The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G succeeds the Galaxy S20 Ultra, to become the most powerful smartphone in the S series. It offers a package that sort of suits consumers who are not satisfied with the other offerings in the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Plus. In comparison with its less premium siblings, we have the biggest display, the most RAM, the most storage, the biggest battery, a better camera, S-Pen support, and lots more.
Where to Buy Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G
Jumia Nigeria – See Offers | Jumia Kenya – See Offers | Amazon US – See Offers
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Key Specs & Features
- 6.8-inch, Dynamic AMOLED 2X Display, 1440 x 3200 Pixels (515 ppi), 120Hz Refresh Rate
- Android 11, One UI 3.1
- 12GB RAM / 16GB RAM
- Octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 (USA) – Octa-core Exynos 2100 (Global)
- 128GB / 256GB / 512GB Built-in Storage
- 108MP + 10MP + 10MP + 12MP Quad Rear Camera
- 40MP Front Camera
- S-Pen Support
- Fingerprint Sensor (Under Display, Ultrasonic)
- 25W Fast Charging
- 15W Wireless Charging
- 4.5W Reverse Charging
- Water and Dust Proof (IP68 certification)
- 5000mAh Non-Removable Li-ion Battery
Design and Display
The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G’s design stands out. Comparing it to its less premium siblings, sort of indicates the Ultra is on a higher pedestal. The aesthetics and build parameters say it all with its aluminium frame and Corning Gorilla Glass Victus in the front and back.
On the rear, you will discover a camera bump bearing four cameras arranged in a manner you can liken to a Frankenstein design. It is sort of a design that will appeal to camera enthusiasts. You will also find an LED flash in the camera module.
Enthusiasts who decide to go for this Android smartphone, will have five colour options and they include, Phantom Black, Phantom Silver, Phantom Titanium, Phantom Navy, Phantom Brown.
Moving upfront, we have got a massive 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED display, which happens to be the biggest S21 series. However, comparing this display to that of the S20 ultra, shows that Samsung dropped at an inch, which is a welcome development in my opinion. While many may desire very large displays, there are still people who find it stressful to operate such displays.
This display has a resolution of 1440 x 3200, a density of 515 PPI, a 120Hz refresh rate. It also bears the top of the line Corning Gorilla Glass Victus.
S-PEN Support
Samsung introduced the S-Pen to the S series this year. However, the S-PEN is only supported on the top of the Line Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G.
The S-Pen system featured here isn’t as robust as what we have on the Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra. It’s basically a tool that can help you scribble notes as well as some other functions, the recent remote function is absent.
What’s more, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra doesn’t have a cavity that holds the PEN when not in use as such you will be needing a special case which Samsung sells. Please note that the S-Pen doesn’t come in the box. It’s optional.
The price of the S-PEN alone costs $39.99, Including the Silicone case with the S-Pen costs $69.99, while the official flip case and the S-PEN costs $89.99
No Charger, No Headphones in the Box
It turns out that Apple’s big move to not featuring headphones and chargers in the box of smartphones has lowkey started becoming a trend. Xiaomi’s quick adoption of the Mi 11 is an indicator.
Samsung has also gone with this move, the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G as well as its siblings in the series, will not be coming with headphones or charging bricks, which is sort of a turn off for me, considering the cost of acquiring this high-end device.
The Cameras
The Cameras on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G are undoubtedly the most robust in the series. Unlike last year, when the less premium Galaxy S20 and S20 Plus shared a lot of camera DNA with the top of the line S20 Ultra, we have got a large gap between the S21 Ultra and the less premium options.
For starters, we have got a quad-camera system on the rear, as opposed to the triple camera system on its less premium siblings. This rear camera system is headed by a 108MP primary camera with an aperture of f/1.8, face detention autofocus (PDAF), Laser autofocus, and Optical image stabilisation (OIS); a 10MP periscope telephoto camera with 10x optical zoom, dual-pixel PDAF, OIS, 10x optical zoom, and an aperture of f/4.9; a 10MP telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, dual-pixel PDAF, OIS, and an aperture of f/2.4.
The last member of the quad-camera system is a 12MP ultrawide camera with an aperture of f/2.2, dual-pixel PDAF. This rear camera system is capable of shooting videos at ultra HD 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS. Do well to visit the specs sheet to know more about the other video record modes.
Moving upfront, we have a single 40MP camera with an aperture of f/2.2. Video record on this camera is capped at 4k @ 60fps.
Hardware and Software
The performance setup on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra setup comprises of an octa-core Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor for USA / China variants or an Exynos 2100 processor on the international side.
Also onboard is the Adreno 660 GPU for USA / China, Mali-G78 MP14 GPU on the international variants. We also have options for either 12GB RAM or 16GB RAM. For storage, we have three colour variants, which include 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB. The 128GB and 256GB variants offer 12GB RAM, while the 512GB models come with 16GB RAM.
Keeping the smartphone alive is a non-removable 5000 mAh battery. Users will also have a 25W fast wired charging, 15W wireless charging, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging.
On the software side, we have One UI 3.1 user interface running on the Android 11 operating system.
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Connectivity
The Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G features a USB Type C (USB 3.2) port, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, and NFC.
Internet connectivity here is capped at 5G as the smartphone supports 5G networks.
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Price and Availability
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G price starts at $965 at leading global online stores like Amazon. The Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G costs 485,000 Naira in Nigeria, 137,999 KES in Kenya, 21,999 EGP in Egypt, and 7,150 GHC in Ghana.
The Samsung smartphone was announced on January 14th, 2021, and is expected to be available for purchase from the 29th of January 2021.
Samsung Galaxy S21 5G Specs
Here are a few specs of the Samsung Galaxy S21 5G
- Platform: Android 11, One UI 3.1
- Processor: Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 Octa-core Processor (2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 2.42 GHz tri-core Kryo 680 & 1.80 GHz quad-core Kryo 680) – USA / China – Exynos 2100 (2.9 GHz Cortex-X1 & 2.80 GHz tri-core Cortex-A78 & 2.2 GHz quad-core Cortex-A55)
- GPU: Mali-G78 MP14 (International) – Adreno 660 (USA / China)
- Memory: 12GB / 16GB RAM
- Colours: Phantom Black, Phantom Silver, Phantom Titanium, Phantom Navy, Phantom Brown
- Dimension: 165.1 x 75.6 x 8.9 mm
- Weight: 227g
- SIM Type: Nano-SIM, eSIM
- SIM Count: Dual-SIM
Display
- Display: 6.8-Inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 1440 x 3200 Pixels (515 ppi), ~89.8% Screen-to-body Ratio, 120Hz Refresh Rate, HDR10+, Always on Display, S-Pen Support
- Screen Protection: Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
- Foldable Display: No
Camera
- Rear Camera: 108MP (Primary, Wide-angle) f/1.8 + 10MP (Periscope Telephoto) f/4.9, dual-pixel PDAF, 10x Optical Zoom + 10MP (Telephoto) f/2.4, dual-pixel PDAF, 3x Optical Zoom, 12MP (Ultrawide) f/2.2, dual-pixel PDAF, Video Stabilisation
- Rear Camera Features: LED flash, PDAF, Laser autofocus, OIS, Auto-HDR, Panorama, 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS
- Front Camera: 40MP Camera (Wide), f/2.2, Dual video call, Auto-HDR, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps
Storage
- Built-in Storage: 128GB / 256GB / 512GB
- Memory Card Support: No
- Bundled Cloud Storage: –
Network Support
- 2G GSM: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
- 2G CDMA 1X: 800 / 1900
- 3G WCDMA: 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100
- 3G CDMA EVDO: CDMA2000 1xEV-DO
- 4G LTE: LTE bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 48, 66, 71
- 5G: SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave
Internet & Connectivity
- GPRS: Yes
- EDGE: Yes
- 3G/WCDMA/HSPA: Yes
- HSPA+: Yes
- CDMA EVDO: –
- 4G LTE: Yes
- 5G: Yes
- WLAN: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct,
- Wi-Fi Hotspot: Yes
- Bluetooth: Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE
- NFC: Yes
- Infrared Blaster: No
- USB Port: USB Type-C (USB 3.2), USB on the Go
Messaging
- SMS/MMS: Yes
- Instant Messaging: Yes
- Push Emails: Yes
- Email Protocol: –
Entertainment
- Music Player: Yes
- Video Player: Yes
- FM Radio: Yes (Snapdragon model only; market/operator dependent)
- Loudspeaker: Yes
- 3.5mm Jack: No
Navigation
- Navigation: A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
- Maps: Yes
Sensors & Control
- Digital Compass: Yes
- Accelerometer: Yes
- Proximity Sensor: Yes
- Light Sensor: Yes
- Barometer: Yes
- SpO2: –
- Pedometer: –
- Heart Rate Monitor: –
- Gyroscope: Yes
- Fingerprint Scanner: Yes (Under display, ultrasonic)
- Iris Scanner: –
- Face Unlock: Yes
- Stylus Pen: Yes
- Intelligent Digital Assistant: Google Assistant, Bixby
- Motion Sensing / Gesture Control: –
- Voice Control: Yes
Other Features
- Video Streaming: Yes
- Active Noise Cancellation: Yes
- Wireless Charging: Yes, Fast Qi / PMA Wireless Charging (15W Capacity) + 4.5W Reverse wireless charging
- Built-in Mobile Payment: Samsung Pay ()
- Water Resistant: Yes (IP68 – up to 1.5m for 30 mins)
- Dust Resistant: Yes
- Image Editor: Yes
- Video Editor: –
- Document Viewer: –
- Document Editor: –
Battery
- Battery: 5000 mAh Non-Removable Li-Po Battery
- Talktime: –
- Standby Time: –
- Fast Charging: 25W Fast Charging Capacity, USB Power Delivery 3.0, 15W Fast Wireless Charging Capacity
