Samsung's new Galaxy S23 series to be pricier than its predecessor

Tech

Published: 25 Jan. 2023, 17:28 Updated: 25 Jan. 2023, 18:38

Samsung's new Galaxy S23 series to be pricier than its predecessor

A leaked preview image of Samsung Electronics’ upcoming Galaxy S23 series [WINFUTURE]

Samsung Electronics’ new Galaxy S23 may be 150,000 won ($122) more expensive than its predecessor, according to the latest leaks of a promotional image of the upcoming smartphone series.

Samsung Electronics did not confirm the speculations, however rising raw material costs are likely to be the reason behind the increased price tag.

The leaked marketing image shows that the standard Galaxy S23 with a 256-gigabyte storage option will retail for 1.16 million won, and the Galaxy S22 Plus for 1.36 million won. The Galaxy S22 Ultra, which comes with a stylus, will be priced at 1.6 million won.

A leaked promotional image of the Galaxy S23 series shows the standard Galaxy S23 with the lowest storage option priced at 1.16 million won ($940). [SCREEN CAPTURE]

As the previous Galaxy S22 series released last year was priced the same as the S21 series, it will be Samsung’s first price hike for a Galaxy S model in 2 years.

In 2022, the standard Galaxy S22 was priced at 999,900 won, the Galaxy S22 Plus at 1.19 million won and the Galaxy S22 Ultra at 1.45 million won for the lowest storage option.

According to Samsung Electronics’ quarterly performance report released in November, the price of mobile application processors for smartphones jumped 80 percent on year in the third quarter, while camera module prices increased 10 percent.

The new Galaxy S23 series is expected to be powered by Samsung Electronics’ latest image sensor Isocell HP2, and Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chipsets, which are manufactured by Taiwan's TSMC.

Samsung Electronics will introduce the Galaxy S23 series on Feb. 1 at the Galaxy Unpacked event in San Francisco.

Galaxy Unpacked is the smartphone maker’s biannual event during which the company showcases its latest products. This year marks the first full-scale offline edition in three years.

The Galaxy S23 series will be released at a challenging time amid weak demand for smartphones, weighed down by the slowing global economy.

Samsung Electronics recently reported a weaker-than-expected quarterly operating profit of 4.3 trillion won, down 69 percent on year, in its preliminary earnings guidance. It is the worst quarterly operating profit since the third quarter of 2014.

BY SHIN HA-NEE [shin.hanee@joongang.co.kr]