Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs — everything you need to know

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs make it appear to be a worthy step up for those looking for more than a Galaxy S23 but don't want to splurge for the Galaxy S23 Ultra.

While the base-model Galaxy S23 Plus doesn't come quite as fully loaded as the S23 Ultra — it misses out on the massive 200MP main camera — it still provides some upgrades due to its larger size. A bigger screen, larger battery and faster charging rate all make it worth considering instead of the entry-level Galaxy S23.

Here are the full Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs, as well as some explanation if you're uncertain what any of these numbers and names will mean for your smartphone usage.

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Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: The basics

Here are the essential specs for the Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus. Scroll on for more detailed information and breakdowns of what they mean. 

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: Design and colors

According to its official measurements, the Galaxy S23 Plus should look and feel about the same as the Galaxy S22 Plus, with the differences in dimensions measured by mere decimal points. The new model is slightly larger but the same weight, so these changes are unlikely to impact your buying decision.

Like Samsung's other flagship phones, the Galaxy S23 Plus is rated IP68 for dust/water resistance, which is currently the gold standard for smartphones. There's no better guarantee your phone will keep water drops or dust particles away from its sensitive components unless you go for a specific ultra-durable phone.

To protect the phone from scratches and drop damage, the Galaxy S23 Plus is clad in Gorilla Glass Victus 2. This is tougher than the Gorilla Glass Victus Plus used by the Galaxy S22 lineup. The S23 Plus also uses an Armor Aluminum frame like the S22 Plus to protect the edges from harm.

Lastly, there are four color options for the Galaxy S23 Plus, which are also the same color options for the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Ultra: Phantom Black, Cream, Green and Lavender. These are slightly different from the Galaxy S22 Plus, where the color options were Phantom White, Green, Pink Gold and Phantom Black. Green and Phantom Black remain unchanged, but Cream replaces Phantom White and Lavender replaces Pink Gold. 

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: Display

There are no changes on paper to the Galaxy S23 Plus's display compared to last year. It's still a large display with flat edges, an FHD+ resolution and an adaptive refresh rate that can slide anywhere between 48Hz and 120Hz to balance both smooth and efficient screen performance, though not quite on the Galaxy S23 Ultra's level (1-120Hz).

The maximum display brightness also remains at 1,750 nits, which is the same as the claimed peak brightness for the Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S23 Ultra. Brighter displays mean it's easier to read your phone even if it's very sunny outside, so hopefully, that peak brightness number holds true.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: Cameras

Cameras are one area where Galaxy S23 Plus owners could find themselves wishing they upgraded to the Galaxy S23 Ultra and its higher-end 200MP camera.  However, the 50MP main camera on the regular S23 Plus looks to be plenty capable. 

Samsung improved its Nightography low-light mode, enhanced things like autofocus and OIS (optical image stabilization) and added new features like Astro Hyperlapse for capturing the stars, which its previous phones couldn't manage. The Gallery app also features a Remaster feature for improving photos, but this recently gained some negative attention for adding teeth to a seven-month old baby. Which was as creepy as you'd imagine.

The 12MP front-facing camera is a definite upgrade, up from 10MP on the Galaxy S22 Plus. You also get faster auto-focus and Super HDR for better colors and contrast and 60 fps video recording from the front camera (up from 30 fps)

For video, the Galaxy S23 Plus's frame rate got a bump at its maximum 8K resolution, from 24fps to 30fps. 4K resolution and below keep their existing refresh rates, including slo-mo options for 1080p and 720p.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: Chipset and memory

Samsung is going all-in on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for the Galaxy S23 lineup, rather than splitting models between Snapdragon and Exynos chips like it has in previous years. That's a huge win for international users looking at the Galaxy S23 Plus, which no longer is relegated to a lesser chipset.

The important change to look out for is that the chip is specifically a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy. This mouthful of a name translates to Samsung getting a custom, higher-performance version of the new chip that would in theory outperform other phones using the same silicon. You can see this in the 3.36GHz speed for the most powerful Cortex-X3 core, which is a bit faster than the standard 3.2GHz speed of that core on a regular Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip.

For memory and storage, there are no changes from the Galaxy S22. The basic Galaxy S23 Plus comes with 8GB RAM and 256GB of storage, which is double the 128GB that comes standard on the Galaxy S23. Plus, if you want, you can upgrade to 512GB. 

The RAM and storage use the LPDDR5 and UFS 4.0 standards, respectively. That's not quite the latest in RAM standards (that would be LPDDR5X), but UFS 4.0 is as up-to-date as you can get for flash storage. We may see phones launched later in the year outpace the Galaxy S23 Plus for RAM speed, but in day-to-day use though, the S23 Plus should feel plenty fast.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: Battery and charging

The Galaxy S23 Plus gets an upgrade here. The S23 Plus battery is 4,700 mAh, a slight step up from the S22 Plus's 4,500 mAh. Unfortunately, fast charging takes a step back — limited to up to 45W wired charging and downgraded to 10W wireless charging from 15W wireless charging on the S22 Plus.

We'll have our fingers crossed that with its new chipset and other refinements, the Galaxy S23 Plus can manage a higher battery life score. The S22 lineup didn't score particularly well in our battery life testing, especially in fully adaptive mode.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus specs: Software

Samsung debuted its new One UI 5.1 software, based on Android 13, on the Galaxy S23 series. You should also get four years of software updates on any Galaxy S23, including the Galaxy S23 Plus, keeping you up to date with new software features for some time to come.