The Samsung Galaxy S24 series has a lot of exciting new features powered by Galaxy AI, but those features may need paying for separately down the line.
Free use of the Galaxy AI suite will apparently be cut off by the end of 2025, giving you up to two free years of use depending on how quickly you buy the phone. This was spotted in Samsung's Australian press release (via Android Central) for the Galaxy S24 series. Right at the end of the release in the small print, we find the statement: "Galaxy AI features will be provided free of charge until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices."
It's not that Australian Galaxy S24 buyers happen to be uniquely unlucky. Looking in the small print of the Samsung site page for the Galaxy S24 Ultra, we see a similar disclaimer: "Galaxy AI features will be provided for free until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices. Different terms may apply for AI features provided by third parties."
PAY-AI
Galaxy AI is the biggest talking point surrounding the new Samsung phones after Galaxy Unpacked on January 17. Abilities like Circle to Search, generative AI photo editing and Chat Assist show how diverse the possible uses of the system are, but the potential of these features eventually being paid extras perhaps takes the shine off of them.
There are legitimate arguments for and against Samsung charging for its AI. No doubt developing and running these features, especially any that require an internet connection to work, costs Samsung. Equally, removing features from a phone that's already had them for two years unless you pay for them, and without making that fact obvious at launch, would be a mercenary move on Samsung's part.
There are some possible silver linings to look for in these small-print findings. The text doesn't say charges are definitely coming, only that they are free to use for a specific period of time. There's nothing to stop Samsung from extending the freebie period, like we just saw Apple do with its satellite safety features for the iPhone 14 and iPhone 15 series.
Plus there's the fact that Samsung's own AI features are separated from third-party ones in the disclaimer. Maybe you will still be able to use some features for free, depending on who runs them. This could be the case for the Google-powered features like Circle to Search, as Google hasn't specified a limit to free AI feature usage on the Pixel 8 series to the best of our knowledge.
Galaxy S24 pre-orders are available now until January 31, when the phones go on open sale. You can take a look at our Galaxy S24 hands-on and Galaxy S24 Ultra hands-on reviews if you need some more detail on other features like the Ultra's new 5x telephoto camera and titanium frame before you hit the buy button, or want to know what other AI features you may end up losing out on in a couple of years' time.
More from Tom's Guide
- Samsung Galaxy S24 vs S24 Plus vs S24 Ultra — all the biggest differences
- Google Maps just got a big Bluetooth upgrade — why that's good for you
- Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra vs Galaxy S23 Ultra: Biggest upgrades
