Samsung Galaxy S21 is a top Korean compact. Last year's cameras, but updated design and processor. Are these sufficient arguments in favor of purchasing a new product? Let’s find out in our review of the Samsung Galaxy S21.
I understand that now the cameras in a smartphone are almost more important than the main function - the phone itself. However, we will return to them a little later. First, let's look at the beauty before us.
No frames. At all!
We didn’t notice how smartphones have now become completely frameless. A lot has changed since the iPhone X launched in 2022. And smartphones with thick frames and fringes hanging menacingly on top have turned into one continuous screen. And the Galaxy S21 is a prime example. In your hands you only have the screen: airy, frameless, nothing superfluous.
Moreover, there are no bangs or visors. A barely noticeable front camera sticks out from above, but it doesn’t distract from the content at all. Delight!
Review after two weeks of use
In my opinion, the Galaxy S21+ is the most versatile smartphone in the line, which I can safely recommend to the largest number of people. While the Galaxy S21 and S21 Ultra are smartphones with a clear audience (for those who like less, in the first case, and for those who need maximum, in the second), the hero of today's review, on the contrary, has proven itself to be an ideal smartphone for most. There is a strict design, universal cameras, power with reserve for several years, and a stylish, functional shell. Perhaps, I can only find fault with the serious PWM, which, I hope, Samsung will fix in future updates, making it possible to activate DC Dimming.
pros
- Strict and solid design.
- Productivity with reserve for several years.
- Flagship trio of cameras.
- A shell with an abundance of unique features.
- High-quality screen without curves.
Minuses
- Noticeable screen flickering.
Display at the top
In the case of Korean smartphones, the review point is absolutely meaningless. Samsung always has the best, most sophisticated, brightest, juiciest and overall coolest screens without any compromises.
However, there is one BUT. Users online complain about PWM - backlight flickering, especially at low brightness, which can cause severe eye fatigue. For me, all this is like a fairy tale about a white bull - my eyes never get tired of any smartphone. So I don’t see any problems, everything is great.
Connection
No connection problems were found in the S21 Plus. There is a foundation for the future, since the device supports 5th generation networks and has an e-SIM.
True, in this case you will have to choose either 2 physical SIM cards, or one physical and 1 e-SIM, that is, you will not be able to use 3 SIM cards at the same time.
There are no problems with the stability of the Wi-Fi signal, just like with Bluetooth.
Of course, there is an NFC module, that is, you can pay with your phone like a bank card via Samsung Pay or Google Pay.
S21 for fans of a more compact
In fact, the new product turned out to be somewhat too compact. Not the iPhone 12 mini, of course, but compared to other top-end shovels, it’s a real baby. Frankly speaking, the S21 is difficult to perceive as a full-fledged flagship. It turned out so light and thin. However, although this is not the most sophisticated of Samsungs, it is still a flagship.
Everything is clear from the front - no frames, beauty. But the smartphone also has something to surprise you from behind. Yes, the camera model floats to the upper left edge - it looks cool and all that. I'm for something else. The back cover resembles a cross between glass and metal, although in fact it is neither one nor the other. If you really miss the metallic sensations from the back cover, then the twenty-first “Galaxy” will please you to some extent. Even despite its plastic nature. Such are the miracles.
And yes, protection from moisture and dust according to the IP68 standard is in place - the phone can be bathed for 30 minutes in fresh water up to 1.5 meters.
Appearance of the smartphone and ergonomics
The appearance of the device is a classic Samsung design, with minor changes to the body, mainly relating to the “back” of the device.
The camera block now flows elegantly and smoothly from the side frame. Samsung calls this solution contour design.
The camera block protrudes above the body. Lying on the table, without a case, the phone is not very comfortable to use. Nevertheless, this solution looks neat and, from a design point of view, looks preferable compared to the S20.
The entire back surface is covered with matte, tactile, tempered glass. Just look at the device and you immediately understand that this is the S21 Plus. And this is very cool, because this solution eliminates two problems at once:
- the device does not try to slip out of your hand, it has become very tenacious;
- Even on the black version, fingerprints are virtually invisible in any light.
Despite its substantial dimensions, it fits perfectly in the hand, without any hint that it could slip out at any moment.
The volume rocker is placed quite high, so if you hold the phone with one hand, you will have to grab the phone to reach it. But the power button is in the right place.
S21 Plus has lost space for a memory card.
The tray for two SIM cards has moved to the bottom edge.
Attention!
A microphone was placed next to the tray and you can easily confuse it with the slot for removing the tray and easily damage the microphone with a needle, so be extremely careful when removing the SIM card.
The phone meets the requirements of the IP68 standard (dust and moisture protection).
Top processor. Not without surprises
There's good news and bad news. Let's start with the last one.
The new, very powerful and sophisticated Exynos 2100 processor throttles a lot, in the sense that performance drops. In the stress test, power almost immediately drops to 85-90%. During further loads, performance may even drop by up to 60%. Of all the flagship chipsets, this is the worst result in my memory - no one lost up to 60% in power. Neither the A14 Bionic, nor the Snapdragon 865/888, nor even the top-end Kirin 990 behaved like this.
CPU Throttling AnTuTu Geekbench 5 Memory Test
The good news is that you won't feel all that sagging. In the system, S21 flies at jet speed. There is no task or application that can somehow strain the hardware of a smartphone.
This also applies to games. Firstly, mobile gaming has been stagnant for several years now - graphics are stuck at 2022 levels. Accordingly, there is also nowhere to use the unbridled speed of modern smartphones (even at 60%). So we live and enjoy life, having forgotten all these throttling and overheating with a clear conscience. Unless, of course, you’re too upset that your smartphone’s hardware is the weakest among its competitors.
By the way, Exynos 2100 is the first Korean 5-nanometer chipset. The rest of the characteristics of the Samsung Galaxy S21 are in a separate article, where there are differences from the Galaxy S20.
Performance
Galaxy S21 Plus with Exynos 2100 chip compared to last year's Exynos 990, the new chip showed itself to be better and more stable.
In terms of processor performance, it is slightly, but still, superior to the Snapdragon 888, but in terms of graphics, it is slightly inferior to it.
Almost all games run comfortably on maximum graphics and produce smooth and stable images.
In everyday, normal use, at 120 hertz of the screen, the device practically does not heat up. But if we talk about games, then of course it heats up, but not critically and does not burn your hands.
The S21 Plus outperforms the S20 by about 25-30%, which is enough for everyday tasks.
Same cameras
It's a shame that the S21 didn't have a top-end 108-megapixel camera; it will only please Ultra owners. The rest, including S21 Plus owners, are content with the 12-megapixel module updated last year. This same year, in terms of hardware, nothing has changed at all. They only added software features, which, in my opinion, are nothing more than pampering and marketing.
Shirik
Main camera
3x
10x
20x
30x
Here are the main innovations:
- one take - a bunch of photos and videos in one click
- cinema mode - simultaneous shooting with the front and one of the rear cameras
- simultaneous recording on phone and headset microphones
- fixing the focus on a specific subject at maximum magnification is a good thing, but at 30x the picture loses a lot in quality
Considering all these “innovations”, the previous Galaxy S20 line is entirely relevant.
Shirik
Main camera
3x
Shirik
The main module
3x
Macro
This also applies to other cameras (wide and telephoto). There is still no optical zoom. A 3x increase without loss of quality is achieved by simply cropping a 64-megapixel photo. This is a software trick, which, however, the average user will not notice and will rejoice as if nothing had happened. There are also 5x, 10x and even 30x, but, of course, it’s impossible to use all of this - the quality deteriorates greatly when you get closer.
Auto
Night mode
The wide-angle module here is frankly weak. Soap in the corners, poor detail at night and other “charms” of a budget camera. Yes, albeit in a flagship device.
But I have no questions about the quality of the portraits. Samsung has traditionally been the best at processing the edges of foreground objects and separating them from the background. Moreover, all this works perfectly in all modes: normal (portrait) and wide-angle. Plus, the front camera, albeit 10 megapixels, pleases with excellent, very juicy and pleasant selfies. Self-portraits with blur are, again, excellent.
Portrait 50mm
Portrait 26 mm
Selfie
Wide angle selfie
Self-portrait
Memory
As for RAM, there is only one possible modification: 8 GB LP DDR5 memory. And two options for permanent memory: 128 and 256 GB.
We highly recommend considering a device with 256 gigabytes of memory for two reasons:
- You will have a little more than 210 gigabytes of free memory, since the system and pre-installed applications will “eat up” part of it.
- The phone does not have a memory card.
Why is there no memory card?
Perhaps due to the fact that the speed from memory cards is often lower than the memory speed in the phone and this probably affects the overall performance of the entire device. Perhaps because of this, Samsung decided to completely abandon memory cards, which is a minus for the average user.
Charges quickly, doesn't last long
Away from a power outlet and with all the bells and whistles turned on (120 hertz, Always On Display), the smartphone lasts no more than a day. In this case, the screen operating time does not exceed 4 hours. I wouldn't call it a failure, but it doesn't smell like a record either. A completely normal story for a modern Android flagship packed with bells and whistles. If you want autonomy at the level of 6 hours of screen operation, go to Apple.
Luckily, the Galaxy S21 boasts fast charging. In half an hour, the device charges 58%, and a full cycle takes 1 hour 10 minutes. An excellent result, if you, of course, fork out for fast 25-watt charging. It is not included in the kit, nor are there any headphones, by the way.
But the smartphone supports fast wireless and reverse charging. Yes, in comparison with Chinese competitors, 15 and 5 watts, respectively, are far from record values. But the smartphone battery will be healthier. Probably... because I haven’t seen any meaningful or lengthy tests on this subject.
The Galaxy S21 Plus battery will last almost a day and a half with heavy use.
Galaxy S21 Plus can handle a day of heavy use with a spare battery
Charging plug is not included
My biggest concern was the S21 Plus's battery life. This is a result of my past experiences with Exynos chipsets that struggled to withstand a full day of heavy use. So my expectations were low.
Luckily, my experience with the Exynos S21 Plus wasn't as bad as expected. Using it as my primary phone, I found that it easily withstood a full day of constant use. This entails regularly checking social media and email feeds throughout the day, periodically browsing the web, taking and making a few calls, playing for an hour over lunch, and bingeing on Netflix before bed. In this scenario, I usually woke up the next day with about 30-40% battery charge, having started at 100% the previous morning. This endurance is on par with most phones of this size.
However, as always, more intensive tasks will increase your phone's battery drain. When streaming Netflix with the screen set to 50% brightness, which is approximately 175-200 nits, the Galaxy S21 Plus drained an average of 5-6% charge per hour. Playing PUBG with the same brightness and adaptive screen mode enabled, the average leakage was 10% per hour.
Charging time depends on what plugs you have. The Galaxy S21 Plus supports charging speeds of up to 25W, which puts it behind competitors like OnePlus, Xiaomi and Oppo, which offer faster proprietary fast charging solutions. However, using a compatible connector, I found that charging the Galaxy S21 Plus was more than fast enough, going from 0 to 100% within an hour.
Chips
In addition to a powerful, albeit nuanced processor, under the hood is the fastest memory in the industry: LPDDR5 and UFS 3.1.
Stereo sound is also in place. The smartphone is very loud - even more powerful than the iPhone 12 Pro Max. However, it is inferior in quality - listening to content through external speakers is more pleasant on an iPhone.
Unlocking your phone
The ultrasonic fingerprint scanner is still located under the screen, it now uses a sensor from Qualcomm and its recognition area has increased by 1.7 times.
Unlocking occurs quickly and the scanner itself is in a place that is comfortable for unlocking, and the sensor is triggered even when the screen is completely turned off.
Face unlocking is still present here, it works using the front camera. In terms of operating speed, it is no different from previous devices.
Bottom line
Despite the impressive price tag (from 74,990 rubles), here are the options that the S21 lacked compared to its competitors (Huawei P40 Pro / Mate 40 Pro, Xiaomi Mi 10 Ultra, etc.):
- increased resolution of the main camera - 64 and 108 megapixels has long been trendy
- optical zoom
- truly fast charging (especially wireless)
- more stable processor operation
- glass back cover (higher premium)
- adequate kit (power supply with support for fast charging)
But in return they will receive a top-end screen in every sense and full moisture protection. Perhaps that’s all, plus or minus, significant differences from competitors. But even despite the lack of clearly outstanding advantages, using the Galaxy S21 is pleasant. This is a well-built, compact, powerful and overall cool smartphone.
Samsung Samsung Galaxy S21
