It’s now only a week until the unveiling of the Galaxy S24 line. With the crazy amount of leaks in recent weeks, the official premiere will be more of a relief than a genuine surprise on January 17.

Until the time comes to separate the wheat from the chaff in terms of the predictions that everyone made, let’s hear it again from one of the prominent tech tipsters – Ice Universe over at X/Twitter – on the much-discussed topic of the Galaxy S24 Ultra’s zoom camera. Back when we heard that the maxed-out flagship would most likely kill the 10x optical lens and instead pack a 5x one, we weren’t thrilled.

However, a case could be made as to why a 5x telephoto camera unit is actually a sane decision from Samsung’s engineers if built correctly. Despite being half zoom-potent than its 10x predecessor, a 5x telephoto could feature far superior elements and optics, and better image stabilization, so it could be just as good if paired with a larger sensor that enables cropping and better low-light capabilities. And don’t forget the AI tricks… So, it’s up to Samsung to fine-tune it.For example, users have shown that 10x zoom photos taken with the OnePlus Open look better than those taken with the S23 Ultra. Sounds crazy, given that OnePlus’ folding star has only a 3x optical camera, while the S23 Ultra has a proper 10x optical zoom.

Enough with our hopes, dreams and suggestions, let’s hear it from Ice Universe:

Pretty detailed, huh? If this isn’t enough to ease your mind, you’ll just have to wait a bit more and we’ll provide you with detailed comparisons, testing results and samples from the Galaxy S24 Ultra and its (allegedly) shorter but (potentially) superior zoom camera. If you want to know more about the cameras in the Galaxy S24 line, don’t go any further than this hyperlink.