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Customer Review
Reviewed in the United States on January 23, 2024
My faithful Galaxy S5, finally got to the point where the original battery needed replacement (this would have been in July of 2023).
When I opened the phone to replace the battery, I discovered, the motherboard was broken. Apparently the frame had been holding it together and it promptly fell apart when separated.
Basically I use a phone for talk, text, photos and as music storage for blue tooth speakers. Which is why the phone and battery lasted as long as they did.
After saving some money and doing research, I decided to make this purchase due to the price, my experience with Samsung and my needs. There also wasn't much of a price difference between the 22 and 23. So, to me the 23 seemed to be a better choice. I also had no reason to consider the Plus or Ultra.
Obviously, upgrading from an S5 to an S23 was a major upgrade for me and a little overwhelming. 4 months later I'm still trying to figure some things out.
As to the seller: The phone arrived quickly and was new in the original packaging. There were cards enclosed advising which networks would and wouldn't work with the phone. There was also information regarding how to change settings to work with certain networks and instructions to change the language (if necessary).
A USB C cord was included. There is no wall charger. In my case, I ordered in an adapter kit to connect my Galaxy S5 USB wall adapter to the USB C cord and it has worked fine.
Everything went smoothly when setting up the phone with my Samsung account and basic Verizon account. Updates have gone smoothly as well.
After almost 5 months, the phone has been working perfectly and seems to have a stronger signal around my home than my S5.
The Samsung music player and equalizer, work perfectly with my music and a pair of JBL Charge 3 bluetooth speakers. However, the phone does not come with the music app installed. You have to download it, but it is free. The Dolby Atmos feature also added some noticeable depth to the old Charge 3's when I use them.
I thought the S5 camera was great, but the S23 blows it away and has more features than I will ever use.
The reason for 4 stars is that I don't use most of the phone features nor do I currently have any downloaded apps. So, I can't accurately say how good the battery is for the average user.
Nor can I say how the facial recognition or fingerprint reader, speed, streaming, gaming etc etc is, as I don't use it.
I did have one issue as the phone would randomly change time and location every now and then.
I did a little research online and found that the automatic date and time on global phones can cause that problem, even if you select the option to let the carrier supply the date and time. So, I turned off the automatic date and time, set the region myself and the phone has been fine ever since.
From reviews I've read recently, I would have chosen this S23 over a Galaxy S24. To me, the only advantage would have been the extended updates if they are offered, which would not be worth the difference in cost.
If you are considering this phone vs a new one, do some research and find the phone and price that work for you.
I have no regrets on this purchase through this seller on Amazon and have had the phone for almost 5 months with no issues.
One thing I did learn is that this phone is has a South American CSC. When you go to settings/about phone it has a TPA code which is Panama. As mentioned above this hasn't affected the phone performance or updates as it recently updated to One UI 6.1
If you purchase an S23, you may want to look at a Supcase for it. I had one on my S5 and it lasted almost as long as the phone did. Because of this, I purchased a Unicorn Beetle for this phone. Although it does not have a screen or camera lens protector, it already paid for itself by saving this phone from a 5 foot drop on a concrete floor, two weeks after I got it. The phone bounced twice on the concrete and suffered no damage or scratches.
When I opened the phone to replace the battery, I discovered, the motherboard was broken. Apparently the frame had been holding it together and it promptly fell apart when separated.
Basically I use a phone for talk, text, photos and as music storage for blue tooth speakers. Which is why the phone and battery lasted as long as they did.
After saving some money and doing research, I decided to make this purchase due to the price, my experience with Samsung and my needs. There also wasn't much of a price difference between the 22 and 23. So, to me the 23 seemed to be a better choice. I also had no reason to consider the Plus or Ultra.
Obviously, upgrading from an S5 to an S23 was a major upgrade for me and a little overwhelming. 4 months later I'm still trying to figure some things out.
As to the seller: The phone arrived quickly and was new in the original packaging. There were cards enclosed advising which networks would and wouldn't work with the phone. There was also information regarding how to change settings to work with certain networks and instructions to change the language (if necessary).
A USB C cord was included. There is no wall charger. In my case, I ordered in an adapter kit to connect my Galaxy S5 USB wall adapter to the USB C cord and it has worked fine.
Everything went smoothly when setting up the phone with my Samsung account and basic Verizon account. Updates have gone smoothly as well.
After almost 5 months, the phone has been working perfectly and seems to have a stronger signal around my home than my S5.
The Samsung music player and equalizer, work perfectly with my music and a pair of JBL Charge 3 bluetooth speakers. However, the phone does not come with the music app installed. You have to download it, but it is free. The Dolby Atmos feature also added some noticeable depth to the old Charge 3's when I use them.
I thought the S5 camera was great, but the S23 blows it away and has more features than I will ever use.
The reason for 4 stars is that I don't use most of the phone features nor do I currently have any downloaded apps. So, I can't accurately say how good the battery is for the average user.
Nor can I say how the facial recognition or fingerprint reader, speed, streaming, gaming etc etc is, as I don't use it.
I did have one issue as the phone would randomly change time and location every now and then.
I did a little research online and found that the automatic date and time on global phones can cause that problem, even if you select the option to let the carrier supply the date and time. So, I turned off the automatic date and time, set the region myself and the phone has been fine ever since.
From reviews I've read recently, I would have chosen this S23 over a Galaxy S24. To me, the only advantage would have been the extended updates if they are offered, which would not be worth the difference in cost.
If you are considering this phone vs a new one, do some research and find the phone and price that work for you.
I have no regrets on this purchase through this seller on Amazon and have had the phone for almost 5 months with no issues.
One thing I did learn is that this phone is has a South American CSC. When you go to settings/about phone it has a TPA code which is Panama. As mentioned above this hasn't affected the phone performance or updates as it recently updated to One UI 6.1
If you purchase an S23, you may want to look at a Supcase for it. I had one on my S5 and it lasted almost as long as the phone did. Because of this, I purchased a Unicorn Beetle for this phone. Although it does not have a screen or camera lens protector, it already paid for itself by saving this phone from a 5 foot drop on a concrete floor, two weeks after I got it. The phone bounced twice on the concrete and suffered no damage or scratches.
