Samsung unpacks new devices

Samsung yesterday unveiled the latest in its Galaxy flagship phones, a trio known as the Galaxy S23 series, all available for pre-order now, and for purchase in stores on Feb. 17.

Let’s get the painful bit over with first. These are flagship phones, and they are not cheap! The base phone, the Samsung Galaxy S23, starts at C$1,099.99 on the Samsung site. It offers 8 GB of RAM, and 128 GB of storage. The next model up, the S23+, starts at C$1,399.99 with 8GB RAM and 256 GB storage, and the top of the line, the S23 Ultra, starts at C$1,649.99 with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage. To sweeten the deal, Samsung is offering double the storage at the same price on pre-orders.

While you still have your smelling salts handy, I must add that the price of the S23 Ultra’s top configuration, 12 GB RAM and 1 TB storage, is shown as C$2,209.99 – but you get Samsung Care+, worth C$229, at no charge.

And speaking of charging – none of the devices comes with a wall charger, just a data cable. The fast charger, should you need one, will set you back around C$25.

Now let’s look at what you get for all that money.

Samsung S23 Series specs

Samsung separated its announcement into discussions of the S23/S23+ and the S23 Ultra. And, as in most recent launches, the focus was on the cameras, particularly those in the Ultra. In this release, the company featured a film shot on the S23 Ultra by Ridley Scott. It also showed off the 200 MP wide angle camera, which blows the socks off previous models. The phone’s night mode (the “Nightography camera”) and Astro Hyperlapse (for astronomy buffs), plus Expert RAW mode, are designed to make photography-centric users happy.

The Ultra also includes a built-in S Pen, continuing the Ultra’s legacy replacing the discontinued Galaxy Note. The company says the writing experience is now virtually latency-free, providing a pen and paper-like experience.

All three S23 models include dynamic AMOLED displays with a 120Hz refresh rate, and include wireless charging. Samsung touts improved gaming performance as well, especially on the S23 Ultra.

Laptops

The final segment of the event was devoted to some new Samsung laptops: The Galaxy Book3 Ultra, Book3 Pro 360, and Book3 360. The Ultra and Pro feature 16 inch screens, and the 360’s display is 13.3 inches.

The 360 and Pro 360 are available for pre-order now and the Ultra can be ordered on Feb. 14. The 360 will be in stores in March, the Pro 360 on Feb. 17, and the Ultra on Feb. 22. Pricing will begin at C$1,499 for the 360, C$2,199 for the Pro 360, and C$2,999 for the Ultra. Each comes in two versions with different amounts of storage.

Graphics, connectivity, and light weight (1.49 kg – 1.79 kg, depending on model) were the featured points during the launch event. Samsung emphasized the power of its ecosystem, in which all of its devices can seamlessly commune to extend displays and processing across devices. Phones, tablets, and laptops connect to allow a phone app to display on a PC, or the PC display be extended to a tablet to provide extra video real estate.

This part isn’t new – Samsung devices have always been able to interoperate – but Samsung has enhanced the laptop’s innards with NVIDIA GeForce RTX graphics processing units (GPUs), as well as with the current generation of Intel processors. The displays have been enhanced as well – the Galaxy Book3 Ultra provides 3K resolution (2880 x 1800) – and, like the phones, a 120Hz refresh rate.

As with the phones, Samsung is offering double storage on most pre-ordered systems, as well as free or discounted Samsung Care+ on most models.

We will be reviewing devices soon and will report on how they live up to their promises. Stay tuned.