Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs S22 Ultra, their features reviewed

Galaxy S22 Ultra vs S23 Ultra: technical sheets comparison

The spec sheets for both products provide a first look at some of the changes Samsung has made to its Galaxy S23. The first can be seen on the side of the chip that powers the phone: the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, instead of the Samsung Exynos 2200. The second has to do with the 200 megapixel camera module that replaces the 108 megapixel module of the S22 Ultra . The Korean manufacturer has made some other adjustments that we detail below.

We won’t be returning to the OneUI 5.1 interface that the S23 Ultra will benefit from upon its release, as it will also come to the S22 Ultra via an update.

Design

Let’s start with the obvious: the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra looks like two drops of water to its predecessor. The changes can be seen in the thicker contours of the picture modules, as well as the slightly less curved screen. This last point slightly improves grip, but is far from being a “game changer”. The manufacturer has also slightly changed the curves of its S-Pen stylus, which sits directly on the phone.

So, the dimensions of the two products are almost identical. The S23 Ultra weighs just 5g more than the S22 Ultra, coming in at 233g. We’re still on a big smartphone that’s mainly used with two hands and doesn’t fit in every pocket. Although it remains very attractive, the design is therefore almost unchanged.

In terms of build quality, the Galaxy S23 Ultra can boast Gorilla Glass Victus 2 glass protection, versus the slightly less resistant Gorilla Glass Victus + on the S22 Ultra. Both phones benefit from an IP68 certification that makes them waterproof and dustproof.

Winner: ex aequo

screen

In 2023, the 6.8-inch AMOLED QHD + panel of the Galaxy S22 Ultra still has no reason to be ashamed of the competition. Its maximum brightness of 1750 cd/m2 offers perfect readability on the phone in all light conditions. So Samsung decided to give its Galaxy S23 Ultra the same screen.

We still found the LTPO 2.0 technology that allows the screen to “navigate” between 1 and 120 Hz to favor speed or save battery depending on the content being displayed. If you’re playing a game, for example, the screen will switch to 120 Hz for optimal fluidity. If you’re just viewing a picture, the panel can drop to just 1 Hz without affecting your user experience.

Samsung has mastered its subject and therefore did not consider it necessary to significantly upgrade its screen on the new Galaxy S23 Ultra. The Korean brand may have made some improvements to the sidelines, but you probably won’t see a noticeable difference in the S22 Ultra.

Winner: ex aequo

Presentations

This year, Samsung will take a big step forward in performance thanks to its new chip: the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 from Qualcomm. By abandoning its in-house SoC (the Exynos 2200) in the European version, Samsung is giving itself the means to withstand all future high-end smartphones of 2023. We have already tested new high-end chip, And we were not disappointed!

The CPU performance is logically superior to the excellent Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, but the most obvious improvement can undoubtedly be seen on the graphics side. Qualcomm announced a gain of around 25%, which is far from negligible, especially if you want to play games. The Galaxy S23 Ultra also includes a vapor chamber to better dissipate heat and thus provide optimal performance.

The Korean manufacturer has also collaborated with Qualcomm to optimize the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 in its Galaxy S23. This is particularly evident through the better performance of the NPU (Neural Processing Unit) which uses artificial intelligence and machine learning to learn from your devices to improve performance, autonomy or even the image. The S22 Ultra’s Exynos 2200 is clearly left behind.

Winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

Autonomy and charging speed

To ensure the autonomy of its Galaxy S23 Ultra, Samsung still relies on a 5000 mAh battery. There is therefore no change at this point compared to the S22 Ultra. But other parameters come into play and specifically the energy efficiency of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip. At this point, Qualcomm announced that its SoC is 40% better than its predecessor.

A significant advantage that should allow the S23 Ultra to better manage its consumption than the S22 Ultra, without increasing the battery capacity. Finally, Samsung probably worked on software optimizations that, taken together, could save precious minutes of patience on its new one. flagship.

On the other hand, don’t expect “ultra-fast” charging on the Galaxy S23 Ultra which remains stuck at 45W wired and 15W wireless. As with the S22 Ultra, Samsung won’t provide any charger in the box.

Winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

The picture

The Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is still equipped with four camera modules. A 12 MP ultra-wide angle, a 10 MP telephoto lens for x3 optical zoom, another telephoto lens for x10 optical zoom and a 200 MP main (wide-angle) module. It didn’t escape you, the S22 Ultra uses the same configuration, but with a main module of 108 megapixels.

In fact, the number of megapixels increasing will make it possible to push back the limits of the technology “pixel binning” which will combine up to sixteen adjacent pixels into a single larger pixel. A method that captures more light and improves image quality, especially in night scenes. You can then choose to take shots at 12.5, 50 or 200 megapixels to favor sharpness in bright scenes, or more clarity in dark scenes.

Another important point is the arrival of a better “dual pixel” autofocus in all camera modules to improve focus and image sharpness. Confident about the increase in image quality that this new autofocus can bring, Samsung did not hesitate to upgrade its front camera module from 40 to 12 megapixels. Finally, the S23 Ultra can shoot up to [email protected]against [email protected] for his predecessor.

Winner: Galaxy S23 Ultra

The S23 Ultra won the match, but not by knockout

As you can see in this comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra brings incremental improvements to what the Galaxy S22 Ultra already offers. Depending on your expectations, these changes will be more or less important.

The most obvious improvement can undoubtedly be seen in the raw performance the phone has to offer. The improvement of the camera module is also a point that will be examined in depth.

For others, the S23 Ultra is more evolution than revolution. We obviously reserve our final opinion for our complete product test which you will see soon on 01net.