In 2024, these are the best Samsung smartphones to buy in Kenya. We have ranked them for every type of buyer and here are our favourite picks.
You can choose from the top flagship, midrange or foldable as Samsung caters to everyone with its range of Galaxy devices and this list will include all three tiers to guide you if you’re in the market looking for one or more.
Samsung Galaxy S24 Plus/ Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra- Ksh 140,000
With the announcement of the flagship S24 series late last month, the S24 Plus was the most feature-packed of the trio compared to the S23 Plus of last year. And it gives the S23 Ultra from last year a run for its money and in our list, they cost the same.
I included both since they share most features the S24 Plus has a brighter and higher resolution screen and a faster processor while the S23 Ultra has a 200Mp main camera compared to the S24 Plus’s 50MP primary. The Ultra has an additional periscope telephoto lens with 10X optical zoom.
The Ultra also has a stylus.
The S24 Plus has a 6.7-inch AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+ support and up to 2600 nits brightness and a resolution of 1440 x 3120 pixels while the Ultra has a 6.8-inch AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+ support and up to 1750 nits brightness and a resolution of 1440 x 3088 pixels.
While they both have ultrasonic under-display fingerprint readers, the Plus’s one is relatively faster.
They both have Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection for both the displays and glass backs. They have IP68 ingress protection. The Plus has Armor aluminium 2 frame while the Ultra has Armor aluminium frame.
Both phones have Android 14 and OneUI 6. While the Plus has the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, the performance difference isn’t that much higher than the Ultra which has Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. RAM options start at 12GB with storage starting at 256GB.
The S24 Plus ships with Samsung’s Galaxy AI which will also trickle down to the S23 Ultra later next month.
The S23 Ultra will get four generations of OS upgrades and five years of security updates which means its last OS upgrade will be Android 17 and monthly security patches till 2028.
The S24 Plus will have seven years of major Android upgrades
The Ultra has a bigger 5000mAh battery in comparison to the Plus’s 4900mAh battery. Both phones support 45W wired charging and 15W wireless charging and 4.5W reverse wireless charging.
The Plus has a 50MP primary camera with OIS, 10MP telephoto with OIS and 3X optical zoom and a 12MP ultrawide. The Ultra has a 200MP main with OIS, 10MP periscope telephoto with 10X optical zoom and OIS, a 10MP 10MP telephoto with OIS and 3X optical zoom and a 12MP ultrawide.
Both share a 12MP selfie camera. The main cameras can shoot up to 8K video while the front can shoot 4K video.
So both phones are excellent choices – so if you want a stylus and 10X optical zoom, then the Ultra is for you. The Plus is newer with relatively better features.
Samsung Galaxy S23 – Ksh 116,000
When it launched last year, the S23 was and still is a great compact Android flagship.
It has a 6.1-inch dynamic AMOLED screen with a 1080 by 2340 pixels resolution and 120Hz refresh rate slightly interrupted by the 12-megapixel punch-hole selfie camera. While it’s not as bright as the S24 at 2600 nits, the S23’s 1750 nits was sufficiently bright.
The S23 has a glass back and front protected by Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and has a rating of IP68.
It has a floating triple camera setup which includes a 50-megapixel main with OIS, a 10-megapixel 3x telephoto camera with OIS, and 12-megapixel ultrawide. The primary camera can shoot up to 8K video while the front shoots 4K video.
It comes with a 3900mAh battery and support for 25W wired charging, 15W wireless charging and 4.5W reverse wireless charging.
It takes an hour and 16 minutes to fully charge it and a 30-minute toss gets it to 57%.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE – Ksh 99,000
The S23 FE borrows a lot of design and spec features from its flagship S23 lineup like the glass back and aluminium frames with the display and the rear protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 5 instead of Victus+. It retains the IP68 rating from the S23 series.
It has a 6.4″ AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support with brightness peaking at 1450 nits.
The S23 FE has Exynos 2200 chipset, 8GB RAM and storage starting at 128/256GB.
It launched with Android 13 and OneUI 5.1. It got Android 14 late last year and will get Galaxy AI later next month.
NOW READ: Samsung Galaxy S23 FE Review: Perfectly Balanced
Samsung has promised up to four Android OS upgrades and five years of security updates.
S23 FE has 50MP main with Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), same primary camera as the main S23 and S23+, 8MP telephoto(3X optical zoom) and 12MP ultra-wide. The setup supports up to 8K 24fps video recording.
For selfies, we have a 10MP front-facing camera instead of the 12MP found in the main S23 series.
S23 FE ships with a 4500mAh battery. Charging speed is capped at 25W wired, 15W wireless and 4.5W reverse wireless. It’s not the fastest but you can easily top up to 50% in half an hour.
Samsung Galaxy A54 – Ksh 56,000
Samsung makes commendable midrange smartphones in its A series and the A54 is our pick.
The Galaxy A54 is a compact phone with a 6.4″ 1080p Super AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, 1000 nits brightness and Vision Booster support. It has Gorilla Glass 5 protection for the display and the glass back.
It has an IP67 rating.
Galaxy A54 is powered by the 5nm Exynos 1380 and has 8GB RAM and 256GB storage. It shipped with Android 13 and it got upgraded to Android 14. Samsung has promised up to four major android OS upgrades and five years of security patches.
For cameras, it has a 50MP main with OIS, 12MP ultrawide and a 5MP macro. It also has a 32MP selfie camera. All cameras support 4K video recording.
It has a 5,000mAh battery with 25W charging. It takes 63 minutes to charge it up to 100% and a half-hour charge will top up to 56%.
Samsung Galaxy Z Fold5 – Ksh 182,500
The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 is a great foldable option and was launched mid-last year.
The Z Fold5 didn’t get major changes apart from the new Flex Hinge. It is now lighter with the same premium feel as the Z Flip5 sporting a glass front and glass back protected by Gorilla Glass Victus 2 and Armor aluminum frame.
It is rated IPX8 for water resistance.
The cover display is a 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ support. The inner display is a 7.6-inch Dynamic AMOLED screen with similar features.
It is even brighter than its predecessors at 1750 nits compared to 1000 nits of the Z Fold4. The inner display supports the S Pen which is IP68 rated.
The Z Fold5 has a slightly overclocked Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy processor and 12GB of RAM with UFS 4.0 storage options starting from 256GB, 512GB and 1TB.
Android 13 and OneUI 5.1.1 come baked inside. It comes with up to four major Android OS updates meaning that Android 17 will be its last upgrade. It got Android 14 last year and is slated to get Galaxy AI later next month.
The Z Fold5 has five cameras. The main triple setup of a 50MP with OIS, 12MP Ultrawide and 12MP telephoto with OIS and 3x optical zoom. Video capture is capped at 8K 24fps and 4k 60fps with support for HD10+.
The front cameras are a 4MP underdisplay in the main screen and a 10MP selfie camera in the outer screen. Video capture is capped at 4K 60fps.
The battery capacity is the same as last year’s – sitting at 4400mAh battery with support for 25W charging. It also has 15W wireless charging and 4.5W reverse wireless charging.
A 30-minute charge gets you to 50% for the Fold5. To get to full charge, you’ll need an hour and 19 minutes.
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip4 – Ksh 88,500
While it was released in 2022, the Z Flip4 is still a great buy this year as you can get it for Ksh 88,500.
The Z Flip4 has an aluminium frame, plastic front(unfolded) and glass back with Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection. It also has IPX8 rating.
The inner display is a 6.7-inch AMOLED screen with 120Hz refresh rate and 1200 nits peak brightness. The cover display is a 1.9-inch AMOLED screen.
It launched with Android 12 and got updated to Android 14 late last year. It will get four major Android OS updates and up to five years of security updates. Sadly, it won’t get Samsung’s Galaxy AI next month.
The phone has dual 12MP rear cameras and a 10MP selfie camera. All three cameras can shoot up to 4K video.
Powering the phone is a 3700mAh battery with 25W wired charging, 15W wireless charging and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. A 30-minute toss in the charger will get you to 55% and 75 minutes to a full charge from empty.
Here’s Why You Should Buy Samsung Smartphones From PhonePlace Kenya
If you’re in the market for a Samsung device, then PhonePlace Kenya is the online retailer to go to.
They have a seamless online and offline customer experience from buying to checkout. The e-commerce platform provides original smartphones and accessories. They also offer country-wide delivery, and the phones have up to 2 years’ warranty.
Phoneplace Kenya is located at Bazaar Plaza, Mezzanine 1, Moi Avenue, Nairobi, Kenya. You can reach out on their social platforms and call them as well here: 0726 526375.
