Samsung Galaxy S23+ review: A no-compromise flagship phone

Amidst all the hype of the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, the younger sibling S23+, priced at Rs 94,999, was lost in the limelight. But kid you not, this outshines most flagship smartphones, including the iPhone 14 Plus. After all, it has got a perfect size, is not too big to hold, has top-notch performance and a great camera, which makes the overall package impressive. I won’t be wrong to say that Samsung has nailed yet another flagship alternate.

Design to fit:

Most flagship smartphones house a big display and are slightly difficult to use with one hand. That’s not the case with the S23+. Even with a 6.6-inch screen on board, it is very convenient to hold. It’s a well-rounded smartphone and doesn’t carve into the hands the way most rectangular phones do. To give a quick comparison, even with a 6.6-inch screen, it feels slimmer and more compact to hold in comparison to the iPhone 14 Plus with a similar screen size.

This glass sandwich is held firmly by the rounded aluminium frame that awards it a premium feel. The right panel has nearly placed volume controls and a power button, and the latter can be used for activating Bixby as well. The bottom edge has the standard charging port, SIM tray and speakers.

Just like the S23 Ultra, even the S23+ has done away with the fancy-looking raised camera module in favour of individual camera lens cut-outs. And there are three on the S23+.

The rear is slightly raised but when placed on the table, it isn’t as wobbly as the S22+. The ultrasonic fingerprint scanner embedded within the display quickly unlocks the phone. Like the Ultra, the front and back have Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2, providing enhanced defence against scratches and cracks compared to last year's models featuring Victus Plus glass. Most importantly, it is IP68 water- and dust-resistance on board.

Setting up the beast

Android smartphones are quick to set up and hardly take a few minutes to transfer data from an existing device. While Google also provides this option, I opted for the Samsung Smart switch, which imported all my data, including Wi-Fi passwords and Google account, to the S23+. Pictures and all my customisations were imported smoothly in a few minutes.

Stunning screen

A stunning 6.6-inch screen complements the design. Although the 2340x1080 resolution is slightly lower than the S23, no noticeable difference is visible to the naked eyes. All visuals and text appear sharp and crisp. 120Hz variable refresh rate ensures smooth scrolling and saves battery. With a peak brightness of 1750 nits, on par with the S23 Ultra, sunlight legibility is commendable. Gaming, streaming multimedia content, editing images and even browsing the web- everything looked good on this screen.

While the colours appear vibrant, there are plenty of customisation options within display settings to adjust it as you like.

Camera snapper

With the S23+, Samsung hasn’t gone overboard with megapixel counts like on the S23 Ultra. But this does not mean that the camera on the S23+ is of inferior quality. The company has continued with the same camera hardware as the predecessor (S22+). This includes a 50MP wide-angle, 12MP ultrawide and 10MP telephoto that can pull off 3x optical zoom. I tested the phone’s camera during my recent trip to Jaipur, and the images impressed me. Be it clouds, flower arrangements at the hotel or the colour palette in the cloth market, the phone captured fine details. The images captured were Instagram-ready, with vibrant colour reproductions and perfect exposure. Portrait shots shot using this phone are praiseworthy and look professional grade as it manages to identify the edges perfectly and blurs the background. Overall, the colours are slightly oversaturated compared to the shots captured from iPhone, and it is a personal choice of what one prefers.

Although the low-light imaging falls short in front of Google’s Night Sight, which does a tremendous job. But with very little noise, even the S23+ does not disappoint.

Plus, the device is great for videography too - as I was able to record some quality videos at 8K at 30fps. Only the front-facing selfie camera has got a new sensor, which is great if you are into capturing selfies.

Performance:

The S23+ is a no-compromise device. Samsung hasn’t trimmed down the processor. It is powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, making it the top-end processor in the Android world. Right from gaming to video editing, it managed to handle everything smoothly, without showing any signs of slowing down, or for that matter, toasting using a heavy load.

Running Android 13, the One UI 5.1 user interface is neat and clutter-free. Unlike many Chinese smartphones, this does not even have unnecessary bloatware. Plus, the device is designed to last, and Samsung takes care of the same by promising four years of Android OS updates and five years of security updates.

This performance is backed by a 4700mAh battery which, with the help of the efficient Qualcomm processor, easily lasts a day with heavy usage. Tweaking settings further, such as turning off haptic, further extends the battery life to close to a day and a half on a single charge. But it isn’t the fastest Android phone to charge - when plugged in using a 45W Samsung charger (you only get a charging cable, and the adapter is not bundled in the box), it took close to an hour and a half for a full charge.

Verdict

The Galaxy S23 Ultra offers the best of everything - display, camera, performance, and also the S-Pen. But if you are not too much into photography or the 200 MP camera or SPen, then the S23+ should be your pick.

Samsung Galaxy S23+
Price: Rs 94,999
In the box: Samsung Galaxy S23+, charging cable

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