Software updates are designed to improve your device’s performance, though not all updates deliver on that promise.

For reference, companies go through stringent A/B testing before they release major OS updates. Not only does this allow them to check whether an update runs smoothly on a specific device, it also helps them spot and iron out potential bugs and performance issues. Samsung’s normally thorough with its approach, however, this time around, it seems to have gone easy when testing the Android 15-based One UI 7 update for a specific device series.

Despite delaying One UI 7 for several months, the Android 15-based update started landing on Samsung devices earlier this year. The 2023-released Galaxy S23 series began receiving the update in April, and while all seemed fine at first, an increasing number of user reports now suggest that the update degraded their S23’s camera performance (via TechIssuesToday)

As pointed out by several users in Samsung Community and Reddit posts dating as far back as far back as April, their Galaxy S23’s “camera quality has degraded significantly after the [One UI 7] update.” This extends to the S23 FE, and in some cases, to the top-of-the-line Galaxy S23 Ultra as well.

The camera app itself might be degraded

Most users report issues with their images appearing too washed out, which is the opposite of what images shot with Samsung phones are known for. Others report issues with images turning out blurry, with some even experiencing significant lag within the camera app itself. “Has anyone else noticed a delay when taking pics since OneUI7? It seems to take the pic right away, based on the settings, but the preview doesn’t show up for 2-3 seconds,” wrote one user, while a different one said they were encountering a delay when switching between cameras.

Although the issue has been reported by many (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9), it doesn’t seem to be universal. I own a Galaxy S23 FE, and its camera functions just like it did before One UI 7. The same goes for Android Police News Editor Dallas Thomas’ S23+.

Samsung seems to have its head down, preparing to expand One UI 8 to its older devices. The South Korean tech giant is yet to officially acknowledge the camera issue, though ‘expert’ level community contributors suggest sending in an error report, which should help Samsung roll out a fix in a subsequent update.

Are you experiencing similar camera issues on your Samsung Galaxy S23 after the One UI 7 update? Let us know in the comments below.