is it worth changing?
Galaxy S23, S23+ and S23 Ultra officially unveiled at the Galaxy Unpacked conference on Wednesday 1uh February 2023. The Galaxy S23 is the smallest of its siblings. This is also the cheapest model. Already own a Galaxy S22 and thinking about upgrading to the next generation? This comparison will help you make the right decision.
Galaxy S23 made official on the 1stuh February 2023 and takes over from the Galaxy S22. Like every year, we’ve lent ourselves to the game of differences between the new model and the previous generation. The exercises are relatively easy because, while there aren’t many changes, some that we identify are quite significant.
To give you a taste: Samsung has finally decided to ditch the Exynos SoC in favor of Snapdragon on the European market. Autonomy, performance… no need to keep in mind the weakness of Samsung’s chips compared to Qualcomm’s equivalents. But this discrimination that has lasted too long is now a thing of the past.
Galaxy S23 vs. S22: technical sheet
| Galaxy S23 | Galaxy S22 | |
|---|---|---|
| Screen | 6.1″ AMOLED FHD+ 48-120Hz 2400×1080 pixels 1750nit |
6.1″ AMOLED FHD+ 48-120Hz 2400×1080 pixels 1300nit |
| chipsets | Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, 4nm Wi-Fi 6E |
Exynos 2200, 4nm Wi-Fi 6 |
| BONE | Android 13 + One UI 5.1 | Android 12 + One UI 4.1 |
| RAM | 8gb | 8gb |
| Storage | 128/256GB | 128/256GB |
| microSD | Not | Not |
| Main sensors | Wide angle 50 MP f/1.8 Dual Pixel PDAF OIS Ultra wide angle 12 MP f/2.2 120° Telephoto 10 MP 3X Optical Zoom f/2.4 OIS PDAF |
Wide angle 50 MP f/1.8 Dual Pixel PDAF OIS Ultra wide angle 12 MP f/2.2 120° Telephoto 10 MP 3X Optical Zoom f/2.4 OIS PDAF |
| selfie sensor | Dual Pixel PDAF 12 MP, f/2.2, 26mm | Dual Pixel PDAF 10MP (f/2.2). |
| Battery | 3900mAh 25W wired charging 15W wireless charging |
3700mAh 25W wired charging 15W wireless charging |
| 5G | Yes | Yes |
| Biometrics | Ultrasonic fingerprint scanner under the screen | Ultrasonic fingerprint scanner under the screen |
| Waterproof | IP68 | IP68 |
designing
The most visible design change concerns the photo block on the back. The beam protrusion disappeared to make way discreet insertion of a photo sensor in the Galaxy S23’s chassis. Last year, this feature was reserved for the Galaxy S22 Ultra.
This is a small switch between the two base models (the S23 and S23+ which have the same design) and the Ultra version. However, there are still clear demarcations that allow the Galaxy S23 Ultra to retain all of its personality.
The photo block on the back is appreciated by some and underappreciated by others. Samsung also determined that its removal was a customer request. If this decision allows for a return to a more conventional design, The Galaxy S23 is suddenly a bit unrecognizable at first glance. Indeed, this marked block character offers somewhat distinctive traits to its predecessors.
Other than that aspect, the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S22 are similar in every way. We’ve always noticed the presence of the punch at the top, in the center of the screen. The design is generally thin and pleasing as we’ve seen handling the Galaxy S23. The edges are made of aluminum and give it a very premium look.
Screen
Two notable changes regarding the Galaxy S23’s screen. The latter gets slightly brighter as it reaches 1750 nits max instead of 1300 nits for Galaxy S22. The new dial is also entitled to the Gorilla Glass Victus 2 glass due to its resistance. Thus, the screen is less likely to shatter after a relatively hard fall.
This standard allows him specifically to avoid damage after a 1m (hip-deep) fall on concrete or even 2m on a surface like asphalt.
For the rest, the characteristics of the Galaxy S23 AMOLED screen are the same as the Galaxy S22. We live on the diagonal 6.1 inchesFull HD+ definition (2340 x 1080 pixels) and a refresh rate of 120Hz. The screen still doesn’t have LTPO technology, unlike the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
Thus, the refresh rate drops to 10 Hz when needed to optimize battery life. That’s not bad compared to most non-LTPO monitors. They don’t go lower than 30 Hz in general.
Show
We said it in the introduction. The biggest evolution of the Galaxy S23 concerns the chip. Samsung has long relied on Exynos SoCs – which have been heavily criticized – in Europe. They have always been less powerful than their Qualcomm equivalents which are found especially on the American version of the Galaxy SX.
Therefore, the Exynos 2200 Galaxy S22 will be the last. place in Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 found under the hood of the Galaxy S23, but also the Galaxy S23 Plus and Galaxy S23 Ultra. Note that Samsung still wants to offer certain quirks. Here the brand offers a modified “for Galaxy” version of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. It has the peculiarity of offering slightly higher frequencies than other Android smartphones equipped with this chip.
The first benchmarks show that the new Qualcomm chip up to 45% faster than Exynos 2200 based on the results obtained with the GeekBench 5 platform. And that’s not counting the “overclocking” of the Samsung model. However, it does give us an idea of the performance boost that can be expected when moving from the Galaxy S22 to the Galaxy S23. Moreover, even though it uses the same fineness of carving, Snapdragon chips are more energy efficient than Exynos.
Photo
This year, Samsung hasn’t changed anything on the rear photo sensor, unlike the selfie sensor. LTherefore, the rear sensor configuration is the same as the Galaxy S22 which improves the photo section of the Galaxy S21. Korean companies seem to choose the status quo strategy every two years. Because the observations were the same when switching from the Galaxy S20 to S21.
The Galaxy S23 thus has the same 50 megapixel main sensor as the S22, with Dual Pixel autofocus. This is a 24mm equivalent sensor aperture at f/1.18. Samsung uses pixel binning technology here, each pixel is 1 micron, but combining 4 units can form a 4 micron super pixel, that is, a 12.5 megapixel photo in reality.
This allows the sensor to process more light, which improves the quality of photos, especially at night. Coupled with a night mode that improves photo clarity in very dark environments.
The rest, the main sensor is supported by a 10 megapixel telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom and 30x digital zoom. The third sensor is a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle module. In front, however, The Galaxy S23 has a 12 MP sensor compared to 10 MP for the Galaxy S22.
Find all sensor characteristics in the technical sheet table above. In conclusion on this topic, the Galaxy S23 vs S22 match for the photo section therefore has practically no winner. The only improvement is at the level of the slightly improved selfie sensor.
Battery and fast charging
The Galaxy S23 has a bigger battery than the Galaxy S22. We went from 3700 mAh to 3900 mAh, an increase of about 5%. And knowing that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is less power hungry, the S23 should offer significantly better battery life than the Galaxy S23.
As for fast charging, Samsung still uses 25W of power for the Galaxy S23, the same as the Galaxy S22. So there’s no change in that. For now, the manufacturer has not detailed the power of the Galaxy S23’s wireless charging. but on the previous model it was 10W.
Galaxy S23 vs. Galaxy S22: conclusion
The point of this ruling isn’t to say whether the Galaxy S23 is better than the Galaxy S22. The answer is an obvious yes. Because as we’ve seen, the S23 has stronger and brighter screen. He is more efficient thanks to the new Snapdragon Gen 2 SoC and have bigger battery.
The real question is whether buying the new Galaxy S23 is justified for those who already own the Galaxy S22. The answers vary and will depend on the individual user. If you run intensive applications, and especially demanding 3D games, the contribution of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 compared to the Exynos 2200 is undeniable.
It is more powerful, more stable and more energy efficient. However, for most users, the Exynos 2200 Galaxy S22 provides comfortable performance for smooth everyday use. If power is important to you, the switch to the Galaxy S23 is completely justified.
The rest of the Galaxy S23 hasn’t changed much compared to the S22. Specifically, they have the same photo sensor. For many users, the photo section is one of the determining factors. And in that case, there’s no point switching from the Galaxy S22 to the S23 if photography is your criteria of choice.
