Samsung Galaxy S23 FE First Impressions – A Hopeful Return
Samsung has recently unveiled its latest addition to the FE series, the Galaxy S23 FE, to the surprise of many since Samsung skipped the FE version for the Galaxy S22 series. With it now making a comeback, let’s see if it’s enticing enough for consumers in this first impressions article.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE First Impressions
Design
Upon first glance, the Galaxy S23 FE captivates with its sophisticated design. Its sleek contours and curved edges not only enhance its visual appeal but also ensure a comfortable grip. Samsung has thoughtfully crafted it for one-handed usability, prioritizing user-friendliness. The color palette offers a vibrant and captivating selection, featuring Graphite, Mint, Purple, and Cream, all framed in silver aluminum. The Purple variant, in particular, stands out with its bold and distinctive hue.
With a 6.4-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED display boasting a 120Hz refresh rate, the device strikes a balance between the 6.1-inch Galaxy S23 and the 6.6-inch Galaxy S23 Plus. The screen delivers vivid colors and wide viewing angles, making it ideal for content consumption. The centrally placed punch-hole selfie camera is discreet and, over extended use, becomes almost imperceptible. While the peak brightness reaches 1,450nits (slightly below the Galaxy S23’s 1,750nits), the device is safeguarded by Corning Gorilla Glass 5 rather than Corning Gorilla Victus 2.
The device’s buttons and ports are thoughtfully located, with the power and volume buttons on the right side for easy access. The top houses the SIM card slot but lacks a microSD card slot, limiting users to dual nano SIM cards. At the bottom, you’ll find a USB-C port and stereo speakers. Other premium features include IP68 water resistance, AKG-tuned stereo speakers, NFC capabilities, and biometric security options such as a fingerprint scanner and facial recognition. However, it omits a 3.5mm audio jack, necessitating the use of wireless earphones or an additional dongle.
Power
In Malaysia, the Galaxy S23 FE packs the Exynos 2200 chipset, while its United States counterpart is equipped with the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1. The Exynos 2200 chipset boasts an 8-core CPU configuration, comprising a solitary Cortex-X2 core, three Cortex-A710 cores, and four Cortex-A510 cores. Powering the graphics is the Xclipse GPU, based on AMD’s RDNA 2 architecture, and it includes a high-detail FP16 NPU.
Accompanying this processing prowess is 8GBs of RAM, with storage options available in 128GB and 256GB variants. Regrettably, there’s no microSD card slot for expandable storage. Users can virtually augment its memory by up to 8GB using the RAM Plus feature, achieving a grand total of 16GB of RAM for seamless performance. Powering this tech ensemble is a substantial 4,500mAh battery, promising all-day battery life for most users, unless you’re a fervent mobile gamer. It’s worth noting that charging speed is on the slower side, supporting up to 25W for wired charging.
On the software front, the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE is powered by the OneUI 5.1, based on Android 13. This guarantees software consistency and provides assurance for up to four Android versions and five years of security patches. The user interface remains minimalist, clean, and user-friendly, while Samsung Knox remains intact, ensuring enhanced security measures.
Camera
The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE boasts a versatile camera system, comprising a 50MP primary lens, a 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens, and an 8MP telephoto lens equipped with 3x optical zoom and Optical Image Stabilization (OIS). This camera ensemble offers a plethora of shooting modes, including Aperture, Portrait, Photo, Video, Pro, and more. It excels in video capture, with the capability to record videos at a remarkable UHD 8K resolution at 24fps, complete with built-in stabilization for pristine 4K video quality. On the front, the selfie camera shines with a 10MP wide lens, although it lacks autofocus, distinguishing it from the 12MP variant found on the previous Galaxy S23 model.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE Specifications
| SoC | Exynos 2200, 4nm 1 x Cortex-X2 @ 2.8GHz + 3 x Cortex-A710 @ 2.5GHz + 4 x Cortex-A510 @ 1.8 GHz Xclipse 920 GPU |
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| RAM | 8GB | |
| Storage | 128GB / 256GB UFS 3.1 | |
| Display | 6.4″ FHD+ (2340 x 1080) Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display Corning Gorilla Glass 5 HDR10+ 1450 nits (peak) 60Hz to 120Hz Adaptive Refresh Rate 240Hz Touch Sampling Rate in Game Mode Vision Booster |
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| Rear Camera | 50MP f/1.8 wide angle camera, PDAF, OIS 8MP f/2.4 telephoto camera, 3x optical zoom, PDAF 12MP f/2.2 123˚ ultra-wide LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama 8K@24fps, 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps |
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| Selfie Camera | 10MP f/2.4 wide-angle selfie cam | |
| Battery | 4500mAh 25W fast charging USB-PD 2.0 fast charging 10W wireless fast charging |
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| Dimensions | 158 x 76.5 x 8.2 mm 209g |
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| Ingress Protection | IP68 | |
| Software | One UI 5.1 based on Android 13 | |
| Colours | Mint, Cream, Graphite, Purple | |
In conclusion, the reemergence of the FE version this year is a welcome move from Samsung, offering users a more budget-friendly alternative without compromising too much on features. While certain aspects remain unchanged, they are by no means unimpressive. Users should temper their expectations, considering this is a more affordable alternative to the flagship models.
I’m sure you’d want to know more if you’ve read up to this point, but that will likely require more concrete evidences. In which case, do stay tuned to us here at Pokde.net for the full, in-depth review of the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE as it will be published soon.
In case you missed it, click right here to find out everything that was launched in the Galaxy FE series lineup.
