The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE is Samsung’s final high-ish end phone of 2023, following the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5, the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5, and more distantly February’s Samsung Galaxy S23 line, which this is a late-arriving member of.
It was worth the wait though, achieving four stars in our Samsung Galaxy S23 FE review, which in particular praised its build quality, performance, and value.
You can read all about what we did and didn’t like about the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE there, but for a rundown of its specs, features, and price, read on.
Cut to the chase
- What is it? Samsung's upper mid-range Galaxy S23 model
- When is it out? It's available now
- How much does it cost? It starts at $599.99 / £599 / AU$899
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE release date and price
- Out now
- Starts at $599.99 / £599 / AU$899
The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE was announced on October 4 and went on sale in the US on October 26, but didn’t start being sold in the UK until early December. Regardless, it’s out in both regions now – along with Australia – and starts at $599.99 / £599 / AU$899, for which you’ll get a version with 128GB of storage. There’s also a 256GB model, which costs $659.99 / £659 / AU$999.
Those prices put the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE slightly below the Google Pixel 8 (which starts at $699 / £699 / AU$1,199), and well below the standard Samsung Galaxy S23, which starts at $799.99 / £849 / AU$1,349.
Now, those two phones can often be found for less than their official price, but so can the Galaxy S23 FE – in the US at least – despite being far newer.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE design and display
- A similar design to the Samsung Galaxy S23
- IP68-rated
- A 6.4-inch 120Hz screen
The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE has a design that’s in many ways very similar to the standard Samsung Galaxy S23, with a flat screen, a trio of cameras running down the glass back, and an aluminum frame.
There are hints to its cheaper price though, with a thicker and heavier 158 x 76.5 x 8.2mm and 209g build (though it also has a bigger screen). The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE also uses Gorilla Glass 5 on the front and back, while its standard sibling uses tougher Gorilla Glass Victus 2.
Still, it has the same level of water resistance, with an IP68 certification meaning it can be submerged for up to 30 minutes at depths of up to 1.5 meters.
And you can get the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE in an exciting selection of shades, including Mint, Cream, Graphite, Purple, Indigo, and Tangerine.
As for its display, the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE has a 6.4-inch 1080 x 2340 AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, 403 pixels per inch, and a peak brightness of 1,450 nits.
In our review, we described the screen as “sharp with good color” but noted that the bezels were large and asymmetrical. Still, this is a respectable screen for the money, with most of the specs (other than the brightness) matching the standard Galaxy S23, which has a smaller 6.1-inch display.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE cameras and battery
- 50MP main, 12MP ultra-wide, and 8MP telephoto cameras
- A 4,500mAh battery
Samsung’s Galaxy S23 FE has different cameras to the rest of the line. It has a 50MP f/1.8 main camera with optical image stabilization (OIS), a 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera with a 123-degree field of view, and an 8MP telephoto camera, with 3x optical zoom and OIS. It can shoot video in up to 8K quality at 24fps, and it also has a 10MP f/2.4 front-facing camera.
The cameras aren’t among the highlights of the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE, with our review noting that “some older phones give you better shots at this price” and that they aren’t as good as the cameras on the standard Galaxy S23, but they’re still respectable.
The battery is more impressive though. The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE has a 4,500mAh battery which we found to deliver all-day life – and better life than the standard Samsung Galaxy S23. It charges at 25W, which is on the slow side but in line with its sibling, and it also offers 15W wireless charging.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE specs and features
- A Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset in the US
- An Exynos 2200 elsewhere
- 8GB of RAM
If bought in the US, the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE has a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset, which was a top-end option in 2022 and is a generation behind the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 in the rest of the Galaxy S23 line. However other regions get a Samsung-made Exynos 2200, which is similarly dated and similarly powerful, albeit slightly less so going by benchmarks.
And while this phone might not offer truly top-tier performance, it is “much faster than anything else in its class (except iPhone)” according to our review of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 version, with the Galaxy S23 FE even being able to handle games well. So for the money, this more than holds its own.
Other specs include 8GB of RAM, 5G support, up to 256GB of storage, an under-display fingerprint sensor, and stereo speakers. As for software, the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE runs Android 13 out of the box, but can now be upgraded to Android 14, and it includes Samsung’s One UI 6 customizations.
