Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review

25 January 2021


Sort by:

  • ?
  • Anonymous
  • s81
  • 26 Jan 2021

Anyone else wondering why the S21, powered by the same chipset, performs so poorly in the benchmarks as compared to the S21 Ultra?

    • D
    • AnonD-973296
    • GYi
    • 26 Jan 2021

    YUKI93, 26 Jan 2021That is why I still maintain that the S9 and S9+ produce th... morei tried the dual aperture system on the s10e, it was from f/1.5 - f/2.4, tbh i did not see much of a difference other than f/2.4 being a very tiny bit darker, where would u really notice the difference? low light maybe?

      • S
      • Someone Else
      • 3%%
      • 26 Jan 2021

      Does anyone know if the S21 Ultra is able to record HDR video in 4K 60 fps resolution?
      On the S20 series this was not possible. When recording 4K video, you had to choose between either 60 fps or HDR. Could not have both at the same time. Hopefully this is now supported in the S21 series.

        Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021Just look at Gsmarena photo comparison tool.... IPhone is t... moreCons of using a tiny sensor. You can only squeeze out so much out of a small sized sensor.

          Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021I think you already booked one?Why would I book this?
          I am skeptical about this as it isn't worth the price it launched in my country.

          Exynos 2100 while not being as bad as Snapdragon Exynos 990, is still rather unimpressive, despite how it looks on paper compared to Snapdragon 888.

          I am waiting for what the Chinese manufacturers have to offer this year.
          They always bring their 'A' game.

            Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021It does. Check S20, OP8 Pro and 5ii. All tested at 6... moreBut he is talking about S21 Ultra. Why are you bringing in old phones?

            Besides, OP8 pro already had better battery life with QHD@120hz than other flagship phones from Sony, Samsung or Apple.

            You are literally asking Gsmarena to lock it at 60hz and test even though it isn't meant to be used at 60hz in the first place. Why don't you buy the phone, dial the refresh rate
            down to 60hz and then finally shhhut upp about it.

              miki69, 26 Jan 2021Thanks for the in-depth review. To GSM Arena team - You ... moreThat is why I still maintain that the S9 and S9+ produce the best camera photo quality out of all Samsung S series model to date. The dual aperture system is definitely a worthy feature to have.

                • ?
                • Anonymous
                • I@a
                • 26 Jan 2021

                Is this the Exynos Variant of the Phone?

                  • n
                  • newid
                  • XND
                  • 26 Jan 2021

                  This is a very good phone from Samsung Galaxy review

                    Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021Dude the improvement in dynamic range is huge.No deal. S9 did not have any Night Mode when it was released. Even thought it could resolve so much better photos in terms of details and sharpness. Look at the skies... On S21 Ultra it's a mess and nightmare to be honest...

                      • ?
                      • Anonymous
                      • vjX
                      • 26 Jan 2021

                      Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021It does. Check S20, OP8 Pro and 5ii. All tested at 6... moreSony will waste your phone's battery by implementing 120 Hz in their Xperia flagship soon.

                        • ?
                        • Anonymous
                        • vjX
                        • 26 Jan 2021

                        Shahar , 26 Jan 2021So you mean to tell me that the s20 fe 5g has almost same b... moreThen get the S20 FE 5G. S21 Ultra is not for you.

                          • ?
                          • Anonymous
                          • vjX
                          • 26 Jan 2021

                          miki69, 26 Jan 2021Thanks for the in-depth review. To GSM Arena team - You ... moreDude the improvement in dynamic range is huge.

                            Nick Tegrataker, 26 Jan 2021The S21 Ultra's display goes brighter and unlike Find ... moreI am more interested in real reproduction of the colors. Things I can see.
                            VRR I cannot see with my eyes. And energy efficiency too. It is like explaining why your car is better yet slower than other car. Explaining is not good for something you want to be best.

                            Looking at camera performance, s21ultra is yet again not the 2021 phone. Like the s20,and previous all the way to s6edge which was brilliant.

                              miki69, 26 Jan 2021Thanks for the in-depth review. To GSM Arena team - You ... moreBuy Oppo you will not regret. I jumpet from Samsung to LG, LG to Huawei, and Huawei to Oppo. Man, it is on another level on speed, camera, screen.
                              Trust me and do it.

                              Also Oppo's UI is way too underrated!!! It is really impressive and intuitive!!! And so many nice features. Just like in any other huawei, samsung, lg, or whatever, or even better than those in some scenarious.

                                • S
                                • Shui8
                                • KZK
                                • 26 Jan 2021

                                Hurm I change my mind about S21 Ultra camera. Upon this detail review, clearly its not the best in terms of quality.

                                The best part? The most consistent. All four sensor produce identical look, great job there. Really hope that GSMA can compare the camera quality with Mate 40 Pro+/ P40 Pro+, the only other company that provides 10x optical zoom.

                                  • ?
                                  • Anonymous
                                  • 83U
                                  • 26 Jan 2021

                                  Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021Lol awkward design? This is the best design Samsung ever ma... moreExactly :)))

                                    Loked at ultra 21 and i hate the way it looks.
                                    It looks wery bulky , but that is no problem , ugly cameras , i could live with that to.
                                    But its shape , it is narrow and long is what bothers me.
                                    So , i compared iphone pro max 11 and s21 ultra and have to say , iphone is the king

                                      Thanks for the in-depth review.

                                      To GSM Arena team - You may want to update specification page, as it's written on Corning site that both back and front of S21 Ultra is made of Victus glass (you can check this info here - https://www.corning.com/gorillaglass/worldwide/en/products-with-gorilla-glass/smartphones/samsung/samsung-galaxy-s21-ultra.html)

                                      I'm quite surprised how little improvements in main camera has been made for all these years, just check S9+ images vs S21 ultra:
                                      S9+: https://fdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/reviews/18/samsung-galaxy-s9-plus/camera/gsmarena_030.jpg
                                      S21U: https://fdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/reviews/21/samsung-galaxy-s21-ultra/camera/gsmarena_101.jpg

                                      S9+: https://fdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/reviews/18/samsung-galaxy-s9-plus/camera/gsmarena_031.jpg
                                      s21U: https://fdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/reviews/21/samsung-galaxy-s21-ultra/camera/gsmarena_102.jpg

                                      S9+: https://fdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/reviews/18/samsung-galaxy-s9-plus/camera/gsmarena_032.jpg
                                      s21U: https://fdn.gsmarena.com/imgroot/reviews/21/samsung-galaxy-s21-ultra/camera/gsmarena_104.jpg

                                      You see better dynamic range, and some minor improvements here and there, but nothing like "day and night" difference.

                                      The only reason (for me) upgrading my ancient old S9 to S21 Ultra is getting latest Android 11. Other than that, aside from zooming capabilities I'm really not keen to make a switch.

                                      Cheers,

                                        Anonymous, 26 Jan 2021Xbox, PS, Nintendo emulators already available on Android i... moreNot emulators, but streaming. No xbox emulator exists for android, switch emulator needs a specific controller, even then only low end games run at playable speeds on flagship 888. No ps4 emulator either. Ps2 emulator is trash too, like 10 games playable, and may glitch at some point in the game. Only good ones are 3ds, gamecube/wii and psp emulators with most games playable even on midrangers.

                                          16 of 21