There’s little now that we don’t know about the Samsung Galaxy S23, the first major smartphone launch of 2023. The official confirmation came a few days ago: the launch event will be held in San Francisco on February 1st at 10am, 7pm Italian, and will be streamed online, but also live on Italian Tech with commentary by Andrea Nepori and Bruno Ruffilli.
As TM Roh, President and Head of Mobile, Samsung Electronics, points out in an official blog post, “The Galaxy S Ultra has truly become the pinnacle of Samsung Mobile innovation, a product that stands apart from all others, and soon we’ll show you what the Ultra can do in even more device categories.” However, the Galaxy S23, in the various Ultra and Plus versions, will not be the only novelty from Samsung: there is also talk of computers, tablets and headphones.
Design
The design of the Galaxy S23 will probably be almost identical to that of current models, except that the base model of the Galaxy S23 may lose the large camera protrusion to arrive at a solution similar to that adopted on the Galaxy S22 Ultra, with various separate sensors. So the latest rumors point to more substantial changes in the S23 Ultra, the top model, which could have a curved screen on all four edges of the screen for the first time. The curvature may be minimal, just to reduce the thickness of the display bezel.
Display
Samsung already uses excellent displays on its Galaxy S, and it seems that it will not introduce big news here either. Upcoming Galaxy S23 models will presumably have the same screens as the Galaxy S22, all AMOLED screens with a 120Hz refresh rate, in three sizes: 6.1 inches for the Galaxy S23; 6.6 inches for the Galaxy S23+; 6.8 inches with 3088 x 1440 pixels for the Galaxy S23 Ultra. However, there could be some small updates, for example in the refresh rate or brightness: the Galaxy S23 Ultra could challenge the iPhone 14 Pro for the title of brightest screen, reaching 2150 nits against the 2000 of the Apple smartphone. To protect these displays, the latest version of Corning’s Gorilla Glass, the recently presented Victus 2, could arrive. Gorilla Glass Victus 2 is able to withstand drops on the asphalt and was designed for large phones, just like the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
Cameras
The most relevant update could be in the photo and video sector. Samsung launched the 200MP Isocell HP1 sensor in early 2022, but it hasn’t shown up on its smartphones yet. It should therefore arrive on the S23 Ultra, as almost all the rumors suggest, perhaps even in an improved version, Isocell HP2. It would be a big step forward in smartphone photography, and could lead the Korean company to the top of the industry.
Otherwise, most of the specifications look set to remain unchanged from last year. This means that the base model of the Galaxy S23 and S23 Plus will likely have a 50MP sensor for the main camera, a 12MP ultrawide lens and a 10MP zoom. A better camera for selfies could come, perhaps 12MP instead of the usual 10MP.
A source also indicates that the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra may have better anti-shake and focus capabilities than the Galaxy S22 Ultra. The top model will be able to shoot hyperlapse videos of the sky and excellent night photos, a theme that Samsung has been focusing on for a couple of years already.
In the desert with the smartphone, photo reportage with the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
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Performance
Samsung has been coy about its upcoming phones, but Qualcomm spoke about its next big mobile platform, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, making it clear that Samsung will be a major player in the chipset launch.
If the Galaxy S22, depending on the country, has adopted a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset and the Samsung Exynos, this year all models should have the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 platform, perhaps in an improved version. This improvement could make the Galaxy S23 the fastest Android phone on the market for some time now, with performance comparable to the Apple A16 Bionic. However, it seems that Samsung is following in the footsteps of Apple and Google and is working to fully use its chipset platform for the next Galaxy S.
There would also be news for storage space: the Galaxy S23 and S23 Plus should be equipped with 256 GB of standard memory, double that of current models. Apparently, the S23 Ultra will also receive the same equipment, with 512GB and 1TB versions.
Besides the power, the sound could be improved on at least the Galaxy S23 Ultra, with one source saying it has redesigned speakers and a microphone compared to its predecessor.
Connectivity and batteries
Samsung also seems to want to catch up with Apple in terms of connectivity, so the Galaxy S23 will probably be equipped with satellite SOS services for emergencies, just like the iPhone 14. There is talk of an agreement with Iridium Communications which would allow Samsung phones use low-orbit satellites to send text messages and low-resolution pictures. It’s unclear whether all models will have these features, nor how Samsung will charge for the service.
On the other hand, they do not expect big news in the batteries, which should remain approximately of the same power as the previous models. The charging speed will also likely remain lower than the competitors: up to 45W for the S23 Ultra, while others even exceed 120W.
Prices. and availability
The new phones could hit stores on February 17; the Ultra will almost certainly be the first to hit the market. It seems that the price can be adjusted upwards, but Samsung should provide, as usual, a rich bundle package and good second-hand revaluation options.