Technologies

Samsung’s Galaxy S23 Is Almost Here. What to Expect

The Galaxy S23 Ultra could get a new 200-megapixel camera.

Like clockwork, Samsung releases its new Galaxy S phones in the first quarter of the year. For 2023, that launch is set to happen on Feb. 1 during Samsung’s next event, where we’re very much expecting to see the Galaxy S23.

The Samsung Galaxy S22 range includes some of our top phones from 2022. The base S22 impressed as a more affordable option, the S22 Plus is a superb all-rounder while the all-powerful S22 Ultra blew us away with its stellar camera skills. We even gave the Plus and Ultra CNET Editors’ Choice Awards.

If Samsung maintains the pattern it’s followed for the last three generations, we can expect to see a Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23 Plus and Galaxy S23 Ultra. We’ll know more on Feb. 1, but here’s what we’re expecting based on rumors, leaks and Samsung’s previous product launches. As for what we want to see from the Galaxy S23 lineup, longer battery life and more clever camera features are at the top of my list.

Galaxy S23 release date

Samsung will likely announce the Galaxy S23 series during its next Unpacked event on Feb. 1, which will take place in San Francisco. The event announcement follows previous leaks, including this report from Korean newspaper JoongAng Daily, suggesting an early February launch for the Galaxy S23. A Jan. 6 tweet by prominent leaker Ice Universe also claimed to show a Galaxy Unpacked teaser image with a date of Feb. 1.

Whether the phones are available in stores to buy that month is another matter, as global supply chains are still struggling and it’s possible that there may be a longer delay than usual. But Samsung is already offering promotions for customers in the US who want to reserve a phone early. You’ll get $50 in Samsung credit if you sign up to reserve one device or $100 if you ask to reserve two.

Galaxy S23 models and sizes

We firmly expect Samsung to continue its strategy of launching multiple phone models, each with different specs and prices to appeal to a wide variety of people. Based on Samsung’s history, we’re confident we’ll see an entry level Galaxy S23 model, a step-up S23 Plus with a larger screen and the top-end S23 Ultra. It’s the Ultra that will pack the best tech, including extra cameras, the biggest display and almost certainly the S Pen stylus.

Samsung’s Unpacked event invitation also includes what appear to be three spotlights, which may be a subtle nod to three new incoming Galaxy models.

Reputable leaker Ice Universe posted a detailed rundown of the sizes of the three upcoming phones (via GSM Arena), which put them almost exactly in line with the current sizes of the S22 lineup. As such, we don’t expect any notable differences in screen sizes of any of the range over the predecessors.

Those were 6.1 inches for the Galaxy S22, 6.6 inches for the S22 Plus and 6.8 inches for the S22 Ultra.

Galaxy S23 price

Assuming Samsung launches multiple models, the S23 range will come at three main prices. We don’t expect Samsung to stray from last year’s prices. For reference, the base S22 launched with a price of $800, while the Plus model started at $1,000 and the high-performance S22 Ultra debuted at $1,200 in the US last February.

Galaxy S23 cameras

The cameras look like they might be one of the key areas of focus for the new series. In a recent blog post, the head of Samsung’s mobile experience business, T.M. Roh, teased the camera improvements we can expect to see. «Our pro-grade camera system is getting smarter, offering the best photos and videos in any light among our Galaxy smartphones,» he wrote.

That’s likely to be especially true for the Ultra model, which is usually where Samsung’s biggest camera innovations can be found. We expected the S22 Ultra to include a whopping 200-megapixel image sensor, considering Samsung has launched two of these image sensors and they can be found in other phones. We didn’t see it on the S22 Ultra, but it seems likely that a 200-megapixel sensor will be one of the key bragging rights of the S23 Ultra. Ice Universe also predicts that the Galaxy S23 Ultra’s will have a 200-megapixel sensor. That seems especially likely considering Samsung just announced a new 200-megapixel image sensor for smartphones.

Samsung’s product pages for these sensors boast improved resolution (obviously), but also improved low-light photography by combining sets of smaller pixels into larger individual ones that can capture more light. The S22 Ultra is already one of the best night-time camera phones, beating out the Pixel 7 Pro in our recent tests, so a further burst to its low-light prowess is exciting to hear.

That massive resolution will also help with the phone’s zoom skills, which are already impressive thanks to its 10x optical zoom lens. Recent rumors from Ice Universe suggest that the lens lineup will remain the same across all phones, but that extra resolution should help make zoom shots even more pin-sharp.

There’s a chance we might also see a slight change in the camera’s design, at least on the Galaxy S23 Plus and potentially the Galaxy S23. Rumors from reputable leakers Ice Universe and Steve Hemmerstoffer suggest that the new devices could have circular cutouts for the camera lenses that sit directly on the back of the device rather than on a camera module. The Galaxy S22 Ultra already has a camera like this, but Hemmerstoffer’s leak suggests this style could make its way to the Plus model as well.

Take a look at the photos of the Galaxy S22 Ultra alongside the Galaxy S22 Plus and Galaxy S22 below to see what I mean.

Galaxy S23 battery, processor and other specs

The Galaxy S23 range will almost certainly use the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. In previous years, Samsung used its own Exynos chips for its European models. But a recent Qualcomm earnings call suggested that Samsung will in fact be using Qualcomm’s silicon for every phone in the range.

As for other specs, we expect a minimum of 8GB of RAM on the base models, with 12GB being available on the S23 Ultra. Storage is likely to continue to start at 128GB, with higher capacity options being available at higher prices. And no, we don’t expect a return of the microSD card slot to expand the storage. Sad face.

Recent Federal Communications Commission certifications show that the base S23 will have a 3,900-mAh battery, a step up from the 3,700 mAh of the base S23, while the S23 Plus will also get a battery boost to 4,700-mAh. There’s no official figure for the Ultra model yet, but again Ice Universe suggests that it will have the same 5,000-mAh cell size as the S22 Ultra.

We’ll likely know more as Feb. 1 gets closer. But if the rumors turn out to be accurate, the Galaxy S23 lineup will probably be a modest step up from the Galaxy S22 family.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Connections Hints, Answers and Help for May 18, #707

Hints and answers for Connections for May 18, #707.

Looking for the most recent Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections: Sports Edition and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections puzzle is a mix of difficult and easy. The purple category does what most purple categories do, and makes you really break down how you think about the words. Read on for clues and today’s Connections answers.

The Times now has a Connections Bot, like the one for Wordle. Go there after you play to receive a numeric score and to have the program analyze your answers. Players who are registered with the Times Games section can now nerd out by following their progress, including number of puzzles completed, win rate, number of times they nabbed a perfect score and their win streak.

Read more: Hints, Tips and Strategies to Help You Win at NYT Connections Every Time

Hints for today’s Connections groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group, to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: School days.

Green group hint: About there!

Blue group hint: Sure, let’s go.

Purple group hint: The Scarlett Letter.

Answers for today’s Connections groups

Yellow group: Tasks for a student.

Green group: Encouraging responses in a guessing game.

Blue group: Up for anything.

Purple group: What «A» might mean.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is tasks for a student. The four answers are assignment, drill, exercise and lesson.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is encouraging responses in a guessing game. The four answers are almost, close, not quite and warm.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is up for anything. The four answers are easy, flexible, game and open.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is what «A» might mean. The four answers are area, athletic, excellent and one.

Technologies

Today’s NYT Strands Hints, Answers and Help for May 18, #441

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 441 for May 18.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands will probably be easier if you have some basic knowledge about a certain type of vessel. You don’t really need to have ever been on one, since the answers show up in books and movies all the time. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story.

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Riding the wind.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: famed song by Christopher Cross.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints, but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

DULL, TILE, TILER, SEER, GALE, GALES, HAIL, SAIL, LEEK, GLUE, HALL, TALL, HEAT

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you’ve got all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

HELM, HULL, KEEL, MAST, STERN, RIGGING, RUDDER, TILLER

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is SAILBOAT. To find it, start with the S that’s four letters down on the farthest row to the left, then wind across, up and down.

Technologies

Google I/O 2025: How to Watch and What to Expect

With Android 16 out of the way, Google I/O will certainly be all about AI.

Google I/O 2025 takes place on May 20 and 21 with Google’s big keynote happening on day 1. We expect Big G to talk about its myriad innovations across its ever-expanding portfolio of products — almost certainly with a huge focus on AI every step of the way. If we collectively cross our fingers, promise to be good and eat all our vegetables then we may even be treated to a sneak peek at upcoming hardware.

Read more: Android 16: Everything Google Announced at the Android Show

Google also hosted a totally separate event that focused solely on Android. The Android Show: I/O Edition saw the wrappers come off Android 16, with insights into the new Material 3 Expressive interface, updates to security and a focus on Gemini and how it’ll work on a variety of other devices.

By breaking out Android news into its own virtual event, Google frees itself to spend more time during the I/O keynote to talk about Gemini, Deep Mind, Android XR and Project Astra. It’s going to be a jam-packed event, so here’s how you can watch I/O 2025 as it happens and what you can look forward to.

Google I/O: Where to watch

Google I/O proper kicks off with a keynote taking place on May 20, 10 a.m. PDT (1 p.m. EDT, 6 p.m. BST). It’ll almost certainly be available to stream online on Google’s own YouTube channel, although a holding video is yet to be available. There’s no live link on the I/O website yet, either, though you can use the handy links to add the event to your calendar of choice. Expect links to a livestream to be available closer to the day.

What to expect from Google I/O 2025

Little chat about Android 16: As Google gave Android 16 its own outing already, it’s likely that it won’t be mentioned all that much during I/O. In fact at last year’s event, Android was barely mentioned, while uses of the term «AI» went well over a hundred.

Android XR: Google didn’t talk much about Android XR during the Android show, focusing instead on the purely phone-based updates to the platform. We expected to hear more about the company’s latest foray into mixed-reality headsets in partnership with Samsung and its Project Moohan headset, so it’s possible that this is being saved for I/O proper.

Gemini: With Android being spun out into its own separate event, Google is evidently clearing the way for I/O to focus on everything else the company does. AI will continue to dominate the conversation at I/O, just as it did last year (though hopefully Google can make it more understandable) with updates to many of its AI platforms expected to be announced.

Gemini is expected to receive a variety of update announcements, including more information on its latest 2.5 Pro update which boasts various improvements to its reasoning abilities, and in particular to its helpfulness for coding applications. Expect lots of mentions of Google’s other AI-based products, too, including DeepMind, LearnLM and Project Astra. Let’s just hope Google has figured out how to make this information make any kind of sense.

Beyond AI, Google may talk about updates to its other products including GMail, Chrome and the Play Store, although whether these updates are big enough to be discussed during the keynote rather than as part of the developer-focused sessions following I/O’s opening remains to be seen.