Priced as a cheaper alternative to its flagship phones from earlier in the year, Samsung has revealed the Galaxy S23 FE, alongside several other more affordable devices.
Joined by two Galaxy Tab S9 FE tablets and the Galaxy Buds FE, the $999 Galaxy S23 FE marks an approachable option below the $1,349 starting point for the base S23 range. As described by Samsung, FE stands for “Fan Edition”, labelling the range of devices that retains the core features of its flagship tech, with some changes along the way.
Sized between the regular S23 and S23+ phones, the 6.4-inch FE version has a lot in common with its more expensive siblings. Although it houses the same 8GB of memory as the base models, the trade-off is that it uses the older Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor. It’s still a decent chip but the reduced processing power is clearly where the bulk of the savings come from.
Samsung garners a lot of praise for its phone cameras, a trend the Galaxy S23 FE looks to continue. Its camera array is near-identical to the regular S23 except for an 8MP telephoto camera instead of a 10MP variety. Battery capacity also sees an improvement, with a 4,500mAh unit, which is only slightly less than the 4,700mAh battery in the S23+. The Galaxy S23 FE also includes the same water-resistant IP68 rating, so it’s fairly durable too.
Processor differences also extend to the Tab S9 FE and FE+ tablets. Instead of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chips used by the regular models, The Verge reports that they use the Exynos 1380 platform. Both tablets use LCD display technology with a 90Hz maximum refresh rate over the OLED 120Hz tech employed by the more expensive models.
Last but not least, the Galaxy Buds SE adds an extra hour of active noise cancellation listening time over the Galaxy Buds 2, up to six hours between charges, and 8.5 hours without noise cancellation. They’re also $50 cheaper than the Buds 2, which is a pretty nice deal.
Samsung Galaxy S23 FE range release date and price
Available at retailers and telcos from 12 October, the Galaxy S23 FE starts at $999 for the base configuration in Mint, Cream, Graphite, and Purple, with Indigo, and Tangerine colours exclusive to Samsung’s website. As for the tablets, the Tab S9 FE costs $749, while the FE+ version has a $999 starting price, with both coming in Mint, Silver, Grey and Lavender. With two colours to choose from, Graphite or White, Samsung’s Galaxy Buds FE cost $199.
Not everyone needs the raw power of an S23 Ultra or the fanciest screen technology, which Samsung recognises with the FE range. On paper, the changes look to be reasonable and practical to suit many different people.
