S24 Ultra Display and Camera issues

[R2D42]

So, now, when I noticed the issue with artifacts and banding in all my photos that has gradient colors (e.g. sky) and that is smth impossible to unseen, only then, I have discovered the whole iceberg of issues with this phone on Reddit and other forums in the regards of display and camera.

So, I run a couple of tests that were suggested for the banding and Mura effect and can confirm that my unit does have all those issues: banding colors, lots of artifacts in photos and other unpleasant things.

Also, while doing the testing with Expert Raw to verify issues with camera or display, I uncovered another issue with camera or maybe just a symptome of the already known issue:

When shooting in Expert Raw, and when there is a color with gradient, there is a visible grid of lines on the photo (in both Raw and accompanied jpeg image). 

Below I add examples of unedited Raw image, and it's drastically enhanced copy to make that grid even more visible.

Can anyone check it with their S24 Ultra please?

And, what is more interesting to me now, are there any S24 Ultras that don't have these unfortunate issues for a 1300 dollars phone? So, I can ask for replacement due to a difective device, as, from what I've found on forums, it's more hardware problem rather than software.

Would appreciate any help on this matter please 🙏 

[SgtStubby]

Ya you would think they woukd exchange that. My wife woukdnt ever notice that

[R2D42]

Well, I've noticed and don't really like it, cause I can't unseen it now. And it is very easy to see on my device - I've asked a couple of friends and they all can see it.

Having a grid over a photo is not the way it is supposed to work 😅 Thus, I'd insist it either to be fixed or replaced to a proper one, which I'm planning to do at the end of the week.

Also, my friend's S24 doesn't seem to have these issues if compared side by side, or even my Note 10 Plus, that has so much better display and camera with no issues that this S24 Ultra does have.

It's very frustrating to deal with all of these now 😪 Especially, when you expect a 5-year newer $1300 phone to be better, not worse.

[Helenna]

Hi R2D42, we certainly understand your disappointment on this issue on your device and sincerely apologize for the inconvenience caused.

If you have any other questions or concerns please do not hesitate to get in contact with our Live Chat support by visiting the below Samsung Canada Support site:

www.samsung.com/ca/livechat

You can also reach us through Text We Care (932273) for instant support

Thank you.

[R2D42]

While digging more into the problem with banding, I've just discovered that the main reason for this issue is that Samsung uses outdated 8-bit panels in premium devices like the S24 lineup. These 8-bit panels, contrary to 10-bit panels, are unable to properly show HDR content due to the lack of colors (16 mln vs 1 billion in 10-bit panels), resulting in those bandings in gradient colors (e.g. sky). And guess what, S24 lineup does photos in HDR and videos and Super HDR in Gallery app, only not to be able to properly show it due to outdated 8-bit panels in a phone for $1300, while some of the competition already using 10 and 12-bit panels since 2020.
That's a bummer, cause it's not possible to fix due to being hardware by design issue.
And there are tons of comments and complaints about this, which a few specialists in the field were able to explain the situation properly, while Samsung failed to respond with a proper explanation to a single one (and I do belive they knew what was the issue and that it cannot be properly fixed) leaving all of the users with an unknown.
End of the story.
Sad story, to be honest.

[RobertZ]

Yup.

Try and view the photo on another device like a PC. If there's no banding, it's the display on your device.

And good luck getting any help other than lip service from Samsung.

[R2D42]

But I still don't know what is the issue with a grid I have in Expert Raw photos, is it the camera or the dispay...who knows.

[linc42]

Did you end up figuring out a solution?

[R2D42]

No, unfortunately all my photos still have horrible bandings and artifacts. Very dissapointed with it's quality if compare to Note 10 Plus.
I think it's a combination of factors like bad picture processing and only 8-bit display.
What I found that there are a lot of people with the same problem on this device.