Samsung Galaxy F23 5G Review – Get More Pay Less

The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G is just another budget 5G handset targeted at Indian users. The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G seeks to deliver great features and 5G connectivity at a reasonable price.

With a starting price of Rs. 15,999, the Galaxy F23 is Samsung’s most affordable 5G phone in India. It features a 120Hz display, three rear-facing cameras, and a Snapdragon 750G processor. Is it, however, any good? Let’s get started with our detailed Samsung Galaxy F23 5G review.

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Samsung Galaxy F23 5G cost in India starts at Rs. 15,999 for the base 4GB + 128GB storage option and climbs to Rs. 16,999 for the 6GB + 128GB storage option. The device is available in two colours: Forest Green and Aqua Blue. It will go on sale on March 16 at 12 p.m. (noon) via Samsung.com, Flipkart, and specific retail stores in the country.

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Samsung packs the following items inside the box along with Samsung Galaxy F23 5G:

• Data Cable (USB Type C-to-C)
• Sim Ejection Pin
• Quick Start Guide

Before we talk in detail about the Samsung Galaxy F23 5G, let’s see what the on-paper specs look like:

• Display: 6.6 inches LCD 
• Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G
• RAM & ROM: 4GB 128GB, 6GB 128GB
• Software: Android v12
• Rear camera: 50MP + 8MP + 2MP
• Selfie camera: 8MP
• Battery: 5000 mAh
• Weight: 198 grams
• Dimensions: 165.5 x 77 x 8.4 mm

The design and build of the Samsung Galaxy F23 5G are quite similar to that of the company’s other affordable smartphones. The camera module has been redesigned to be rectangular in shape, with the camera sensors arranged one above the other. The camera bump is very minimal, so it doesn’t wobble even if you keep it on a flat table.

Polycarbonate is used to construct the phone’s body, which is available in two colours: Aqua Blue and Forest Green. The glossy side frame contrasts nicely with the matte rear panel.

The screen is surrounded by thin bezels on three sides, and a big chin on the bottom. A waterdrop notch on the front of the phone makes it look a little dated.

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Because of its size and weight, the Samsung Galaxy F23 5G is a little bulky to hold at first, but after a couple of days of usage, I got used to it. Despite its all-plastic construction, it’s well-made and feels solid in the hand.

The power button and volume rocker are both located on the right side of the smartphone. The power button has an integrated fingerprint sensor. A dual SIM card slot can be found on the left side of the device. USB Type-C port, loudspeaker, and 3.5mm audio jack are all located on the bottom of the phone.

Samsung Galaxy F23 5G sports a triple camera layout on the back of the smartphone. It contains a primary 50MP lens with an f/1.8 aperture, an 8MP ultra-wide lens, and a 2MP macro sensor. The front of the phone has an 8MP camera for taking selfies.

The primary camera on the phone does a good job. The images taken in natural daylight offer a lot of details and are rich in colours. There are no pixelated photos even if you zoom on a photo you’ve taken.

The portrait shots taken with the primary camera were mediocre at best. Portrait mode’s edge detection isn’t the best in class. The 50MP mode adds some more detail, but still not enough to make a noticeable difference in the final output.

The 8-megapixel ultrawide lens comes in handy when you want to take a wider shot. However, we wouldn’t advise zooming in these ultrawide images because the 8-megapixel sensor loses detail.

The macro lens has a hard time taking macro shots. With a resolution of only 2 megapixels, it serves no purpose other than to increase the cameras on the device’s spec sheet. Even in bright sunshine, the colours appeared distorted and the details were lacking.

I’m quite pleased with the results of the selfie camera. It also did a good job of capturing my skin tone and the details in my hair and clothes. Edge detection is better than expected in selfie portrait shots, as is the case with the main camera.

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Night mode can be used to improve the image quality at night, but all it offers is a brighter photo with much more obvious noise. The camera app has a tonne of features, including a mode called Single Take that we’ve observed on Samsung’s higher-end phones. In addition to the standard modes, the primary camera also has Hyperlapse, Super Slo-mo, and Pro modes.

The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G can record 4K videos, but it doesn’t come with any stabilisation. And the video quality isn’t much better than the photos captured from these cameras.

The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G comes with a 5000mAh battery that fast charges at 25W. The battery in the Samsung Galaxy F23 5G has a somewhat smaller capacity than the battery on its predecessor, but it should still be sufficient for the majority of users.

For those who plan on binge-watching or playing games all day, they will need to charge their phones by the end of the day.

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It has a 25W fast charging support, however, the biggest problem is that the charger is not included in the box. Also, the cable that comes with the phone is Type-C to Type-C, which means that even if you have a standard USB-A charger, it will not work with the cable, and you will need to buy a new cable or a charger. It will take a little more than an hour to fully charge the phone from 0 to 100 per cent.

Samsung Galaxy F23 5G boasts a 6.60-inch FHD+ TFT panel that offers a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels and a refresh rate of 120Hz. It also features Corning Gorilla Glass 5 for protection. The front has a noticeable notch and chin, as well as thick bezels all around, which appear to be a bit dated.

While other brands are providing AMOLED displays in this price bracket, Samsung has decided to go with an LCD panel in this situation. However, in terms of performance, Samsung’s LCD screen offers a good experience. The visuals are colourful, sharp, and accurate.

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With the variable refresh rate feature, the screen refreshes at 120Hz, which keeps everything looking smooth and seamless. Although Samsung hasn’t stated the screen’s brightness, it’s bright enough for outside use.

Galaxy F23 5G has Widevine L1 support, meaning you can stream videos from Netflix, Prime and other OTT platforms in Full HD. The screen on the phone is large enough to accommodate binge-watching sessions while minimising glare. In addition, you also get an eye comfort mode.

The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G is backed by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 750 processor, which has been seen in various budget smartphones in recent months. The phone has up to 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Using a microSD card, you can expand storage capacity all the way up to 1TB.

The Snapdragon 750G is not a brand-new chip; it has been used on various smartphones in the past. Not only can the device get you thru your daily tasks, but it can also offer a nice gameplay experience. The F23 also has a virtual RAM feature, meaning that it can borrow storage and utilise it temporarily to expand RAM when performing a power-hungry task.

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The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G did well with casual games, but it struggles with heavier ones. Asphalt 9: Legends didn’t have the best visuals, and the gameplay was not so smooth, being a little stuttery at times. The graphical settings in PUBG: New State was set to ‘Low’ by default, and did not look particularly good. Increasing the graphic quality improved the game’s look, however, the gameplay got choppy.

Speaking of BGMI, the phone can run the game at 45fps at a balanced graphics setting. Samsung has added some sort of cooling technology, but even so, the phone became a little hot when it was pushed for lengthy periods.

The Samsung Galaxy F23 5G runs on Android 12 and One UI 4.1 out of the box, making it one of the first affordable Galaxy smartphones to do so. Although the software is new, the UI is rather simple and easy to use.

In terms of features and customization choices, Samsung’s One UI is rich and gives you a lot of options to experiment with your phone’s settings. The phone, however, does include a handful of third-party apps.

The Galaxy F23 5G doesn’t have an always-on display feature or Samsung DeX support. But overall it provides a similar experience to users who have used previous mid-range devices.

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Samsung will provide two years of major software updates plus four years of security updates, which is much more than what other companies offer in this price range.

Samsung has only given a single bottom-firing loudspeaker on the phone. This single speaker on the phone is pretty loud to watch YouTube videos and even movies, but I would have appreciated if Samsung had given dual speakers. The audio quality could have been better, but it’s not a deal-breaker for me.

Thankfully, the 3.5mm audio jack is there for those of us who prefer to listen to music or watch content through wired means.

Of course, Samsung Galaxy F23 5G offers 5G connectivity. It has 12 5G bands which include n1, n3, n5, n7, n8, n20, n28, n66 n38, n40, n41, and n78. Other connectivity options include Bluetooth 5, dual-band Wi-Fi, NFC, and GPS.

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Because it’s a budget smartphone, Samsung has gone with a fingerprint sensor integrated into the power button. It also performs well, as one would expect. It also has face recognition, which works just as well.