New smartphone releases seem to be in an everchanging state when it comes to what’s included with current hardware. It wasn’t that long ago when every phone came with an SD card slot for expandable storage, but in 2023, the feature is a rarity — leaving many people doubtful that the Samsung Galaxy S23 will have an SD card slot.
With how crucial smartphones are for storing all kinds of data, whether that’s in the form of personal information in notes or apps or the hundreds of pictures in its camera roll, understanding the S23’s internal storage options and whether it can be expanded using a microSD card is crucial for prospective buyers. It’s time to answer the burning question — does the Samsung Galaxy S23 have an SD card slot?
The Galaxy S23 does not have an SD card slot
Simply put, no, the Galaxy S23 doesn’t have a slot for microSD cards. In fact, none of the models in the S23 line do — meaning you don’t get the option with the S23 Plus or S23 Ultra either.
Unfortunately, this isn’t surprising for Samsung. The last mainline Galaxy S phone with SD card slot support was the Galaxy S20. Samsung killed the feature on the S21, kept it removed from the S22, and has once again made it MIA on the S23.
Samsung did include an SD card slot on the Galaxy S21 FE, but that seems to have been a one-off rather than a sign of what’s to come.
Internal storage options for the Galaxy S23
But the story doesn’t start and stop there when it comes to the Galaxy S23’s storage options. Although you can’t expand the smartphone’s storage with an external SD card, the S23 does offer an expanded storage option for Galaxy fans. Prospective buyers can pick up the S23 with either 128GB or 256GB of internal storage, the same as the base Galaxy S22 before it. And if you get the S23 Plus or S23 Ultra, 256GB is the default storage option — double what was available on the S22 Plus and S22 Ultra.
If you get the S23 Plus or S23 Ultra, 256GB is the default storage option.
Since 256GB is a fair amount of space, expanding the storage with a microSD seems a little bit less necessary. That space can fill up fast, especially if you’re doing things like capturing a lot of 4K video footage with the S23’s solid lineup of cameras; however, as long as you’re managing it appropriately, and offloading any big files onto a computer or laptop, 256GB should be more than enough space for most users.
If you’re seeking a phone with more than 256GB of storage, you’ll need to look at the other models in the Galaxy S23 line, as the S23 Plus offers 512GB of internal storage and the S23 Ultra goes up to 1TB. While it’s all well and good to just buy a different phone if you want more space, the S23 Plus and the S23 Ultra are more expensive, so that recommendation doesn’t apply to those who are only able to afford the base S23.
At the end of the day, it’s disappointing that the Galaxy S23 doesn’t have a microSD slot. But because the feature hasn’t been included in recent Galaxy flagships, it’s hardly a surprise that it’s not a feature on Samsung’s latest hardware.
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