- AppFind - Complete Beginners Guides
- Posts
- New Galaxy S24? Unlock Every Galaxy AI Feature with This Complete Beginner's Guide
New Galaxy S24? Unlock Every Galaxy AI Feature with This Complete Beginner's Guide
Master Circle to Search, Live Translate, Generative Photo Editing, and every AI feature your phone can do
The Galaxy S24 isn't just another smartphone — it's the first Samsung phone built around Galaxy AI, and most new owners have no idea what their device can actually do. From erasing objects out of photos to translating phone calls in real time, the AI features are genuinely game-changing once you know where to find them. This complete beginner's guide walks you through setup, the essential controls, and every hidden AI feature so you can get the full value out of your new phone.
🎥 WATCH THE FULL VIDEO TUTORIAL
Why watch? See every Galaxy AI feature demonstrated live — including Circle to Search transforming any image into a Google query, and generative photo editing erasing objects like magic.
📋 Quick Overview: What You'll Learn
The complete Galaxy S24 setup process — from Wi-Fi to Face Recognition to fingerprint enrollment
How to use Circle to Search — Galaxy AI's coolest new feature
Setting up Live Translate for real-time phone call translation
Using Generative Edit to remove or move objects in any photo
Galaxy AI features inside Samsung Notes (auto-format, summarize, translate)
How to customize your lock screen and home screen with widgets
Navigating the three-button bottom bar like a pro
📦 What's in the Box?
Samsung keeps the unboxing minimal. Inside you'll find:
The Galaxy S24 itself
A USB-C to USB-C charging cable
A SIM ejection tool
A Quick Start guide and terms documents
⚠️ Important Note: There's no charging brick included in the box. You'll need a USB-C power adapter (sold separately) or an existing one from another device.
🔌 Step 1: Powering On and Initial Setup
Getting started takes about 10 minutes if you follow these steps:
Peel off the protective film on the screen
Press and hold the power button until the Galaxy logo appears
Select your language and tap Start
Agree to the terms of service (the third option about diagnostic data is optional)
Choose Set up manually to walk through the full setup
Connect to your Wi-Fi network and enter the password
Skip Mobile Network setup if you're configuring eSIM later
Choose Don't copy if this is a fresh start, or transfer from another device
🔍 Quick Tip: If you have an old Android device nearby, you can transfer everything wirelessly during setup. Just place the phones close together and follow the prompts — it's significantly faster than starting fresh.
🔐 Step 2: Setting Up Face Recognition and Fingerprints
The Galaxy S24 gives you multiple ways to secure your phone — and you can use them all together:
Setting Up Your PIN First
Tap Continue on the screen lock screen
Choose PIN (recommended 6 digits)
Enter and confirm your PIN
Adding Face Recognition
Tap Continue on Face Recognition
Remove your glasses for the initial scan
Look at the camera until your face is registered
Toggle on Require open eyes for extra security
Adding Fingerprints
Tap Fingerprints to begin
Press your finger on the under-display sensor
Lift and reposition until you reach 100%
Add additional fingers if you want
🔍 Quick Tip: Enable Require open eyes under Face Recognition settings. This prevents someone from unlocking your phone while you're asleep or by holding it up to your face against your will.
🔵 The Star Feature: Circle to Search
This is hands down one of the coolest things on the Galaxy S24. You can search anything on your screen by literally circling it.
How to Use Circle to Search
Open any app (browser, photos, messages — anywhere)
Press and hold the home button at the bottom center
Circle, highlight, or tap any object, text, or image on screen
Google instantly searches based on what you selected
Where It Works
Photos and screenshots — find similar products or identify objects
Web pages — quickly look up names, terms, or images
Camera app — identify products you photograph
Messages and notifications — search images friends send you
▶️ Try This Now: Open the Camera, take a photo of any household object, then press and hold the home button and circle the object. Google will instantly show you matching products and information.
🌍 Live Translate: Real-Time Phone Call Translation
This feature is genuinely magical. Talk to someone in a different language and your phone translates the conversation in real time during the call.
How to Enable Live Translate
Open the Phone app
Tap the three dots in the top corner
Tap Settings
Tap Live Translate under Call Assist
Toggle the switch on
Tap Continue to enable Advanced Intelligence
Select your language and the other person's language
Download the language pack for the language you need
Languages Supported
English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese, Chinese, and more.
⚠️ Important Note: Both language packs need to be downloaded before the call. Without Wi-Fi or cellular data, translation won't work, so plan ahead before traveling.
🎨 Generative Edit: AI Magic for Your Photos
This feature lets you move, remove, or resize objects in any photo — and AI fills in the missing background automatically.
Enable Generative Edit First
Open Settings
Scroll down to Advanced Features
Tap Advanced Intelligence
Tap Photo Editor
Toggle on Generative Edit
How to Use Generative Edit
Open the Gallery app
Select any photo
Tap the edit button (pencil icon)
Tap the Galaxy AI button (three stars)
Circle the object you want to edit
Hold and drag to move it, or tap Delete to remove it
Tap Generate to let AI fill in the background
Tap Done and Save as copy
🔍 Quick Tip: Edited photos get a small AI watermark in the lower-left corner to indicate they were modified with AI. This is built-in and can't be removed — important to know if you plan to share these images.
📝 Galaxy AI in Samsung Notes
Samsung Notes has built-in AI that can format, summarize, translate, and rewrite your notes automatically.
What You Can Do
Open Samsung Notes
Type any unstructured content (at least 200 characters works best)
Tap the Galaxy AI button (three stars)
Choose from:
Auto Format — turns messy notes into structured documents
Summarize — condenses long notes
Spelling and Grammar — fixes errors automatically
Writing Style — converts between Professional, Casual, Social, and Emojify
Translate — converts notes into other languages
▶️ Try This Now: Open Samsung Notes, write a rough paragraph with messy grammar, then tap the Galaxy AI button and choose Spelling and Grammar → Writing Style → Professional. Watch your draft transform instantly.
The three buttons at the bottom of your screen are the foundation of navigating your phone:
Left button (three lines) → Opens the app switcher to jump between recently used apps
Middle button (home) → Returns to the home screen (and press and hold for Circle to Search)
Right button (back arrow) → Goes back to the previous screen in any app
How to Access Google Assistant
Google Assistant moved! You no longer press and hold the home button — that's for Circle to Search now.
Swipe up from the bottom-left OR bottom-right corner
Google Assistant pops open
Speak your command or tap the keyboard icon to type
🎨 Customizing Your Lock Screen and Home Screen
Lock Screen Customization
Press and hold anywhere on the lock screen
Authenticate with face or fingerprint
Tap Wallpapers to change your background
Tap the shortcut icons (lower corners) to change which apps appear
Tap the plus button to add widgets like battery percentage
Tap Done to save
Home Screen Customization
Press and hold an empty area on the home screen
Choose from Wallpaper and Style, Themes, Widgets, or Settings
Tap Widgets and drag your favorites to the home screen
Swipe left to access Google Discover or Samsung News
🔍 Quick Tip: Add the Custom Camera widget to your home screen for one-tap photo capture. It also shows your most recent photo as the widget background.
🔄 The First Thing Every New Owner Should Do
Before exploring features, update all your apps for the latest improvements:
Open the Play Store
Tap your profile icon in the top right
Tap Manage apps and devices
Tap Update all (or update individual apps)
This ensures you have the latest security patches and features across every app.
AI Agents Are Reading Your Docs. Are You Ready?
Last month, 48% of visitors to documentation sites across Mintlify were AI agents, not humans.
Claude Code, Cursor, and other coding agents are becoming the actual customers reading your docs. And they read everything.
This changes what good documentation means. Humans skim and forgive gaps. Agents methodically check every endpoint, read every guide, and compare you against alternatives with zero fatigue.
Your docs aren't just helping users anymore. They're your product's first interview with the machines deciding whether to recommend you.
That means: clear schema markup so agents can parse your content, real benchmarks instead of marketing fluff, open endpoints agents can actually test, and honest comparisons that emphasize strengths without hype.
Mintlify powers documentation for over 20,000 companies, reaching 100M+ people every year. We just raised a $45M Series B led by @a16z and @SalesforceVC to build the knowledge layer for the agent era.
⭐ Top 3 Takeaways
Circle to Search changes everything — Press and hold the home button anywhere on your phone to instantly Google any object, text, or image. It works in the camera, browser, messages — literally everywhere.
Galaxy AI is hidden in plain sight — Live Translate, Generative Edit, and Samsung Notes AI features all need to be enabled in Advanced Features → Advanced Intelligence. Turn them on right after setup.
The home button now does TWO things — A regular tap goes home, but press and hold activates Circle to Search. To get Google Assistant, swipe up from the bottom-left or bottom-right corner instead.
❓ Common FAQs & Troubleshooting
Q: Why doesn't pressing and holding the home button open Google Assistant anymore?
A: That gesture now triggers Circle to Search. To open Google Assistant, swipe up from the bottom-left or bottom-right corner of the screen.
Q: My Generative Edit feature is missing from the photo editor. Where is it?
A: Go to Settings → Advanced Features → Advanced Intelligence → Photo Editor and toggle on Generative Edit. You may need to enable Advanced Intelligence first.
Q: Can I remove the AI watermark from edited photos?
A: No, the watermark is permanent and built into the system to indicate AI-edited images. There's no setting to disable it.
Q: Live Translate isn't working on my call. Why?
A: You need to download the language pack in advance under Phone → Settings → Live Translate. The feature also requires Advanced Intelligence to be enabled.
Q: How do I switch between Google Discover and Samsung News on the home screen?
A: Press and hold an empty area of the home screen, swipe to the far-left panel, and toggle between Google Discover and Samsung News.
Q: My fingerprint isn't being recognized after setup. What should I do?
A: Re-enroll the fingerprint. Go to Settings → Biometrics and Security → Fingerprints, delete the old fingerprint, and scan a new one. Make sure your finger is dry and the sensor is clean.
Q: Can I use Galaxy AI features offline?
A: Most Galaxy AI features (translation, generative edit) require an internet connection because they use cloud processing. Samsung Notes formatting works on-device for some tasks.
🎬 Ready to See Every Feature in Action?
This guide hits the highlights, but the full video demonstrates Circle to Search live, walks through Generative Edit with multiple examples, and shows you exactly how Live Translate handles real conversations.
👉 Watch the Complete Galaxy S24 Beginner's Guide Now
Found this helpful? Forward this guide to a friend who just got their Galaxy S24! And don't forget to subscribe for more complete beginner's guides delivered straight to your inbox every week.

