A new rumor suggests the upcoming Galaxy S24 Ultra will sport a titanium frame making it the first of Samsung’s smartphones to be made out of the metal.
According to Korean tech news site The Elec, the company has apparently been considering using titanium in its devices for the past two years, but only recently made the decision to implement it – presumably because the iPhone 15 Pro recently did the same. Perhaps Samsung feels inspired. The report states about 15 million titanium cases will be manufactured, however, it’ll cost the tech giant big. Switching to this metal will bump up the cost of each unit by “four to five times”. Currently, Samsung uses aluminum cases for its phones, which cost around $20 per unit. Do the math and the company may have to end up paying $100 per unit or $1.5 billion in total.
The cost of titanium
It's entirely possible the S24 Ultra could see a significant price increase from the Galaxy S23 Ultra to make up for the cost in manufacturing. In addition to an increased price tag, the flagship smartphone may be heavier than previous models as titanium is denser than aluminum. This runs contrary to the iPhone 15 Pro's weight reduction compared to the iPhone 14 Pro. This is because Apple used stainless steel on the older device which is denser than titanium.
There’s no word on whether or not the Galaxy S24, S24 Plus, or any other Samsung device will have the metal in its construction, although it is possible. The Elec claims that “depending on [the] reception”, future Galaxy models could be made out of titanium. In our opinion, we think Samsung will only use the material on single-screen hardware and not on foldables. As MacRumors points out, titanium is “more difficult to handle in cutting and processing, [plus] its low heat conductivity makes it harder to cut cleanly.”
Pastel array
The rumors don’t stop there as industry insider Ice Universe claimed on X (the platform formerly known as Twitter) the Galaxy S24 series will be available in seven different colors: black, gray, violet, yellow, green, blue, and orange. They didn’t post a picture revealing how the different shades would look, but PhoneArena did create a few renders showcasing potential designs.
For the first time in a while, Samsung is said to significantly change the design of its Galaxy flagships. Check out these renders that visualize all of the rumored differences. https://t.co/z3pxryVOKmNovember 3, 2023
As with every rumor, take this information with a grain of salt. Things could always change at the last minute.
Black Friday may be three weeks away, but we’re already seeing some big price cuts online. Be sure to check out TechRadar’s latest roundup of the best Black Friday 2023 deals for Samsung devices.
