Samsung, back at it with brand new Galaxy phones. The S23, S23+ and the S23 Ultra are now on store shelves. I took the big daddy of them all, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra for a test.

First and foremost, this thing is big. Not only does it have a gorgeous 6.8″ screen it’s also thicker than most of the smartphones we are used to. This is likely due to the inclusion of the S-Pen that slides out from the bottom of the S23 Ultra. Samsung has basically combined what used to be the “Note” phone with the higher-end “S” phone. Some people will love this, others who don’t care about the S-Pen might hate this. I think it was a smart move by Samsung to streamline their offerings. The S23 Ultra is the phone for people who want it all!

As I mentioned, the screen is big and gorgeous! Samsung calls it a “Edge Quad HD+” This means it has a slight curve on the edges and has the best resolution of all of their new S23 phones at 3088×1440. The 120hz refresh rate means it’s silky smooth when navigating the interface and the colors on screen pop.

The S-Pen is exactly what you expect from Samsung’s fancy stylus. Personally, I’m not much of a stylus person but I can appreciate those who love this thing. You don’t even have to touch the screen for it to recognize the pen as you hover over it. You can also use the bottoms on the pen to take pictures or pause your music. Best of all, despite the extra thickness, when the pen is stowed away you’d never know it was there.

Inside the S23 you’ll find all of the tech goodness you’d expect. The latest Snapdragon quad-core processing keeps this thing humming. The processing is the same across all of the S23 models so you don’t get a bump on the Ultra. Storage starts at 256GB which will be enough for many but power users will want to upgrade to the top tier of 1GB. The larger phone also packs the largest battery that Samsung claims will give you up to 26 hours of video playback.

Let’s be honest, everyone wants to know about the cameras. These are the best cameras Samsung has ever used in a phone. There are 4 cameras on the S23 Ultra included a 12MP selfie cam, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, a 10MP telephoto camera and an astonishing 200MP wide-angle camera. Video looks amazing, pictures look amazing and the zoom uses a combination of optical and digital to creep in up to 100x. I’m not a huge fan of using a zoom in general, use your feet to zoom if you can but if you need it, the S23 Ultra has amazing zoom capabilities.

Here’s a sample picture I snapped of my morning breakfast

Conclusion

This the best Android phone you can buy right now. That’s it, that’s all. I’ve tested many phones and this is the best your money can buy in February of 2023. If you hate big phones, the S23 Ultra is not for you but otherwise you’ll love the power, the screen and the best cameras Samsung has ever packed into a phone. I give the Samsung S23 Ultra 4.5 out of 5 geeks!

The Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is available right now directly from Samsung or through your cell phone carrier.