Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra gaming could get a performance boost from a new battery setting
Android gamers will benefit most, with cooler smartphones and potentially longer-lived batteries
➡️ The Shortcut Skinny: S23 battery savings
⏸️ Some Samsung Galaxy S23 phones have ‘Pause USB Power Delivery’ setting
😎 The setting keeps the Galaxy S23 cool by bypassing battery
🔋 Less heat usually means a longer-lived battery
👉 ‘Pause USB Power Delivery’ was on the Galaxy S22, also
🤔 The feature doesn’t seem to exist on US and UK Galaxy S23 phones
Android gamers could be in for a pleasant surprise with this sneaky Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra feature. Deep in the settings of the new Samsung smartphone is an option labeled Pause USB Power Delivery that allows passthrough power to bypass the battery completely, at least in some countries. Malaysian YouTube channel NL Tech first reported the feature, as reported by 9to5Google. The setting, found within the Samsung Game Booster menu, would keep the phone from getting as hot under heavy load.
This is because when you plug in a phone, it’s charging the battery while simultaneously pulling power from it, generating excess heat in the process. With Pause USB Power Delivery enabled, according to NL Tech, when the phone is plugged into any USB PD charger (and the battery is above 20%), power is shunted straight to the chipset, preventing that issue.
Samsung Galaxy S23 passthrough charging
The feature would be a boon for gamers in particular because the extra heat can make even gaming on a phone with the Samsung Galaxy S23 specs a palm-sweat-inducing experience during extended smartphone gaming sessions. What’s more, being able to circumvent the battery wouldn’t just make the phone more comfortable – it could extend your Galaxy S23 battery lifespan.
NL Tech noted in its video that the feature wasn’t announced at the Galaxy Unpacked event, but it looks like there’s a reason: this isn’t a new feature for the Samsung Galaxy S series smartphones.
Pause USB Power Delivery was on Galaxy S22
I found the battery-saving option mentioned in posts and comments on Reddit as being part of the Game Booster feature on the Samsung Galaxy S22, as well as a YouTube smartphone tutorial video describing how to enable it. It even apparently exists on the Samsung Galaxy A33, which was never released in the US.
At present, we don’t know if the Samsung Galaxy S23 in the US has the feature – 9to5Google reported it didn’t see the option in its own Galaxy S23 settings, and forum users at XDA-Developers from both the US and the UK couldn’t find it. I wasn’t able to confirm whether users reporting the feature for the Galaxy S22 were US-based, but it could be that, for some reason, it’s not offered on versions of the phone sold in the States.