Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S vs Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra

Compared 2 smartphones : Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S Manufactured in April, 2023, with display 6.43 with chipsetMediaTek Helio G96, vs Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra, Manufactured in February, 2023 with chipsetSnapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
  • Lighter design: 176g vs 233g
  • Infrared port
  • Includes charger
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
  • Larger display: 6.8in
  • Higher pixel density: 500ppi
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.3 vs 5.2
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Supports DisplayPort
  • Supports Dolby Atmos
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 6/64 GB
- 6/128 GB
- 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB
- 8/256 GB
- 12/256 GB
- 12/512 GB
- 12/1024 GB

Review

Key Specs Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
Customize your score
Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison

Display

Display quality comparison
Type AMOLED Dynamic AMOLED
Size 6.43 in 6.8 in
Resolution 1080x2400 pixels 1440x3088 pixels
Aspect ratio 20:9 19.3:9
Pixel density 409 ppi 500 ppi
Refresh rate 90 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (1-120 Hz)
Max brightness 1000 nits 850 nits
HDR support No Yes HDR10+
Touch Sampling Rate 180 Hz 240 Hz
Screen-to-body ratio 84.5 % 89.5 %
Features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
- DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
629 nits
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
1269 nits
sRGB gamut99.2 %96.9 %
PWM (Flicker)355 Hz240 Hz
Response time3 ms2 ms
Contrast∞ Infinite∞ Infinite

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 159.87 mm (6.29 in) 163.4 mm (6.43 in)
Width 73.87 mm (2.91 in) 78.1 mm (3.07 in)
Thickness 8.09 mm (0.32 in) 8.9 mm (0.35 in)
Weight 176 g (6.21 oz) 233 g (8.22 oz)
Water resistance No IP68
Cooling system n/a Vapor chamber
Back panel Plastic Glass
Frame Plastic Metal
Colors - Black
- Blue
- Green
- White
- Black
- Gray
- Blue
- Green
- Red
- Purple
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Button Yes In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
84.5 %
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
89.5 %

Performance

Testing Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S and Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset MediaTek Helio G96 Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 Mobile Platform for Galaxy
Max Frequency 2050 MHz 3360 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (2 + 6) 8 (1 + 2 + 2 + 3)
Architecture - 6/2 (Cortex-A55)
- 2/2.05 (Cortex-A76)
- 3/2 (Cortex-A510)
- 2/2.8 (Cortex-A710)
- 2/2.8 (Cortex-A715)
- 1/3.2 (Cortex-X3)
Process TSMC TSMC
Transistor Size 12 nm 4 nm
Neural Processor MediaTek APU Hexagon
Graphics Mali-G57 MP2 Adreno 740
GPU Cores 128 1536
GPU Frequency 950 MHz 719 MHz
FLOPS 243 GFLOPS 2089 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
680
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
1976
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
1688
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
5221
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)6801976
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)16885221
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
392628
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
1541246
CPU124765371084
GPU63661600732
Memory95926299004
UX108276270462
NanoReview Score3926281541246
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
1154
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
12160
Max Surface Temp.n/a34.8 °C
Stabilityn/a64 %
Graphics Testn/a72 fps
Graphics Scoren/a12160
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
8306
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
16130
Writing score1030919799
Web score677416101
Video editing45877815
Data manipulation705213142
NanoReview Score830616130

Memory

RAM
RAM Size - 6 GB
- 8 GB
- 8 GB
- 12 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5X
Memory Frequency 2133 MHz 4200 MHz
Channels 2 4
Storage
Storage Capacity- 64 GB
- 128 GB
- 256 GB
- 256 GB
- 512 GB
- 1024 GB
Storage TypeUFS 2.2UFS 4.0
Memory CardMicroSDNo

Software

OS Android 13 (Upgradeable to Android 14) Android 13 (Upgradeable to Android 14)
OS Size 20 GB 39.9 GB
UI Skin HyperOS 1.0 One UI 6.1

Battery

Volume 5000 mAh 5000 mAh
Max Charging Power 33 W 45 W
Battery Type Li-Po Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging No Yes (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes (55% in 30 min) Yes (68% in 30 min)
Full Charge Time 1:12 h 0:59 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
21:29
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
26:01
Web Browsing08:34 h09:57 h
Video Playback12:36 h15:38 h
Games05:22 h06:22 h
Standby Mode105 h130 h

Main camera

Matrix 108 MP 200 MP
Photo resolution 12032x9024 pixels 16320x12240 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 10x
Flash LED LED
Stabilization Digital Optical
8K Recording No Yes (Up to 30 fps)
4K Recording No Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) Yes (Up to 120 fps)
Slow Motion 120 fps (720p) 960 fps (1080p)
Wide-angle lens 118 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 108 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 2 MP
Standard: 200 MP
Telephoto: 10 MP
Telephoto: 10 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix108 MP200 MP
Aperturef/1.9f/1.7
Focal lengthn/a23 mm
SensorSamsung S5KHM2Samsung ISOCELL HP2
Sensor size1/1.521/1.3
Pixel size0.7 μm0.64 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusLaser autofocus
StabilizationDigitalOptical
Telephoto
Matrixn/a10 MP
Aperturen/af/4.9
Focal lengthn/a230 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX754
Sensor sizen/a1/3.52
Pixel sizen/a1.12 μm
Stabilizationn/aOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrix8 MP12 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal lengthn/a13 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX564
Sensor size1/4.01/2.55
Pixel sizen/a1.4 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
139
Video quality
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
137
Overall camera score
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
140
Bokehn/a70
Previewn/a73
Zoomn/a141

Front camera

Matrix 16 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 4920x3264 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Aperture f/2.4 f/2.2
Focal length n/a 26 mm
Sensor CMOS Samsung S5K3LU
Sensor size 1/3.06 1/3.24
Pixel size 1 μm 1.12 μm
Autofocus No Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No
Selfie camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
139
Video quality
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
145

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- 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 5.2 5.3
Bluetooth features LE LE
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
- Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
DisplayPort n/a Yes DP 1.2
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Galileo
- GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port Yes No
Connectivity
SIM Count*21
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM 3/5/8n/a
3G BandsWCDMA 1/5/8n/a
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B3/B5/B7/B8/B20/B28/B38/B40/B41)n/a
LTE category1320
5G SupportNoYes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
3.5 mm Jack Yes No
FM Radio No No
Dolby Atmos No Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12S
81.3 dB
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
91.8 dB

Other

Class Mid-range Flagship
Announced March, 2023 yr February, 2023 yr
Release Date April, 2023 yr February, 2023 yr
Launch Price ($) 289 1199
Sensors - Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
- Hall Sensor
- Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
Charger Included Yes 33 W No
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra the clear winner in this comparison.

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