JOIN USSamsung Galaxy S23 series: First impression
After weeks of teasing, Samsung unveiled the new line of Galaxy S23 series phones.
It comes in three variants- Galaxy S23, S23 Plus and S23 Ultra. I had the opportunity to check out the newly released phones and here are my initial thoughts about Samsung's new premium phones.
Design, build quality and display
The S23 Ultra is the biggest among the three. It has rounded edges on the left and right sides and the top and the base, are flat with curved contours.
Whereas the S23 Plus and the S23 have slightly rounded designs and feature flat displays compared to the Ultra.
However, all three models come with a unibody metallic body made of armour aluminium and are said to be recycled. Even the volume rocker, power button and other parts of the devices are made of repurposed fishnets found discarded in the ocean.
It should be noted that all the Galaxy S23 series phones sold in India will be manufactured at Samsung's big factory unit in Noida.
On the front, the S23 Ultra features a 6.8-inch Quad HD+ (3088x1440p) Infinity-O-Edge Dynamic 2X AMOLED display with support for variable refresh rate (1-120Hz), 1,750 nits of peak brightness and pixel density of 500ppi (pixels per inch).
On the other hand, the Galaxy S23 Plus features a 6.6-inch full HD+ (2340x1080p) 2X Dynamic AMOLED Infinity-O screen with a variable refresh rate (48Hz-120Hz) and pixel density of 393 ppi.
The Galaxy S23 sports a compact 6.1-inch full HD+ (2340x1080p) 2X Dynamic AMOLED Infinity-O screen with a variable refresh rate (48Hz-120Hz) and pixel density of 425 ppi.
One of the key highlights of the new Galaxy S23 (all three models) series is the Adaptive Vision Booster. It ensures the display’s brightness is uniform at all light conditions and ensures delivering the best viewing experience at all times.
Also, the new phones boast Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2, which is the sturdiest glass protective gear for Android smartphones in the industry. Even the Amor Aluminium case is said to be more durable than any iterations before.
And, they come with an improved in-screen fingerprint sensor. The Galaxy S23, S23 Plus and S23 Ultra come in four colours— phantom black, green, cream and lavender.
The new Galaxy S23 Ultra, like the predecessor, supports S Pen and comes with in-built stylus holster too. The S Pen worked flawlessly on the smooth screen of the phone.
Processor, storage and RAM details
All three Galaxy S23 series phones come with custom-made Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, which can clock CPU speed up to 3.36Ghz. It can deliver 34 per cent better performance than the predecessor.
And with the new and bigger Vapour Cooling Chamber, Samsung’s new phones will be able to deliver better heat dissipation when doing heavy-duty tasks such as recording 8K videos or playing graphics-rich games.
Also, the devices support Ray Tracing, a first for the Galaxy series. It comes in handy in gaming and the phone’s display will be able to realistically simulate the lighting of a scene and objects by rendering physically accurate reflections, refractions, shadows, and indirect lighting.
The new Galaxy S23 series run Android 13-based One Ui 5.1 and also, in addition to 5G, they support the latest Bluetooth 5.3 and Wi-Fi 6E, promising to deliver high-speed internet.
The Galaxy S23 comes in three variants— 8GB RAM + 128GB storage, 8GB RAM + 256GB storage and 8GB RAM + 512GB storage.
The Galaxy S23 Plus is available in two configurations— 8GB RAM + 256GB storage and 8GB RAM + 512GB storage.
On the other hand, Samsung is offering Galaxy S23 Ultra in four options— 8GB RAM +128GB storage, 12GB RAM + 256GB storage,12GB RAM + 512GB storage and 12GB RAM + 1TB storage.
Furthermore, Qualcomm’s custom Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 promises to offer up to 22 per cent improved battery life in all S23 series phones over the predecessors.
The S23 Ultra and S23 Plus feature 5,000mAh and 4,700mAh battery, respectively with 45W fast wired charging capability and 15W wireless charging support.
The generic S23 houses a 3,900mAh battery and supports 25W wired charging speed and 15W wireless charging capability.
Photography
The main difference better the three Galaxy S23 series models is the camera hardware.
The new Galaxy S23 Ultra boasts a quad-camera module— 200MP (f/1.7, Super Quad Pixel) main wide-angle camera, 12MP ultra-wide (f/2.2, dual-pixel) sensor, 10MP telephoto (f/4.9, 10X, dual pixel) lens + 10MP (3X, f/2.4, dual-Pixel) with LED flash on the back.
With Super Quad Pixel AutoFocus, the phone camera ensures the subject is fully focused in the frame and gets the best quality photo.
Both the S23 Plus and the S23 features triple-camera module— main 50MP (f/1.8, OIS, dual Pixel) + 10MP telephoto lens (3.0X Zoom, f/2.4)) + 12MP (f/2.2, dual pixel) ultra-wide lens with LED flash.
For the first time, Samsung is introducing Astrophoto mode and also adaptive lighting tech to ensure the phones capture the best photos at any time of the day. They come with dual-pixel autofocus, 2X wider OIS during video recording, and sharp quality with less noise. They can even capture up to 8K at 30fps (frames per second).
On the front, all three phones feature a 12MP(f/2.2, dual-pixel) selfie camera. It can take selfie videos at 60 fps and support 16-bit RAW selfies. It can take up to 50MP quality photos, support AI Stereo Depth, and Super HDR.
I tried the portrait modes on all phones and they performed really well. As you can see in the sample photos, the camera manages to get the perfect photo with good edge detection around the bottle and the glass, and blurs the background really well.
I am very keen to test other features during in-depth reviews in the coming weeks.
The Galaxy S23 comes in three variants— 8GB RAM + 128GB storage, 8GB RAM + 256GB storage and 8GB RAM + 512GB storage-- with prices starting at $799.
The Galaxy S23 Plus is available in two configurations— 8GB RAM + 256GB storage and 8GB RAM + 512GB storage-- with prices starting at $999.
On the other hand, Samsung is offering Galaxy S23 Ultra in four options— 8GB RAM +128GB storage, 12GB RAM + 256GB storage,12GB RAM + 512GB storage and 12GB RAM + 1TB storage-- with prices starting at $1,199.
They will be available for pre-order from February 1 and hit stores on February 17 in select global regions. Samsung is expected to reveal price and availability details for the Indian market in the coming days.
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