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We continue to introduce the world's most curious readersggwith the most advanced smartphones in
A bit of history
The Samsung Galaxy S series of smartphones leads itshistory since March 2010, when the first Galaxy S model was presented. 3 months passed between its announcement and the start of sales on the world market - times were different, and in that decade it was taken for granted that sales would begin a few months after the announcement. By the way, not everyone remembers, but this was far from the first Samsung Galaxy smartphone. And not even the first Samsung smartphone on Android. Galaxy Spica i5700 was released back in 2009 (and became the first Android smartphone officially sold in our country). And the company's first Android product was the Samsung i7500. But it was the Galaxy S that was destined to go down in history and mark the beginning of a whole dynasty of smartphones that elevated Samsung to the top of Olympus in the global phone market.
The second smartphone of the Galaxy SII series (the name of this andthe next model was written in Roman numerals, then switched to the more familiar Arabic ones) were presented in February 2011 during the MWC 2011 exhibition. The next Galaxy SIII was presented in May 2012, literally a few weeks before the start of the London Olympics (this model became the official smartphone of the Olympics of the year). And then, in May, global sales began (the race began). In those years, a tradition immediately developed of releasing flagships every six months - the Galaxy S series in the spring, the Note series in the fall. Somehow it is generally accepted that the Galaxy S is shown in Barcelona, during MWC, and the Note in Berlin, at IFA, but in fact, Samsung quickly stopped this practice and began to announce its key models separately from these exhibitions, thereby making , each such announcement is a separate world event.
Release versions of flagship smartphones withSamsung was also the first to come up with the Plus prefix (and not Apple, as is commonly believed). The first version of the Samsung Galaxy S Plus was released a year later (almost simultaneously with the Galaxy SII - Samsung already knew how to competently stir up interest in its flagships on all fronts) and featured a processor overclocked to 1.4 GHz. At different periods of time, Galaxy S smartphones had different modifications - protected versions of the Galaxy S Active, smaller versions of the Galaxy S Mini, “lightweight” Galaxy S Lite, and even a unique smartphone camera Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom. It is not advisable to dwell on this whole story in detail now; those who are interested can refresh their impressions and test their knowledge in our test dedicated to the Galaxy S series.
What the Samsung Galaxy S21 series consists of
By 2021, the twelfth version of the Galaxy S smartphonereceived the index S21 and three versions: Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+ and Galaxy S21 Ultra. Its announcement took place unexpectedly early - on January 14, and sales began in February. Taking into account versions that differ in body color and memory capacity, the Galaxy S21 series today includes twenty (!) modifications of three models. In fact, there are even more color options available, but for our country the company has chosen exactly those options that will appeal to Ukrainian customers the most. It is worth noting separately that this is the first smartphone in Samsung history that does not have a division into 4G and 5G versions, because the Exynos 2100 processor supports 5G natively (the module is packaged in the SoC).
How is the Galaxy S21 Ultra different from the S21 and S21+?Besides the obvious dimensions of the display (6.8″ versus 6.7″ and 6.2″), it is its resolution, which reaches 3200x1440 pixels (not every desktop monitor can boast such a resolution), which creates a pixel density of 515 ppi . A serious difference in the camera is that the Ultra has 4 camera modules, not 3. There is an additional telephoto lens, arranged in a “periscope” configuration and providing 10x optical zoom (and 100x hybrid). All lenses except ultra-wide-angle ones have optical stabilization when shooting video. And the main Ultra camera stands out with a 108-megapixel sensor and laser (that is, fast and tracking when shooting video) autofocus. Actually, the fifth hole in the camera module is exactly what it is. Well, the Ultra model supports work with the S Pen, has the maximum capacity battery for the series (5 Ah), a more recent version of Bluetooth 5.2, and also supports Wi-Fi 6e.
Samsung Galaxy Galaxy S21
Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
Dimensions
151.7 x 71.2 x 7.9 mm
161.5 x 75.6 x 7.8 mm
165.1 x 75.6 x 8.9 mm
Weight
169 g
200 g
227 g
CPU
8-core Exynos 2100: 1 Cortex-X1 2.9 GHz, 3 Cortex-A78 2.8 GHz, 4 Cortex-A55 2.2 GHz, Mali-G78 MP14 graphics
Display
Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 6.2″, 2400x1080, HDR10+, pixel density 421 ppi, Gorilla Victus protective glass, refresh rate up to 120 Hz
Super AMOLED Plus, 6.7″, 2400x1080, HDR10+, pixel density 394 ppi, Gorilla Victus protective glass, refresh rate up to 120 Hz
Dynamic AMOLED, 6.8″, 3200x1440, HDR10+, pixel density 515 ppi, Gorilla Victus protective glass, refresh rate up to 120 Hz
Memory
128/256 GB, 8 GB RAM
128/256 GB/512 GB, 12 GB RAM (16 GB for the version with 512 GB storage)
Main camera
wide-angle 12 MP, f/1.8, 26 mm, 1/1.76″, 1.8µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS
tele 64 MP, f/2.0, 29 mm, 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS, zoom 1.1x optical, 3x hybrid
ultra-wide-angle 12 MP, f/2.2, 120˚, 13 mm, 1/2.55″, 1.4µm
wide-angle 108 MP, f/1.8, 24 mm, 1/1.33″, 0.8 µm, PDAF, Laser AF, OIS
“periscope” 10 MP, f/4.9, 240 mm, 1/3.24″, 1.22 µm, PDAF, OIS, 10x optical zoom, 100x hybrid
tele 10 MP, f/2.4, 70 mm, 1/3.24″, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
ultra-wide-angle 12 MP, f/2.2, 13 mm, 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF
Video shooting
8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound, optical stabilization
Front-camera
wide-angle 10 MP, f/2.2, 26 mm, 1/3.24″, 1.22 µm, Dual Pixel PDAF
wide-angle 40 MP, f/2.2, 26 mm, 1/2.8.”, 0.7 µm, PDAF
Wireless technology
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, A2DP, LE, GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC, Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE, GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
Fingerprint sensor
ultrasonic, built into the display
S Pen support
No
There is
Battery capacity
4000 mAh
4800 mAh
5000 mAh
Fast charge
USB-C 3.2, 25 W, USB Power Delivery 3.0
Wireless charger
Qi/PMA 15 W, reverse wireless charging 4.5 W
operating system
Android 11 + One UI 3.1
SIM card
nanoSIM + eSIM
Water and dust protection
IP68 (immersion to a depth of 1.5 meters for up to 30 minutes
Body color
black, silver, pink, purple
black, silver, purple
black, silver
Price
from 26,999 UAH
from 31,999 UAH
from 37,999 UAH
Samsung Galaxy 21 Ultra is delivered to our marketin two colors: black and silver. But in fact, it’s not for nothing that they are called Phantom black and Phantom silver. The black has a matte finish that looks great (and "expensive") - it seems to absorb light. The silver color also does not fully describe the feel of the smartphone. It has a gradient coating that plays with reflections (although it is also matte, which personally makes me happy - a glossy coating is always more easily soiled and does not look so neat to use) from pink to purple.
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Separately pleasing is the camera module, which protrudesabove the back cover is not as much as on the Galaxy S20 Ultra and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. What finally reconciled me with this protrusion were the branded covers. The case masks the protrusion so much that the design of the smartphone begins to look like a single whole, creating a complete picture.
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In general, the idea is to highlight the smartphone camera module inthe sight of such a "shoulder" for me personally evokes pleasant associations with the new series of "Star Wars", where stormtrooper officers have such insignia in the form of a shoulder pad, highlighted in a different color (or chrome, like Captain Phasma's). An unambiguous respect to Samsung designers, who managed to bypass the terrible "burners" of the main competitor and make the appearance of all Galaxy S21 models instantly recognizable from a distance of three meters.
How the Galaxy S21 Ultra differs from the Galaxy S20 Ultra
Although the sizes of both smartphones are approximately the same(the diagonal of the S20 Ultra is even a little larger, by a tenth of an inch) in appearance they are noticeably different due to different camera modules. The already mentioned shoulder design element makes the design of the S21 Ultra much more interesting. And the characteristics differ significantly - for the last 2-3 years, the difference between the two flagship models per year was less than the difference between these two smartphones. There is the latest generation of Gorilla Glass Victus, S Pen support, and a telephoto lens with tenfold optical zoom. Well, and a new generation processor, of course, with support for 5G (which, however, can only be used abroad in the next couple of years).
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Key performance differencesshown in the table below. It is worth adding that the Galaxy S21 Ultra has a noticeably faster ultrasonic fingerprint sensor - its area has been increased. The main difference that the consumer will immediately feel will probably be the camera's 10x optical zoom. Although someone clearly will not like the lack of the ability to use a memory card with a new smartphone. Quite a few copies of this have been broken on the Internet, in my opinion, the problem is greatly exaggerated, on the other hand, there are some consumers for whom this opportunity is really important.
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
Dimensions
166.9 x 76 x 8.8 mm
165.1 x 75.6 x 8.9 mm
Weight
222 g
227 g
CPU
8-core Exynos 990: 2 cores Mongoose M5 2.73 GHz, 2 cores Cortex-A76 2.5 GHz, 4 cores Cortex-A55 2.0 GHz, Mali-G77 MP11 graphics
8-core Exynos 2100: 1 Cortex-X1 2.9 GHz, 3 Cortex-A78 2.8 GHz, 4 Cortex-A55 2.2 GHz, Mali-G78 MP14 graphics
Display
Super AMOLED Plus, 6.9″, 32 00x1440, pixel density 511 ppi, 6th generation Gorilla glass protection, refresh rate up to 120 Hz
Dynamic AMOLED, 6.8″, 3200x1440, HDR10+, pixel density 515 ppi, Gorilla Victus protective glass, refresh rate up to 120 Hz
Memory
128 GB, RAM 12 GB + microSD
128/256 GB/512 GB, 12 GB RAM (16 GB for the version with 512 GB storage)
Main camera
wide-angle 108 MP, f/1.8, 26 mm, 1/1.33″, 0.8 µm, PDAF, OIS
“periscope” 48 MP, f/3.5, 103 mm, 1/2.0″, 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS, zoom 4x optical, 10x hybrid
64 MP, f/2.0, 29 mm, 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS, zoom 1.1x optical, 3x hybrid
ultra-wide-angle 12 MP, f/2.2, 13 mm, 120˚, 1/2.55″ 1.4µm
depth sensor 0.3 MP, TOF 3D, f / 1.0
wide-angle 108 MP, f/1.8, 24 mm, 1/1.33″, 0.8 µm, PDAF, Laser AF, OIS
“periscope” 10 MP, f/4.9, 240 mm, 1/3.24″, 1.22 µm, PDAF, OIS, 10x optical zoom, 100x hybrid
tele 10 MP, f/2.4, 70 mm, 1/3.24″, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
ultra-wide-angle 12 MP, f/2.2, 13 mm, 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF
Video shooting
8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound, optical stabilization
Front-camera
wide-angle 40 MP, f/2.2, 26 mm, 1/2.8.”, 0.7 µm, PDAF
Wireless technology
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC, Bluetooth 5.0, A2DP, LE, GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e 2.4 GHz + 5 GHz, Wi-Fi Direct, NFC, Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE, GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
Fingerprint sensor
ultrasonic, built into the display
S Pen support
No
There is
Battery capacity
5000 mAh
Fast charge
USB-C 3.2, 45 W, USB Power Delivery 3.0
USB-C 3.2, 25 W, USB Power Delivery 3.0
Wireless charger
Qi/PMA 15 W, reverse wireless charging 4.5 W
operating system
Android 10 + One UI 3.0 upgraded to Android 11 + One UI 3.1
Android 11 + One UI 3.1
SIM card
2xnanoSIM (the second slot is hybrid, with microSD support)
nanoSIM + eSIM
Water and dust protection
IP68 (immersion to a depth of 1.5 meters for up to 30 minutes
Body color
black gray
black, silver
Price
from 32,999 UAH
from 37,999 UAH
To be continued.
Top 5 things to know about the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra differences
- This is the most technologically advanced Android smartphone on the market
- Its camera uses 4 lenses (main - 108 MP) and supports 10x optical zoom
- It supports S Pen like Galaxy Note series smartphones
- It has no memory card slot
- It is only available in 5G version