We’ve been speculating about the potential launch date of the Samsung Galaxy S23 for months, but now it looks like we can confidently circle the date of a major reveal in our 2023 calendars: Wednesday, February 1.
Samsung didn’t specifically say that date, but it did (via Sam Mobile (opens in a new tab)) released a Galaxy Unpacked trailer on February 1 on its Columbia website. We couldn’t find a trailer at the time of writing, so it’s either been taken down, or we’re not very good at searching through the Samsung Colombia portal.
While not official, it’s pretty much official. Considering that it lines up with previous rumors from reliable sources pointing to the same date, we can say that February 1st will almost certainly be the date of the big reveal.
rumor, hype
When Samsung does decide to unveil its latest batch of flagships, it’s unlikely to surprise us with too many surprises, considering how extensive the Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 Plus, and Galaxy S23 Ultra leaks have been.
In terms of design, it appears that all three phones in the series will follow the Ultra models, with a raised camera lens on the back. We also got an early look at the colors the phone will be available in.
There’s also been a lot of talk about camera upgrades, especially when it comes to the Ultra model. If the rumors are true, photos and videos taken in both good and bad lighting conditions should be better than ever.
Analysis: Samsung strikes back
When it comes to smartphones from big-name tech giants, we tend to focus on Apple’s iPhone, Google’s Pixel and Samsung’s Galaxy S — but only one of those three launched at the start of the year.
That puts Samsung in a different position than Apple and Google. You could say that the iPhone 14 and Pixel 7 are direct competition because they were released around the same time (September and October, respectively). However, by the time the iPhone 14 was released, the Samsung Galaxy S22 had been out for seven months.
One way of looking at it is that Samsung is always half a year ahead of its big-name rivals. Another view is that it is always half a year behind. The strategy at least means that Samsung can get a lot of attention for its flagship phones, regardless of what Apple and Google are doing.
We’re seeing the launch of the Galaxy S23 as Samsung pushes back against what other phone makers did last year and sets the pace for 2023. The next question is how many upgrades we’ll see for the Galaxy S22 phones.
