News

Samsung Galaxy S23 Series: Price, availability in the Philippines

Switching to Samsung?

Published

February 2, 2023

Rodneil Quiteles

The Samsung Galaxy S23, Galaxy S23+, and Galaxy S23 Ultra have just launched and are officially landing in the Philippines. Here’s how much it’ll set you back if you decide to grab the latest Galaxy.

Price and availability

The Galaxy S23 series is available in four colors: Phantom Black, Cream, Green and Lavender. Pricing are as follows:

Samsung Galaxy S23:

128GB — PhP 53,990
256GB — PhP 57,990

Galaxy S23+:

256GB — PhP 68,990
512GB — PhP 76,990

Galaxy S23 Ultra:

256GB — PhP 81,990
512GB — PhP 89,990
1TB — PhP 103,990 (samsung.com exclusive)

Pre-order details

Pre-order period is February 2 to 23, 2023. Those who pre-order any of the three smartphones can get discounts of up to PhP 76,000. This includes a FREE memory upgrade worth PhP 8,000. They will instantly get the higher memory variant for the price of the lower variant within the same model lineup.

Those who will trade-in their old devices can also enjoy savings of up to PhP 13,000 on top of their old phone’s residual value. In addition, they will get an e-voucher worth up to PhP 5,000, a 50% discount on the Galaxy Buds2 Pro, and 30% off on the Galaxy Watch5 Series. On top of this, they will also get a FREE 1-year Samsung Care+ coverage worth PhP 5,999, and earn double Samsung Rewards points.

As an exclusive samsung.com offer, the Galaxy S23 Ultra 1TB will be offered as part of a limited-edition Samsung Galaxy VIP bundle (PhP 119,378) with total savings of PhP 38,000.

The VIP bundle includes :

1TB Galaxy S23 Ultra
Galaxy Watch5 Pro 46mm
Galaxy Buds 2 Pro
Super Fast Wireless Duo Charger
Galaxy S23 Ultra Leather Cover
1-year Samsung Care+ coverage

The Galaxy S23 series is also available for pre-order through Samsung Experience Stores, Authorized Samsung Stores, Lazada, Shopee, Abenson.com and MemoXpress Online. Customers who pre-order through these channels from February 2 to 23, 2023 will enjoy as much as PhP 65,000 worth of discounts. This also includes the FREE Memory Upgrade, additional savings for traded-in devices, 50% off on the Galaxy Buds2 Pro, and 30% off on the Galaxy Watch5 Series.

Focused refinement

Samsung honed in a few improvements for this series. Specifically, they targeted “Nightography,” Gaming, Customization, and Sustainability.

The Galaxy S23 sports the first 200MP sensor on a Samsung smartphone. Working in tandem with their AI, the phone promises to produce images that appear well lit even in environments with poor lighting conditions. And this also applies to video.

For gaming, the entire Galaxy S23 series is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. That’s the best one for Android smartphones right now. It’s also accompanied by improved cooling for overall better gameplay.

Samsung is approaching customization on both hardware and software fronts. They have plenty of accessories that you can style in your own way for your Galaxy device. Meanwhile, ONE UI 5.1 is introducing perhaps the most robust software customization that Samsung has had yet. All these to make your smartphone Your Galaxy.

For sustainability, Samsung has made it a point to use recycled materials not only on the packaging, but also on the actual smartphones. The Galaxy S23 Ultra actually has 12 components made with recycled materials. That’s double of what the Galaxy S22 Ultra had.

Samsung Galaxy S23 Series Specs

Galaxy S23 Ultra

Display — 6.8-inch QHD+ Edge, Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, Vision Booster, Enhanced Comfort
Processor — Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy
RAM and Storage — 12GB+1TB, 12GB+512GB, 12GB+256GB
Battery and Charging — 5,000mAh, Fast Wireless Charging 2.0, Wireless Powershare
OS — Android 13, ONE UI 5.1
Water Resistance — IP68
Cameras:
- 200MP f/1.7 Wide
- 12MP, f/2.2 Ultra-Wide
- 10MP, f/2.4 Telephoto, 3x optical zoom
- 10MP, f/4.9 Telephoto, 10x optical zoom
- 12MP, f/2.2 Front

Samsung Galaxy S23+

Display — 6.6-inch FHD+, Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, Vision Booster, Enhanced Comfort
Processor — Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy
RAM and Storage — 8GB+512GB, 8GB+256GB
Battery and Charging — 4,700mAh, Fast Wireless Charging 2.0, Wireless Powershare
OS — Android 13, ONE UI 5.1
Water Resistance — IP68
Cameras:
- 50MP f/1.8 Wide
- 12MP, f/2.2 Ultra-Wide
- 10MP, f/2.4 Telephoto, 3x optical zoom
- 12MP, f/2.2 Front

Galaxy S23

Display — 6.6-inch FHD+, Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate, Vision Booster, Enhanced Comfort
Processor — Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy
RAM and Storage — 8GB+256GB, 8GB+128GB
Battery and Charging — 3,900mAh, Fast Wireless Charging 2.0, Wireless Powershare
OS — Android 13, ONE UI 5.1
Water Resistance — IP68
Cameras:
- 50MP f/1.8 Wide
- 12MP, f/2.2 Ultra-Wide
- 10MP, f/2.4 Telephoto, 3x optical zoom
- 12MP, f/2.2 Front

News

Xiaomi 18 Pro series is launching globally, Xiaomi confirms

Xiaomi’s phone with two screens is finally going global.

Published

September 25, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

As you can probably read from our reviews, we were impressed with the Xiaomi 17 series. Like previous years, the Chinese brand knows how to make impressive flagships. Unfortunately, despite our raving, the world didn’t get the complete flagship experience because the Xiaomi 17 Pro and Pro Max were exclusive for Chinese users. This year, however, the Xiaomi 18 Pro and Pro Max will finally grace the entire world with their presence.

Recently, Xiaomi unveiled the Xiaomi 18 Pro duo. Normally, the launch of the Pro series doesn’t make waves outside of China because of the exclusive release. However, soon after the series’ debut, Xiaomi CMO Xu Fei officially confirmed that the duo will make a global debut sometime this year.

Now, the launch of the two smartphones should catch your eye. While the regular Xiaomi 18 series belongs to the more traditional form factors for smartphones, the two Pro models feature a smaller 2.7-inch (or a 2.9-inch) LTPO AMOLED rear screen, adding that extra bit of spice even if the phone is facing downwards. Other than that, the series comes with up to a Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 chipset, up to 16GB of RAM, and up to 1TB of storage. It also features a trio of rear cameras including a 200-megapixel main sensor, a 200-megapixel periscope lens, and a 50-megapixel ultrawide sensor. In front, it has a 50-megapixel selfie shooter. Finally, the series goes up to an 8500mAh battery.

To be clear, there is a chance that the global version won’t match these specs. Regardless, it’s surely an impressive phone when it does launch elsewhere.

Apps

Google Photos can now censor your kid’s face better

The new Redact feature can censor sensitive information.

Published

September 25, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Censoring photos is heavy work. Either you stick on random emojis or draw an indiscriminate splotch of doodles to cover sensitive information. It’s an imperfect art but an essential one to protect privacy. Today, Google Photos is getting a Redact feature which can censor sensitive bits with pixelated blocks.

An addition to the Markup tool, Redact acts like a nifty pen that can hide information that you don’t want seen. Unlike a ghastly emoji or a splotch, the censored bar mixes better with the surrounding elements. In the example that Google used, a censored license plate blends well with the car it’s attached to, making the photo look more cohesive. Besides license plates, it’s the perfect tool for covering other information like phone numbers, addresses, and the faces of your loved ones.

Google Photos is also rolling out Moods, a set of filters that give photos a nostalgic look, including a 2000s night digicam vibe that’s popular today. There are also 15 new Remix templates to add more creation options.

Both the Redact and the Moods features will roll out to Android users starting today. The new Remix templates, however, will be limited to some countries on both Android and iOS.

News

Power Mac Center SM Aura is now an Apple Premium Partner store

With a new protection plan dubbed as “1Protect” for your precious new iPhones

Published

September 23, 2026

Vincenz

Photos and graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

Power Mac Center has upgraded its SM Aura branch into an Apple Premium Partner (APP) store. The “APP” designation is the highest tier for reseller stores worldwide.

Originally opened in 2014, the redesigned store now houses its retail space, training center, and a service center in one.

The new space also puts more emphasis on learning. Free group demos will be held every Friday to Sunday. These will cover topics such as iPad creativity, or camera features, personalization, and Continuity for the latest iPhone series.

To celebrate the opening, customers can also score discounts on select Apple devices and accessories until September 27, 2026.

Deals include up to:

₱PhP 36,000 off MacBook Pros
PhP 19,500 off iPads
PhP 3000 off Apple Watches; and
PhP 11,000 off iPhone models

There are also service discounts until September 25. Plus, new iPhones purchases here are also covered with 1Protect device protection.

ICYMI, it’s a partnership between PMC and Bolttech. It’s basically a new way to protect your precious new iPhones.

Your regular one-year warranty does not cover accidental drops and water damage. Purchasing this new device protection plan (good for one year) gives you an unlimited dose of that.

Parts are guaranteed original and is an official part of AppleCare Services.

This protection program also covers one-time unwarranted exchanges (or change of mind returns) from micro scratches to color options. It will even replace your iPhone (of the same model and configuration) if it was stolen once.