Everything we know about Samsung’s Galaxy S23 and S23 Ultra

Samsung’s Galaxy S22 smartphones are too far in the rear-view mirror, and we’re already getting buried in rumors about the Galaxy S23. So far, the next-gen flagship smartphone from Samsung looks like it’ll mostly be an iterative update from its predecessor. The most notable upgrades seem to focus on the camera that could offer impressive 200-megapixel photos.

Here’s everything we know so far about the Galaxy S23.

WHAT WILL THE GALAXY S23 LOOK LIKE?

It doesn’t look like Samsung is straying too far from its established Galaxy design with the upcoming flagship. Going off unofficial renders, courtesy of @OnLeaks and Smartprix, the Galaxy S23 Ultra will look similar to its predecessor. The reputable leaker pointed out some small differences between the bezels, which look a bit smaller for the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

According to a Galaxy S23 Ultra listing on TENAA, China’s telecommunications certification authority, the top model of the next-gen smartphone may look nearly identical to its predecessor with a 6.8-inch display.

WHAT CHIPSET WILL THE GALAXY S23 USE?

According to a report from South Korean news site Naver, Samsung is looking at creating a purpose-built team that will design chipsets for Galaxy smartphones. This team won’t be ready any time soon, though, meaning Samsung will likely go with Snapdragon chips for the Galaxy S23 and likely S24 models. Qualcomm, the maker of Snapdragon chips, also put out a press release saying that the two companies will be working together on products until 2030. This all points to Samsung using Qualcomm’s latest smartphone chip, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, for the Galaxy S23.

The TENAA listing shows the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s processor with an eight-core processor that has a max frequency of 3.36GHz, matching the specs of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.

This is a win-win for the consumers since Snapdragon chips are known to perform better than Samsung’s own Exynos chipsets, which are only offered in certain regions. As for later down the line, Samsung’s chipset team could hopefully design its own silicon that will perform better in its Galaxy smartphones.

WILL THE GALAXY S23 HAVE BETTER BATTERY LIFE?

It looks like Samsung will be sticking with the same 5,000mAh battery for the Galaxy S23 Ultra, as noted by serial leaker Ice Universe. That means the next-gen smartphone will be using the same battery as the Galaxy S22 Ultra, and the older S21 Ultra. The TENAA listing supports the leaks, showing a Galaxy S23 Ultra with a battery that has a minimum rated capacity of 4,855mAh, which will be listed as 5,000 mAh.

If Samsung does end up powering the Galaxy S23s with Snapdragon’s latest chipset, that could mean more processing power, but also improved power efficiency that could improve battery life. Hopefully, the new chipset is enough to get more mileage out of the existing battery. Another rumor originating from Thelec.kr points out that the base model S23 and the S23+ version may get a slight battery capacity boost.

WILL THE GALAXY S23 HAVE A BETTER CAMERA?

We’re expecting the Galaxy S23 Ultra camera to be the most notable upgrade compared to its predecessor. Samsung revealed its 200-megapixel camera sensor back in June, adding that it’s expected to go into production sometime this year. We’re not sure which smartphones will use the Isocell HP3 sensor, but it makes a lot of sense for the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

Ice Universe leaked that the Galaxy S23 Ultra will have a 200-megapixel option that comes with a whopping 12,240 x 16,320 resolution. The leaks also noted there will be a 50-megapixel sensor with 6,120 x 8,160 resolution and a default sensor with 3,000 x 4,000 resolution. The Galaxy S23 Ultra’s camera is also expected to open up to f/1.7, just a hair wider than the f/1.8 from the previous generation. With such large-resolution photos, you might be inclined to go for the Galaxy S23 model with more internal storage.

Ice Universe also shared several image samples comparing the 200-megapixel power of the Galaxy S23 Ultra with the existing S22 Ultra, as well as with the Pixel 7 Pro. There’s a clear improvement in both examples, but it’s hard to say how much of that is AI processing, versus an actual difference in resolution and megapixel count. Still, it’s undoubtedly an impressive quality bump.

WHEN WILL THE GALAXY S23 COME OUT?

There haven’t been many leaks about a release date, but our best guess is that Samsung follows its pattern of an early release in 2023. There are reports claiming that Samsung will announce the Galaxy S23 in the first week of February 2023. The report also claims that Samsung will do an in-person media briefing in San Francisco for its next smartphone, which would be its first in-person event in several years.

WHAT COLORS WITH THE GALAXY S23 COME IN?

Samsung may be switching up the color palettes for its Galaxy S23 models. According to serial tipster Ross Young, the next-gen smartphone will come in beige, black, green, and light pink. That’s far less than the available colors for the Galaxy S22, which includes bright, colorful options like burgundy, graphite, violet, and sky blue. Samsung could also offer exclusive colors again for each of the Galaxy S23 models, like its base, Plus, and Ultra variants, though.

HOW MUCH WILL THE GALAXY S23 COST?

We haven’t heard much in the way of pricing details, which could mean that Samsung is planning to maintain the existing pricing structure. For reference, the base Galaxy S22 model starts at $799.99, while the Galaxy S22+ starts at $999.99. The high-end Galaxy S22 Ultra will run you at least $1,199.99.

Since the Galaxy S23 doesn’t seem to be much of a major upgrade, outside the 200-megapixel camera, it would make sense for Samsung to keep the pricing the same.