Samsung Galaxy S23 FE vs Fairphone 5
The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE scores 6.8 in our rating, and the Fairphone 5 scores 6.1. The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE leads in display, performance, camera, battery and design, while the Fairphone 5 is ahead in software support. The Samsung Galaxy S23 FE is the newer phone, announced Oct 3, 2023.
Key differences
Why choose the Samsung Galaxy S23 FE
- Bigger battery 4,500 mAh vs 4,200 mAh
- Brighter screen 1,450 nits vs 880 nits
- Higher refresh rate 120 Hz vs 90 Hz
- Better water resistance IP68 vs IP55
- Newer model Oct 3, 2023 vs Aug 30, 2023
- Lighter 209 g vs 212 g
Why choose the Fairphone 5
- Faster wired charging 30 W vs 25 W
- Bigger screen 6.46 inches vs 6.4 inches
- Longer OS update support 5 years vs 4 years
- Higher screen resolution 1224 × 2700 px vs 1080 × 2340 px
- Sharper display 459 ppi vs 403 ppi
- microSD card slot
PhoneRanked scores
Calculated from specs, relative to phones from the same year and price range. How we rate phones
Value for money marked “est.” is an estimate: that phone has no official US launch price, so it is not highlighted against the others.
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Overall
6.8
6.1
Display
7.3
6.5
Performance
5.8
4.7
Camera
8.0
6.6
Battery
4.3
4.0
Design
8.4
6.9
Software support
6.9
8.8
Value for money
4.4
6.0 est.
Display
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Size
6.4 inches
6.46 inches
Type
OLED, Dynamic AMOLED 2X
OLED
Resolution
1080 × 2340 px
1224 × 2700 px
Pixel density
403 ppi
459 ppi
Refresh rate
120 Hz
90 Hz
Adaptive refresh
✕ No
✕ No
Peak brightness
1,450 nits
880 nits
HDR
HDR10, HDR10+
—
Protection
Gorilla Glass 5
Gorilla Glass 5
Performance
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Process
4 nm
6 nm
Max CPU clock
3 GHz
2.7 GHz
GPU
Adreno 730
Adreno 643
Geekbench 6 single-core
—
1,120
Geekbench 6 multi-core
—
2,950
RAM
8 GB
6 GB / 8 GB
Storage
128 GB / 256 GB
128 GB / 256 GB
Storage type
UFS 3.1
UFS 2.2
microSD slot
✕ No
✓ Yes
Cameras
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Main camera
50 MP, f/1.8
50 MP, f/1.88, 1/1.49"
Optical stabilization
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Ultrawide
12 MP
50 MP
Telephoto
8 MP, 3× optical
—
Optical zoom
3×
—
Rear cameras
3
2
Rear video
8K@24
4K@30
Front camera
10 MP
50 MP
Front video
4K@60
4K@30
Battery and charging
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Capacity
4,500 mAh
4,200 mAh
Battery type
Li-Ion
Li-Ion
Wired charging
25 W
30 W
Reverse wireless
✓ Yes
✕ No
Charger in box
✕ No
✕ No
Design and build
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Dimensions
158 × 76.5 × 8.2 mm
161.6 × 75.83 × 9.6 mm
Thickness
8.2 mm
9.6 mm
Weight
209 g
212 g
Form factor
Bar
Bar
Frame
Aluminum
Aluminum
Back
Glass
Plastic
Water resistance
IP68
IP55
Fingerprint
Under-display optical
Side-mounted
3D face unlock
✕ No
✕ No
SIM
Nano-SIM + eSIM
Nano-SIM + eSIM
Colors
Mint, Cream, Graphite, Purple, Indigo, Tangerine
Matte Black, Sky Blue, Transparent Edition, Moss Green
Connectivity and features
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
5G
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi 6E
Wi-Fi 6E
Bluetooth
5.3
5.2
USB
USB-C 3.x
USB-C 3.x
NFC
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
3.5 mm jack
✕ No
✕ No
Stereo speakers
✓ Yes
✓ Yes
Satellite
✕ No
✕ No
IR blaster
✕ No
✕ No
Software
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
OS at launch
Android 13
Android 13
Interface
One UI 5.1
—
OS updates
4 years
5 years
Security updates
5 years
8 years
Launch and price
Spec
Samsung Galaxy S23 FEFairphone 5
Announced
Oct 3, 2023
Aug 30, 2023
Released
Oct 26, 2023
Sep 14, 2023
Status
Discontinued
Discontinued
US launch price
$599.99
—
Green marks the stronger value in a row. Specs come from official manufacturer data, cross-checked with established tech media; each phone page lists its sources. Report an error
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