Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra Review

Overview

Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra went a long way from its announcement until its official release. We have tested the device in every detail possible and we must say the wait was worth it. While not sticking to the initial specs sheet, this model arrives with several impressive features such as satellite communication, extremely fast charging - wired and wireless, a beautiful display, an impressive set of cameras, a fast chipset, a USB 3.1 Type-C port, and many other additional treats that make it a must-have if you're on the hunt of a high-quality ruggedized smartphone. Let's begin our in-depth Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra review with an overview of the specifications and unboxing.

Specifications

Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra is built around a 6.78-inch IPS display with an FHD+ resolution of 1080 x 2460 pixels, a 120Hz refresh rate, a peak brightness of 620 nits, and a Corning Gorilla Glass Victus for protection. It has a punch hole for the 50MP SK Hynix Hi-5022Q selfie camera which arrives with a 5-element lens, an f/2.25 aperture, and an 80.4° FoV. The rear camera department comprises four shooters. The main one uses a 50MP Samsung S5KGN1 sensor and a 7-element lens with an f/1.65 aperture and an 84.7° FoV. The second camera is an 8MP SK Hynix Hi-847 telephoto unit with 3.2x optical zoom that works together with the main camera to deliver quality zoom-in. The third camera is the 50MP SK Hynix Hi-5022Q unit with macro shooting capabilities, an f/2.2 aperture, and a 117.3° FoV. Finally, there's the 64MP OmniVision OV64B1B Night Vision camera with an f/1.79 aperture and dual IR lights. All four shooters support autofocus, EIS, and 4K video recording at 30 fps.

The processing power is based on the 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 8020 (MT6891) chipset. It has a 2.6GHz octa-core CPU and a nona-core Mali-G77 GPU. There are 12GB of quad-channel LPDDR4X RAM on board paired with 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage that can be further expanded with up to 2TB via a microSD card. The RAM can be virtually expanded with up to 12GB. Power is supplied by a 5280 mAh battery supporting 120W fast charging, 50W wireless charging, and reverse wireless charging. The smartphone is equipped with a triple tray providing two slots for Nano SIM cards and a third slot for a microSD card. It supports the following network bands on both SIM cards: 2G GSM (B2, 3, 5, 8), 2.5G (BC0, BC1, BC10), 3G WCDMA (B1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 19), 4G FDD-LTE (B1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28A, 28B, 66, 71), 4G TDD-LTE (B34, 38, 39, 40, 41), and 5G (n1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20, 25, 28, 38, 40, 41, 66, 71, 77, 78, 79). The rest of the connectivity options include NFC, Bluetooth 5.1, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax), Wi-Fi Direct, Wi-Fi Hotspot, and Cast Display. The device also has a built-in antenna that does not require headphones to listen to the radio. Furthermore, the Armor 23 Ultra has an IR blaster that turns it into a convenient remote control, a USB Type-C 3.1 port, and a side-mounted fingerprint sensor. The smartphone runs on Android 13 and works with GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS, NavIC, and Beidou.

Complete Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra specifications.

What's in the box

Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra arrives in the signature box for the Armor series - in a bright yellow color with industrial-style accents. The model and brand names are imprinted on the lid with the respective ingress ratings. Several accessories accompany the Armor 23 Ultra and here's what's in the box:

• Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra
• 20V/6A (120W) charger (EU plug)
• Thick, yellow USB Type-C cable
• Lanyard
• SIM tray pick
• Screen protector
• Paperwork

Additional Ulefone Armor 23 Ultra accessories

We received the Armor 23 Ultra with two of the accessories from the Ulefone Armor accessories ecosystem. The first is the Armor Case. Manufactured from a rigid and impact-resistant material, it provides additional protection against drops, shock, and scratches. The case has a 180-degree rotatable clip allowing you to attach the device to your belt as well as a secure carabiner for added functionality. The second accessory is the Ulefone WCS01 - a 50W wireless charging stand. It has a twin coil design and arrives with 3D vertical air cooling. The stand can be used with the Armor Case on and has a smart safety system for protecting the battery and device. We have made a battery charging test with the stand as well as an infrared thermal image during the test. Please refer to the Battery section of this review.