what to expect from Samsung’s next high-end smartphone

Officially launched on February 1st in San Francisco, the Samsung Galaxy S23s may come as no surprise once again as they have been the target of various leaks and rumours. We take stock.

Every year, the same repeat for Samsung. Even before its official standard-bearer designation, the South Korean manufacturer had to deal with a lot of well-supported rumors and lots of information leaks, sometimes even internally.

We consider what we can expect from the next Galaxy S23 and its aides, which will be unveiled on February 1 in San Francisco (19:00 Paris time).

One, two or three Samsung Galaxy S23?

Samsung should unveil three smartphones from its new lineup like in previous years. The Galaxy S23 will be accompanied by the Galaxy S23+. A very advanced version called Ultra is back in the whispers.

Design: change back

Changed to expect the display of the next Galaxy S23. The set will have a more immersive screen, without returning to the curved edges that have long been the prerogative of the Samsung Galaxy S Edge. The Galaxy S23 will have a flat 6.1-inch Amoled FHD+ display with a punch for the camera, the S23+ with a 6.6-inch Amoled panel while the S23 Ultra will feature a 6.8-inch QHD+ diagonal screen.

The first two will support a 120Hz image refresh rate, dynamically adjusting as needed (48-120Hz). The latter will benefit from a variable refresh rate of 1 to 120 Hz. The fingerprint reader will still be positioned below the display and all of them will offer Dolby Atmos speakers.

But in hindsight we can expect the biggest change, widely announced in a video invite to the conference. Forget the black dominoes, the back of the device will only pop out the three photo sensors separately, accompanied by a flash on top.

Everything will be designed partly from recycled materials, but equipped with highly shock- and scratch-resistant glass (Gorilla Glass Victus 2).

Camera: the best for Ultra

Thanks to Roland Quandt, a very knowledgeable German technophile who appears to have had access to premature press renderings, we know what the camera will look like. In the Galaxy S23 as in the Galaxy S23 +, we will find the same module configuration on the back: 50 Mpex main sensor, 12 Mpex ultra wide angle, all accompanied by a 10 Mpex telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom.

But that won’t prevent all of Samsung’s high-end 2023 smartphones from promising mountains of promise and wonders in photos and videos (8K/30 fps, HDR 10+), especially with the notable improvements in night photography.

The Galaxy S23 Ultra will be based on a 200 Mpex main sensor, the latter designed by Samsung, with a 12 Mpex ultra-wide angle and two telephoto lenses: the first of 10 Mpex identical to its auxiliaries, the second a 10 Mpex periscope telephoto with 10x optical zoom.

On the front, the selfie camera will be 12 Mpx while previously it was 40 Mpx. But Samsung’s technology can compensate.

Processor: goodbye Exynos, hello Snapdragon

The new high-end smartphone from South Korea this year had to leave the famous self-designed Exynos processor in favor of Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, the most powerful system available on Android. And this is for all markets. This will allow the device to be even more efficient, taking advantage of many new functions in terms of audio, mobile games, photos, but also possibly satellite messaging.

Function: full array

Unsurprisingly, the Galaxy S23 lineup will be able to rely on Bluetooth 5.3 and Wifi 6E connections. The Galaxy S23+ and S23 Ultra will benefit from UWB (Ultra Wideband) functionality for faster direct connections, especially with Samsung’s connected beacon. All smartphones will be IP68 certified to withstand dust and prolonged immersion. The Galaxy 23 Ultra will support the use of touch pens.

Autonomy: the promise of resilience

The Galaxy S23 should benefit from a slightly larger battery than the S22 (3900 mAh against 3700 mAh). It will support 25 W wired charging (a charger is most likely not provided like previous smartphones). But Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 should be the most favorable for device autonomy. The S23+ can boast of a larger battery to support its larger display (4700 mAh), with a supported power of 45 W. The entire range will offer both 10 W wireless charging and reverse wireless charging.

The Galaxy S23 Ultra will look further with a 5000 mAh battery that supports 45 W and promises to make it last, a shortcoming of the latest model that Samsung promises to fill.

Storage

The Galaxy S23 has to be content with two configurations: 128 or 256 GB of storage. The S23+ will offer 256GB or 512GB of storage. Both models will come with 8 or 12 GB of memory, depending on the model.

The S23 Ultra will be even bigger with the option of choosing 1TB of storage with 12GB of RAM.

Price and color

Based on leaker RGClouds, the Galaxy S23 will start at 799 dollars (about 740 euros HT), which will make it cheaper than the Galaxy S22 at launch (859 euros). Galaxy S23 + will retain its price (999 dollars / 1059 euros at launch of S22 +). The Galaxy S23 Ultra will once again be close to the peak of $1,249, slightly less than the $1,299 of the Galaxy S22 Ultra in the 256 GB version as well (there was a 128 GB version last year).

The colors announced for the Samsung Galaxy S23 are black, green, cotton white and lavender.