The Samsung Galaxy S24 is on the way, and if history is our guide, we should see it soon after the new year. It’s too late to make any big changes to that phone, but that doesn’t mean I can’t wish for a few things that I’d like to see. Since I’ve been using an iPhone 15 Pro Max alongside my Galaxy S23 Ultra, I have a few ideas that I’d like to see Samsung copy from Apple’s latest and greatest iPhone.
1. NameDrop gestures between Galaxy friends
Okay, don’t call the cops on me for suggesting this, but I’d love to see Samsung add bump gestures to its phones. I know that Android phones used to have bump gestures, but they went away, and now I want them back. This is a really fun part of having an iPhone 15, getting to bump into friends and then bump iPhones to share my phone number or whatever music I’m listening to.
In fact, that bump gesture can start a whole world of sharing between iPhones. You can share music, game sessions, and photos, all of which seems a very… Android thing to do. So let’s do this, Samsung. Let’s have Galaxy owners bumping into each other.
In fact, let’s make it exclusive to Galaxy owners, no other Android fans allowed. Hah! Just kidding. That would be a very Apple thing to do, and Android isn’t about that. If Samsung added bump to its phones, Google will certainly copy it for future Android systems, just like it did when Samsung added multi-window to its Galaxy phones.
2. That titanium frame sure is nice
It’s only on the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, but that titanium sure is sweet. It’s firm, light, and looks very cool in every anodized color. I’d love to see Samsung bring titanium to the Galaxy S24 Ultra, and perhaps the rest of the Galaxy S24 lineup as well. It would be an easy way to one-up Apple’s base model iPhone 15.
Also, I’m getting tired of glass on both sides of my phone. No matter how strong that glass may be, it’s still glass. It’s not TITANIUM! As we all know, the only thing stronger than titanium is adamantium, and I’m not sure if that actually exists. Okay, it doesn’t exist. So make the phone out of titanium!
3. Check In safety features should be on every phone
Apple added a Check In feature to iMessage that lets your friends and loved ones know if you arrive at a destination, or if you are okay after a certain period of time. Check in before you start a drive home late at night. Check in before you go for a run alone, or on a first date. The benefits are obvious. In the same way that we need a seat belt on a car, we need a safety check in feature on all smartphones.
There is a check in feature built into the Android personal safety app on Pixel phones, but it’s hard to find. If you didn’t know that Android already had a check in feature, I’ve proven my point. Samsung has emergency SOS options, but not a passive check in feature that is easy to find and unobtrusive to use.
Check in should be a key feature in phones moving forward, and it should work across platforms. Samsung should add this to the Galaxy S24 as soon as possible if it’s not already there.
4. A mute switch, not another button
Here’s an opportunity to eat some of Apple’s lunch. Apple took the mute switch off the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 15 Pro Max. There is still a way to quickly silence the iPhone 15, but on my iPhone 15 Pro Max, I’m using the new Action Button to open the camera. I don’t have a mute switch.
There has never been a mute switch on a Galaxy phone, not that I can remember, so this would be a radical change, but it would be welcome. OnePlus had a mute switch on its phone for years, then removed the mute switch on the OnePlus 10T. Fans were irate. The OnePlus 11 and OnePlus Open brought it back.
See! A mute switch inspires passion among fans! At the very least, Samsung could add a mute switch to the Galaxy S24, then take it away for the Galaxy S26, and from then on we could have a ‘will they or won’t they?’ drama every year about whether the next phone would have a mute switch. I’m here for it.
5. StandBy is just a glorified always-on display
The new iPhone 15 feature that I use the most often actually came with the new iOS 17, so it’s available on a lot of iPhones. The StandBy mode turns my iPhone into a desk clock when it is charging and positioned in landscape mode. It’s incredibly useful, and gives me a clock with weather, notifications, or even just a photo album, instead of just a useless slab on my desk.
Samsung pioneered the always-on display on smartphones, and its OLED screens could handle the feature before fancy LTPO displays came along. This StandBy mode is just a glorified always-on display, so it’s a shame that Samsung hasn’t stolen this feature back from Apple already. Hopefully, we’ll see it on the next Galaxy S24.
6. Call screening so I can listen and decide to answer
Apple brought back the answering machine with live voicemail. You can now listen to somebody leave a message (or at least read a transcript) and decide if you want to pick up the phone and take the call. It’s like the 80s all over again. It’s also a great way to screen calls, especially from people you care about.
Samsung should make this a part of its phone app, but let’s be careful about adding AI features. We just need a simple answering machine; we need a way to screen calls that’s better than Caller ID. We don’t need a robot or a phone that answers in my voice. Keep it simple, but get it here fast.
7. Definitely no Samsung Journal app, thanks!
Apple’s new Journal app may be tempting to Samsung, but we have plenty of apps on our Samsung phones, thank you very much. Samsung has PenUp, a social network for artists based around the S Pen-enabled devices. It’s actually a rather fun and vibrant community. If you’ve never heard of PenUp, once again I’ve proven my point. There are too many apps, too many to keep track.
Okay, Samsung, I’ll make you a deal. You can add one new app for every three apps you remove. Take away Samsung Notes, Samsung Gallery, and Samsung Internet Browser, and I will happily accept Samsung Journal. We already have those former apps from Google, and they sync with our Google account on Android. No need for duplicates.
Then I would accept a Samsung Journal app. Who knows, it might be as good as PenUp. At the very least, it wouldn’t be a duplicate of a Google app, and it wouldn’t be trying to sell me anything. If we toss some of the junk apps, we’ll have space to try new things.
