Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra Review | Three Months Later...

Reviewing the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra three months later, including an in-depth camera test, battery life verdict, performance and more. The Galaxy S23 Ultra is one of the best flagship smartphones of 2023 vs the Pixel 7 Pro, Huawei P60 Pro and Xiaomi 13 Ultra. However, Samsung's mega-phone is also far from budget friendly, so should you upgrade or get the S23 Plus?

If you want incredible battery life, this mighty mobile is certainly in the top five easy. I've struggled to kill the thing in a single day even with plenty of camera play, and a generous slice of gaming.

Speaking of that camera, the Samsung S23 Ultra boasts a fresh new 200MP sensor that you won't find on the regular or Plus models. This is great for low light shooting, almost as hot as the P60 Pro, while the telephoto shooters are great for natural pet/kid snaps.

Gaming is a breeze thanks to Samsung's wise decision to shove a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 inside of the Galaxy S23 Ultra. This is a massive upgrade vs the Exynos chipset of the S22 Ultra, so you'll get beautiful smooth performance all day long. It's really only the sky high asking price that makes me balk. And the long term prospects are good, as you get years of OS and security updates.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra Review Chapters:
0:00 - How much??
1:04 - Design
2:51 - One UI 5.1 & features
5:29 - S Pen stylus
6:26 - Display & audio
7:22 - Performance & gaming
8:26 - Battery life
9:33 - Cameras
13:22 - Verdict

[reecechadwick]

Got my Green S23U 12GB ram with 512gb storage delivered 2 weeks before it officially came out and honestly best phone I have had so far.

[broughy]

Got 512gb and it's honestly the best phone I've ever used. The screen and battery life are just phenomenal

[Chris.in.taiwan]

The gaming mode also has the power pause option. Meaning that the game will run directly through the USB power, protecting the battery.

[ChrisBartlett]

I've had the 512gb S23 Ultra since launch. I had used the pixel 7 Pro prior and have an iPhone 14 Pro as well, but neither come close to the S23 Ultra. Performance has been outstanding, cameras are great and I enjoy One UI more than any other OS. I prefer Samsung's apps in many cases so I use a combo of those and Google's. Combine all that with the amazing SPen and I'm very satisfied with the device despite the large price tag. Even that wasnt bad with the generous trade in at launch.

[Carlos-xuzq]

I have a green 23u 256, runs like a beast, switched from the iphone 12, love how quick and snappy the ultra is!

[King_]

I got the Graphite 512GB. Rocking it with no case since release and still in great condition. Best phone of 2023 easily

[kmrjt]

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is technically far ahead of anything that's available in the market today. As someone who owns both S23 Ultra and iPhone 13 pro, I certainly appreciate how much the Ultra makes my life easier especially at work with its unique capabilities like Dex and S pen. Its smooth, fast and leaves no stones unturned. The experience is just unparalleled.

[hollowclarity]

I bought my laptop after watching your review on HP spectre x360, then I bought my galaxy watch 5 after your review. Now that I want to change my phone after 5 full years I can get a good s23 ultra. I did not regret any of my previous purchases. I love my laptop so much, it is perfect

[jamescroucher]

I do love my S23 ultra, love the fact I never have to worry about the battery

[thechicotube]

Your reviews are a delight to watch! Cheers man

[waygo]

Just picked up my first ever Brand new Samsung phone and its the S23 Ultra 512gb.... Great deal at £950! Been an iPhone user for 10 Time for a change

[icxngft]

Had the iPhone 12, but I’ve decided to train this in for a massive change. I’ve never been with android, but definitely love the look and interior factors of this phone. With the insane night vision and so on, I also have seen gameplay. And it’s insane!
Definitely can’t wait to hear a knock at the door with the phone there . Pretty excited.

[planetminecraft]

The price tag is absolutely worth it for me. I love my S23 Ultra! I've even used the S-Pen as a camera shutter button.

[raiyanzarif]

Great review! There's one thing I don't understand. Google wallet doesn't even exist in my country, and google pay is far worse than Samsung pay or apple pay. Plus, having Bixby means Samsung can implement it's own call screening feature (something google only keeps exclusive to pixel) and modes and routines. SmartThing app is absolutely essential if you're into the Samsung ecosystem (which is the best in terms of versatility). Galaxy store, albeit a bit unnecessary, still has useful stuff like theme pack. I don't understand why reviewers absolutely loathe Samsung giving us these services.

[johnbradshaw]

I am not really interested in phones but got this for two reasons. The first is I am interested in wildlife and aviation photography and travel a lot. The S23 ultra has genuinely good telephoto capabilities and has allowed me to capture loads of shots I would otherwise have missed through not carrying my mirror less camera. The camera is superb and really is very good for telephoto use, not just good 'for a phone ' but properly good. The second is the pen which I find incredibly useful. Battery life is great and the screen is fantastic. However most of what it can do is way over my head. Expensive, but excellent.

[athenadixon]

Love the Oshi noko backgrounds. Very nice review!

[timtim]

Just got mine few days ago. The device is awesome. Been using note 8 for the past 4 years. Not gonna compare ofc. Bu the display is out of this world. What a machine. Will see how the rest will hold up💪

[emmanuelbraimoh]

Got the 512GB of the Ultra and it is the best phone I have ever used. Extremely amazing and has never hung up on me. My favourite feature is the fact that when gaming, you can connect your phone to your charger and the power from the charger would stop charging the battery and power the phone instead, reducing temperature on the phone and increasing performance.

That blew my mind.

Love it

[jurajhrivnak]

Your reviews are killing me :D Keep it up!

[minutemanproductions]

S23 Ultra is my favorite phone I've ever had and continues to blow me away still to this day, makes my iPhone 13 pro seem stale and outdated