The established Galaxy Unpacked event was held earlier than ever before, on 14/01, and Samsung revealed its new Galaxy S21 series smartphones. Like the year before, the series consists of three models: Galaxy S21 5G, Galaxy S21+ 5G, and Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, with the Korean company having made several changes when compared to the outgoing generation, in order to provide you with the absolute smartphone experience. Let’s take a closer look.

Equipment and hardware

To create a leading line of smartphones, before and above all else you need the right hardware. Thus, all Galaxy S21 series devices are equipped with the most powerful chipset ever designed by Samsung, the Exynos 2100.

The Exynos 2100 has 8 processing cores divided into three groups: one Cortex X1 core at 2.9 GHz for maximum performance, three Cortex-A78 cores performing at 2.8 GHz for optimum multitasking, and four Cortex-A55 cores at 2.2GHz, for maximum autonomy. Furthermore, it incorporates the Mali-G78MP14 graphics circuit, which is 35% more powerful than the previous generation.

As regards the memory both of the Galaxy S21 5G and the Galaxy S21+ 5G, they come with 8GB of RAM and 128GB or 256GB of storage. The Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G is available with 12GB of RAM and 128GB or 256GB of storage, while there is also a 16GB RAM and 512GB storage version.

As to the rest of the equipment, all three devices support WiFi 6, WiFi direct and WiFi hotspot, NFC, Bluetooth 5.2, stereo speakers with AKG know-how, while they are IP68 certified, so they can handle dust and watery mishaps.

Screens

Seeing as the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G is the line’s flagship, it is the largest device with a Dynamic AMOLED 2X 6.8” screen. Once again the screen has a resolution of 3200×1440 pixels and supports an adaptive refresh rate from 10Hz to 120Hz. The screen is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus, while it supports HDR10+ content playback, with a peak brightness of 1500 nits.

The real surprise, as regards the screen of the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, is that it is the only screen in the Galaxy S21 family compatible with Wacom’s stylus technology. In fact, Samsung announced two styluses that are compatible with the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, the S Pen and the new S Pen Pro, which can be purchased separately.

As regards the screens of the Galaxy S21+ 5G and Galaxy S21 they are also Dynamic AMOLED 2Χ, that support an adaptive refresh rate from 48Hz to120Hz. Their dimensions are 6.7” and 6.2” correspondingly, while the resolution is 2400 x 1080 pixels in both cases. Gorilla Glass Victus is here, too, as is HDR10+ support, however the maximum brightness is lower, at 1300 nits.

Cameras

For yet another year, Samsung decided to differentiate its flagship, the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, from the other devices in the series.

Thus, the leading Samsung device comes equipped with a quadruple camera system. The main sensor is a second generation 108MP with a wide angle 26mm lens and a very bright aperture (f/1.8). The second sensor is 12MP with an Ultrawide lens (13mm) and an f/2.2 aperture. The other two sensors are 10MP each, both with telephoto lenses, 70mm (3x optical zoom) and 240mm (10x optical zoom). As for the selfie cam, the S21 Ultra 5G has a 40MP camera with a wide (26mm) lens at f/2.2.

The Galaxy S21 5G and S21+ 5G have the same three-sensor camera system. The main sensor has a 12MP resolution with a wide lens (26mm) and an f/1.8 aperture. The second sensor is also 12MP, with an Ultrawide lens (13mm) and an f/2.2 aperture. The third sensor is 64MP, also with a wide lens (28mm), however it offers a hybrid 3x zoom with cropping. As for selfies, both cameras have a 10MP sensor with a wide lens (26mm) and an f/2.2 aperture.

All the devices support Auto-HDR and Dual-video call functions, while they can record 8K video at 24fps, slow motion in 720p at 960fps.

Batteries

All three devices support 25W fast charging, 15W fast wireless charging, as well as the Wireless PowerShare function, so they can wirelessly charge other compatible devices (e.g. mobile phones or wearables and Galaxy Buds Pro). As regards the battery capacity of the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, it is the largest at 5000mAh, the Galaxy S21+ 5G is slightly smaller at 4800mAh, and the Galaxy S21 5G is at 4000mAh.

In any case, Samsung followed Apple’s example with the iPhone 12 series, and none of the S21 smartphones come with a charger in the box, just the USB-C cable, and if you don’t already have a previous compatible charger, you can buy it separately at a reduced price.

The software

Samsung’s Galaxy S21 line runs on the new One UI 3.0 user interface, which is based on the latest edition of Google’s operating system, Android 11. The new environment offers many improvements, such as: new widgets, extensive home screen configuration, even easier data transfer from your previous smartphone, support of dynamic backgrounds that are renewed automatically, an improved gallery with even more advanced editing functions for your photos, a new game booster mode for the gamers out there, and improved synchronisation among Samsung ecosystem devices, to mention just a few of the new functions.

Colours

A new generation means new colours. The Galaxy S21 5G is available in Phantom White, Phantom Gray, Phantom Violet, and Phantom Pink (only in the 128GB version), the Galaxy S21+ 5G is available in Phantom Silver, Phantom Black, and Phantom Violet, while the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G is available only in Phantom Silver and Phantom Black.

All devices are immediately available for preorder with the following gifts: the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G comes with Samsung’s new Samsung Galaxy Buds Pro wireless earbuds and the Galaxy Smart Tag, and the Galaxy S21+ 5G and Galaxy S21 5G come with the Galaxy Buds Live wireless earbuds and the Galaxy Smart Tag.