Reviews of Samsung’s latest Galaxy S21 Ultra flagship started today, with reviewers placing the new 6.8-inch device against Apple’s current iPhone 12 series. Reviewers say that although the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra has a more ergonomic finish, the iPhone 12 series still has a leg up in certain areas.
Before we begin the iPhone 12 comparisons, you should visit our colleagues at 9to5Google, who also spent time with the latest Galaxy S21 flagship devices.
The edge a review of the $ 1199 Galaxy S21 Ultra says that the new device is ‘much easier to hold’ than the iPhone 12 Pro Max, because it is slightly narrower and has curved edges:
However, large Android phones are now commonplace, so Samsung’s task is to not only make a powerful phone, but also to make one that is well made. Mission accomplished: the S21 Ultra looks good and feels better. It is much more comfortable to hold than the iPhone 12 Pro Max, because it is a bit narrow and because it has curved edges.
In terms of camera technology, the Galaxy S21 Ultra has four different sensors on the back, including a wide-angle lens and an ultra-wide-angle lens, plus two different telephoto lenses. The edge review says that the Galaxy S21 Ultra and iPhone 12 Pro Max are very close in terms of camera performance:
As for the head-to-head with the iPhone 12 Pro Max, this is where I ended up. If you were to take 50 photos or videos, 30 of them would be a call based on your personal preference, seven or eight would clearly be better on the S21 and 12 or 13 better from the iPhone. They are very close.
However, the Galaxy S21 Ultra has one important advantage:
But Samsung has the tele options. And it also compensates for the relative lack of high-quality third-party Android photo apps by embedding its own features. Samsung has added a “director mode” that lets you instantly switch lenses while recording video in 1080p, but I found that I prefer shooting in 4K. You can shoot in 8K and pull out a still photo, you can use ‘Single Take 2’ to get the AI to try to make a bunch of amusing photos and video effects.
Interestingly, the Galaxy S21 Ultra also supports shooing in RAW. As you may recall, one of the key features of the iPhone 12 Pro and iPhone 12 Pro Max is support for a new ProRAW photo format that offers benefits for computer photography with the flexibility of traditional RAW.
But while the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s hardware is solid, The edge finally says that the software brings the experience and will prevent any iPhone user from switching:
The biggest reality check is the software, which is suffering from Samsung’s hard efforts to build its own ecosystem and earn an already expensive phone. I doubt the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra will convince many iPhone users to switch – the ecosystem decision on iOS is too strong for that and getting the best out of Samsung’s version of Android is daunting.
CNBC takes a similar angle with its review and says that the Galaxy S21 Ultra is unlikely to convert any iPhone users. However, the review notes that the Galaxy S21 Ultra has the best performance on the market thanks to the high refresh rate:
It has the best screen I have ever used on a phone. Like the S21, it has a high refresh rate that is really smooth. It also gets very bright, which helps with movies and TV shows and for watching outdoors. And, unlike last year’s model, you can now use the screen at its sharpest setting with the high refresh rate on.
CNET set some benchmarks and confirmed that the iPhone 12 Pro’s A14 Bionic processor is better than the Snapdragon 888 chip found in the Galaxy S21 Ultra:
Ultimately, the consensus among these reviews is that the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21 Ultra hold up well against the iPhone 12 series, but the software experience is the biggest difference. The iPhone 12 seems to have the edge in areas such as performance and build quality, but fans of larger phones may be able to keep the Galaxy S21 Ultra a little easier.
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