Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra’s camera might not be the huge upgrade we were hoping for

We have been hearing the rumors that the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is expected to come with a 200MP camera. On paper, it sounds like quite an upgrade over the Galaxy S22 Ultra’s 108MP camera, but it appears that Samsung could actually be using a smaller sensor compared to the Galaxy S22 Ultra.

According to a tweet by Ice Universe, the Galaxy S23 Ultra has been “confirmed” to sport a 200MP camera with an f/1.7 aperture, making it slightly wider compared to the Galaxy S22 Ultra’s f/1.8. On the flipside, the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s sensor size is said to be 0.6μm, versus the Galaxy S22 Ultra’s 0.8μm.

Do not believe any imaginary news, everything is subject to me.
100% confirmed, S23 Ultra main camera:
< 200MP，0.6μm，1/1.3"，F1.7 >
It's only slightly bigger than the iPhone 14 Pro and smaller than other Android flagship phone sensors in 2023. pic.twitter.com/UeHH5C6aJo

— Ice universe (@UniverseIce) September 10, 2022

So what does this mean? While megapixel count is great for marketing, sensor size is also important. This is because larger sensors can capture more light, and more light equals to more camera data and can result in photos with better details and dynamic range. This isn’t to say that the 0.6μm sensor size is bad, but we were hoping Samsung could have at least maintained the sensor size, if not gone bigger.

This also means that while the camera will have more megapixels and a wider aperture, which in turn also allows for more light, it does feel like Samsung is taking a step back with the smaller sensor size. It is possible that with the right image processing software and the use of AI, Samsung could make up for the difference, but we’ll just have to wait and see.