Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs Sony Xperia 1 VI

Verdict

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra and Sony Xperia 1 VI tie on the OH Rank at a score of 72. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra wins on Screen and Selfie; Sony Xperia 1 VI wins on Battery and Main Camera. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra is 4.1mm wider than Sony Xperia 1 VI. Sony Xperia 1 VI is the more recent release, from Jun 2024.

Score Breakdown

Category

Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

78.1mm (3.07in) · Feb 2023 · Rank #74

Sony Xperia 1 VI

74mm (2.91in) · Jun 2024 · Rank #71
Performance /15
7
7
Battery /15
8
13
Screen /15
13
10
IP Protection /15
12
12
Main Camera /15
12
15
Selfie /5
5
3
Video /5
5
4
SD Memory /5
0
5
Software /5
5
3
Desktop Replacement /5
5
0
TOTAL
72
72
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
78.1mm (3.07in) · Feb 2023 · Rank #74
7+8+13+12+12+5+5+0+5+5 = 72
* BEST phone Spring Summer 2023

EDITORIAL: A fantastic value considering that it differs from S24 Ultra by a small, incremental downgrade in processing speed, screen reflection and minor photo deficiencies. And it is smaller (easier to use) than the S24 Ultra. Samsung still promises 4 more years of OS updates making this one of the best options if you don’t want to spend much.

PROs
fast SD 8 Gen 2 with UFS4.0 performance, 500ppi screen, great cameras: 200MP main + 2 x 10MP tele + 12MP ultrawide all with PDAF and a 12MP selfie with PDAF too!, Samsung’s mature and feature rich software and a full-blown best-on-the-market desktop replacement functionality
CONs
big 234gr phone, less than 24-hour battery life, no memory expansion and Samsung’s persistent effort to lock you into their ecosystem (updated Apr 13, 2025)
Sony Xperia 1 VI
74mm (2.91in) · Jun 2024 · Rank #71
7+13+10+12+15+3+4+5+3+0 = 72

EDITORIAL: Sony & Samsung make 90% of all phones camera sensors but Sony has struggled to produce a top performing camera phone. Sony phones have always featured exceptional hardware and introduced many new features (like IP68 protection) but software side was always neglected. The company changed it’s direction with Xperia 1 VI by consolidating all photo/video apps into a very good one. Xperia 1 VI has a new form factor that matches it’s flagship competition – gone is the long and narrow design (21:9) and we have a wider phone (harder to use one-hand at 16:9). The screen went from 4K to a 1020p LTPO. But many great things are there: exceptional 2-day battery life, SDmemory slot (up to a 1TB), a headphone/microphone jack, camera button and a Tool-less SIM tray. The screen is the only notch-free one in the flagship phone world! Sony is pitching it’s top phones as “creator tools” so it would give Sony an better market position if their phones could be used as creator’s computer replacement . Maybe down the road?…

PROs
outstanding design with best grip, tons of great hardware features (see above), still fast SD 8 Gen 3 performance, 2-day battery endurance from a 5000mAh Lithium battery (!), excellent photos from the main (OIS 48MP + 12MP tele + 12MP ultrawide all with PDAF) and (12MP no AF) selfie cameras, strong video performance, SDmemory expansion, headphone jack
CONs
lack of long OS update support & desktop replacement feature (updated Apr 16, 2025)

Both phones here were scored by me, using the same ten categories, with no ads, sponsorships, or manufacturer relationships — this comparison is as objective and honest as it gets.

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