Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review

25 January 2021


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Steve, 26 Jan 2021OPPO's UI? Lol. It's a copy cat version of One UI.You definitely haven't used Color OS then. It's more like EMUI but with more consistent and streamlined UI design.

    TheLastOracle, 26 Jan 2021In the Comparison tool of gsmarena, between the Samsung S21... moreS21U seems to suffer from a ton of ringing artifacts from excessive sharpening, though. It's also worth noting that P40 Pro isn't being aggressive with noise reduction, but plagued with noticeable softness and slight aliasing in high contrast edges and due to upscaling (Its stock camera app blows a 9MP image up to 12.5MP for no clear reason). With that said, Mate 40 Pro would've been more appropriate for this comparison due to more mature software processing IMO.

    On the other hand, iPhone 12 Pro Max cooks fine details in such a hideous manner and I don't think it even deserves to be included here. I have no idea how they managed to make it worse than iPhone 11 Pro in this regard.

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      • Joe
      • PQr
      • 27 Jan 2021

      Nick.B, 26 Jan 2021Oppo is the top of the brands in the Group (don't know... moreBBK they own Oppo, Oneplus, Realme and Vivo just clarifying. This makes no sense whtasoever my guy.

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        • Alex
        • qC@
        • 27 Jan 2021

        Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021I got my pre order upgrade from Vodafone UK today. Fantasti... more"Go get one", huh. Sounds familiar... Like "Drink Coca-Cola" :-)
        Arena already wrote that they installed 1 gig patch on Ultra for the review - and it didn't help the camera much, it's still nowhere near fab. But feel free to post your "fab" samples.

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          • Rocky
          • DkW
          • 27 Jan 2021

          Same Exynos 2100 in both s 21 & 21 ultra but benchmarks score is very different in gsmarena review , why?

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            • AnonD-973296
            • GYi
            • 27 Jan 2021

            i0S...Never...Again, 27 Jan 2021Yes it is a thing... Same was said about 4k video recordin... moreyes i agree, but shouldn't we wait for more pro grade DSLR do the 8K stuff and then have it slowly trickle down into smartphones? i'm assuming someone also said this when 4K first came into phones

              AnonD-973296, 26 Jan 2021should 8K video even be a thing on phones, i feel like we s... moreYes it is a thing...
              Same was said about 4k video recording few years back.
              Look where it is right now.
              We already have phones producing sharp 4K 30/60/120fps with a generous bit-rate, high dynamic range, low noise and great stabilization.
              By 2025, we'd see 8k being as good as current 4k video recording on smartphones.

                • ?
                • Anonymous
                • gBV
                • 27 Jan 2021

                The 108 megapixel jpgs are still very bad due to the Nona Bayer array. Theoretically, if the lens was sharp and if the sensor was a Bayer sensor, a crop of the 108 megapixel sensor would outperform the "3x" camera regarding distant objects.

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                  • ypcx
                  • 0Vg
                  • 26 Jan 2021

                  okay they fixed the battery endurance, hopefully they'll fix the charging speed next year too.
                  until then, this isn't a livable phone for me.

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                    • Anonymous
                    • BiP
                    • 26 Jan 2021

                    I got my pre order upgrade from Vodafone UK today. Fantastic phone so smooth and fast. And I can tell you now the battery life is holding up very well on Exynos version. It's not been draining fast at all and that's using Adaptive refresh rate and Quad HD. Also the preview where GSM Arena showed awful camera quality, it was the same for me out the box too. An update of over 1 gig in size fixed it and cameras are now fab. And not getting any heating up when I set the phone up, only slightly warm even when fast changing. Go get one it's excellent

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                      • Ronster
                      • gXn
                      • 26 Jan 2021

                      Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021Had the s20 5g battery life a nightmare had to charge the p... moreThat's weird because my S20 Ultra 5g lasts over a full day without charging and I use it all day.

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • mY$
                        • 26 Jan 2021

                        JT, 26 Jan 2021They will probably fix that with an update or two, at least... moreGot mine today and 2 software updates straight away

                          AnonD-973296, 26 Jan 2021ya but the only problem is that the camera is really center... moreI checked the comparison again, after reading your comment. The Samsung isn't any more centre focussed than either the iPhone or Huawei.

                            AnonD-973296, 26 Jan 2021ya but the only problem is that the camera is really center... moreAll cameras with larger sensors will have that. Atleast until they have lower f-stops or newer lens designs. Lens designs in smartphones needs a complete overhaul. Huawei and Samsung are already doing great work with the CFA (though it can be improved tremendously with a CFA trick beyond CFA design).

                            The staggered sensor really is pretty stellar, as promised. Ans luckily the new SoCs are able to process the necessary algorithms well.

                              This looks promising...
                              I hope Samsung makes the "Last" Note Ultra to be spectacular in battery and screen

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                                • AnonD-973296
                                • GYi
                                • 26 Jan 2021

                                Steve, 26 Jan 2021OPPO's UI? Lol. It's a copy cat version of One UI.wdym, it looks nowhere anything like oneUI, it's not even close

                                  AKW2020, 26 Jan 2021What about vivo? And Can we take screenshot by 3 fingers sw... moreOppo is the top of the brands in the Group (don't know what the name of the group is). Yes, vivo and oneplus are same company as oppo. It is just they are on different levels. Like Oppo is the apple and the rest are good, just not the top dog.

                                  Yes on oppo you have 3 finger swipe screenshot, also scrolling one (one super high photo of the screenshot) and navigation screenshot too and all else

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                                    • Steve
                                    • gM8
                                    • 26 Jan 2021

                                    Nick.B, 26 Jan 2021Buy Oppo you will not regret. I jumpet from Samsung to LG, ... moreOPPO's UI? Lol. It's a copy cat version of One UI.

                                      Nick.B, 26 Jan 2021Buy Oppo you will not regret. I jumpet from Samsung to LG, ... moreWhat about vivo? And Can we take screenshot by 3 fingers swipe and/or by navigation bar on oppo? I don't know this about BBK brands.

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                                        • AnonD-973296
                                        • GYi
                                        • 26 Jan 2021

                                        TheLastOracle, 26 Jan 2021Yes. The S21 Ultra is miles ahead of the competition. ya but the only problem is that the camera is really center focused

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