Pre-orders open for Samsung Galaxy S23 phones; no 128GB model for S23+ and Ultra

SINGAPORE - Samsung on Thursday launched pre-orders for its flagship Galaxy S23 line-up of smartphones, which will hit shelves on Feb 17.

Prices start at $1,528 for the 256GB version of the larger Galaxy S23+, and $1,828 for the base model of the S23 Ultra, which comes with a stylus.

Unlike the S22 series, the S23+ and Ultra phones will feature 256GB of storage for their base models. Only the basic 6.1-inch S23 will come in a 128GB version; its $1,188 price tag is close to its 2022 predecessor.

The top-of-the-line 1TB Galaxy S23 Ultra will set buyers back $2,458.

The phones come in a range of nature-inspired matte hues – black, cream, green and lavender – as well as graphite, red and lime for certain models if they are bought online, said Samsung on Thursday.

Appearance-wise, the phones have a flat glass back – made of the latest Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 – that does away with the protruding cut-out that wrapped around the camera lenses of the S22 and S22+.

The S23 Ultra comes with a 200MP camera sensor – the highest in any Samsung smartphone to date – which sits among the highest pixel count on a smartphone in the market. Despite its larger sensor, the device is no larger than the S22 Ultra.

All S23 devices are equipped with a Super HDR front-facing camera that captures footage at 60 frames per second, which is double from last year’s phones, for better selfies and videos. Samsung also launched the Expert RAW app that allows DSLR-style image capturing and editing in RAW and JPEG.

Its Dynamic Amoled screens run at 120Hz and the phones are backed by the latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy. Samsung claims the S23 series’ GPU performance is 41 per cent faster than the S22 series, in what it describes as one of its most significant upgrades.

The phones are certified under the Ecologo Certification Program, which verifies products for reduced environmental impact, and continue to use pre-consumer recycled aluminium and glass and plastic sourced from discarded fishing nets, bottles and barrels.

The S23 Ultra doubles the number of components made with recycled materials, compared to its earlier generation.

Samsung also announced four new laptops as part of the Galaxy Book3 series that will not be available in Singapore. They include traditional clamshell-style laptops in 14 and 16 inches, as well as a touchscreen-enabled device with a 360-degree hinge, called the Book3 Pro 360.

Pre-orders open for Samsung Galaxy S23 phones; no 128GB model for S23+ and Ultra. (2023, February 1). The Straits Times. https://www.straitstimes.com/tech/pre-orders-open-for-samsung-galaxy-s23-phones-no-128gb-model-for-s23-and-ultra