Your older Samsung Galaxy phone could get a free AI upgrade soon, after all

Samsung Galaxy S22 Android phone being held by a woman in a black leather jacket

(Image credit: Samsung)

published 22 March 2024

Quick Summary

A Samsung executive has confirmed that the Samsung Galaxy S22 series of phones could get Galaxy AI in the coming months.

The company is investigating the possibility of bringing at least some AI features to its 2022 handsets.

When Samsung announced its Galaxy AI suite of clever tools, it was revealed that it would be extended to some handsets beyond the Galaxy S24 series, but only those released within the last 12-months or so.

However, it now seems likely that owners of older Samsung Galaxy phones will benefit too. A company executive has confirmed that plans are being discussed to bring at least some Galaxy AI features to the Samsung Galaxy S22.

Noh Tae-moon is the head of the Korean firm's MX (Mobile eXperience) division and he said in an interview with Newsis (via 9to5Google) that the possibility of introducing new AI tools to S22 series phones is "under review":

"Galaxy AI is aiming for 'hybrid AI' that combines not only cloud-based AI but also on-device AI technology that is greatly affected by hardware performance. To do on-device AI that takes these hardware limitations into account, a lot of efforts are needed.

"Resources and efforts are being invested. We are gradually preparing plans to support a fully-fledged Galaxy AI experience. The S23 and the Fold and Flip products released last year will be upgraded with AI , and we are conducting a lot of review on the previous model."

It is likely therefore that some of the on-device Galaxy AI tools might not make the transition to two-year old hardware – but cloud-based AI could very well be implemented. This includes some of the photo manipulation features that have proved so popular on the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra.

There's no word yet on when the company could bring Galaxy AI to the older phone range, but it will start to roll out the suite to the Samsung Galaxy S23, S23 FE, Z Fold 5, and Z Flip 5 later this month (March 2024).

The Samsung Galaxy Tab S9 will also get an upgrade to include new AI capabilities at the same time.

Sadly, it doesn't seem the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 or Z Flip 4 will get Galaxy AI, even though they technically launched after the S22 series. We'll keep you informed if we hear different.

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Rik is T3’s news editor, which means he looks after the news team and the up-to-the-minute coverage of all the hottest gadgets and products you’ll definitely want to read about. And, with more than 35 years of experience in tech and entertainment journalism, including editing and writing for numerous websites, magazines, and newspapers, he’s always got an eye on the next big thing.

Rik also has extensive knowledge of AV, TV streaming and smart home kit, plus just about everything to do with games since the late 80s. Prior to T3, he spent 13 years at Pocket-lint heading up its news team, and was a TV producer and presenter on such shows as Channel 4's GamesMaster, plus Sky's Games World, Game Over, and Virtual World of Sport.