphones are capable of shooting 8K videos at 24fps and 4K videos at 30fps and 60fps.
Both devices offer a superior camera performance but the Samsung Galaxy S24+ is more consistent and reliable across different lighting situations. Low-light conditions are where you will be left desiring more if you opt for OnePlus.
Software
The Samsung Galaxy S24+ comes with One UI 6.1 based on Android 14. Samsung has improved One UI significantly in recent times. It has been made a lot cleaner and now feels smoother and better in everyday usage. It has also improved its stance on software updates as Galaxy flagships are now known to receive more regular updates. Samsung has promised 7 years of major OS upgrades with the Galaxy S24 series. It also introduced a bunch of AI features called Galaxy AI like Circle to Search, live call transcription, and note summary.
The OnePlus 12 boots OxygenOS 14 based on Android 14 out of the box. There used to be a time when OnePlus’ software experience was one of the best but those days are long gone. Even hardcore OnePlus fans feel OxygenOS is not the same as it used to be in the early days. But if we look past the comparison from previous offerings, OxygenOS is still a good software experience. You will not notice anything major wrong in your usage, especially if you have not used OxygenOS before. OnePlus has promised four years of major OS upgrades and five years of security updates.
Battery
The OnePlus 12 comes with a huge 5,400mAh battery with 80W wired fast charging in the United States. It is claimed to charge the smartphone from zero to 100% within 30 minutes. There is also support for 50W wireless charging (full charge in 55 minutes) and 10W reverse wireless charging.
In comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S24+ packs a 4,900mAh battery which is relatively smaller. It further offers only 45W wired fast charging and 15W wireless charging.
Verdict
It is a hard task to pick just one winner between the Samsung Galaxy S24+ and OnePlus 12. Both smartphones are loaded with high-end specifications and features that you would expect from a 2024 Android flagship. However, if you know what you want from your next smartphone and how much you are willing to spend, it becomes a lot easier to pick one.
The OnePlus 12 is the right choice for you if you want everything “flagship” without paying a “flagship price”. If you are someone who has no budget restrictions or prefers things like AI features and a longer software support, go with the Samsung Galaxy S24+.
- CIRCLE & SEARCH¹ IN A SNAP: What’s your favorite influencer wearing? Where’d they go on vacation? What’s that word...
- REAL EASY, REAL-TIME TRANSLATIONS: Speak foreign languages on the spot with Live Translate²; Unlock the power of convenient...
- Comes with 6 months of Google One and 3 months of Youtube Premium with purchase of OnePlus 12. (New accounts only for each...
- Pure Performance: The OnePlus 12 is powered by the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, with up to 16GB of RAM. The improved processing...
Note: This article may contain affiliate links that help support our authors and keep the Phandroid servers running.