Samsung introduces S23 phones and new Galaxy Book Ultra laptop
Samsung has launched its Galaxy S23 range of phones, with the flagship S23 Ultra now sporting a 200-megapixel camera, the first time a major manufacturer has integrated a resolution size normally reserved for giant photo devices .
The device was announced alongside the base model S23 and the S23 Plus. Samsung has also updated its laptop range, with a new high-end 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Ultra as its flagship.
All of the phones and laptops were featured in Samsung’s Unpacked announcement series on Wednesday.
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Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Plus
In addition to the new 200-megapixel camera system, the S23 Ultra features a newly modified chip from Qualcomm, which Samsung says is faster than the fastest processors available for any other Android smartphone.
The Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy appears to put Samsung in a special relationship with the world’s largest mobile chip company, while Android phones are chasing Apple’s silicon lead.
It also claims to be one of the most durable flagship smartphone ranges as it is the first smartphone to integrate Corning Gorilla Glass Victus into glass.
Samsung’s S23 and S23 Plus have the same 6.1-inch and 6.6-inch displays as last year’s S22 ranges.
Both low-tier models pack some significant improvements of their own, including better selfie cameras (12-megapixels) and larger batteries (around 200mAh). Super HDR is now applied to every phone’s selfie cameras at 60 frames per second. And users can now also record clearer audio by pairing either device with a Galaxy Buds 2 Pro earbud.
However, most of the attention will inevitably fall on the company’s top flagship model, the S23 Ultra.
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Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Ultra
Physically, Samsung has made some notable changes to its top-of-the-line phone. While it still has affinities with the discontinued Galaxy Note series, it now has a larger flat surface area than the S22 Ultra, thanks to a newly shaved curvature around the edge of the display.
Aside from the chip setup, most of Samsung’s investment seems to have gone into the device’s camera and video upgrades. The phone has been redesigned to be better in low light, both for regular photos and night sky shots.
The handset’s new adaptive pixel sensor processes 16 pixels into one larger pixel, Samsung says, for better lighting. The selfie camera has an improved Night Portrait mode that measures the sense of depth and creates an “enhanced” bokeh effect by analyzing the distance of objects and separating the subject from the background.
For video, the S23 Ultra can now film in 8K at 30fps with a wider angle (from 57 to 80 degrees) and a larger pixel size for a more cinematic effect.
The image stabilization technology, which has lagged behind the top iPhones for some time in video, has been virtually improved, while the optical image stabilization (OIS) angle has also been updated. There are plenty of computational photography updates under the hood, with the noise-reduction technology appearing to have been improved by processing multiple images and improved artificial intelligence that can detect and deal with noise in low-light conditions due to the more powerful processor. According to Samsung, this will help create “crisp” videos at night.
Meanwhile, the phone has a new Astro Hyperlapse feature to capture star trails and night sky patterns without additional equipment or complicated settings.
But can a 200-megapixel camera actually deliver clear, noise-free images on such a small sensor system? Samsung says it can. It claims the new system uses a technique that examines each of the 200 million pixels to bring subjects into focus by “using four adjacent pixels” to detect left-to-right and top-to-bottom differences.
All three S23 models are available in four colors – black, cream, green and lavender.
Samsung says the new Galaxy S23 will start at €999 (128GB) and €1,059 (256GB), while the Galaxy S23 Plus will cost €1,249 (256GB) or €1,359 (512GB).
The Galaxy S23 Ultra costs 1,459 euros (256 GB). €1,639 (512GB) or €1,879 (1TB).
Regardless, Samsung has updated its lineup of laptops. Available in either 14-inch or 16-inch sizes, the Galaxy Book 3 Pro is the thinnest and lightest laptop in Samsung’s arsenal. There’s also a convertible Galaxy Book 3 Pro 360 with a touchscreen.
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Samsung has also introduced updated Galaxy Book 3 laptops
But in the laptop lineup, Samsung’s new 16-inch Galaxy Book 3 Ultra, with its dynamic Amoled 3k display, is likely to draw the most attention. According to Samsung, this 120 Hz display is aimed at gamers as well as graphics editing.
However, it is also claimed that the Galaxy Book Pro is a high-end device.
All three new laptops feature the latest 13th Gen Intel processors. All three will be positioned as part of Samsung’s “Multidevice Connected Experience” ecosystem, which aims to enable Samsung phones, tablets and laptops to seamlessly work together for productivity purposes.
The multi-control system aims to enable users to directly control a Galaxy smartphone or tablet with the keyboard and trackpad of the Galaxy Book 3 Ultra or Pro series. You can also copy, paste, or drag and drop between devices, even across different operating systems.
The Galaxy Book 3 costs from 749 euros, the Galaxy Book 3 Pro from 1,669 euros. The Galaxy Book 3 Ultra starts at €2,799.
https://www.independent.ie/business/technology/samsung-unveils-s23-phones-and-new-galaxy-book-ultra-laptop-42323596.html Samsung introduces S23 phones and new Galaxy Book Ultra laptop