Samsung Galaxy 23 Ultra design & new features hands-on review

When the Samsung Galaxy S22 Extremely was launched, it was fairly the leap in design from the S21 Extremely.

Trying again on the S21 Extremely now, it does seem fairly outdated already, with its rounded corners and distinct digicam housing.

In the meantime, the S22 Extremely had extra of a Word-like look, sharper and sleeker. 

The S23 Extremely that was newly launched sticks with this aesthetic, and improves on it too.

Coming in a minimalistic field that has the guide, a SIM ejector pin, and a USB Sort-C to Sort-C cable, the S23 Extremely instantly feels premium to the contact.

There are 4 colourways accessible: Phantom Black, Cream, Inexperienced, and Lavender. These colourways are the identical for the S23 and S23+.

I really feel it’s type of a pity that the S22 Extremely’s Burgundy is now not accessible right here, because it’s one of many extra putting colourways from Samsung but.

Out of the present colourways, the Phantom Black is a simple go-to for many who need simplicity; the Cream has a pleasant pearlescent end; the Lavender is just a little forgettable; the Inexperienced by far is my favorite, as relying on the lighting, its hues can go from a darkish inexperienced to a greenish-grey.

One thing not instantly noticeable concerning the S23 Extremely is the curvature of its display screen edges, which has really been lowered fairly considerably in comparison with the S22 Extremely. 

The show display screen can be alleged to be extra sturdy, because it’s comprised of Corning’s new Gorilla Glass Victus 2. 

(I admittedly have by accident dropped the telephone just a few occasions, as did some others on a Samsung media journey we joined, however our telephones all turned out tremendous.)

Over on the again, the absence of a contoured digicam housing remains to be price celebrating, and with the S23 and S23+ following swimsuit, Samsung confirmed that we could by no means see that design return.

The S23 Extremely brings a brand new 200MP digicam sensor, a leap from the S22 Extremely’s 108MP. We have been already impressed with the S22 Extremely’s digicam capabilities, so the S23 Extremely offers us even larger expectations.

The 200MP digicam offers crisper and extra detailed photographs, however I nonetheless have one tiny gripe: I want the operate was sooner to activate, particularly if I’m not already all the time utilizing it. 

It’s the identical on earlier telephone fashions, just like the S22 Extremely with its 108MP digicam.

I simply discover it a pity that by the point I’ve clicked round my digicam settings to activate the 200MP sensor, I’ll have already missed my shot. 

As for Nightography, which was launched final yr, a brand new improve ensures that low-light photos may have much less visible noise in each photos and movies. 

Enjoying round with it briefly, the distinction between the S22 Extremely and S23 Extremely’s Nightography was clear. Mild sources appeared a lot sharper, whereas objects in low gentle had their particulars preserved with out your complete image trying overblown.

Apparently although, at first look, low-light images taken with out Nightography additionally regarded fairly good compared, however we’ve not but experimented with this absolutely. 

Video-wise, Samsung has launched the power to file 8K at 30fps with a wider angle. 

To beat blurry movies as a consequence of low-light situations, shaky arms, or sudden actions, the S23 Extremely comes with doubled optical picture stabiliser (OIS) angles in all instructions to stabilise recordings.

Testing this briefly, movies have been impressively steady whereas strolling round and I wasn’t even making an attempt to melt my steps. Nevertheless, some jitter right here and there was additionally noticeable at occasions.

One other one of many S23 Extremely’s predominant highlights is its improved gaming capabilities too. Outfitted with the brand new Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip, a much bigger vapour chamber, real-time ray-tracing capabilities, and extra, my expectations for its efficiency have been excessive.

We first examined it with Asphalt 9: Legends, and the graphics have been certainly stunning and clean. The tester S23 Ultras had been operating the sport for fairly some time by that time too, however didn’t really feel scorching to the contact.

After all, as soon as I had a pattern unit of the S23 Extremely to myself, I put in Genshin Impression and put my settings on overclocked.

I’m happy to say that my gameplay was gorgeously clean, and loading occasions have been quick too. Positively going to be spending extra time enjoying—ahem, testing it on the S23 Extremely.

On the productiveness finish of issues, we’ve received the S Pen with its pleasant clicks tucked into the underside nook of the telephone.

I attempted utilizing it to take notes throughout the S23 Extremely launch briefing, and whereas it was straightforward to make use of, there’s nonetheless a strategy to go earlier than the doodle-to-text operate is definitely helpful.

It merely couldn’t sustain with my velocity or type of writing (my handwriting isn’t that unhealthy, I swear), and I discovered it extra helpful to only doodle my notes.

We’ve barely scratched the floor of what the S23 Extremely can do right here, so we’ll positively be doing a extra in-depth evaluate quickly, particularly on its predominant highlights.

The S23 Extremely 512GB retails from RM5,699, and pre-orders are open from now till February 23, 2023.

Pre-orders will include unique items together with double storage upgrades price as much as RM500, an RM400 e-voucher, or free equipment price as much as RM485, relying on the place you buy your machine. Extra particulars right here.

• Study extra concerning the S23 Extremely right here.
• Learn extra Samsung content material from us right here.