Samsung Galaxy S23 vs S20 Ultra

85 out of 100

71 out of 100

Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.1-inch Samsung Galaxy S23 (with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy) that was released on February 1, 2023, against the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra, which is powered by Exynos 990 and came out 36 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Differences
Review
Specs
Benchmarks
Battery life
Camera
Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone

Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy S23

91% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (1362K versus 711K)
Shows 31% longer battery life (34:29 vs 26:19 hours)
Delivers 35% higher peak brightness (1209 against 897 nits)
Newer Bluetooth version (v5.3)
The phone is 3-years newer
More energy-efficient CPU – Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy
Faster storage type - UFS 4.0 versus UFS 3.0
56% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 1822 and 1165 points
Weighs 52 grams less
Better grip in hands – the body is 5.1 mm narrower

Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra

Has a 0.8 inch larger screen size
Comes with 1100 mAh larger battery capacity: 5000 vs 3900 mAh
Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 1000GB
The rear camera has a 4x optical zoom
20% higher pixel density (511 vs 425 PPI)
Supports higher wattage charging (45W versus 25W)

Review

Evaluation of Samsung Galaxy S23 and S20 Ultra crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Type	Dynamic AMOLED	Dynamic AMOLED
Size	6.1 inches	6.9 inches
Resolution	1080 x 2340 pixels	1440 x 3200 pixels
Aspect ratio	19.5:9	20:9
PPI	425 ppi	511 ppi
Refresh rate	120 Hz	120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	Yes	No
Max rated brightness	800 nits	800 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR	1750 nits	-
HDR support	Yes, HDR10+	Yes, HDR10+
Screen protection	Gorilla Glass Victus 2	Corning Gorilla Glass 6
Screen-to-body ratio	88.1%	89.9%
Display features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display

RGB color space	98.9%	99.2%
PWM	240 Hz	240 Hz
Response time	1 ms	6.2 ms
Contrast	∞ Infinity	∞ Infinity

Height	146.3 mm (5.76 inches)	166.9 mm (6.57 inches)
Width	70.9 mm (2.79 inches)	76 mm (2.99 inches)
Thickness	7.6 mm (0.3 inches)	8.8 mm (0.35 inches)
Weight	168 g (5.93 oz)	220 g (7.76 oz)
Waterproof	IP68	IP68
Advanced cooling	Vapor chamber	Vapor chamber
Rear material	Glass	Glass
Frame material	Metal	Metal
Colors	White, Black, Gray, Green, Purple, Yellow	Black, Gray
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-display	Yes, in-display

Chipset	Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy	Samsung Exynos 990
Max clock	3360 MHz	2730 MHz
CPU cores	8 (1 + 2 + 2 + 3)	8 (2 + 2 + 4)
Architecture	- 3 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A510 - 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A710 - 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A715 - 1 core at 3.2 GHz: Cortex-X3	- 4 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2.5 GHz: Cortex-A76 - 2 cores at 2.73 GHz: Exynos M5
L3 cache	8 MB	2 MB
Lithography process	4 nanometers	7 nanometers
Graphics	Adreno 740	Mali-G77 MP11
GPU shading units	2560	704
GPU clock	719 MHz	800 MHz
FLOPS	~3481.6 GFLOPS	~1126 GFLOPS

CPU	366724	202750
GPU	551228	219003
Memory	192220	130201
UX	247673	157575
Total score	1362358	711852

Max surface temperature	34.3 °C	38.6 °C
Stability	60%	53%
Graphics test	72 FPS	25 FPS
Graphics score	12033	4319

Web score	13647	8802
Video editing	7797	6175
Photo editing	34238	31559
Data manipulation	12529	8779
Writing score	19579	12443

RAM size	8 GB	12, 16 GB
Memory type	LPDDR5X	LPDDR5
Memory clock	-	3200 MHz
Channels	4	2

Storage size	128, 256, 512 GB	128, 512 GB
Storage type	UFS 4.0	UFS 3.0
Memory card	No	MicroSD
Memory card max size	-	Up to 1000 GB

Operating system	Android 13	Android 10.0 (Can be upgraded to Android 13)
ROM	One UI 5.1	One UI 4.1
OS size	29.7 GB	23.7 GB

Capacity	3900 mAh	5000 mAh
Max charge power	25 W	45 W
Battery type	Li-Po	Li-Ion
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes (10 W)	Yes (15 W)
Reverse charging	Yes, (wireless)	Yes, (wireless)
Fast charging	Yes (57% in 30 min)	Yes (100% in 80 min)
Full charging time	1:16 hr	1:20 hr

Battery life tests
Web browsing	12:15 hr	08:26 hr
Watching video	15:00 hr	11:53 hr
Gaming	05:56 hr	04:13 hr
Standby	111 hr	93 hr

Main camera
Matrix	50 megapixels	108 megapixels
Image resolution	8160 x 6120	12032 x 9204
Zoom	Optical, 3x	Optical, 4x
Flash	LED	LED
Stabilization	Optical	Optical
8K video recording	Up to 30FPS	Up to 24FPS
4K video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	960 FPS (1080p)	960 FPS (720p)
Angle of widest lens	120°	120°
Lenses	3 (50 MP + 10 MP + 12 MP)	4 (108 MP + 48 MP + 12 MP + 0.3 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 50 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 23 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/1.57", Samsung S5KGN3 (ISOCELL Plus CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization	- 108 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.33", Samsung Bright S5KHM1 (ISOCELL CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization
Telephoto lens	- 10 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 70 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.94", Samsung S5K3K1 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization	- 48 MP - Aperture: f/3.5 - Focal length: 103 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/2", Sony IMX586 (CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization
Ultra-wide lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Sony IMX564 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron
Depth lens	-	- 0.3 MP - Aperture: f/1.0 - Pixel size: 5 micron
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support
Samples	Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy S23 from DxOMark	-

Selfie camera
Megapixels	12 megapixels	40 megapixels
Image resolution	4000 x 3000	7864 x 5200
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.2
Focal length	26 mm	26 mm
Pixel size	1.12 microns	0.7 microns
Sensor type	ISOCELL CMOS	CMOS
Sensor size	1/3.24"	1/2.65"
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features	- Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display	- Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version	5.3	5
Bluetooth features	LE	LE, A2DP
USB type	USB Type-C	USB Type-C
USB version	3.2	3.1
USB features	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG	- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG
GPS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS	GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo
NFC *	Yes	Yes
Infrared port	No	No

Number of SIM *	2	2
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
Multi SIM mode	Standby	Standby
eSIM support *	Yes	Yes
Hybrid slot	No	Yes
LTE Cat *	20	22
5G support	Yes	Yes

Speakers	Stereo	Stereo
Headphone audio jack	No	No
FM radio	No	No
Dolby Atmos	Yes	Yes

Category	Flagship	Flagship
Announced	February 2023	February 2020
Release date	February 2023	March 2020
SAR (head)	0.96 W/kg	0.32 W/kg
SAR (body)	1.3 W/kg	1.56 W/kg
Sensors	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint
Bundled charger	Not included	-

Samsung Galaxy S23 vs S20 Ultra

Samsung Galaxy S23 vs S20 Ultra

Key differences

Review

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Display

Design and build

Performance

Benchmarks

Memory

Software

Battery

Camera

DxOMark camera tests

Connectivity

Sound

Other

Conclusion