Galaxy S22 price cut makes it the S22 FE we never got
Last update: February 1, 2023 at 20:48 UTC+01:00
Samsung didn’t unveil a new Fan Edition smartphone alongside the Galaxy S23 lineup at Galaxy Unpacked, but it did make a surprise announcement regarding last year’s Galaxy S22 base model. The 2022 flagship received a flat $100 discount, and in a roundabout way, that makes it the S22 FE we never received.
Samsung usually stops selling previous generation flagships once a new series is released, and indeed, you can no longer buy the Galaxy S22 Ultra in the US. As of this writing, the S22 Ultra page is redirecting to the Galaxy S23 Ultra.
However, the company will continue to sell the base Galaxy S22, and at its S23 launch event in San Francisco, Samsung announced a new price of $699 for the 2022 flagship phone. The Galaxy S22+ is still available at the original price. of $999.
The Galaxy S22 almost looks like the new Fan Edition smartphone
Samsung released the Galaxy S22 flagship last year for $799 and the Galaxy S21 FE for $699. So while the company hasn’t revealed a new Galaxy S22 FE phone for 2023, the $100 flat price cut certainly makes up for that.
We don’t know how long the Galaxy S22 will be in stock, but given that Samsung announced the $100 price drop on stage at Unpacked, the S22 is likely here to stay for a while.
Filling the $699 price segment with the Galaxy S22 may be an even better solution than releasing a new Fan Edition phone. The Galaxy S22 is a full-fledged flagship with premium firmware support, and it would have been hard for a Fan Edition smartphone to offer better features for the price and fill its shoes.
By dropping the $699 Galaxy S22, Samsung has essentially turned it into a Fan Edition smartphone – the one we never got and FE enthusiasts deserve. Assuming this price drop occurs in all markets where Samsung has released the S22 FE.
The Galaxy S22 runs on the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 platform (in the US). It has 8GB of RAM and 128GB/256GB of storage, a 6.1-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with 120Hz refresh rate, and much better build quality than all the others. Fan Edition smartphones released to date.
If you want to spend a little more and get the new Galaxy S23, Samsung is offering it for pre-order for $799.
Samsung Galaxy S22