The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE is a budget-friendly smartphone in the world of flagship smartphones that offers some of the features found in Samsung’s flagship models. In this review, we’ll take a closer look at its design, display, performance, cameras, battery life, software, and pricing.
Design:
Samsung sticks to its traditional design language, using the same design for most of its models. The Galaxy S23 FE follows this trend, making it look similar to other Samsung phones released in 2023. The device is available in graphite grey, mint green, and purple, which are exclusive to the Galaxy S23 FE. Its coloured back panels are protected by Gorilla Glass 5. The aluminium midframe gives it a smooth finish. Despite weighing 209 grams, it feels evenly balanced when held. Having said that, the protruding camera module makes the phone wobble when placed on a flat surface.
Display:
The Galaxy S23 FE sports a 6.4-inch Dynamic 2X AMOLED Display with a 120Hz Refresh Rate and 100% DCI-P3 colour gamut support. While not as bright as the premium Galaxy S23 series, it provides ample visibility, even in bright outdoor conditions. However, the phone’s large bezels, especially at the bottom, can be a drawback compared to other premium models.
Cameras:
The Galaxy S23 FE boasts a triple camera setup with a 50MP primary camera, a 12MP ultrawide camera (lacking autofocus), and an 8MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom. The primary camera captures detailed shots with optical image stabilization, but low-light performance can introduce saturation.
The ultrawide camera also manages to come out with decent photos, but noise does creep in low-light conditions. The telephoto camera performs well for portraits but can struggle with backlighting.
In general, the camera captures highly detailed images with vibrant and vivid colours, although it may not match the standards of a flagship camera. Some post-processing is done, which can oversaturate colours slightly and cause a delay in the final output. However, the exposure levels are admirable, and even the highlights are well-preserved, especially in well-lit environments.
For selfies, the phone uses a 10MP fixed-focus camera, which provides sharp results in favourable lighting conditions but may struggle in harsh lighting.
Performance:
The Galaxy S23 FE comes with either Samsung’s Exynos 2200 Chipset or Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, depending on the region. Both chips are two generations old and have known thermal inefficiencies, which can limit the phone’s performance under heavy load, particularly for gaming.
We were able to get our hands on the Exynos 2200-powered model, which is currently available in India and we tested it thoroughly. While the device can handle everyday tasks and gaming seamlessly, it tends to heat up after prolonged usage, particularly during intense gaming sessions. However, the large vapour cooling chamber of the device helps in keeping the temperature under control, so there’s no need to worry about any serious performance concerns.
Battery and Charging:
The phone is equipped with a 4,500mAh battery that offers a full day’s usage, and it automatically reduces the display’s refresh rate to 60Hz when not in use to save power. It supports 25W Fast charging through USB-PD 2.0, wireless charging at 15W.
It takes about 1 hour and 30 minutes to charge the device from 0 to 100 percent fully. If you use the device moderately, you don’t have to worry about recharging it for approximately 12-14 hours. However, if you use it heavily, the battery backup time will be around 8-10 hours.
Software:
The Galaxy S23 FE runs on Samsung’s One UI 5.1, based on Android 13, and is promised to receive four generations of Android updates and five years of security updates. One UI offers a range of useful features and a familiar interface, although it comes with preinstalled apps that may need to be removed. The UI is smooth and gives lag-free performance.
Price and Availability:
The Galaxy S23 FE comes in two variants – 8GB + 128GB and 8GB + 256GB, priced at Rs 59,999 and Rs 64,999 respectively. However, discounts and offers are available.