The Galaxy S23 is Samsung’s pocket-friendly flagship for 2023. Read our page for more on its specs, performance, and how to find the best deals for you.
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Samsung Galaxy S23 deals
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Samsung Galaxy S23 at a glance
- 6.1-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O Display
- Dimensions: 146.3 x 70.9 x 7.6mm
- Weight: 168g
- Three rear cameras: 12MP ultra wide, 50MP wide, 10MP telephoto
- 12MP front camera
- Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset
- 8GB of RAM
- Storage options: 128GB, 256GB
- 5G-enabled
- Operating system: Android 13
- Other variants: Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus, Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
The Galaxy S23 is Samsung's smallest phone in its 2023 line-up, but it packs a punch. With a snappy new chip, bigger battery capacity and improved photo processing, it's a great option for tech enthusiasts and casual users alike.
Availability and price
The first official glimpse of the Galaxy S23 range was on 1 February 2023, when Samsung unveiled it at its Unpacked event. It goes on sale on 17 February, although pre-orders are already available.
At launch, prices were £849 for the 128BG model, and £899 for the 256GB one.
Prefer to get it on a contract? You can get the Samsung Galaxy S23 on pay-monthly contracts from all major networks, including O2, Three, Vodafone, ID Mobile and more.
Design
When it comes to design, the Galaxy S23 has largely stuck with the familiar blueprint of the S22.
The main discernible difference is the camera set-up on the back. Instead of the raised camera module seen on the Galaxy S22 and S21, the three lenses are housed in their own individual units. This makes the Galaxy S23 look more similar to its top-end counterpart, the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
It comes in four colourways (Green, Cream, Phantom Black and Lavender), as well as two exclusive Samsung.com colours (Lime and Graphite).
Display
The Galaxy S23 still has a 6.1-inch screen, making it eminently easy to use with one hand and put in your pocket. It's made from the durable Gorilla Glass Victus 2, which should protect the phone from everyday scratches and scuffs.
There’s also an excellent 120Hz refresh rate and a screen resolution of 2,340 x 1,080 pixels.
Camera
Looking purely at specs, the rear cameras on the Galaxy S23 remain the same: a 50MP f/1.8 wide lens, a 12MP f/2.2 ultra wide lens, and a 10MP f2.4 telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom.
Though hardware seems to be unchanged, you'll likely notice some decent improvements in terms of software. Thanks to the phone's new chipset, photo processing is more powerful than before. That means you can take advantage of its advanced photography capabilities, such as better night photography and the ability to support 50MP snaps using the phone’s Expert Raw mode.
The selfie camera has also been upgraded to 12MP - a bump up from the Galaxy S22's 10MP front camera.
Specs
The Galaxy S23 features the new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipset. This means better computational photography capabilities and a more powerful all-round performance.
The S22 was criticised for its weak battery life, so it's good to see that the Galaxy S23 has been given a larger battery. Sure, it's a small boost – 3,900mAh to the S22's 3,700mAh cell – but, along with a new processor and power efficiency measures, it should help prolong the battery life.
Wired charging is capped at 25W, while wireless charging is up to 15W. It's not the fastest on the market, but it beats the iPhone 14.
It ships with Android 13, Google’s latest operating system, as well as a new version of One UI (One UI 5.1). It’s scheduled to receive four major OS upgrades and five years of security patches after launch. With Samsung pledging to support the Galaxy S23 until at least 2028, it's set to be a long-lasting handset.
Is the Samsung Galaxy S23 worth buying in 2024?
At the time of writing (February 2023), the Galaxy S23 is Samsung’s latest release. As expected from a Samsung flagship, it's a pretty failsafe option. With its powerful processor and top-notch performance, it's a great contender to the iPhone 14 and Google Pixel 7. If you're a power user in search for the latest and greatest, or you're simply due an upgrade, the Galaxy S23 is well worth considering.
However, if you already own last year's Galaxy S22, you may be wondering whether you'd be better off holding onto your current device. We go through the differences between the two phones below...
What’s the difference between Samsung Galaxy S23 and Samsung Galaxy S22?
While the look of this year’s Galaxy S23 isn’t too dissimilar from last year’s Galaxy S22, some more noteworthy differences can be found under the hood:
- Chipset – the Galaxy S23 is powered by a new processor, the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip
- Battery – the Galaxy S23 features a 3,900mAh cell, compared to the Galaxy S22’s 3,700mAh one
- Photo processing – the new chip means better photography capabilities, such as an improved nightography mode
Can I get the Samsung Galaxy S23 with poor credit?
When taking out a phone contract for a high-end device, you’ll typically need to pass a credit check with your network. At the time of writing (February 2023), the Galaxy S23 is Samsung’s latest flagship handset – so, most networks won’t approve you for a Galaxy S23 phone contract if you have a poor credit score.
Don’t worry, though – there are other options available, and you can try to improve your credit score in the meantime. Visit our page on bad credit phones for more help.
Galaxy S23 5G specs
Manufacturer | Samsung |
---|---|
Operating System | Android |
Sim Card Type | Nano |
Accelerometer | Yes |
---|---|
Proximity | Yes |
Compass | Yes |
Barometer | Yes |
Gyroscope | Yes |
GPS | Yes |
Form Factor | Candy Bar |
---|---|
Thickness | 7.6 mm |
Size | 146.3mm x 7.6mm x 70.9mm |
Weight | 167 g |
Battery Type | Lithium Polymer |
---|---|
Capacity | 3900 mah |
Standby | hours |
Talktime | hours |
Display Size | 6.1 inches |
---|---|
Screen Type | AMOLED |
Resolution | 1080 x 2340 inches |
Pixels Per Inch | 422 ppi |
Touch Screen Type | Capacitive |
CPU | 0 mhz |
---|---|
Processor Cores | Octa Core Cores |
Memory | 8000 MB |
Internal Storage | 128, 256 |
---|---|
External Storage | No |
Primary Camera | MP |
---|---|
Flash | Yes |
LED Flash | |
GEO Tagging | Yes |
Auto Focus | Yes |
Fixed Focus | Yes |
Touch Focus | |
Face Detection | Yes |
Smile Detection | |
Image Stabilisation | Yes |
Video Quality | |
2nd Camera | MP |
Generation | 5G |
---|---|
Frequency | Dual-band |
NFC | No |
Wi-Fi | No |
Wi-Fi Hotspot | Yes |
Wi-Fi Direct | Yes |
Bluetooth | Yes |
USB | No |
Loudspeaker | Yes |
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