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Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Ultra packs in the latest Qualcomm processor, a whopping 200MP camera, a refined design, and an updated version of One UI that packs in never-before-seen features like Bixby Text Call.
For
- Faster, cooler processor
- Better battery life
- 200MP camera
- Better low light video
- One UI 5.1
- Software updates until 2028
Against
- Expensive
- Slippery without a case
Samsung redefined smartphone camera zoom expectations with the Galaxy S22 Ultra and, with years of software updates, this powerhouse phone is still just as good today as it was when it launched in early 2022.
For
- Can be found at a discount
- Great zoom detail
- Software updates until 2027
- Still plenty fast
- All-day battery life
Against
- Worse performance while gaming
- Gets hot while gaming
- Camera could be worse in some situations
- Slippery without a case
Every year, it feels like the latest phone release is less and less impressive than what we remember. While we seldom see a year where the newest phone is somehow worse than the old one, releases like the Samsung Galaxy S23 are just moderate improvements of an already excellent phone.
As such, if you’ve already got a Galaxy S22 Ultra (opens in new tab), it probably doesn’t make much sense to upgrade. But, if you’ve got an older phone or are looking to make the switch to Android, the Galaxy S23 Ultra (opens in new tab) is the finest example of a premium Android phone you’re going to find anywhere.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs. S22 Ultra: It’s what’s inside that counts
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This year, Samsung made substantial upgrades to two main parts of the phone: the processor, and the main rear camera. Last year’s Galaxy S22 Ultra was certainly no slouch in the camera department but its processor left a little to be desired for mobile gamers.
But it wasn’t alone on this front. Most early 2022 phones suffered from the same issues because of Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor. While that processor brought 25% performance improvements over the Snapdragon 888 from the year before, sustained performance was actually worse than that processor.
That’s because the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 got really hot when it was being used for longer than a few minutes. In other words, the longer you played your game, the worse your performance got. Thankfully, it seems that Qualcomm has solved all those issues and packed in better performance with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 in the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
| Spec | Galaxy S23 Ultra | Galaxy S22 Ultra |
|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy Devices | Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 or Exynos 2200 |
| Display | 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 3088×1440, 120Hz adaptive refresh rate (1-120Hz) with 240Hz touch sampling, 1,750 nits peak brightness | 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 3088×1440, 120Hz adaptive refresh rate (1-120Hz) with 240Hz touch sampling, 1,750 nits peak brightness |
| Memory | 8 or 12GB | 8 or 12GB |
| Storage | 256GB/512GB/1TB | 128/256/512GB or 1TB |
| Main rear camera | 200MP, ƒ/1.7 | 108MP, ƒ/2.2 |
| Telephoto camera | 10MP, ƒ/2.4, 3x optical zoom | 10MP, ƒ/2.4, 3x optical zoom |
| Telephoto camera 2 | 10MP, ƒ/4.9, 10x optical zoom | 10MP, ƒ/4.9, 10x optical zoom |
| Ultra-wide angle camera | 12MP, ƒ/2.2 | 12MP, ƒ/2.2 |
| Front Camera | 12MP, ƒ/2.2 | 40MP, ƒ/2.2 |
| Battery | 5,000mAh, 45W Fast Charging, 15W Wireless Charging | 5,000mAh, 45W Fast Charging, 15W Wireless Charging |
| Updates | Up to Android 17, Security through 2028 | Up to Android 16, Security through 2027 |
| Security | Ultrasonic in-screen fingerprint sensor | Ultrasonic in-screen fingerprint sensor |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6E, sub-6 and mmWave 5G, UWB | Wi-Fi 6, sub-6 and mmWave 5G, UWB |
| S Pen | ✔️ | ✔️ |
| microSD card slot | 🚫 | 🚫 |
| 3.5mm headphone jack | 🚫 | 🚫 |
| Dimensions | 6.43 x 3.07 x 0.35 in | 6.43 x 3.07 x 0.35 in |
| Weight | 8.25 oz | 8.04 oz |
| Colors | Phantom Black, Cream, Green, Lavender | Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, Pink Gold, Graphite, Sky Blue, Cream, Violet |
| Protection | IP68, Gorilla Glass Victus 2 | IP68, Gorilla Glass Victus+ |
In fact, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy Devices is a special version of the processor, bringing higher clock speeds and overall better performance than a standard Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. If you’re someone who enjoys playing Fortnite, PUBG, or another graphics-intensive game, this is going to be a big deal for you.
If you’re someone who enjoys playing Fortnite, PUBG, or another graphics-intensive game, this new processor is going to be a big deal for you.
In my experience, games like Fortnite would start out running strong on the Galaxy S22 Ultra but, after about 15 minutes of gaming, the framerate would drop from the mid-50s to around 30fps. That’s a hard drop in performance, and it wouldn’t get better over time.
While we’ll still need a bit more time to prove that the processor in the Galaxy S23 Ultra has better long-term performance, early testing (opens in new tab) shows substantial improvements. We’re talking 60fps with the same settings and no drops obvious over a 30-minute gameplay session.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs. S22 Ultra: Camera upgrades
So how about the cameras? Samsung made the leap from a 108MP sensor on the Galaxy S22 Ultra to a 200MP sensor on the Galaxy S23 Ultra, something that sounds incredibly impressive on paper. But what kind of differences can you expect?
We’ll be putting them head-to-head to find that answer very soon but, even if it turns out to be a game changer it’s not likely that you’ll want to upgrade from a Galaxy S22 Ultra just for the camera. Phones are too expensive these days for most people to upgrade for just one feature.
On the more practical side, The Galaxy S23 Ultra offers more stable video — particularly in low light conditions — thanks to the doubled OIS angles in all directions. When you’re walking, running, or maybe even trying to film while doing parkour (not something I recommend without a good Galaxy S23 Ultra case), the S23 Ultra will have no problem taking all that shake out of the video.
Additionally, Samsung took a lot of time on stage at the unveiling to highlight the phone’s ability to capture more natural video in any light. It’s got wider dynamic range capture — up to 12-bit HDR Dolby Vision — and better low light capabilities.
Samsung’s Camera Assistant app also unlocks a full suite of additional options for the camera that address a ton of issues people have had in the past with Samsung cameras. That includes being able to disable auto lens switching, remove image softening features, and plenty of additional options power users will absolutely love.
The S23 Ultra records more stable video with wider dynamic range and better low-light quality than the S22 Ultra.
The S23 Ultra also offers 8k recording at up to 30fps, while the S22 Ultra records 8k capped at 24fps. That’s probably not a big deal for most people but it’s a notable difference for those that use it.
But here’s what Samsung promises with the new 200MP sensor. Samsung says the Galaxy S23 Ultra is able to use a new 16-to-1 pixel binning process, which should improve overall image quality even more than we’ve already seen in the past few years.
If you’re not aware of how pixel binning works, here’s a quick explainer.
When your phone snaps a photo, it normally doesn’t take a 200MP photo. Instead, it virtually “combines” 16 pixels into one, creating a 12.5MP photo. By comparison, the S22 Ultra combines 9 pixels into one since its imaging sensor isn’t as pixel-dense.
What in the world does all that mean? Think of it this way: if you fold a piece of paper into a small tube and look through it, notice how much darker everything around you looks. Now, if you take that tube and unravel it a bit so it’s wider, you’ll see that the view through the tube is now quite a bit brighter.
The same thing goes for pixel binning. There are 201,326,592 pixels total sitting on a tiny image sensor in the Galaxy S23 Ultra. If the phone were to take a full-resolution picture, each individual pixel would be responsible for taking in as much light as it physically can.
Meanwhile, 16:1 pixel binning reduces this to a virtual 12,582,912 pixels. That means your phone is able to take brighter images while still utilizing all 201 million pixels to extract as much detail as possible.
The new 200MP sensor should take even better low-light shots and further enhance extreme zoom detail.
On top of that, Samsung’s ingenious processing solutions will take full-resolution images and combine those with a suite of over and underexposed images to create an incredibly well-balanced, highly detailed final image, all during the time you just tapped that little white shutter button on the camera app.
While regular old pictures from the main sensor might have a chance of looking slightly better, it’s more than likely the S23 Ultra will have even better zoom detail than the S22 Ultra thanks to the upgraded sensor.
That’s because, when zooming in beyond 10x, Samsung utilizes a fascinating hybrid photography method that takes photos from all three rear cameras and stitches them together. If you’ve got a Galaxy S22 series phone, you’ll see this in action when you snap a photo followed by quickly tapping the thumbnail. While it’s processing, you’ll see the original photo get replaced with an enhanced version within a few seconds.
It’s here that we’re expecting to see some serious magic on Samsung’s behalf and almost certainly the place you’ll notice the biggest difference in the cameras.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs. S22 Ultra: Scant few other changes
Believe it or not, Samsung actually tweaked the design between the Galaxy S22 Ultra and the S23 Ultra. It’s incredibly subtle in pictures but, in person, the differences are much more obvious. While they retain an identical height, width, and thickness, the curved edges on the Galaxy S23 Ultra are flatter.
On the Galaxy S22 Ultra, each side is a perfect half-circle when viewed from the bottom of the phone. This makes the phone hard to hold especially because it’s a slippery glass-and-metal sandwich.
Samsung is also launching the Galaxy S23 Ultra with One UI 5.1, another subtle upgrade over One UI 5 on the Galaxy S22 Ultra. Like One UI 5, One UI 5.1 is based on Android 13 but, as you might expect, it includes a few important features that are quite exciting.
The most exciting new software feature is Bixby Text Call which is the closest thing we’ve seen yet to Google’s exemplary Call Screening feature on Pixel phones.
The most exciting is Bixby Text Call which is the closest thing we’ve seen yet to Google’s exemplary Call Screening feature on Pixel phones. With Bixby Text Call, you’ll be able to tap a button and have Bixby answer the phone for you, including neat text prompts that you can tap to ask callers questions.
It’s a superior alternative to simply hanging up on unknown callers or suspected telemarketers as it lets you ensure you know who is on the other end without having to listen to voicemail afterward.
One UI 5.1 will be coming to other Samsung phones, though — including the Galaxy S22 Ultra — so don’t feel too jealous.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs. S22 Ultra: Which should you buy?
If you’re a Galaxy S22 Ultra user and are just looking to see what Samsung is offering in 2023, it’s probably best to hold on to your phone for another few years. Samsung is committed to delivering 5 years of software updates, meaning your S22 Ultra will get new versions of Android through 2026 — that’s Android 16, to note.
The year-over-year upgrades from S22 Ultra to S23 Ultra simply aren’t worth most people’s while, as the S22 Ultra is still an excellent phone and, in many cases, can be had for less than the S23 Ultra. That certainly makes it a winning pick in this era of job losses and difficult economic circumstances.
But, if only the best of the best will do, the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s top-notch processor and brand-new 200MP camera sensor are sure to blow you away with their capabilities. Like other Snapdragon 8 Gen 2-powered devices, the Galaxy S23 Ultra should be able to handle even the most visually demanding games without breaking a sweat — literally.
Samsung’s new cooling system inside the phone ensures it won’t get hot the way 2022’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 phones did, and battery life should be even better, too. Plus, you could score a seriously great Galaxy S23 Ultra deal (opens in new tab) with the phone’s launch, making it the most financially viable decision between the two.
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If you need the fastest mobile processor ever in an Android phone, an impressive 200MP camera, the power of the S Pen, and more features than you can shake a stick at, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is the phone for you.
The Galaxy S22 Ultra has been the best-selling premium Samsung phone in 2022 for a reason. It’s fast, has years of software support left, and can zoom in to 100x away for a truly impressive camera experience.
