Is this Galaxy as Ultra as its name suggests?
Smartphone | £1249 | whf.cm/GalaxyS23Ultra
Here is another example of the iterative phone cycle we have found ourselves in recently. Not much has changed with the S23 Ultra from last year’s S22 Ultra, particularly when it comes to AV and sound. An upgrade to the camera and processor, while good additions, for us don’t justify the steep rise in pricing – the S23 Ultra starts at £1249 (up from £1149), placing it well above the iPhone 14 Pro Max and just slightly cheaper than the Sony Xperia 1 IV, our current favourite Android phone.
While the Galaxy S23 Ultra is feature-packed, so was its predecessor. The S23 Ultra has a similar 120Hz 1440p, 6.8in screen, and again it’s a joy to interact with – sharp and silky smooth. But what’s new? In addition to an advanced camera system with the main sensor coming in at 200MP, the S23’s “for Galaxy” variant of Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor has a slightly higher clock speed – and in practice the phone is blisteringly fast and responsive in day-to-day use.
With Samsung’s track record when it comes to TV and smartphone displays, it is no surprise that picture performance is again mostly very good. Movies feel right at home on the expansive AMOLED display, with vibrant and punchy colours. While sometimes this leads to some slightly warmer-looking skin tones and reddish complexions, there is an option to knock the display’s warmth back in settings. With Le Mans 66 in HDR 10+, the punchier colours are appreciated when it comes to the golden Californian skies and glistening supercars, but with Rogue One, we can see where colours begin to look a bit overdone, with the foliage within the opening scene verging on neon green.
Black levels are an immediate highlight thanks to the OLED tech, and when the young Jyn Erso flees to a cave to escape the Empire, there is a good amount of dark detail that can be seen in the rocks, despite them being mostly cast in shadow.
The Ultra’s display manages to capture a good amount of detail in environmental, skin and clothing textures, avoiding the sometimes overly etched effect of the generally superb Sony Xperia 1 IV. We prefer the Samsung’s slightly more subtle and balanced approach, its softer display making the Xperia seem sometimes overly sharp. We can’t deny that the Sony’s 4K display takes the edge when it comes to capturing extra detail, though, and it trumps the Samsung when it comes to motion, with some blur noticeable with fast-moving spacecraft in Rogue One.
Side by side, we prefer the iPhone 14 Pro Max in practical
