If you haven’t already read our All You Need To Know post, you can check it out here.
Today we have the Samsung S23 Ultra in Lavender on-hand (I prefer the Green – @Samsung please and thank you.) Here’s what we like most about it and why people are rushing to pick them up on Day 1.
Feels In The Hand
For people with smaller hands, the Samsung S23 Ultra might take a little getting used to. Especially when you’re trying to reach the top edges of the device. Your mileage (handage?) may vary.
Screen
Having a big screen isn’t all that bad though, you get 6.8″ of AMOLED screen capable of 120Hz that does HDR+, to watch your favourite shows and movies on the go. Colours appear vibrant, and screen brightness still look great even in harsh outdoor lighting.
Gaming
Full disclosure: I’m not the biggest mobile gamer but putting on Asphalt 8, graphics and gameplay feel really smooth without any lag or dropped frames. The Snapdragon® 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy allows for the premium experience along with its 5000mAh battery, making mobile gaming enjoyable with no downtime. The 120Hz AMOLED screen makes everything look extra snappy too, so zero complaints there.
Camera System
The most exciting part of the device, at least for me, is the camera system. There’s a brand new 200MP sensor and you get to shoot in Expert RAW mode if you prefer. Night mode does really well in capturing details and rendering light sources without artifacts. We delve deeper into what the flagship device is capable of.
| Rear Cameras 12MP Ultra-Wide Camera • F2.2, FOV 120 ̊ 200 MP Wide Camera • F1.7, FOV 85 ̊ 10MP Telephoto Camera • 3x Optical Zoom, F2.4, FOV 36 ̊ 10MP Telephoto Camera • 10x Optical Zoom, F4.9, FOV 11 ̊ Front Camera 12MP Front Camera • F2.2, FOV 80 ̊ |
Here’s a sample of the night mode in action. Smaller individual light sources are being rendered very well without any artifacts cause due to stray lights or reflection. Contrast is natural without the brighter parts of the image being overly exposed. Shadows against lit subjects still appear dark and true to life.
Water reflections in the last image still look sharp, again without any over enhancement. Allowing the final image to still look clean and natural.
Video
The Samsung S23 Ultra is capable of 8K 30P for video buffs. This is a real feat and although not everyone will be using it, it’s certainly a welcome feature to have in a flagship device. Video stabilisation are also improved with doubled optical image stabilisation (OIS), but they definitely look a lot better during the day than in night mode.
S-Pen
Power users and on-the-go creatives – you guys already know how much of a life saver having the S-Pen at the tip of your fingertips is. Once you take the S-Pen out, you can immediately scribble or sketch without having to open another app.
My favourite part: the Samsung S23 Ultra makes squiggly sounds when you scribble using your S-Pen. It also vibrates and has tactile feedback when you remove and replace the S-Pen from it’s slot. Doesn’t sound like much but it really adds to the whole experience of writing on the screen.
Conclusion
Samsung isn’t playing around and has done it again with a flagship that’s packed with great front and back cameras and great screen. Perfect for productive and power users with it’s built-in stylus, and the slept-on DeX desktop mode.
Corning® Gorilla® Glass Victus® 2 screen and IP68 protection to ensure the device survives even the most klutzyiest of users (that’s me). Price tag might be a little higher than the rest but you’re paying for flagship features – which essentially is futureproofing, a fair trade for me.
Availability
Our 3 favourite telcos all have plans for the Galaxy line-up: M1, Singtel, Starhub. If you’re a Shopee kinda person, Shopee official link is here.
If you prefer to get directly from Samsung, there’s also a complimentary storage upgrade until 16 Feb 2023, here.
The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is available in four colours, Phantom Black, Cream, Green and Lavender (featured in this article). Online Exclusive colours from Samsung are Graphite, Sky Blue, Red and Lime. 256GB version at S$1,828, 512GB version at S$2,098 and 1TB version at S$2,458.
