Samsung Galaxy S23+ vs Galaxy S21+: Is the upgrade worth it?

• Source: Samsung

  Samsung Galaxy S23+

  top notch performance

  Samsung’s flagship smartphone lineup ranks among the best for those who want bleeding-edge performance with a big screen and a solid camera system, but don’t need all the bells and whistles of the costlier S23 Ultra.

  pros

  • Excellent screen with better brightness
  • outstanding performance
  • 4 years of software updates

  Shortcoming

  Also read: 200 megapixel camera and sustainable design: this is the new Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
  • Only minor camera improvements compared to last year’s model
  • Battery life can still be a problem
• 

  Source: Samsung

  Samsung Galaxy S21+

  great staying power

  Samsung’s Galaxy S21+ remains a fast, feature-rich phone that offers a great display and solid battery life. While the camera configuration is a bit unusual, it takes decent pictures, and sports an attractive design.

  pros

  • Impressive AMOLED Display
  • Four Years of Android Updates
  • Capable Camera System

  Shortcoming

  • Lacks true optical zoom
  • 12MP Primary Camera

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Samsung’s 2023 Galaxy lineup has arrived, and the new Galaxy S23+ comes with a few surprises, with the iterative nature of this update serving to strengthen Samsung’s flagship smartphone platform. That’s not to say that the Galaxy S23+ doesn’t have a lot to offer; Like its predecessors, it’s a well-rounded smartphone and one of the best Android phones for those who want a bigger screen but don’t need the more expensive S23 Ultra offers. However, does it pack enough of a punch to make it worth the upgrade for people looking for the 2021 Galaxy S21+?

Price and Availability

Source: Samsung

The Galaxy S23+ is launching with the same $1,000 price tag as Samsung’s previous two Plus models. It’s available for pre-order from Samsung now in your choice of 256GB and 512GB models in Phantom Black, Cream, Green, Lavender, Mint and Graphite.

Samsung apparently still sells the Galaxy S21+, although it’s not easy to get your hands on one in like-new condition these days. It is only available in Phantom Black 128GB variant.

Design: Borrowed from Ultra

Source: Samsung

While the design of the new Galaxy S23+ still clearly identifies it as a Galaxy phone, Samsung has made a major change this year to unify the look of the entire S23 lineup. The camera bump from earlier models is gone; Instead, you’re getting the S23 Ultra’s cleaner and more stylish look, where the three lenses are set against a similar background.

Granted, it’s not a look that will appeal to everyone many were a fan of the distinctive camera bump design. However, it’s a nice change for those who like the look of Samsung’s S-Series Ultra but weren’t willing to drop an extra $200 to get it.

Naturally, Samsung has tweaked its color selection this year as well. The company has been narrowing down its assortment of “Phantom” colorways over the past few years, and this year’s S23+ narrows it down to Phantom Black, which is joined by cream, green, and lavender. The S23+ also has a few exclusive colors if you buy directly from Samsung: Graphite and Lime. In practical terms, the S23+ offers more color options, as many of the S21+ options were exclusive to online orders from Samsung or specific markets like South Korea.

With regard to overall durability, the S23+ is pretty evenly matched with the S21+; Both phones offer IP68 water resistance and Gorilla Glass Victus, though the S23+ gets the edge thanks to the state-of-the-art Gorilla Glass Victus 2. Glassmaker Corning promises it will survive better against drops on rough surfaces like concrete, but it remains to be seen how fruitful it will be practically. Still, even if it’s only incremental, it’s still great to have better security.

Display: An excellent screen gets brighter

Source: Samsung

At a glance, the screen specifications between the Galaxy S23+ and S21+ appear almost identical. Both models feature a dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O edge-to-edge display, and you’ll have a hard time telling them apart with the naked eye. Samsung offers some of the best AMOLED screens out there, and it naturally puts forward its best displays on its flagship phones.

On paper, the Galaxy S23+ has a slightly smaller screen at 6.6 inches instead of the S21+’s 6.7 inches, but it’s such an insignificant difference that you’ll hardly notice unless you’re comparing the two side-by-side. Both the models offer 120Hz refresh rate along with the same FHD+ resolution and pixel density.

The biggest improvement the S23+ offers this year is in overall brightness, which now peaks at 1,750 nits, which should make it much easier to see when using your phone on a sunny day. That said, the 1,300-nit brightness on the Galaxy S21+ was nothing to scoff at.

software

The Galaxy S23+ naturally comes with Samsung’s One UI 5 along with the latest Android 13 release, but they will be the first to get the latest OneUI 5.1 update. Although the S21+ shipped with Android 11 and OneUI 3.1, Samsung released its Android 13 and OneUI 5.0 updates late last year, and is expected to get OneUI 5.1 in the coming weeks.

This means that both the phones are on par for now and are likely to remain so for the next few years. Samsung promises four years of major updates (and five years of security updates) for its phones, which means the S21+ should be good until at least Android 15. ,

Display

Source: Qualcomm

Perhaps the biggest place where the Galaxy S23+ pulls ahead of the S21+ is also the least surprising. Thanks to the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 mobile platform, the Galaxy S23+ is going to be one of the most powerful smartphones in the market. In fact, Samsung is using a custom souped-up version of this chip, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform, for the Galaxy. This will likely widen the performance gap between the Galaxy S23+ and its predecessors even more.

That said, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 in the Galaxy S21+ is certainly no slouch. Hardcore mobile gamers may see a slight boost in performance when they push the envelope, but the Galaxy S21+ is already fast and responsive in normal daily use, and both the S23+ and S21+ pack in the same 8GB of RAM. Where the more powerful Snapdragon chip is going to make the biggest difference isn’t in how fast your Galaxy smartphone operates, but in powering all the other things it can do. Computational photography is the way forward for making the best use of your smartphone’s camera, and the Galaxy S23+ promises a whole assortment of new and more powerful features such as Super HDR, Nightography, Auto Framing and more. Granted, the S21+ has most of these, but it’s a safe bet that the S23+ will improve upon them to produce even better pictures.

Battery and Charging

Source: Samsung

The Galaxy S23+ packs in a slightly smaller 4,700mAh battery compared to the 4,800mAh cell found in the S21+, but thanks to a slightly smaller screen and power management improvements that almost always come with newer chips, it shouldn’t make any practical difference. The Galaxy S21+ can get most people through a day of heavy use, so we expect the Galaxy S23+ to last around as long.

Where the Galaxy S23+ gets an edge is in offering support for 45W Super Fast Charging 2.0. This is a marked improvement over the Galaxy S21+’s 25W super fast charging, although you still don’t get a charger in the box. However, if wireless charging is more your style, you won’t notice much of a difference as both support the same 15W Fast Wireless Charging 2.0 standard. You also get Wireless PowerShare 4.5W reverse wireless charging to juice up your Galaxy Watch 5, Galaxy Buds 2 Pro, or any other device that supports Qi wireless charging.

camera

Source: Samsung

The camera system on the Galaxy S23+ is quite different from the one found on the Galaxy S21+, ditching the 64MP “telephoto” lens in favor of one that actually offers true optical zoom. While the replacement of the 64MP shooter with a 10MP on the Galaxy S21+ may seem like a step backwards, Samsung’s choice to put its highest-resolution sensor on an alternate camera was a strange move in the first place. The method behind this seeming madness was to create telephoto focal lengths without the need to employ telephoto optics.

In comparison, the Galaxy S21+ only had a 12MP primary wide camera. The Galaxy S23+ replaces that with a more respectable 50MP sensor and uses proper glass on the telephoto lens to achieve a true 3X optical zoom. Both models have the same 12MP ultra-wide camera, while the Galaxy S23+ slightly ups the front camera to 12MP.

Should You Upgrade?

Source: Samsung

On the surface, there isn’t much that the Galaxy S23+ offers that would make it a “must buy” over the Galaxy S21+, and that’s not a bad thing it just proves that Samsung’s Galaxy lineup has matured and its The phone has some solid staying power. Power. Two years after its release, the Galaxy S21+ remains a great smartphone, with added power and support for the latest Android and OneUI versions that will last for another two years.

Of course, that doesn’t mean the Galaxy S23+ isn’t a better phone. However, those improvements are a collection of little things rather than any one “wow” factor. The Galaxy S23+ will give you better performance, faster wired charging, and will undoubtedly take better pictures than its predecessors. Still, none of these things make this an attractive upgrade for someone who’s already happy with their Galaxy S21+. The Galaxy S23+ is a worthwhile upgrade if you’re on a two-year upgrade plan, and you definitely won’t be disappointed with it. Otherwise, there’s no reason why you can’t hold onto your S21+ for at least another year to see what the Galaxy S24+ can offer.

Source: Samsung

Samsung Galaxy S23+

Samsung’s flagship smartphone lineup ranks among the best for those who want bleeding-edge performance with a big screen and a solid camera system, but don’t need all the bells and whistles of the costlier S23 Ultra.

Source