Samsung Upgrades: The S23 Lineup is Here with Faster Chips and Improved Cameras

Samsung has launched its latest smartphone S23 lineup, the S23, S23 Plus and S23 Ultra, with similar design aesthetics as last year’s S22 models but with upgraded chips and cameras. The new phones come in four colours: phantom black, green, lavender, and cream.

The S23 and S23 Plus are almost identical in terms of design and features, with the only differences being their size and battery capacity. The S23 has a 6.1 inch 1080p OLED display and a 3900 mAh battery, while the S23 Plus has a 6.6 inch 1080p OLED display and a 4700 mAh battery.

The S23 Plus also has faster wired charging with a peak of 45 watts compared to 25 watts on the S23. The base storage for the S23 is 128 GB, but for the S23 Plus, it is 256 GB. Both phones have wireless charging and IP ratings.

The new phones are powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, which Samsung is calling the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy. Samsung claims that the chip has a slightly higher max clock speed compared to other phones with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, but it remains to be seen if this difference will have a significant impact on performance. However, the phones feel fast and responsive.

The cameras are the biggest update on the S23 lineup. The new camera systems come with new sensors, image processing, and AI remastering of photos. The main camera is a 50 megapixel sensor paired with a 12 megapixel ultra-wide and a 3x telephoto.

The images taken with the new cameras look good, with improved dynamic range, but some shutter lag was noticed. This is a problem that has plagued some Samsung phones in the past, and it is something that needs to be watched closely. There is also a new 12-megapixel selfie camera.

The S23 starts at £849 ($799.99), while the S23 Plus starts at £1049 ($999.99). The S23 Ultra, which is the most premium model, starts at £1249 ($1,199.99). The design of the S23 Ultra is similar to last year’s model, but with two noticeable changes.

The camera bumps are bigger and have pronounced rings around them, and the sides are much flatter, giving the phone a more boxy look. Samsung has reshaped the edges to better optimize for the S pen, but it remains to be seen if this change has made the phone smaller or allowed for a bigger battery. The battery capacity is still 5000 mAh, and the phone is still large.

The displays on the S23 lineup are LTPO displays that go from one to 120 hertz, with a new peak brightness of 1,750 nits. The displays are excellent, but there have been reports of flickering when the phones are being recorded with cameras. This is not a big deal as the flickering is not noticeable to the human eye, but it is something to keep an eye on.

Summary

The S23 lineup is an incremental update over last year’s S22 models, with the main upgrades being the new chips and cameras. The phones feel fast and responsive, and the cameras take good images with improved dynamic range. The S23 and S23 Plus are almost identical, with the main differences being size and battery capacity.

The S23 Ultra has a similar design to last year’s model, but with bigger camera bumps and flatter sides. The displays are excellent, but there have been reports of flickering when the phones are being recorded with cameras.

Overall, the S23 lineup is a solid upgrade over last year’s models, and it will be interesting to see how the new chips and cameras perform in real-world testing.