How durable is the Galaxy S23 Ultra? (VIDEO)
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With the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra in line to become the new King of Android when it is released one week from today (and you know that there will be stories about lucky consumers who received their phones a day or two early), almost everything is known about the device except for its durability. But the phone has been tortured by JerryRigEverything which explains the loud screaming noise heard across the globe the other day. Ever hear a transistor cry?
The Galaxy S23 Ultra, like its two siblings, is among the first handsets to use Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The latest glass composition from Corning is said to survive a drop as high as 1 meter (3 feet, 3 inches) onto a hard concrete surface. Despite the upgrade in drop protection, the screen started to scratch at the same Mohls level of 6 that the Galaxy S22 Ultra also started to scratch at last year. At level 7, deeper "grooves" were cut into the glass.
We should point out that the video takes cracks at Samsung's tendency to pat itself on the back for its use of recycled materials on the Galaxy S23 line. For example, the company writes that its phones are made in part with natural dyes. Elsewhere on the website, Samsung notes that only 10% of the dyes used to coat the metal frames are natural.
The video points out that this is called "greenwashing" and Sammy does it again by promoting the use of recycled front and rear glass panels. But Gorilla Glass Victus 2 uses only 22% pre-consumer recycled glass. And while technically Samsung isn't lying, some might consider the amount of recycling actually being done by the company to be less than the amount necessary for self-congratulations.
The sides of the Galaxy S23 Ultra are made from Armor Aluminum. The side buttons come off easily with a sharp tool which, to be fair, still beats out the Pixel 7 Pro. Some of the latter device's owners are having issues with the side buttons just falling out.
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While the S Pen that comes with the Galaxy S23 Ultra snaps like a pretzel, the screen performs like a boss when it has a flame from a lighter placed on it for a minute. The device didn't even yell out its name, rank, and IMEI number. And the Galaxy S23 Ultra could not be bent leading to the comment that the phone is "rigid like a rock," and "structurally sound."
Overall, it seems that the Galaxy S23 Ultra just might be a solid device that probably would be even more solid with a case and a screen protector. When it comes time to buy a screen protector for your Galaxy S23 series handset, you might want to check out our top picks.
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