Home > Smartphone comparison > Xperia 1 V vs Galaxy S23 Ultra – which one to choose?

Sony Xperia 1 V vs Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

70 out of 100
Sony Xperia 1 V
VS
74 out of 100
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Sony Xperia 1 V
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.5-inch Sony Xperia 1 V (with Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2) that was released on May 11, 2023, against the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, which is powered by Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy and came out 4 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

Select the amount of RAM to evaluate performance and value for money more precisely
Memory
  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery life
  6. Camera
  7. Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Sony Xperia 1 V
  • 29% higher pixel density (643 vs 500 PPI)
  • Has 50% more RAM: 12GB versus 8GB
  • Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 1024GB
  • Better grip in hands – the body is 7.1 mm narrower
  • Weighs 46 grams less
  • Includes a 3.5 mm headphone audio jack port
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
  • The rear camera has a 10x optical zoom
  • Shows 9% longer battery life (26:01 vs 23:47 hours)
  • Delivers 37% higher peak brightness (1271 against 928 nits)
  • Has a 0.3 inch larger screen size
  • Slow-motion recording at 960FPS
  • More recent OS version: Android 16 versus 15
  • Thinner bezels – 5.3% more screen real estate
  • Supports higher wattage charging (45W versus 30W)
  • Faster storage type - UFS 4.0 versus UFS 3.1

Review

Evaluation of Sony Xperia 1 V and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra crucial features
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (*) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation
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Value for money (Beta)

To get an accurate value-for-money index, update the default prices with actual prices from your country’s retailers (for the selected memory configs) and press the "Calculate" button.
Currency
12 / 256 GB
VS
8 / 256 GB
7.5
(Bad)
Value Index
49.0
(Average)

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests
Phone:
Xperia 1 V
vs
Galaxy S23 Ultra

Display

Type OLED Dynamic AMOLED
Size 6.5 inches 6.8 inches
Resolution 1644 x 3840 pixels 1440 x 3088 pixels
Aspect ratio 21:9 19.3:9
PPI 643 ppi 500 ppi
Refresh rate 120 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (24-120 Hz)
Max rated brightness 1000 nits 1200 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR - 1750 nits
HDR support Yes, HDR10+ Yes, HDR10+
Touch sampling rate 240 Hz 240 Hz
Screen protection Gorilla Glass Victus 2 Gorilla Glass Victus 2
Screen-to-body ratio 84.2% 89.5%
Display features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display		 - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display tests
RGB color space 99.8% 96.9%
PWM 376 Hz 240 Hz
Response time 1 ms 2 ms
Contrast ∞ Infinity ∞ Infinity
Screen space comparison
Galaxy S23 Ultra
6.8″ (19.3:9 ratio) = 17.7 in2
Xperia 1 V
6.5″ (21:9 ratio) = 15.3 in2
~15% more screen space
Peak brightness test (auto)
Xperia 1 V
928 nits
Galaxy S23 Ultra +37%
1271 nits
Sources: NotebookCheck [3], [4]

Design and build

Height 165 mm (6.5 inches) 163.4 mm (6.43 inches)
Width 71 mm (2.8 inches) 78.1 mm (3.07 inches)
Thickness 8.3 mm (0.33 inches) 8.9 mm (0.35 inches)
Weight 187 g (6.6 oz) 233 g (8.22 oz)
Waterproof IP68 IP68
Advanced cooling - Vapor chamber
Rear material Glass Glass
Frame material Metal Metal
Colors Black, Silver, Green White, Black, Gray, Blue, Green, Red, Purple
Fingerprint scanner Yes, in-button Yes, in-display
Screen-to-body ratio
Xperia 1 V
84.2%
Galaxy S23 Ultra +6%
89.5%

Performance

Chipset specifications of Sony Xperia 1 V and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
SoC
Chipset Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy
Max clock 3200 MHz 3360 MHz
CPU cores 8 (1 + 2 + 2 + 3) 8 (1 + 2 + 2 + 3)
Architecture - 3 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A510
- 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A710
- 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A715
- 1 core at 3.2 GHz: Cortex-X3		 - 3 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A510
- 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A710
- 2 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A715
- 1 core at 3.2 GHz: Cortex-X3
L3 cache 8 MB 8 MB
Manufacturing TSMC TSMC
Lithography process 4 nanometers 4 nanometers
Neural processor (NPU) Hexagon Hexagon
GPU
Graphics Adreno 740 Adreno 740
GPU shading units 1536 1536
GPU clock 680 MHz 680 MHz
FLOPS ~2089 GFLOPS ~2089 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Benchmark comparison of Sony Xperia 1 V and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Compute Score (GPU)
Compute Score (GPU) 8527 9254
Single-core score 2038 2010
Multi-core score 5591 5245
Sources: Geekbench [3], [4]
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
Xperia 1 V
1761879
Galaxy S23 Ultra
1762339
CPU 603731 556398
GPU 426715 445907
Memory 255040 285085
UX 476393 474949
Total score 1761879 1762339
Samples Less than 3 [31 tests]
3DMark Steel Nomad Light
Stability 79% 81%
Graphics test 8 FPS 8 FPS
Graphics score 1085 1098
3DMark Solar Bay
Stability 72% 77%
Graphics test 20 FPS 20 FPS
Section 1 23 FPS 23 FPS
Section 2 20 FPS 20 FPS
Section 3 17 FPS 18 FPS
Graphics score 5263 5383
3DMark Wild Life Extreme
Stability 62% 69%
Graphics test 21 FPS 22 FPS
Graphics score 3624 3723
Sources: 3DMark [5], [6]
PCMark 3.0
Web score - 17072
Video editing - 7852
Photo editing - 33655
Data manipulation - 13329
Writing score - 19857
Submit your benchmark results

Recent User Tests

The latest benchmark tests that have been submitted by users
Sony Xperia 1 V
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-10-03 -> RennsportAnTuTu 111787163
📘 2026-10-03 -> RennsportAnTuTu 121971026
📘 2026-10-03 -> RennsportCPU Throttle78%
📘 2026-10-03 -> RennsportCPU Throttle65%
📘 2026-10-03 -> RennsportGeekbench 6 GPU9633
Add View all (14)
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
DateBenchmarkResult
📘 2026-10-03 -> ThekinggoatAnTuTu 121914947
📘 2026-10-03 (Thekinggoat)Geekbench 7 CPU1471 / 4766
📘 2026-10-03 (Thekinggoat)AnTuTu 121914947
📘 2026-09-28 -> Saad_irqAnTuTu 121959121
📘 2026-09-23 (Horizon377)AnTuTu 121894819
Add View all (56)

Memory

RAM
RAM size 12 GB 8 GB
Memory type LPDDR5X LPDDR5X
Memory clock 4200 MHz 4200 MHz
Channels 4 4
Storage
Storage size 256 GB 256 GB
Storage type UFS 3.1 UFS 4.0
Memory card MicroSD No
Memory card max size Up to 1024 GB -

Software

Operating system Android 13 (Can be upgraded to Android 15) Android 13 (Can be upgraded to Android 16)
ROM - One UI 8.0
OS size 40 GB 39.9 GB
OS updates - 4 years
Security updates - 5 years

Battery

Capacity 5000 mAh 5000 mAh
Max charge power 30 W 45 W
Battery type Li-Po Li-Ion
Replaceable No No
Wireless charging Yes Yes (15 W)
Reverse charging Yes, (wireless) Yes, (wireless)
Bypass charging - Yes
Fast charging Yes (50% in 30 min) Yes (68% in 30 min)
Full charging time 1:37 hr 0:59 hr
Battery life tests
Web browsing 07:03 hr 09:57 hr
Watching video 14:10 hr 15:38 hr
Gaming 05:40 hr 06:22 hr
Standby 136 hr 130 hr
General battery life
Xperia 1 V
23:47 hr
Galaxy S23 Ultra +9%
26:01 hr
Add your battery life

Main camera

Matrix 48 megapixels 200 megapixels
Image resolution 8000 x 6000 16320 x 12240
Zoom Optical, 5.2x Optical, 10x
Flash LED LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K video recording No Up to 30FPS
4K video recording Up to 120FPS Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording Up to 60FPS Up to 120FPS
Slow motion 240 FPS (1080p) 960 FPS (1080p)
Angle of widest lens - 120°
Lenses 1) Standard: 48 MP
2) Telephoto: 12 MP
3) Ultrawide: 12 MP
1) Standard: 200 MP
2) Telephoto: 10 MP
3) Telephoto: 10 MP
4) Ultrawide: 12 MP
Camera features - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
- RAW support		 - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Standard lens
Image resolution 48 MP 200 MP
Aperture f/1.9 f/1.7
Focal length 24 mm 23 mm
Sensor Sony IMX888 Samsung ISOCELL HP2
Sensor size 1/1.35" (≈ 0.74 inch) 1/1.3" (≈ 0.77 inch)
Pixel size 1.12 micron 0.64 micron
Autofocus Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) Laser autofocus
Stabilization Optical Optical
Telephoto lens
Image resolution 12 MP 10 MP
Aperture f/2.3 - 2.8 f/4.9
Focal length 85 mm 230 mm
Sensor Sony IMX650 Sony IMX754
Sensor size 1/3.5" (≈ 0.29 inch) 1/3.52" (≈ 0.28 inch)
Pixel size 1 micron 1.12 micron
Stabilization Optical Optical
Ultra-wide lens
Image resolution 12 MP 12 MP
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length 16 mm 13 mm
Sensor Sony IMX563 Sony IMX564
Sensor size 1/2.5" (≈ 0.4 inch) 1/2.55" (≈ 0.39 inch)
Pixel size 1.4 micron 1.4 micron
Stabilization Digital Digital

DxOMark main camera tests

Photo quality
Video quality
Generic main camera score
Bokeh - 70
Preview - 73
Zoom - 141
Samples - Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra from DxOMark

Selfie camera

Megapixels 12 megapixels 12 megapixels
Image resolution 4000 x 3000 4000 x 3000
Aperture f/2.0 f/2.2
Focal length 24 mm 26 mm
Sensor Sony IMX663 Samsung S5K3LU
Sensor size 1/2.9" (≈ 0.34 inch) 1/3.24" (≈ 0.31 inch)
Pixel size 1.25 micron 1.12 micron
Autofocus No Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 2160p (4K) at 30 FPS 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS
Depth sensor (TOF 3D) No No
DxOMark front camera
Photo - 139
Video - 145

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5.3 5.3
Bluetooth features LE LE
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 3.2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB-Storage mode
- OTG
DisplayPort Yes Yes, DP 1.2
GPS GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared port No No
Network
Number of SIM* 1 1
Type of SIM card Nano Nano
Multi SIM mode Standby Standby
eSIM support* Yes Yes
Hybrid slot Yes No
LTE Cat* 20 20
5G support Yes Yes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
Headphone audio jack Yes No
FM radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speakers test
Max loudness
Xperia 1 V
90.6 dB
Galaxy S23 Ultra +1%
91.8 dB

Other

Category Flagship Flagship
Announced May 2023 February 2023
Release date June 2023 February 2023
Launch price (MSRP) $1399 $1199
Successor - Sony Xperia 1 VII - Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra
SAR (head) - 0.96 W/kg
SAR (body) - 1.4 W/kg
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint		 - Hall-effect sensor
- Barometer
- Proximity sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint
Bundled charger Not included Not included
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

These smartphones have a lot in common, but we would recommend the Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra. It has a better camera, battery life, and software.

Cast your vote

So, which phone would you choose?
260 (57.8%)
190 (42.2%)
Total votes: 450

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