The Galaxy S21 Ultra inaugurates the year 2021 of the giant Samsung and it wants to strike hard. Admittedly, he does not offer an absurd formula to surprise his audience, but he knows how to strike where it is and where it is needed to reach its audience. Here is our full test of this premium smartphone.
The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra has landed in our hands. Smartphone eagerly awaited in 2021, it does not bring any big surprises, however, as almost all of its characteristics were known before its formalization.
IMPOSE YOUR ORIGINALITY
Samsung was keen to offer a neat and sophisticated aesthetic with a smartphone that stands out from the others by its rear photo module. On the one hand, it is made of aluminum, which changes a little from the blocks traditionally covered with glass on previous generations.
On the other hand, and this is the most striking: the module in question rolls up on its left to embrace the curves of the Galaxy S21 Ultra at the edges.
In this way, it appears to be cast in the same metal as the chassis as if it were one and the same in design. Looking more closely, however, we realize that a thin line delimits the frame of the photo block. This aesthetic bias is not wildly revolutionary, but it is already setting the tone: this Galaxy S21 Ultra wants to mark its difference with some subtleties of this kind. On this specific point, the initiative is a success and contributes to the originality of the smartphone.
A SUBLIME SCREEN
“ Our best screen ever for a smartphone ”. It is approximately in these terms that Samsung described the panel of the Galaxy S21 Ultra, and still happy! This smartphone is the crème de la crème of the South Korean colossus. We therefore expect nothing less than a superb display experience. And the manufacturer has put the small dishes in the big ones with a diagonal of 6.8 inches enjoying an AMOLED display with infinite contrast and always so delicious and a refresh rate of 120 Hz in adaptive.
Thus, as on the Note 20 Ultra, the screen of the Galaxy S21 Ultra can switch from 10 to 120 Hz automatically depending on the content displayed. The idea is to preserve the battery of the device a little more efficiently. The feeling of fluidity, always so pleasant for the eyes is there and we love it. That’s not all: a plethora of other qualities also deserve to be highlighted.
ONE UI AT THE TOP WITH ANDROID 11
Android 11 and the One UI 3 interface that we have already taken in hand are here. More specifically, the Galaxy S21 Ultra tastes version 3.1 of this software experience signed by Samsung battery replacement service. This allows him in particular to take advantage of some photo and video functions which we will detail in the dedicated part.
We are also happy to see the integration of the Google Discover news feed on the far left of the home screen. This is something that can be found on a very large number of Android smartphones, but it was until then shunned by Samsung. Another good point: using two applications simultaneously on a split screen is easier. After selecting the option from the multitasking view, it only takes a little swipe of the finger to take advantage of it. You can then save pairs of apps to open them at the same time more quickly.
TWO POWERFUL SPEAKERS
With its stereo speakers, the Galaxy S21 Ultra manages to provide good audio power and high-end sound specialization. Beware of the potential impression of imbalance caused by the upper speaker less powerful than its counterpart. All in all, it’s clearly not disturbing and you really have to look for the little beast to fully realize it.
Minimal saturation can also occur when you turn the volume up, never in such a way as to spoil the pleasure of listening to your favorite track. If you are used to using headphones, do not hesitate to activate Dolby Atmos mode in the Quality and sound effects menu. In this way, you will enjoy music that encompasses you more, richer and deeper.
ZOOM X10 MY LOVE, ZOOM X100 MY TOY
Samsung largely resumes the photo configuration enthroned on the Galaxy S of 2020. On the S21 Ultra, we still observe the presence of two sensors dedicated to zoom.
On classic daytime shots, Samsung does Samsung. Indeed, the photo quality is excellent in terms of sharpness and dynamic management while the colorimetry still bears the signature of the South Korean giant. Namely: this tendency to saturate the tones to make them more beautiful to the eye, but less faithful to reality. It’s still as effective on Instagram as ever.
When night comes, Galaxy S21 Ultra sometimes allows itself some freedom on colorimetry – the city lights are transcribed in a very yellow way – but the atmosphere of the scene is always well respected. A photo taken at 10 p.m. will not look like a photo taken at 6 p.m. for example. In addition, the level of detail, although less extensive than in the daytime shots, remains at a completely satisfactory level.
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BIG PERFORMANCE, BUT INSTABILITIES IN FORTNITE
The Exynos 2100. A new SoC and great promises . “Exynos is back,” said Samsung to present its chip. We find it here associated with 12 GB of RAM – 16 GB on the most premium version. Let’s get rid of the obvious now: everyday tasks are carried out smoothly and quickly. The question did not even arise on the top of the range. More interesting: there is a real progression compared to the previous generation in terms of raw performance as evidenced by the benchmarks below. The Exynos 2100 ruthlessly towers over the 2020 Exynos 990 which was a bit below expectations at that level. The brand’s engineers have gone to great lengths to rectify the situation.
However, I have some doubts about the ability of the Exynos 2100 to hold its own against Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888. Indeed, Samsung’s new chip is a little better than last year’s Snapdragon 865+, but the difference isn’t incredible. We will have to test a smartphone equipped with the SD888 to find out whether the two SoCs are on an equal footing or not.
FROM HIGH-END SAMSUNG AGAIN AUTONOMOUS?
How long has it been since Samsung managed to offer a high-end smartphone with really solid battery life? Last year, the South Korean giant was downright disappointing on this point. And here comes the Galaxy S21 Ultra. Despite its 5000 mAh battery, we really had some misgivings about its endurance. However, the Exynos 2100 seems to do good, like a soothing balm.
Indeed, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra is very resistant to the horrors of time spent away from a socket. The SoC engraved in 5 nanometers really brings better energy efficiency and that makes a lot of good. In addition, I do not say that having forced the 60 Hz mode elsewhere. I have used the device well with the adaptive 120 Hz and everything suggests that this option has become smarter and especially more responsive than in the past to preserve the battery. The smartphone has found a good balance here to satisfy users on this crucial point.
SAMSUNG GALAXY S21 ULTRA NETWORK AND COMMUNICATION
Still happy for a device over 1000 euros, the Galaxy S21 Ultra is impeccable for making calls. None of my interlocutors reported any concerns about the intelligibility of my remarks during my communications. On the contrary, I was told that my voice came in clear and without compression. Besides, the noises of the city around me never ruined the eardrums of the people on the other end of the line, with the possible exception of one or two ambulance sirens. Apart from these punctual and difficult to attenuate sounds, the flagship of Samsung is doing brilliantly in this exercise.
