Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra titanium frame and screen upgrades don’t seem to provide an advantage in the drop test
The Samsung Galaxy S24Ultra may be more susceptible to breaking if dropped than older ones Galaxy S23Ultra and it may be more difficult to return if an error occurs.
In a fragility test conducted by the insurance company, Allstate protection plans all three Samsung Galaxy S24 models were dropped facing forward onto a sidewalk (or sidewalk, if you’re American) from a height of 6 feet. As you would expect, this resulted in broken screens and loose glass on all models. The test was repeated on the back, which broke all three phones, rendering all phones unusable again.
However, the Galaxy 24 Ultra appeared to have the most damage in the test, which according to the video was worse than last year’s Galaxy S23 Ultra.
The Galaxy S23 Ultra was seen in another video appearing to take the beating a little better than its newer counterpart. The biggest surprise, however, was that it was Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 was tested in the same drop tests and found to be the most resistant. This is surprising due to the more delicate and complicated parts used in a foldable phone compared to the arguably sturdier Galaxy S23 and S24 Ultra phones.
The Galaxy S24 Ultra is expected to be more resistant to damage, especially since two of the phone’s key features are the upgrade Corning Gorilla Armor and the addition of Samsung’s first titanium frame, which should be much more resistant due to its higher tensile strength compared to standard aluminum.
Titanium disassembly
Zack Nelson, from the YouTube channel JerryRigEverything performed previously scratch testing on both the screen and frame of the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra, stating that the new glass and frame appear more resilient, but he also questioned the quality of the titanium used.
This was recently discovered follow up, Nelson tore the phone apart and used a special XRF scanner to identify the grade of titanium used as grade 2 titanium. Grade 2 should still provide more protection than aluminum, but is likely not as resistant as aluminum iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max’s grade 5 titanium.
Fix nightmares
Adding to the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra’s issues, users are reporting that horizontal green lines appear on their screen after just a few days.
On the Samsung Community forum user: Qu1JcMmaCO explained after reporting the appearance of a green line on the screen to Samsung Care+, they were told it was a manufacturing defect and they could not exchange it.
The users claimed that Samsung told them to return the device and repurchase it, which would cause them to lose their pre-order discount and have to pay more for the device. Samsung then apparently told the user to file a complaint with its carrier, T-Mobile, which understandably left the user confused and disappointed.
Remark by r/S24Ultra
The same problem appeared on Reddit user’s Galaxy S24 Ultra, Independent-Bet-4916. The user claimed that speaking to Samsung was “the worst gaslighting experience of my life.” They would reportedly have to talk to their carrier, Verizon, and receive a new device through them. The user then claims that a Verizon store associate accused them of damaging the phone and after speaking to another Verizon store, they were advised to purchase a new device and send the old one to Verizon to receive a refund .
However, the Galaxy S24 Ultra’s green line defects are reportedly rare and will likely require professional repair or screen replacement. We’ve reached out to Samsung and have yet to comment on these issues, but we’ll update this article if and when we hear from the company.
While it’s not too shocking to have your phone shatter if dropped, the Galaxy S24 Ultra was expected to be much more resilient thanks to the new titanium construction and improved glass; it’s also a reminder to consider a phone case or even opt for phone insurance to potentially save money and hassle in the long run.