The Samsung Galaxy S21 5G series has arrived

It didn’t take long for Samsung’s top-of-the-line phone series to unveil in 2021, with the company unveiling its top-of-the-line Galaxy S21 5G models at this year’s online CES consumer electronics expo, which opens this year. Of course, in accordance with industry traditions, the “leaked” photos and data of the weeks and months preceding the announcement did not leave much to the imagination of those interested, but the manufacturer has now officially shown the series, giving a glimpse into the future of its smartphone strategy: the 2021 S models. the Note series terminal can be prepared. According to previous rumors, the most muscular new top model comes with S Pen support, ie users can also scribble with the stylus for Notes, which raises many questions about the future of the Note series and its future existence.

TAILORED APPEARANCE

As expected, the series will start with three new handsets, the Galaxy S21, the Galaxy S21 +, and, in line with last year’s nomenclature, the Galaxy S21 Ultra, which represents the absolute top. The series comes with a unified design this year as well, but the manufacturer is trying to differentiate the design sharply from last year’s top models – and its rival devices on the market.

Today, in the sea of ​​minimalist devices in the smartphone market, there is not much left in the enclosures that manufacturers can make a substantial change to make their products unique – they can only play with the number and placement of the cameras and the platform on which they are hosted. Samsung has also reached out to the latter, with the manufacturer pushing the camera block packed with sizeable sensors all the way into the upper left corner of the back cover this year, where the platform “drains” and connects to the metal frame surrounding the phones. Within the series, the three new devices are distinguished from the outside, at least by their size and the number of cameras lined up on the back.

2021-ES CSUSSVAS

All three new devices will feature Samsung’s new state-of-the-art processor, at least in the European market, in the United States, as usual, devices equipped with Quaclomm’s current most powerful chip, in this case the Snadpragon 888, will be available. The Korean manufacturer’s latest Exynos 2100 chip is the company’s first high-end mobile processor, which comes with an integrated 5G modem, as well as ARM’s new high-performance processor core, the Cortex-X1. It is a chip with a total of eight cores, in which, in addition to the above-mentioned 2.9 GHz tick X1, four 2.8 GHz Cortex-A78 and also four low-power Cortex-A55 cores set at 2.2 GHz are ticked. These clocks are otherwise visibly higher than those seen on the Snapdragon 888 with similar cores, and of course it will turn out in practice that the two tiles are playing sharply in relation to each other.

Starting with Samsung’s 5-nanometer manufacturing process, the Exynos 2100 promises the manufacturer a 30 percent performance improvement in multi-core implementation over its predecessor, the Exynos 990. The chip also comes with the new Mali-G78 GPU, in which Samsung is already talking about a 40 percent improvement – and the pack also includes the manufacturer’s fresh NPU, which promises 26 TOPS performance. The integrated 5G modem in the chip also supports networks with a wavelength of 6 mm and less than 6 GHz.

GALAXY S21 AND S21 +

But let’s take a look at the devices: not the smallest model in the series is small, the 6.2-inch AMOLED display on the Galaxy S21 in the field, like the rest of the series, has a 10-megapixel self-timer that hits the panel in the middle. The display has a Full HD resolution of exactly 1800×2400 pixels (421 PPI), as well as an adaptive refresh rate with a maximum of 120 Hz, and the HDR10 + plecsnit. In addition to the aforementioned Exynos peak chip, the phone comes with 8 gigabytes of RAM and 128 or 256 gigabytes of storage on demand.

Interestingly, the back of the device will be plastic instead of glass, which promises a more durable construction and easier installation – even if you can take it back from the premium feeling for some. The camera block, which is connected to the body of the device, monitors a 12-megapixel main camera with optical image stabilization, an ultra-wide-angle sensor with a similar resolution, and a 64-megapixel telephoto lens with 3x zoom, also complete with optical image stabilization. With the device, as with other models, we can shoot up to 8K video – and while most do not yet have a suitable display at home, high-definition videos can be used to highlight high-quality still images or even smaller video clips.

The S21 has a 4000 mAh battery that supports 25-watt USB-PD 3.0 fast charging and can be charged wirelessly with up to 15 watts of power. The device also has reverse wireless charging in the case. As is now expected at the forefront of the smartphone, all devices have been rated IP68, meaning they can withstand up to half an hour and a half meters underwater.

The Galaxy S21 + has very similar parameters, of course in a larger design. The AMOLED screen here is already 6.7 inches with unchanged resolution, resulting in a slightly lower 394 PPI pixel density. Under the hood, the hardware seen above works here as well, with the same memory and storage options, but even in the field of cameras, there is no difference between the two models. Of course, the larger housing can hold a larger battery, the S21 + has a 4800 mAh battery.

FLAG CARRIER-CARRIER

With the trio-led S21 Ultra, the manufacturer has further fattened the AMOLED display, and not only has the 6.8-inch panel size but also a larger resolution, with 3200×1400 pixels crammed into the device, resulting in a 516 PPI pixel density. The refresh rate of 120 hertz is, of course, given here as well, and it can finally be turned on at full QHD resolution. The panel also produces quite brutal, 1500 nits of brightness. Behind the screen, in addition to the Exynos 2100 chip, a 12/128, 12/256 or rugged 16/512 gigabyte RAM / storage combo can serve as required. In addition to 5G, the phone also supports Wi-Fi 6E networks.

The S21 Ultra now has four sensors on the spacious rear camera block: the main sensor has 108 megapixels, laser autofocus and optical image stabilization, as well as a 10-megapixel periscope telephoto camera with optical image stabilization and 10x optical zoom. A 10-megapixel traditional telephoto lens also comes with 3x optical zoom – both telephoto sensors are coupled with optical image stabilization. Finally, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle camera also fit on the back. In the case of the Ultra model, Samsung has also planted a more muscular 40-megapixel sensor on the front panel. The battery is even more spacious for the flag bearer, around 5000 mAh, with the capabilities seen in the above models.

NOTE HERITAGE

Another important new capability of the Galaxy S21 Ultra is the support for the previously mentioned S Pen. Of course, Samsung will not create a cradle like the Notes in the case for stylus, but on the large display, the optional stylus will be used in the known way, and cases with a dedicated stylus compartment are expected to be available.

While recent reports suggest we can still count on new Note models this year, it wouldn’t be surprising if these were the last releases in the series, as with the support of the S21 series S Pen, the Notes will lose their only remaining distinctive feature. While the first Notes even had their large displays unique on the market, panels over 6 inches have become commonplace today, so precise, stylus input was essentially the only essential parameter that made it worthwhile for Samsung to keep the devices as a separate series.

TWO ADDITIONS

In addition to the phones, the Korean manufacturer also announced two accessories in the form of Galaxy Buds Pro wireless earphones and Samsung SmartTag tracking tickets. Galaxy Buds Pro wireless in-ear headphones come with active noise cancellation – the device is also capable of recognizing the wearer’s voice, so it automatically lets out external sounds when the user mixes up with someone. Noises are effectively filtered out by the ear’s three microphones during a telephone conversation, and its sensors can also be used to determine the position of the wearer’s head, thus providing a 360-degree, three-dimensional sound. With the Galaxy Buds Pro, you can connect to multiple devices at once, switching between the tabs as needed. The device provides 8 hours of operation with one charge, without active noise filtering, and 5 hours of operation with the latter switched on, and this can be extended by an additional 20 and 13 hours with the charger case.

The company’s smart tracking ticket, the Samsung SmartTag, can be attached to a keychain, wallet or even a pet collar. Connected to Samsung’s Find ecosystem, the device can also transmit your position via Bluetooth or UWB technology, helping you find lost devices. True to the manufacturer’s custom, he tries to persuade customers with pre-orders with gifts, for which he adds a Galaxy Buds Live earpiece and SmartTag for the Galaxy S21 and S21 +, and for the Ultra edition, the SmartTag comes with the newly announced Galaxy Buds Pro earphones.

While the company is generous with pre-order gifts, less with basic accessories: Samsung still mocked Apple in the fall for not including a charger adapter for its new smartphones, but now the Korean giant itself is embarking on a similar journey and in the phone box next to the device it squeezes only the cable needed for charging, the adapter is left out of the top models with pepper pricing. The omission of the add-on was made by the manufacturer to Apple on environmental grounds – of course, the scarce contents of the boxes are not felt in the price of the phones.

Pre-orders for Galaxy S21 models and Galaxy Buds Pro have already started, and devices will appear on store shelves in Hungary on January 29. The recommended gross consumer price of the Galaxy S21 is 128 thousand forints with 128 gigabytes of storage, and 350 thousand forints with 256 gigabytes of storage space, while similar variants of the S21 + are available at gross recommended end-user prices of 410 thousand and 425 thousand forints. In the deepest sense, we have to reach into our pockets for the Galaxy S21 Ultra: 480 thousand gross for the 12/128 gigabyte version of the top model, 500 thousand gross for the 12/256 gigabyte RAM / storage combo, and 550 thousand gross for the 16/512 gigabyte edition. gain weight on the recommended consumer price tag. Galaxy Buds Pro earphones will be available in Hungary for a gross of 90 thousand forints.