Galaxy S23 Ultra to feature a 200-megapixel camera, insider claims

The Galaxy S23 Ultra might feature a 200-megapixel primary camera, says an insider familiar with Samsung’s plans. Similar sensors are already in use or will come on other Android flagships. And it so happens that Samsung has a few Isocell sensors with 200 megapixels. But Ice Universe says it’s unclear which sensor will end up in the upcoming Galaxy S23 Ultra that will be released next year.

Ice Universe often leaks details about unreleased Samsung devices on Twitter. While it might seem too early for Galaxy S23 Ultra rumors, the leaker already shared some camera specs on social media.

He posted the image below, which reportedly comes from an upcoming Motorola flagship phone. The primary camera is a 200-megapixel sensor that the leaker identifies as HP1. That’s short for Isocell HP1, a 200-megapixel sensor that Samsung unveiled last year.

In this context, Ice claimed that the Galaxy S23 Ultra will also feature a 200-megapixel sensor. However, it’s unclear which sensor Samsung will employ for its upcoming flagship. The HP1 isn’t the latest camera innovation from Samsung, as the company has an updated HP3 200-megapixel sensor in production.

The leaker is also very vocal on Twitter when it comes to criticizing what he perceives as Samsung’s failures when it comes to mobile devices. He criticized the Galaxy S22 processor’s performance and One UI features in the past. More recently, he addressed issues with the Galaxy S22 camera’s performance.

Do phones need 200-megapixel sensors?

Unlike its early days in the smartphone business, Samsung no longer increases the camera megapixel count on its smartphones just for the sake of bragging about specs. The Galaxy S20 Ultra came with a 108-megapixel sensor three years ago, but the upgrade was walked back with the Ultra’s larger camera setup. The Galaxy S22 Ultra also rocks a 108-megapixel wide-angle camera.

If Ice’s claims are correct, the Galaxy S23 Ultra might be the first Galaxy S flagship to get a 200-megapixel camera.

Samsung unveiled the Isocell HP1 sensor last year without specifying which smartphones would get the 200-megapixel camera. We now know Samsung never meant to use the camera on its 2022 flagships.

A few weeks ago, Samsung unveiled the HP3 camera, which is also a 200-megapixel sensor. The video below explains the benefits of the sensor.

In short, these cameras will improve resolution in well-lit environments. But they will automatically combine pixels and reduce the overall resolution to improve low-light and night photography.

The HP3 sensor should deliver improved autofocus and better HDR algorithms. Moreover, Samsung also says the Isocell HP3 camera will support 8K video recording at up to 30fps.

That said, the Isocell HP3 might not be the 200-megapixel camera that Samsung uses for the Galaxy S23 Ultra next year. Instead, Samsung might tweak it to create a custom version for the upcoming flagship. But that’s just speculation at this point.

The Galaxy S23 series should launch in early 2023. By then, all of the camera specs will have leaked and we’ll know exactly what sort of camera experience Samsung plans to offer.