Samsung's Galaxy S23 Ultra With 200MP Camera Rumored to Launch Months After iPhone 14 Pro With 48MP Camera

Samsung is in the final stage of developing a 200-megapixel camera for use on its next-generation Galaxy S23 Ultra smartphone, which is expected to be announced in early 2023, according to South Korea's ETNews.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra
By comparison, the iPhone 13 Pro has a 12-megapixel main camera, but the iPhone 14 Pro is widely rumored to feature an upgraded 48-megapixel camera.

Like the Galaxy S22 Ultra, which has a 108-megapixel main camera, the S23 Ultra would likely use pixel binning, which merges data from multiple smaller pixels on the camera's image sensor into one "super pixel." Pixel binning is beneficial because simply increasing a smartphone camera's megapixels while maintaining the same image sensor size results in smaller pixels, which generally capture less light.

On the Galaxy S22 Ultra, the main camera shoots 12-megapixel photos by default, with a toggle available in the camera app for shooting 108-megapixel photos. The default setting is ideal for most users, as high-resolution photos can have very large file sizes.

iPhone 14 Pro models would likely utilize pixel binning as well. In a research note last year, tech analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said iPhone 14 Pro models may support both 48-megapixel and 12-megapixel output as a result. Kuo also said the 48-megapixel camera would enable iPhone 14 Pro models to support 8K video recording, up from 4K currently.

Tag: Samsung

Popular Stories

streaming black friday 2025

Black Friday Streaming Deals Include Big Savings on Disney+, Hulu, Apple TV, and More

Monday November 24, 2025 8:03 am PST by
We've been focusing on deals on physical products over the past few weeks, but Black Friday is also a great time of year to purchase a streaming membership. Some of the biggest services have great discounts for new and select returning members this week, including Disney+, Hulu, Paramount+, Peacock, and more. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When you click a...
iOS 26 on Three iPhones

iOS 27 Will Reportedly Have Two Key Upgrades

Sunday November 23, 2025 8:48 am PST by
iOS 27 will reportedly have two major elements: quality improvements and new AI features. In his Power On newsletter today, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said that iOS 27 will be similar to Mac OS X Snow Leopard, in the sense that Apple is focused on improving "quality and underlying performance" over adding new features. Gurman said there is one exception to this rule, though, as he expects...
General Black Friday Deals 25 Red

Apple Black Friday Deals Available Now on AirPods, iPads, Accessories, and More

Friday November 21, 2025 8:48 am PST by
We're only a few days away from Black Friday, which will take place on Friday, November 28 in 2025. As always, this will be the best time of the year to shop for great deals, including popular Apple products like AirPods, iPad, Apple Watch, and more. In this article, the majority of the discounts will be found on Amazon. Note: MacRumors is an affiliate partner with some of these vendors. When...
iOS 26

iOS 26.2 Adds These New Features to Your iPhone

Thursday November 20, 2025 10:50 am PST by
iOS 26.2 is currently in beta testing. The upcoming update includes a handful of new features and changes on the iPhone, including a new Liquid Glass slider for the Lock Screen's clock, offline lyrics for Apple Music, and more. In a recent press release, Apple confirmed that iOS 26.2 will be released to all users in December, but it did not provide a specific release date. Keep reading...
maxresdefault

The MacRumors Show: iPhone 18 Pro Looks Like a Huge Upgrade

Friday November 21, 2025 9:10 am PST by
On this week's episode of The MacRumors Show, we talk through all of the new features and improvements expected to come to next year's iPhone 18 Pro and iPhone 18 Pro Max models. Subscribe to The MacRumors Show YouTube channel for more videos Apple's next-generation iPhones are less than ten months away and we already have a good idea about what to expect based on corroborated leaks, rumors,...
Apple Foldable Thumb

Foldable iPhone to Debut These Three Breakthrough Features

Tuesday November 25, 2025 7:09 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone is expected to launch alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models in fall 2026, and it's shaping up to include three standout features that could set it apart from the competition. The book-style foldable will reportedly feature an industry-first 24-megapixel under-display camera built into the inner display, according to a recent JP Morgan equity research report. That...
apple news banner

Apple News Loses CNN

Monday November 24, 2025 7:56 am PST by
American multinational news company CNN has abruptly pulled its content from Apple News, Semafor reports. CNN quietly removed its stories from Apple News over the weekend and there is no longer a feed from the network to subscribe to in the app. This effectively ends its distribution agreement with Apple while the two sides negotiate new terms. Discussions are apparently ongoing and CNN's...
amazon black friday

Amazon Kicks Off Black Friday Sale With Major Discounts on Apple Accessories, TVs, and More

Sunday November 23, 2025 7:12 am PST by
Black Friday deals have begun, and Amazon is one of the best places you can find steep discounts on numerous products this week. We've already collected all of the best Apple-related deals you'll find at Amazon (and other retailers) in our Apple Black Friday Deals post, so below you'll find other discounts on devices like Anker accessories, Beats headphones, video games, TVs, and more. Note:...
Apple Shopping Event 2025

Apple Announces 2025 Black Friday Event, Here's What You Can Get

Thursday November 20, 2025 6:28 am PST by
Apple's annual four-day Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping event is returning on Friday, November 28 through Monday, December 1 in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, Belgium, the Netherlands, Sweden, Thailand, and others. During the shopping event, customers can get an Apple gift card with...

Top Rated Comments

Macintosh TV Avatar
46 months ago
Not that impressive. Without expanding the size of the CCD it more MP really doesn't provide a huge advantage. But bigger numbers do sell people on marketing.
Score: 29 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Silencio Avatar
46 months ago
Oooh, megapixel wars! Now there's a throwback nobody asked for.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Jimmy_Banks Avatar
46 months ago
More megapixels in such a tiny sensor means a crazy amount of noise in anything other than super bright settings. Yes, their software will apply noise reduction, but the likely result is a lacking exposure.

There's a reason that professional full frame sensors generally range from 20-60 megapixels.

For example, these are the megapixels in top-of-the-line professional mirrorless cameras:
Sony A1: 50 mp
Nikon Z9: 46 mp
Canon R3: 24 mp

Especially important to note that those are all full 35mm sensors (35mm x 24mm) versus a phone sensor (roughly 6.2mm x 4.5mm), which is roughly equivalent to 30x more sensor area to absorb light.

These three companies know a lot more about photography than Samsung, this 200 mp sensor is a gimmick.
Score: 17 Votes (Like | Disagree)
cocky jeremy Avatar
46 months ago
PSA From a photographer: Megapixels mean next to nothing.
Score: 16 Votes (Like | Disagree)
EugW Avatar
46 months ago

Are cameras the biggest selling point for high end phones? I feel like its the majority of what’s talked about for these devices.
Yes, for me personally. It is the #1 feature I look for in new phones actually.

It's of course not really about pixel count though. It's about image quality and various other features. Absolute pixel count hasn't mattered that much for the main rear camera in quite some time. And even if there are more pixels, they would be used for pixel binning. It's not as if most people would want the full resolution. 48 MP for casual shots is ridiculously large already. Most people would be much happier with pixel-binned 12 MP or whatever.
Score: 12 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Wolf Puppy Avatar
46 months ago
Are cameras the biggest selling point for high end phones? I feel like its the majority of what’s talked about for these devices.
Score: 10 Votes (Like | Disagree)