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Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
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Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra Battery test

OTHER AVAILABLE TESTS FOR THIS DEVICE

We put the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon) through our rigorous DXOMARK Battery test suite to measure its performance in autonomy, charging and efficiency. In these test results, we will break down how it fared in a variety of tests and several common use cases.

Overview

Key specifications:

  • Battery capacity: 5000 mAh
  • 45W charger (not included)
  • 6.8-inch, 1440 x 3088, 120 Hz, OLED display
  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4 nm)
  • Tested ROM / RAM combination: 256 GB + 8 GB

Scoring

Sub-scores and attributes included in the calculations of the global score.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)
142
battery
148
Autonomy
155

221

139

195

140

198

133
Charging
129

224

138

212

137

205

146

194

Key performances

Charging Time
2 days 19h
Battery life
Charging Time
0h37
80% Charging time
Charging Time
1h21
Full charging time
Quick Boost
5h23 autonomy
after 5-minute charge

Pros

  • Very good autonomy at nearly 67 hours in moderate use
  • Excellent autonomy when watching videos
  • Low discharge currents overall, especially when streaming videos and calling
  • Low residual power drain when the device is fully charged and still plugged in

Cons

  • Battery level collapses after 5%
  • Low autonomy when using the camera or listening to music
  • High residual consumption of the wireless stand

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra battery experience earned an excellent global score, placing it among the top 10 devices we have tested so far and in the top spot of our Ultra-Premium segment. Powered by  Qualcomm’s Snapdragon chipset, the Galaxy S23 outperformed its predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (both the Snapdragon and Exynos versions) by a long stretch, thanks to better autonomy and efficiency scores.

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra showed excellent results in our autonomy tests. The battery lasted nearly 67 hours when used moderately, with less than 2% lost per night on average. When testing outdoors, the performances were also very good, except when using the camera, where the autonomy was slightly below our database average. During the tests where we evaluate particular usages separately, the autonomy was excellent, too, especially when streaming videos. However, the battery level collapsed when reaching 5%, which could impact the user experience.

The Galaxy S23 Ultra’s charging results were average, whether wired or wireless. The time to fully replenish the battery with a wired charger took 1 hour and 21 minutes, and with a wireless one, 2 hours and 18 minutes. A quick 5-minute wired charge provided a good 5 hours and 23 minutes of autonomy on average, but the autonomy recovered when charging from 60% was only half of what was recovered when charging from 20%.

The residual consumption for both wired and wireless chargers was very low when the device is fully charged and still plugged in. However, the residual consumption of the wireless stand itself was very high, placing it at the bottom of the database. In almost all test cases (except music streaming and idle with screen off), the discharge currents were very low, meaning that the device is well-optimized.

Flagship devices often face challenges in battery performance because of their power-hunger new features. This is where careful hardware and software integration plays a significant role in battery performance. Compared with other devices from the Ultra-Premium segment ($800+), the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra easily reached the top score of our database. Even if it did not set any new highs in the sub-scores, its excellent autonomy and efficiency, combined with a good charging experience, allowed the Galaxy S23 Ultra to obtain the best score so far for this segment.

Test Summary

About DXOMARK Battery tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone battery reviews, DXOMARK engineers perform a variety of objective tests over a week-long period both indoors and outdoors. (See our introductory and how we test articles for more details about our smartphone Battery protocol.)

The following section gathers key elements of our exhaustive tests and analyses performed in DXOMARK laboratories. Detailed performance evaluations under the form of reports are available upon request. Do not hesitate to contact us.

Battery Charger Wireless Display Processor
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra 5000mAh 45W
(not included)
15W AMOLED
1440 x 3088
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) 5000mAh 45W
(not included)
15W AMOLED 2X
1440 x 3088
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1
Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max 4323mAh 20W
(not included)
15W OLED
1290 x 2796
Apple A16 Bionic

Autonomy

148

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

195

Honor X7b
How Autonomy score is composed

Autonomy score is composed of three performance sub-scores: Home / Office, On the go, and Calibrated use cases. Each sub-score comprises the results of a comprehensive range of tests for measuring autonomy in all kinds of real-life scenarios.

Light Usage
94h
Light Usage
Active: 2h30/day
Moderate Usage
67h
Moderate Usage
Active: 4h/day
Intense Usage
42h
Intense Usage
Active: 7h/day

Home/Office

155

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

221

Honor X7b

A robot housed in a Faraday cage performs a set of touch-based user actions during what we call our “typical usage scenario” (TUS) — making calls, video streaming, etc. — 4 hours of active use over the course of a 16-hour period, plus 8 hours of “sleep.” The robot repeats this set of actions every day until the device runs out of power.

Typical Usage Scenario discharge curves

On the go

139

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

195

Samsung Galaxy M51

Using a smartphone on the go takes a toll on autonomy because of extra “hidden” demands, such as the continuous signaling associated with cellphone network selection, for example. DXOMARK Battery experts take the phone outdoors and perform a precisely defined set of activities while following the same three-hour travel itinerary (walking, taking the bus, the subway…) for each device

Autonomy for on the go use cases (full charge)

Calibrated

140

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

198

Samsung Galaxy M51

For this series of tests, the smartphone returns to the Faraday cage and our robots repeatedly perform actions linked to one specific use case (such as gaming, video streaming, etc.) at a time. Starting from an 80% charge, all devices are tested until they have expended at least 5% of their battery power.

Autonomy for calibrated use cases (full charge)

Charging

133

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

218

Realme GT Neo 5 (240W)
How Charging score is composed

Charging is fully part of the overall battery experience. In some situations where autonomy is at a minimum, knowing how fast you can charge becomes a concern. The DXOMARK Battery charging score is composed of two sub-scores, (1) Full charge and (2) Quick boost.

Wired
Wired
70%
in 30 min
0h37
0 - 80%
1h21
Full charge
Wireless
Wireless
24%
in 30 min
1h30
0 - 80%
2h18
Full charge

Full charge

129

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

224

Realme GT Neo 5 (240W)

Full charge tests assess the reliability of the battery power gauge; measure how long and how much power the battery takes to charge from zero to 80% capacity, from 80 to 100% as shown by the UI, and until an actual full charge.

Power consumption and battery level during full charge
The charging curves, in wired and wireless (if available) showing the evolution of the battery level indicator as well as the power consumption in watts during the stages of charging toward full capacity.
Power consumption and battery level during wireless full charge
The charging curves, in wired and wireless (if available) showing the evolution of the battery level indicator as well as the power consumption in watts during the stages of charging toward full capacity.
Time to full charge
Time to full charge

Quick boost

138

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

212

Realme GT Neo 5 (240W)

With the phone at different charge levels (20%, 40%, 60%, 80%), Quick boost tests measure the amount of charge the battery receives after being plugged in for 5 minutes. The chart here compares the average autonomy gain from a quick 5-minute charge.

Average autonomy gain for a 5 minute charge (wired)

Efficiency

143

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

154

Oppo Reno6 5G
How Efficiency score is composed

The DXOMARK power efficiency score consists of two sub-scores, Charge up and Discharge rate, both of which combine data obtained during robot-based typical usage scenario, calibrated tests and charging evaluation, taking into consideration the device’s battery capacity. DXOMARK calculate the annual power consumption of the product, shown on below graph, which is representative of the overall efficiency during a charge and when in use.

Annual Consumption Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)
3.7 kWh
Efficient
Good
Bad
Inefficient

Charge up

137

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

205

Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro

The charge up sub-score is a combination of four factors: the overall efficiency of a full charge, related to how much energy you need to fill up the battery compared to the energy that the battery can provide; the efficiency of the travel adapter when it comes to transferring power from an outlet to your phone; the residual consumption when your phone is fully charged and still plugged into the charger; and the residual consumption of the charger itself, when the smartphone is disconnected from it. The chart here below shows the overall efficiency of a full charge in %.

Overall charge efficiency

Discharge

146

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon)

194

Apple iPhone 14 Pro

The discharge subscore rates the speed of a battery’s discharge during a test, which is independent of the battery’s capacity. It is the ratio of a battery’s capacity divided by its autonomy. A small-capacity battery could have the same autonomy as a large-capacity battery, indicating that the device is well-optimized, with a low discharge rate.

Average discharge current

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