Those looking for a Samsung flagship at a relatively affordable price have reason to cheer. Samsung has officially launched the Galaxy S23 FE in India. Like its predecessors, the Galaxy S23 FE (‘FE’ stands for ‘Fan Edition’) brings a number of features of the flagship Galaxy S23 released earlier this year at a much lower price.
The Galaxy S23 FE comes with a brilliant 6.4-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2x display with FHD+ resolution and with 120 Hz adaptive refresh rate. The triple camera set up on its back is flagship level with a 50-megapixel main sensor with OIS, a 12-megapixel ultrawide and an 8-megapixel telephoto sensor with OIS that serves up 3x optical zoom. It also gets the low light Nightography feature found on other Samsung flagships.
Some might feel disappointed at the fact that the phone is powered by an Exynos 2200 processor rather than a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 series, but by all accounts, this one is a good performer as well and comes with 8 GB of RAM and storage variants of 128 GB and 256 GB. It has IP68 dust and water resistance and runs on Samsung’s One UI interface on Android 13, with the assurance of four generations of OS upgrades and five years of security updates. The 4,500mAh battery is a little on the smaller side, though, and its 25W charging speed is not really up to speed (pun intended) in a segment where devices charge three to four times as fast. And there’s no charger in the box, either – something that will delight Mother Nature but might annoy consumers.
All of this comes at a price of Rs 59,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant (the 8GB+256GB variant is priced at Rs 64,999), making the Galaxy S23 FE significantly more affordable than the S23, which starts at Rs 74,999.
But all its flagship features do not exempt the Galaxy S23 FE from some very stiff competition. The following five phones have what it takes to challenge Samsung’s latest fan-friendly flagship and could be seen as alternatives by many:
iPhone 14: Not So Old, Still Very Gold… And More Affordable
Price: Rs 61,999
There are new iPhones in the market, which means that older iPhones have got a whole lot cheaper. The iPhone that the Galaxy 23 FE will be looking most warily at will be the iPhone 14, which is priced very close to it and remains a formidable performer. It might not have the pastel shades, dynamic island and the 48-megapixel main sensor of the iPhone 15, but the iPhone 14 still cuts a very smart figure with its straight sides. The A15 Bionic powering it can handle every high-end game out there and the 6.1-inch Super Retina OLED display is terrific for viewing content, even though it only has a regular refresh rate of 60Hz.
The dual 12-megapixel cameras are very good for stills and awesome for video, and you also get wireless charging, great sound, and assured software updates — all of them in one of the most classy and compact frames in the market, with IP68 dust and water resistance. A formidable challenger to every phone in its segment. Some consider it a threat even to the new iPhone 15.
OnePlus 11: The Never-Settling Unsettler 
Price: Rs 56,999
The OnePlus 11 is one of the best value-for-money premium flagships around. It comes with a sleek frame with a brilliant 6.7-inch quad HD AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate in front and a classy glass back. It runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor, which is one of the most powerful chips around and packs in a lot of RAM and storage, going all the way up to 16 GB/ 256 GB. The triple camera arrangement on the back comes in collaboration with the legendary Hasselblad and is spearheaded by an excellent 50-megapixel sensor and also features a 32-megapixel telephoto and a 48-megapixel ultrawide.
The phone has a 5,000mAh battery that gets charged in under half an hour, courtesy of a 100W charger that comes in the box. Round this off with the clean OxygenOS that is a OnePlus trademark and you have a package designed to give the Galaxy S23 FE a real headache.
Samsung Galaxy S22: The Senior Flagship
Price: Rs 62,999
Want a ‘proper’ Samsung Galaxy flagship, rather than an FE avatar? Well, the Samsung Galaxy S22 is still around and kicking. Its compact frame looks sleek and will fit most palms easily.
The brilliant 6.1-inch FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2x display remains outstanding, and the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip powering it remains a very good performer even today. Photography is handled by a troika of very good cameras — a 50-megapixel main sensor with OIS, a 10-megapixel telephoto with 3x optical zoom and OIS and a 12-megapixel ultrawide. The phone comes with very good speakers, support for 15W wireless charging, and even reverse charging. An IP68 rating keeps water and dust at bay and Samsung’s feature-rich OneUI runs smoothly on it, with assured updates (it has already been updated to Android 13 and is expected to get Android 14 shortly).
The only fly in this super phone ointment is a small-ish 3,700mAh battery and a charging speed of 25W, with no charger in the box. Still, this remains a true flagship with no suffixes.
Nothing Phone (2): Definitely More Than Nothing
Price: Rs 54,999
The Nothing Phone (2) starts at Rs 44,999 but you could get a 12GB+512GB variant of it for a price that is still lower than that of the Galaxy S23 FE. The Phone (2) remains perhaps the most ‘different’ phone in the market today, thanks to that transparent-ish back with LEDs that light up in sync with different actions. It also packs in some decent flagship horsepower, thanks to the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip under that hood.
The dual 50-megapixel cameras on the back did not get off to the best start but have improved with software updates. Speaking of which, the Phone (2) comes with the cleanest version of Android on this side of the Pixel range and also has a super update record. You also get a very good 6.7-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 4,700mAh battery that easily sees off a day of normal use.
There is support for 45W wired charging, 15W wireless charging and even reverse wireless charging. There is no charger in the box, though.
Google Pixel 7: Superb At That Price
Price: Rs 44,999
The Pixel 7 has had a rather interesting story in India. When it was launched at Rs 59,999 last year, it was considered to be a little overpriced. By the middle of 2023, it was down to Rs 45,000, but then got a price boost when the Pixel 7a was launched at around the same price. At the time of writing, it was back to being Rs 40,000 – Rs 45,000, and at that price, it is very very good value for money for anyone looking for a budget flagship. The Tensor G2 chip gives the Pixel 7 almost all of the smart features that you get in the Pixel 7 Pro and its 50-megapixel main camera with OIS is capable of great snaps along with the 12-megapixel ultrawide, in the best Pixel tradition.
The 6.3-inch FHD+ OLED display has a refresh rate of only 90 Hz and the 4,355mAh battery charges at 20W (with no charger in the box), but that iconic camera bar design and premium build (glass front and back, IP68 dust and water resistance), as well as clean Android will attract many users, especially after its massive price cut. A terrific deal for those pursuing photography and pure Android.