Hey guys,
I started to experience a few issues on my S9 about a month ago such as battery life and a green and white screen bug when turning it on unless I use the Always On function to bypass it, but it’s not perfect. So I thought maybe it’s time to finally retire my device after 5+ years of service.
There is currently a Black Friday sale going on with the S23 lineup here in Norway and I thought this would be a good time as any to replace my S9.
I’m not exactly a power user, most of my use case is reading, watching videos and browsing apps and websites, a lot of the times browsing social media is accompanied by watching a video minimized in the corner. I do like to get a lot of mileage out of my devices however and I might be tempted to try out some of the more demanding games now that phones have more processing power.
Pricing (after tax):
- S23+ 8/256 GB | 9,490 NOK ($885 / £811)
- S23 Ultra 8/256 GB | 11,490 NOK ($1,072 / £982)
- S23 Ultra 12/512 GB | 13,490 NOK ($1,258 / £1,153)
Over the 5 years I’ve only used 60/64 GB on my S9 which is why I set my eyes on the 256 GB models. I don’t particularly care about the cameras and I don’t know how much I will be using the S Pen but what I am a little annoyed with the idea of having to downgrade the screen resolution despite getting a brand new phone.
Normally I’d be fine with spending 2,000 extra on the Ultra 256 GB variant but the fact that it comes with less RAM than the other variants is a bit frustrating. It’s very petty but I would feel a bit ripped off by getting a phone and then have it be not quite the actual phone.
I could still go for the 512 GB as despite not using a lot of storage up until now, I am still planning to keep my new phone for a very long time so I don’t mind spending a bit extra for a device I want to use daily for about 5 years. But a 12/256 GB variant would have been perfect.
TL;DR:
I’m debating between the S23+ 256 GB and S23 Ultra 512 GB as my next phone for ideally another 5 years. The price difference is 4,000 NOK ($373 / £341) after tax. The S23 Ultra 8/256 GB could work as a middle ground even if the RAM should have been 12 GB but I would like to hear some of your opinions about the differences between these and how it affects your use cases.
My #1 phone recommendation this year is the s23+. It has really good solid cameras, it has the same fast processor as the s23 ultra, an amazing screen, and it’s a big phone but not unwieldy. The s23+ is 95% what the s23 ultra is. The only differences that matter are the boxier/larger design of the ultra, the spen, and the 10x optical zoom camera. You would be absolutely shocked how many people don’t know what the cameras do on their s21u/s22u/s22u do. Lots of people barely ever use the spen as well. If you care about that then get the ultra but be really honest with yourself on how much your going to be taking super far ranged pictures and how much you’re going to be using the spen. For lots of people it’s not worth it.
I think you’re right honestly. The biggest issue I have with the S23+ is just that I will be downgrading from WQHD+ to FHD+ but it really isn’t that big of a deal for such a small screen. At least it improves the battery life I suppose.
I can almost guarantee you won’t notice a difference. I did a research essay and I did an experiment seeing if people did notice a difference between 1440p and 1080p on phones. I tested 150 people (it was a bit more but they weren’t tested the same so they were scrapped) and only like 6 people were able to consistently tell which phone was 1080p and which phone was 1440p. But they had to get uncomfortably close to tell. From a normally viewing distance only 1 guy was able to consistently tell. Keep in mind most of these people are college age so 18-25 but I did have a few professors do it and they were much older. Keep in mind the s23+ has a ppi of nearly 400. From a normal viewing distance you won’t be able to see pixels unless you were this one eagle eyed dude. When you get a Samsung phone that does have a 1440p screen the default setting is 1080p because people can’t really see a difference and it saves (some) resources.
I am still sporting the S20+ and I agree. It’s a big screen phone but the curved edges and slightly smaller body make it so much easier to carry around. It feels like a smaller phone in the the pocket. Rumor is the S24U will be even wider than the S23U which definitely won’t make it more comfortable to hold.
if S23+ had WQHD I would go for it. It’s a huge deal breaker for me that it only has FHD. It’s the reason why I plan to get an Ultra soon
I can almost guarantee you won’t notice a difference. I did a research essay and I did an experiment seeing if people did notice a difference between 1440p and 1080p on phones. I tested 150 people (it was a bit more but they weren’t tested the same so they were scrapped) and only like 6 people were able to consistently tell which phone was 1080p and which phone was 1440p. But they had to get uncomfortably close to tell. From a normally viewing distance only 1 guy was able to consistently tell. Keep in mind most of these people are college age so 18-25 but I did have a few professors do it and they were much older. Keep in mind the s23+ has a ppi of nearly 400. From a normal viewing distance you won’t be able to see pixels unless you were this one eagle eyed dude. When you get a Samsung phone that does have a 1440p screen the default setting is 1080p because people can’t really see a difference and it saves (some) resources.
It doesn’t have WQHD? My S20+ even has it! Did they nerf every iteration after that?
I’ve seen people say that the s23+ is about 95% of the Ultra quite a few times, but I disagree with that. I would say that the base s23 is about 95% of the plus with the plus having a bigger screen, battery and charging speed while the plus is about 80-85%% of the Ultra. The plus is an excellent phone, but it’s not quite that close to the ultra. The s23 ultra has a bigger screen, a bigger battery, better cooling, more cameras, improved cameras, the s-pen, and a higher resolution display. This imo makes the plus the worst value of the lineup. This doesn’t mean the phone is bad, just the worst value in terms of everything you’re getting for the price. It’s a similar story for the s22 and s21 series as well. The s23 plus sold the least amount of copies of the entire lineup likely as a result of this. In terms of value the base version and the Ultra are the ones to go for unless there is a deal that leaves a much wider price disparity between the models.
If your a casual phone user you don’t care about a phones cooling or the cameras, the spen, or the higher resolution screen. That was my point. The ultra is by all means an enthusiast phone. If you’re not a tech person and you don’t know what any of that means it makes no sense for you to get the ultra because none of that will add any value to you. It’s easy for us tech people to recommend the ultra but we know all the advantages to it. It’s like telling a grandma to get a Mustang gt 500 over a Honda Civic because it’s faster. Grandma really don’t care all she wants to do is go to the grocery store. She’s only going to drive 5 mph under the speed limit anyway.
Also in a blind test 95% of people literally can’t tell a difference between 1440p and 1080p. 1080p on a 6.6" screen is still really pixel dense.
Fair enough, but by that logic why not just get the base model then and save hundreds of dollars? The only difference a casual user would for sure notice between the two would be that the plus is bigger and perhaps that the battery is better if they had the 2 for awhile. My point was that the better value is to either spend a little more and get the ultra or to spend a bit less and get the base version which is very comparable to the plus. If we’re using your example here and talking about someone’s grandma, why wouldn’t you just get the base version and save yourself a bunch of money? The type of person you’re describing would be better off with the base s23. That’s what the model is intended for in the first rplace. A person who wants the newest, fastest phone, but doesn’t care about all the bells and whistles. That’s exactly what the s23 is.
Some people just want a bigger phone. Even casual people know what a bigger screen is. I just kinda left that out because I thought it was kinda dumb to mention. People buy the iPhone 15 plus because they want a big screen iPhone.