Has anyone switched to the S23 Ultra?

[The Cockney Rebel]

I'm getting a bit bored of Apple, and am thinking of trying something new.

I believe that Android is much more customisable than iOS, and that interests me.

How well will an S23 integrate with my Macs? I'm pretty sure it won't work with my AirPods Pro, Apple Watch or Apple TV?

So, have any of you made the switch? If so, what was your experience?

 

[Phogro]

I can't speak from experience, but with how heavily integrated into Apple you appear to be, I imagine you'll be trading off a lot of "ecosystem benefits" for a quick hit of "newness".

AirPods will work as any other Bluetooth headphones. You lose some of the Apple stuff, but they're not immediately dead when switching. The watch is gone it needs an iPhone. As to your Mac, many of the issues can be solved with cross-platform apps, but if you're heavily into any of Apple's apps like Reminders, Notes, or Messages, you're SOL.

 

[HouseLannister]

Check the ever-growing thread: S23 Ultra
Tons of switchers there, myself included.

 

[Ludatyk]

If you are interested in the S23U… go for it!

We can offer you advice on what steps to take while using it, but at the end of the day… it’s your experience that will count. AirPods will work with the S23U since its bluetooth as @Phogro mentioned, but if I were you best to go with Galaxy Buds or Pixel Buds instead. And you’ll have to switch the Apple Watch for a Pixel Watch or Galaxy Watch if you would like to keep a smartwatch on the wrist.

Practically, you’ll be trading in some of your Apple ecosystem for an Android one because you can still use the Apple TV and MacBook as standalone devices.

 

[dumastudetto]

I'm getting a bit bored of Apple, and am thinking of trying something new.

I believe that Android is much more customisable than iOS, and that interests me.

How well will an S23 integrate with my Macs? Im pretty sure it won't work with my AirPods Pro, Apple Watch or Apple TV?

So, have any of you made the switch? If so, what was your experience?

No Apple Watch.
No Messages.
No Safari
No Handoff or Continuity.
No Apple Pay.
No Apple TV+.
No Apple Passwords.
No Calls on your Mac.
No Apple Notes.
No Apple Maps.
No Apple Reminders.
No Apple Photos.
No Apple Fitness.
No Apple Numbers, Pages, Keynote.
No iCloud Drive.
No syncing data with any apps piggybacking on iCloud Drive storage.

You can use your AirPods Pro over bluetooth on Android.
You can use Apple Music on Android.

Your phone will send a heck of a lot of data to Google and Samsung, but most people don't care about that.

The way macOS and all your other Apple devices play nicely together is unrivalled by anyone else. That seamless cross-device experience will be the thing you miss the most.

If you're heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, I think it's unlikely the exciting newness of a Galaxy S23 Ultra will remain appealing for long. If your iPhone is your main device however, transitioning to Samsung and Android could work out for you.

 

[Expos of 1969]

No Apple Watch. No problem
No Messages. No problem
No Safari. Great
No Handoff or Continuity. No problem
No Apple Pay. No problem
No Apple TV+. Perfect
No Apple Passwords. No problem
No Calls on your Mac. No problem
No Apple Notes. No problem
No Apple Maps. Perfect
No Apple Reminders. Who cares
No Apple Photos. No problem
No Apple Fitness. Perfect
No Apple Numbers, Pages, Keynote. No problem
No iCloud Drive. No problem
No syncing data with any apps piggybacking on iCloud Drive storage. No problem

 

[dumastudetto]

No Apple Watch. No problem
No Messages. No problem
No Safari. Great
No Handoff or Continuity. No problem
No Apple Pay. No problem
No Apple TV+. Perfect
No Apple Passwords. No problem
No Calls on your Mac. No problem
No Apple Notes. No problem
No Apple Maps. Perfect
No Apple Reminders. Who cares
No Apple Photos. No problem
No Apple Fitness. Perfect
No Apple Numbers, Pages, Keynote. No problem
No iCloud Drive. No problem
No syncing data with any apps piggybacking on iCloud Drive storage. No problem

That's great for you.

I was responding to the possible needs of the OP who emphasised things like Apple TV and Apple Watch and macOS integration.

 

[Vref]

No Apple Watch.
No Messages.
No Safari
No Handoff or Continuity.
No Apple Pay.
No Apple TV+.
No Apple Passwords.
No Calls on your Mac.
No Apple Notes.
No Apple Maps.
No Apple Reminders.
No Apple Photos.
No Apple Fitness.
No Apple Numbers, Pages, Keynote.
No iCloud Drive.
No syncing data with any apps piggybacking on iCloud Drive storage.

You can use your AirPods Pro over bluetooth on Android.
You can use Apple Music on Android.

Your phone will send a heck of a lot of data to Google and Samsung, but most people don't care about that.

The way macOS and all your other Apple devices play nicely together is unrivalled by anyone else. That seamless cross-device experience will be the thing you miss the most.

If you're heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, I think it's unlikely the exciting newness of a Galaxy S23 Ultra will remain appealing for long. If your iPhone is your main device however, transitioning to Samsung and Android could work out for you.

What he said

Plus the safety issues mentioned with where it sends data, noooope

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

I'm getting a bit bored of Apple, and am thinking of trying something new.

I believe that Android is much more customisable than iOS, and that interests me.

How well will an S23 integrate with my Macs? Im pretty sure it won't work with my AirPods Pro, Apple Watch or Apple TV?

So, have any of you made the switch? If so, what was your experience?

A great alternate to iCloud is OneDrive. It's better at auto syncing photos/videos than iCloud. And you can also access it on your Mac and iPad.

For Visual VoiceMail, Nothing beats Google Voice. I use it on both platforms. It also transcribes to text, and you can have it automatically emailed to you. It's completely free.

AirPods Pro works on Android just fine, but you'll have to manually switch between noise cancel and transparent modes on the AirPods itself. And I'm just guessing, but I doubt you'll have the auto switch feature between any Apple device and Android.

Apple TV doesn't have integration with Android. Which I personally don't care for, cause I always use the physical remote. And I wish Apple would create a toggle NOT to show the Apple TV widget on the lock screen and dynamic island.

I can go on and on ..... basically you'll have to build your own ecosystem with Android. Android is more like a modular ecosystem.

 

[Vref]

A great alternate to iCloud is OneDrive. It's better at auto syncing photos/videos than iCloud. And you can also access it on your Mac and iPad.

For Visual VoiceMail, Nothing beats Google Voice. I use it on both platforms. It also transcribes to text, and you can have it automatically emailed to you. It's completely free.

AirPods Pro works on Android just fine, but you'll have to manually switch between noise cancel and transparent modes on the AirPods itself. And I'm just guessing, but I doubt you'll have the auto switch feature between any Apple device and Android.

Apple TV doesn't have integration with Android. Which I personally don't care for, cause I always use the physical remote. And I wish Apple would create a toggle NOT to show the Apple TV widget on the lock screen and dynamic island.

I can go on and on ..... basically you'll have to build your own ecosystem with Android. Android is more like a modular ecosystem.

Not a fan of keeping stuff on someone else’s computer, but do those servers offer the same encryption as advanced data protection in iCloud?


I used google fi on my iPhone for a while, I had google hangouts for messaging non iPhones and iMessages still worked, one of the things I liked was it was easy to make the phone go full data and google fi was impossible to beat for extended international operations, sadly it’s google so good chance they are creeping your data, also compared to firstnet it was expensive and slow and obviously lacked preemption

That said, hangouts was pretty slick

 

[Technerd108]

I have several Apple devices. I had an iPhone Pro Max 13 and now I am using a s23 ultra as my main phone.

Since you already know what you may have to work around I will tell you my opinion on the switch.

Weight. The s23 ultra is larger but weighs less than the iPhone 13 Pro Max and by extension the 14pm. Yet even though the screen is just slightly larger it feels a lot bigger. The s23u has a very rectangular design and screen so you are able to use all available space on the screen. It really makes a big difference to me.

With the Pro Max I felt like I had a big and heavy device but because of the aspect ratio and rounded corners it doesn't feel as immersive as the s23u and for streaming the s23u is like a small Tablet. I never used to watch content on my iphone pro max because it was too small and I couldn't see a lot of the content clearly.

The iPhone 13 Pro Max before iOS 16 had the best battery life of any phone and when I got rid of it, it was barely better than my Pixel 7 Pro. The s23 ultra has the same battery longevity that my iPhone 13 Pro Max had at one time.

I tend to like Android more than iOS since 16 came out. Android 13 is just more feature rich, more fun to theme and more stable. With the s23u there are tons of customization to the software and user interface that you can make. I am a big Godzilla fan and I have an animated GIF on the AOD and lock screen which is just a lot of fun. The color theming matched to your wallpaper is also great.

There is the performance which seems lightning fast and for Samsung that is saying something. The cooling on this phone is really good and it never heats up no matter how hard I use it and I use it very intensely, playing 3d games, web browsing intensive sights, maps, texting, videos, etc. OneUI5 is very smooth.

There is Bixby text to speech that will answer and screen calls much like Pixel phones which is really nice to have.

The speakers on this phone get really loud, have really good 3d stereo sound and even have some bass.

The camera system is great. Having a 10x optical zoom is really nice. The pictures I get look good and are in focus. There are a bunch of photo settings and editing that you can do.

The screen again is just so nice.

The spen is great to have and besides using it to draw or sign documents you can use it as a remote shutter to take photos on a tripod for family group pictures.

The overall design is really easy to grip and hold and doesn't get tiring like my iPhone 13 Pro Max did.

Overall it is one of the best phones I have ever had. The second best would probably be the iPhone 13 Pro Max.

 

[LIVEFRMNYC]

Not a fan of keeping stuff on someone else’s computer, but do those servers offer the same encryption as advanced data protection in iCloud?


I used google fi on my iPhone for a while, I had google hangouts for messaging non iPhones and iMessages still worked, one of the things I liked was it was easy to make the phone go full data and google fi was impossible to beat for extended international operations, sadly it’s google so good chance they are creeping your data, also compared to firstnet it was expensive and slow and obviously lacked preemption

That said, hangouts was pretty slick

OneDrive is pretty secure. I'm not sure about the comparisons to others.

 

[jamezr]

No Apple Watch.
No Messages.
No Safari
No Handoff or Continuity.
No Apple Pay.
No Apple TV+.
No Apple Passwords.
No Calls on your Mac.
No Apple Notes.
No Apple Maps.
No Apple Reminders.
No Apple Photos.
No Apple Fitness.
No Apple Numbers, Pages, Keynote.
No iCloud Drive.
No syncing data with any apps piggybacking on iCloud Drive storage.

You can use your AirPods Pro over bluetooth on Android.
You can use Apple Music on Android.

Your phone will send a heck of a lot of data to Google and Samsung, but most people don't care about that.

The way macOS and all your other Apple devices play nicely together is unrivalled by anyone else. That seamless cross-device experience will be the thing you miss the most.

If you're heavily invested in the Apple ecosystem, I think it's unlikely the exciting newness of a Galaxy S23 Ultra will remain appealing for long. If your iPhone is your main device however, transitioning to Samsung and Android could work out for you.

Those are some great products for sure. But some of those are easily replaced with other better options.
The Handoff and continuity are big ones if they are used. I have a house full of Apple products and don’t use those things.
I have an iPhone 14 PM, IPP 12.9, 27 iMac, 16 MBP, IP Mini and have never used handoff or continuity.
I also have a Galazy S23 Ultra and Pixel 7 Pro. But most family and friends use iPhones. Surprisingly the one feature I miss the most when using my Android phones is AirDrop. Sharing photos from Android to iPhone users is not friendly.

 

[daveathall]

Have a look at my devices in my sig below. I also had a iPhone 14 pro since they were released, I had it for two weeks when I got the S23 Ultra. I sold the iPhone and the two Apple Watches I had (Series 8 and Ultra). The only problem you will have is that it doesn't work with Apple Watch, I haven't had a Samsung watch but have had a Garmin Fenix 7, I gave it to my daughter when I got my Apple Watches (That, in my opinion was a big mistake). I will get a Garmin Epix 2 which is basically the same as the Fenix with a much better screen. That scratches that itch.

Most other things I use on my Mac Book Air and iPads I use Google, Calendar, G Mail etc, so that all works seamlessly. I use WhatsApp which works perfectly, iMessage, blue bubbles or green doesn't bother me in the least, the rest of my family have iPhone and we can still communicate on messages, What's app etc (who would have thought that).

If I am honest, the only app that I find that doesn't work as well with the S23 as with the iPhone is one password but that is still very easy to use.

I find that the S23 Ultra is better than the iPhone in every way (Not withstanding1 password).

Look, here's the thing, I am 65 years old, have the patience of a gnat, am not technically gifted and do not like change. Give the S23 Ultra at least a week, two's better and don't think that it does things worse than the iPhone, it doesn't, it just does them different. I had a iPhone 14 pro and a 13 pro max before it so it was a change. There's even a proper back button on the S23 that stays in the same place, trust me, how good is that. I shake my head when I read all the responses from the technically gifted people who can't use an Android with Apple laptops and iPads, they should be ashamed that they can't figure it out, they will use words such as Bloat and lag because they heard them 5 or 10 years ago, it just shows they haven't ever used a flagship Samsung because those words just are not relevant.

I don't use my iPads any more, this phone is that good and so much more fun to use.

 

[Vref]

Have a look at my devices in my sig below. I also had a iPhone 14 pro since they were released, I had it for two weeks when I got the S23 Ultra. I sold the iPhone and the two Apple Watches I had (Series 8 and Ultra). The only problem you will have is that it doesn't work with Apple Watch, I haven't had a Samsung watch but have had a Garmin Fenix 7, I gave it to my daughter when I got my Apple Watches (That, in my opinion was a big mistake). I will get a Garmin Epix 2 which is basically the same as the Fenix with a much better screen. That scratches that itch.

Most other things I use on my Mac Book Air and iPads I use Google, Calendar, G Mail etc, so that all works seamlessly. I use WhatsApp which works perfectly, iMessage, blue bubbles or green doesn't bother me in the least, the rest of my family have iPhone and we can still communicate on messages, What's app etc (who would have thought that).

If I am honest, the only app that I find that doesn't work as well with the S23 as with the iPhone is one password but that is still very easy to use.

I find that the S23 Ultra is better than the iPhone in every way (Not withstanding1 password).

Look, here's the thing, I am 65 years old, have the patience of a gnat, am not technically gifted and do not like change. Give the S23 Ultra at least a week, two's better and don't think that it does things worse than the iPhone, it doesn't, it just does them different. I had a iPhone 14 pro and a 13 pro max before it so it was a change. There's even a proper back button on the S23 that stays in the same place, trust me, how good is that. I shake my head when I read all the responses from the technically gifted people who can't use an Android with Apple laptops and iPads, they should be ashamed that they can't figure it out, they will use words such as Bloat and lag because they heard them 5 or 10 years ago, it just shows they haven't ever used a flagship Samsung because those words just are not relevant.

I don't use my iPads any more, this phone is that good and so much more fun to use.

That’s a lot of faith in bad actors

 

[Expos of 1969]

...Sharing photos from Android to iPhone users is not friendly.

I find using WhatsApp for this purpose to be friendly and easy.

 

[Matsamoto]

A great alternate to iCloud is OneDrive. It's better at auto syncing photos/videos than iCloud. And you can also access it on your Mac and iPad.

I have to disagree here🙂
I use to have OneDrive 1TB on my Win 10 and also iCloud for Windows.
Beside an iPhone and iPad (see below for more info)
Maybe I did something wrong but I couldn’t get OneDrive and iCloud to sync.
I got pictures on iCloud that wasn’t on OneDrive, and vice versa.
Tried to read about it but nothing helped.

So now I don’t have any of the two online backup, just a lots of hdd and ssd 🙂

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

A big thank you to everyone for your advice.

It’s much appreciated 👍.

 

[The Cockney Rebel]

Have a look at my devices in my sig below. I also had a iPhone 14 pro since they were released, I had it for two weeks when I got the S23 Ultra. I sold the iPhone and the two Apple Watches I had (Series 8 and Ultra). The only problem you will have is that it doesn't work with Apple Watch, I haven't had a Samsung watch but have had a Garmin Fenix 7, I gave it to my daughter when I got my Apple Watches (That, in my opinion was a big mistake). I will get a Garmin Epix 2 which is basically the same as the Fenix with a much better screen. That scratches that itch.

Most other things I use on my Mac Book Air and iPads I use Google, Calendar, G Mail etc, so that all works seamlessly. I use WhatsApp which works perfectly, iMessage, blue bubbles or green doesn't bother me in the least, the rest of my family have iPhone and we can still communicate on messages, What's app etc (who would have thought that).

If I am honest, the only app that I find that doesn't work as well with the S23 as with the iPhone is one password but that is still very easy to use.

I find that the S23 Ultra is better than the iPhone in every way (Not withstanding1 password).

Look, here's the thing, I am 65 years old, have the patience of a gnat, am not technically gifted and do not like change. Give the S23 Ultra at least a week, two's better and don't think that it does things worse than the iPhone, it doesn't, it just does them different. I had a iPhone 14 pro and a 13 pro max before it so it was a change. There's even a proper back button on the S23 that stays in the same place, trust me, how good is that. I shake my head when I read all the responses from the technically gifted people who can't use an Android with Apple laptops and iPads, they should be ashamed that they can't figure it out, they will use words such as Bloat and lag because they heard them 5 or 10 years ago, it just shows they haven't ever used a flagship Samsung because those words just are not relevant.

I don't use my iPads any more, this phone is that good and so much more fun to use.

Dave, you shocked me.

I never would have thought you’d veer away from Apple.

Wishing you well.

 

[daveathall]

Dave, you shocked me.

I never would have thought you’d veer away from Apple.

Wishing you well.

I still like Apple my friend, I still have lots of their items, it's just that I find this S23 Ultra, so good and so much fun.

 

[jamezr]

I have to disagree here🙂
I use to have OneDrive 1TB on my Win 10 and also iCloud for Windows.
Beside an iPhone and iPad (see below for more info)
Maybe I did something wrong but I couldn’t get OneDrive and iCloud to sync.
I got pictures on iCloud that wasn’t on OneDrive, and vice versa.
Tried to read about it but nothing helped.

So now I don’t have any of the two online backup, just a lots of hdd and ssd 🙂

I have every picture I take on my iPhone 14PM set to sync to Google Photos as the default. I have not found a any photos that were on Apple photos that were not also on Google Photos. Check the settings make sure it is set to use cellular in G Photos.

 

[Tripps9000]

Not a big fan of android I will stay with apple because I enjoy the way my Apple devices work together!

 

[mjschabow]

Yes there are people that have switched.

 

[Matsamoto]

I have every picture I take on my iPhone 14PM set to sync to Google Photos as the default. I have not found an any photos that were on Apple photos that were not also on Google Photos. Check the settings make sure it is set to use cellular in G Photos.

Thanks for answering🙂

I have tried Google Photo also and it didn’t work either.
After 1 week (!) Google Photo had uploaded 13 GB of 50, and it didn’t even try to upload any more.
So I cancelled this so called “backup” plan.
Google Photo it’s just one of the other crappy backup plans out there.

Maybe Dropbox can actually upload every single photo of my 50 GB of images?🤔

 

[mjschabow]

Thanks for answering🙂

I have tried Google Photo also and it didn’t work either.
After 1 week (!) Google Photo had uploaded 13 GB of 50, and it didn’t even try to upload any more.
So I cancelled this so called “backup” plan.
Google Photo it’s just one of the other crappy backup plans out there.

Maybe Dropbox can actually upload every single photo of my 50 GB of images?🤔

One thing I noticed was that my iPhone wouldn't actually back up the photos on Google unless I had the app open the whole time. That must be a limitation of iOS or something because you don't have to do that on Android.