Robert Triggs / Android Authority
Charging and speeds are constantly controversial topics. From overzealous marketing and worries about damaged battery life to phones that simply charge too slowly, few brands seem to charge batteries properly.
Samsung is no different. Although it will introduce 45W wired charging from the 2022 flagships, it’s found to be a short cut short of last year’s sustainable power level. The result is phones that typically have strong battery life, but whose cells charge much faster than when they were charged on the old power level. Previous models still took an hour or so to charge, just not that fast.
With new handsets hitting the market, it’s time to test the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s charging speed and power to see if the situation has improved.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra charging speed test
For this charging test, we chose Samsung’s official 45W SuperFast Charging 2.0 Travel adapter (Model: TA845) to get the maximum power. That said, any compatible 45W USB Power Delivery PPS charger from our list of best Samsung Galaxy S23 chargers will deliver the results below. For comparison, we also tested a selection of other models that support different power levels and protocols.
To be clear, we’re tracking the time from 1% until the phone says it’s at 100%, not until the phone stops charging completely (fast charging doesn’t play a role in any fake charge time). Here are the results.
- 45 W USB power supply PPS – 57 minutes
- 25 W USB power supply PPS – 73 minutes
- 18 W Qualcomm Quick Charge / USB PD – 91 minutes
- 15 W Samsung adapter fast charge – 110 minutes
- 10 W standard 5 V USB – 125 minutes
Overall, the Galaxy S23 Ultra is definitely not slow to charge, at least with the most powerful adapter, but it’s still not exactly lightning fast, especially when using older and less powerful chargers. For comparison, the 2022 Galaxy S22 Ultra fully charged in 62 minutes at 45W and 69 minutes at 25W, falling short of our S23 results on both sides. In fact, when comparing the Galaxy S23 Ultra to the Galaxy S22 Ultra, many of the charging results are very close.
Depending on the charging requirement, the S23 Ultra charges in a few minutes more than the S22 Ultra.
If you choose the right charger, the Galaxy S23 is a little faster to charge than before, the main way to start. The improvement is not a huge margin, just minutes. Still, it’s enough to examine exactly what has changed.
Why does the Galaxy S23 Ultra charge faster than the Galaxy S22 Ultra?
Robert Triggs / Android Authority
While full charge times aren’t significantly improved from last year’s model, a closer look at our charging cycle data reveals a significant change in Samsung’s algorithm, which is good news for fast chargers.
Compared to last year’s Galaxy S22 Ultra, the S23 Ultra stays at around 45W of power before dropping down to 30W and then mid-charge to 21W. In comparison, the S22 Ultra 45W only lasted a few minutes. We tested the phone again with the new OneUI 5 software, to ensure that the performance is similar to what we saw at launch. Unfortunately, the issue still remains.
The result is generally slightly faster charging at lower battery levels than significantly improved charging times. For example, the Galaxy S23 Ultra reached 25%, 50% and 75% in 8, 17 and 29 minutes, respectively. That’s faster than last year’s model, which took 10, 21 and 34 minutes to hit the same benchmarks. Again, not a huge difference, but it does mean you’ll have a bit more battery capacity when charging in a hurry.
Samsung has improved the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s fast charging capabilities, with higher power levels lasting longer.
In short, the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra spec sheet may look the same as its predecessor, but it offers improved continuous charging performance and, therefore, faster boosts. Another hidden, under-the-code change that will help refine the Samsung Galaxy Classic formula in 2023.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus
Large AMOLED display
Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 power
Big battery
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
New 200MP main camera
Beautiful display
S Pen function
Top Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra battery charging questions and answers
The Samsung Galaxy S23 USB power supply uses the PPS standard. You can use any adapter that supports this requirement, as long as it provides enough power; 25W for the base model or 45W for the Plus and Ultra. Samsung recommends the SuperFast Charging 2.0 ($39.99 at Amazon) adapter.
That depends on the charger you use, but at most the Galaxy S23 charges at 25W, while the Galaxy S23 Plus and S23 Ultra charge at 45W.
No, the Galaxy S23 Ultra does not come with a charger.
Yes, the Galaxy S23 Ultra supports “Quick Wireless Charging 2.0” at 15W with Samsung’s proprietary wireless chargers. It also supports 10W Qi wireless charging.