Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra review: A great phone that does almost everything right

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is a phone that does everything right: a new processor exclusively adapted for the new Galaxy S23 phones, a new main sensor (200 MP), faster system memory and drive (UFS 4.0), sustainable materials... An Ultra upgrade for a phone that it's not shy about its Ultra tag and price. But still, we can't shake the feeling that upgrading premium phones every year is pointless.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra price?

• Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra: from €1,399
• Colors: black, green, cream and lavender
• Variations: 8GB/256GB, 12GB/512GB

According to our information, the 12GB/1TB version will not be sold in Slovenia.

Available from all operators, over the counter and on the Samsung website.

Are we holding a Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra or a Galaxy S22 Ultra?

• Minor design differences with last year's model
• Sustainable consequences and benefits
• IP68 waterproof

The difference between the two Ultras is so small, so imperceptible, that you will hardly be able to tell them apart. Only when you put the two phones side by side will you notice two minor design differences. This year, the Galaxy S23 Ultra decided that roundness is not attractive and rounded the edges and sides. The S Pen also received the same makeover. The more angular shape contributed to a more reliable "grip", as we were rarely surprised that €1,500 would slip out of our hands.

Since there is no protective sleeve included in the box, the more angular shape is all the more welcome. The back page it fights fingerprints well, which, given the lack of a cover, is also very welcome. Traditionally the charger is also missing for fast 45 W charging. These are two victims of Samsung's sustainability policy, where the consequences of additional costs are felt by consumers. More user-friendly sustainable decisions are the choice of recycled materials (aluminum, glass, plastic) from which the new S23 Ultra is made. We can accompany the decision with a short round of applause.

Other than these microscopic differences, last year's Ultra and this year's Ultra are identical, and there's nothing wrong with that. Instead of reinventing and blindly inventing, Samsung stuck to a proven solution that has pleased users so far. Even more importantly, he unified the design throughout the entire line of new Samsung Galaxy S23 phones, which got rid of the unnecessary ring around the cameras.

Another microscopic but more useful change is additional microphone on the bottom of the phone, which helps cancel out ambient noise for even clearer calls.

The selfie camera slot at the top of the screen remains. It's not the most premium design addition, but it's still a lot better than a teardrop notch or a dynamic island that takes up more of the screen area. However, we continue to wait for them to be selfie camera under the screen became the norm.

The fingerprint reader under the display remains the same as last year (Qualcomm 3D Sonic Gen 2), meaning they didn't opt for the latest one Qulacom's 3D Sonic Max sensor, which impressed us with the vivo X80 Pro phone. The difference between them is primarily in speed (only one touch is required for finger registration) and security. Why Samsung remains on the older version is unknown. Considering it's an Ultra phone and a price tag to match, you'd want all the best components the mobile market has to offer. Despite this fact, it won't make a difference to the user experience for most users. The existing reader does a good job, only the recognition of wet and greasy fingers is occasionally unreliable.

The AMOLED screen returns with improved resistance

• 6.8-inch LTPO AMOLED 2X
• 120 Hz dynamic refresh
• Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2
• The S Pen didn't get any upgrades

The viewing experience won't change significantly if you own last year's Ultra. You'll still be browsing on the 6.8-inch AMOLED 2X display with a resolution of 1440 x 3088 pixels and dynamic refresh, which automatically switches between 1 Hz and 120 Hz. With the refresh rate meter turned on, we recorded a wide range of frequencies - 1, 24, 48, 60 and 120 Hz - which, according to our data, is more than other premium phones.

The biggest difference compared to last year's Galaxy S22 Ultra is new protection Gorilla Glass Victus 2, which should additionally protect the phone from bumps and scratches. We obviously didn't get to test this, but you can check out a video from JerryRigEverything, who always has the honor of taking the latest phones to pieces (bit.ly/3IWrkvR).

Even though there is no noticeable upgrade as far as the display is concerned, it still provides an impressive experience. Colors are excellent even in strong outdoor light. Viewing angles do not negatively affect color consistency either. Maximum brightness stops at 1,700 threads, which is a little less than the new iPhone 14 Pro Max (2,000 nits), but still quite enough for undisturbed use in the sun.

The S Pen, which is safely stored in the chamber made of recycled plastic, aside from a minor design change, it hasn't received an upgrade in relation to latency, accuracy or ergonomics. In our case, the use of the pen was limited to taking notes and notes, where we were completely satisfied with the speed and accuracy. We still relied on touch to control the phone.

Unrivaled performance

• Custom Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor for Galaxy phones
• 8 or 12 GB of fast RAM
• The fastest UFS 4.0 drive (capacity up to 512 GB in Slovenia)
• Improved 45W charging (charger not included)
• Handy features deep in the settings

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra cannot boast of being the first to receive the latest processor Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. But it can boast the privilege that Qualcomm has prepared a special version exclusively for the S23 phones. The difference is noticeable only on paper. The chip has a slightly twisted processor and graphics cores compared to other Gen 2 processors that we will see in the phones of the current year.

Even if you put the new S23 Ultra next to last year's Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, you won't notice a significant difference in speed. It is a phone at the top of the range and everything works simply too fast to notice a possible delay in animations or opening applications. However, the much better optimization of the new processor is noticeable. Overheating, which has plagued Snapdragon processors since version 888, is here again significantly improved. Typically, when playing Genshin Impact at the highest resolution, we encountered performance throttling after a good 30 minutes due to excessive overheating. This time, we were able to comfortably play the game for over an hour and the touch phone didn't feel excessively hot. Gaming with emulators is also more enjoyable with longer episodes.

You can choose between 8 or 12 GB of RAM, in both cases more than enough for all demanding tasks. A case of the latest version of LPDDR5X memory, which should be up to 33 % faster from the base LPDDR5.

It also boasts the latest technology in the internal drive for storing files. He made his debut UFS 4.0, which can be compared to desktop SSD disks in terms of speed. UFS 4.0 is present throughout the Galaxy S23 line, only the base 128GB Galaxy S23 is still based on the older and slower UFS 3.1. We recommend that you sacrifice a few euros more and you choose the version with 256 GB of space for a significantly faster drive, which will also extend the longevity of the phone.

Charging is finally at the level we expect as standard in the premium class, but still far behind the competition. The new Galaxy S23 Ultra will charge via cable at 45W, but with a compatible charger you don't get one attached. This one will be available over the counter cost an additional €50. It charges wirelessly (Qi or PMA standard) at 15W and also supports reverse charging at 4.5W.

Battery capacity remains the same (5,000 mAh). A small thing is the improved autonomy of operation, mainly at the expense of a more economical processor.

Is One UI 5.1 really packed with software skins?

By default, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra comes equipped with the latest One UI 5.1 Android skin, which recently came to older Galaxy phones as well. Originally, many media outlets reported on huge software packages (more than 50 GB of space) that cannot be removed. It later turned out that the situation was not as serious as it was initially suggested.

The confusion was primarily caused by Samsung, which did not make it clear that they were using the GiB unit of measurement instead of the standard GB. So there was confusion due to wrong conversion. Journalists also got the wrong data because the storage app did not have the proper permissions. Thus, all downloaded applications were also located under the System section. When we grant all permissions to the app, the number decreases significantly, but it is still higher than other Android phones.

Samsung justifies the higher number because part of the space is reserved for future updates and upgrades. Slightly more system occupancy is also due to the many algorithms for the camera and pen. A large share of the occupied space can also be attributed to duplicate applications. For each Google application we also find the equivalent Samsung app. This is a practice followed by all major phone manufacturers and is completely unnecessary for most users who more or less prioritize Google apps. This is probably also the reason why Samsung decided to skip the 128GB version. The factor plays a role in everything A/B partitioning, which is not used by Samsung to provide updates.

But all is not bleak in the world of One UI 5.1. Samsung Dex, which projects your phone onto an external screen in desktop mode, is extremely convenient function. It also detects older Samsung TVs, which was very convenient in our case. Our late 2018 Samsung TV does not support local server access app (Plex or Jellyfin) by default. The Samsung Dex feature allowed us to bypass this limitation and project the aforementioned app directly from the phone. Of course, Samsung isn't the only one to support this. Most phones have their own dedicated projection feature, but so far we've been most happy with Samsung's version, which is faster and adapts better to the size of the TV.

Deep, but really deep in the settings of the Game Booster gaming application, the function is said to be located Pause USB Power Delivery. Its task is to charge the phone without heating. Instead of the charger charging the battery, the latter draws power directly from the charger. This way, you can charge your phone while playing games without suffering second-degree burns. At the same time we extend the life of the phone.

Unfortunately, we were not able to test the function because at hand we didn't have a compatible charger. To use this function, find a USB PD PPS charger on sale, connect it to your phone, launch the selected game and enable fast charging in the settings. What we would like to see is Samsung expand the said feature to other areas, for example when using the Samsung Dex feature.

A lot annoying is the default shortcut on the phone's power button. This launches the Bixby assistant instead of giving options to shut down or restart. You will need to manually change this in the settings.

Despite some shortcomings, Samsung has a solid software experience. We sincerely hope it stays that way, as we noticed they have US versions for example locked bootloader (English bootloader), which would may deter more demanding users, who like to tamper with the phone system.

200 MP camera and stunning details

• 200 MP (f/1.7) main camera (OIS)
• 12 MP (f/2.2) ultra-wide with autofocus
• 10 MP (f/2.4) telephoto with 3x optical zoom (OIS)
• 10 MP (f/4.9) telephoto with 10x optical zoom (OIS)
• 12 MP (f/2.2) selfie camera

As always and as expected, Samsung is at it again installed the best camera assembly, which Samsung and the telephony market in general have at the moment. The 108 MP camera was replaced with new shiny 200 MP sensor to provide even more detail. We expected the first iteration to have some issues. When the manufacturer changes the sensor, the existing software algorithms for image processing are usually no longer adequate. And it usually takes a generation for a manufacturer to reset all the tools. Fortunately for future owners, Samsung did not encounter such problems.

By default, the new 200 MP sensor uses pixel binning technology, which combines 16 pixels to create a 12.5 MP photo. You can also choose 4-in-1 pixel binning, which produces 50 MP photos. This is also the biggest advantage of the new sensor. All those extra pixels help stabilize shots, capture light, and generally provide more subject and color information. What we would like is for the 200MP and 50MP shooting modes to be more clearly exposed. To enable both modes, it is not immediately clear where the functions are located.

Photos captured in 200 MP mode, they need a lot of light. In worse conditions, you can say goodbye to useful photos. When you manage to capture a 200 MP photo, you will be able to notice supernatural details, especially if you are going to view the images on a larger screen or even print them.

Photo gallery

Zoom is an area where no manufacturer can match Samsung. In good light, the 3x and 10x optical zoom capture excellent photos. Between the two optical zooms and everything above 10x zoom, the digital zoom is activated, which can capture decent photos with a zoom of up to 40x or, in extreme cases, 50x. The level of detail at such a zoom understandably drops sharply, but still useful enough for posting on social networks. The 100x zoom is, as always, an extremely niche feature.

Portrait mode perfectly isolates the motif and manages to retain fine details that can be seen when zoomed in afterwards. Night mode can be spectacular or just within the expectations for a phone of this class. On the one hand, you will be able to capture the Moon with incredible detail, but on the other hand, it will have quite a few problems with contrast and lighting motifs in normal night scenes. In this segment, remaining competition approximates or maybe surpass it by a little bit. We put it next to last year's Huawei Mate 50 Pro and the new Xiaomi 13 Pro, and in both cases they lit up dark scenes faster and more accurately.

The video quality is excellent. 8K recording is much more useful in this version, as we record at 30 frames per second (S22 Ultra at 24 fps). Still, 4K video will be the dominant format. Images in good lighting display beautiful colors and a good level of detail. Oversaturated colors and edge noise occasionally occur with active subjects and indoors.

The front selfie camera has lost some resolution – from 40 to 12 MP. As mentioned at the beginning, we are still waiting for an under-display selfie camera. Overall, the 12 MP front camera works reliably and quickly. Captured images have a good dynamic range that will please selfie lovers.

Final opinion

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is a great phone, if not the best among Androids. Small things decide at the top, but the subjective preference of each individual also weighs a lot. The Galaxy S23 Ultra provided everything we expected from it: a new processor, an improved camera, a better drive... They also accelerated the sustainability policy and kept the existing commitment to offer phones 4 years of Android upgrades.

It is hard to find any major flaw. Anyone who decides to purchase will be an extremely satisfied user for the next 5 years.

But is the upgrade really necessary? If you currently have last year's S22 or S21 or any premium phone in the last two years in your hands and you are of course satisfied with it, then upgrading is less and less important. You have a great phone in your hands that has many years of service left in it. Upgrading to the Galaxy S23 Ultra will give you a phenomenal phone, but is the difference noticeable enough to make the big investment worthwhile? Personally, we'd rather skip at least one generation. After two years of development, the leap in performance is likely to be that much bigger. If money is not an obstacle for you, then forget about our concern and treat yourself to the best that Android has to offer right now.