Galaxy S24 first look: Translation is a letdown, but Circle to Search is handy

Tech

Published: 18 Jan. 2024, 19:37 Updated: 19 Jan. 2024, 08:43

Galaxy S24 first look: Translation is a letdown, but Circle to Search is handy

A user experiences Galaxy S24 Ultra's "Circle to Search" AI feature co-developed with Google at Times Square in Yeongdeungpo District in western Seoul on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Look for the stars when summoning AI on your Galaxy S24.

A bundle of little stars — sometimes three, sometimes four — will appear on the phone's screen whenever Galaxy AI is ready to intervene, for example, to offer translation or photo editing tools. When the algorithm is processing, these little stars appear again to replace the familiar spinning wheel.

Samsung Electronics showcased the Galaxy S24 series in Seoul on Thursday and detailed some of its key features, mostly AI-infused, to the Korean press.

The much-anticipated “Live Translation” function for calls wasn't quite “live,” however.

Instead of simultaneous translation, the feature resembled more of a consecutive translation. Both the speaker and the listener have to wait for the counterpart to finish talking to then listen to the AI's translation, hindering a natural flow of the conversation.

Galaxy AI — referring to the package of AI-related experiences available on the Galaxy line — will soon be available on the S23, Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5 as well.

Here's what Korea JoongAng Daily found out at the Galaxy S24 demonstration.

Not totally “live”

Live Translation, currently available for 13 languages, was touted as one of the Galaxy S24's key AI features.

While a user is making a call on the device's native “Call” app, a bundle of three little stars appears on the screen next to “Call Assist” phrase. Touching the phrase pulls up the Live Translation tool and prompts a user to select their target languages.

Touching on the "Call Assist" button with three stars next to it will lead to Live Translation feature. [JIN EUN-SOO]

After Galaxy notifies the user's conversation partner that the call is being translated and live captioned, the conversation begins and translation ensues. The tiki-taka type of quick-paced conversation is not possible with the feature enabled; participants must wait before they can respond to each other. Such a tool could come in handy when making restaurant reservations while traveling, but it would not suit business calls or chats with foreign friends.

What was deemed a real breakthrough, however, was the built-in three-star icon on the Samsung keyboard that offered text-based translations. An additional input bar on top of the keyboard is reserved for texts that need to be translated.

Because the feature is built into the Samsung keyboard, the text translation service is largely available for most third-party apps and for writing emails.

Tone adjustment: limited to five versions

A user experiences an AI-powered text translation feature on Galaxy S24 in Seocho District in southern Seoul on Thursday. [NEWS1]

Samsung said its Galaxy AI will adjust the tone of text messages, which this reporter thought would be applicable for any type of situation. But the demonstration revealed that tone-adjustment feature is available for only five preset versions: professional, comfortable, social media, polite and emoji-added.

What does seem handy is the “Circle to Search” feature Samsung developed in collaboration with Google.

Circling the object of curiosity in photos or videos will give the user a list of relevant search results on the same window. There is no need to type in multiple vague adjectives to find your way to the product you saw in a YouTube video.

It's a convenient prospect, not only because it instantly initiates a search but also because it understands the context. After asking for the name of the apartment building shown in a certain photo, the user can follow up with “How much is it?” or “Why is this apartment so expensive?”

A user experiences an AI-powered photo editing tool on Galaxy S24 series in San Jose, California on Tuesday, local time. [YONHAP]

Upgraded photo editing

AI comes in full force when editing photos and videos. Samsung is touting features that can remove objects from pictures or fill in cropped backgrounds.

“Before, the fill-in feature was based on shades and shapes of the removed object's surroundings. But now, the Galaxy S24 is able to create space and objects that have never been there based on its training on a countless number of photos,” Hwang Jeong-ho from Samsung's MX (mobile eXperience) team explained during the demonstration.

The AI function also supports slow motion viewing of videos not originally shot in slow motion.

“The generative AI engine will make images in between the video frames,” Hwang said. “Long-pressing the video will let it play at one-fourth of its speed. It is available not only for videos filmed with Galaxy, but also any type of downloaded videos as well.”

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jin.eunsoo@joongang.co.kr]