The new Galaxy S22 line of smartphone look nice and hold a lot of promise. But are they worth the money Samsung asks?
First, let’s look at what this flagships look like on the paper.
Galaxy S22
BODY Dimensions 146 x 70.6 x 7.6 mm (5.75 x 2.78 x 0.30 in)
Weight 167 g / 168 g (mmWave) (5.89 oz)
Build Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus+), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus+), aluminum frame
SIM Single SIM (Nano-SIM) or Dual SIM (2 Nano-SIMs + eSIM, dual stand-by)
IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins)
DISPLAY Type Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1300 nits (peak)
Size 6.1 inches, 90.1 cm2 (~87.4% screen-to-body ratio)
Resolution 1080 x 2340 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio (~425 ppi density)
Protection Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+
Always-on display
PLATFORM OS Android 12, One UI 4.1
Chipset Exynos 2200 (4 nm) – International
Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4 nm) – USA/China/India
CPU Octa-core (1×2.8 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.50 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.8 GHz Cortex-A510) – International
Octa-core (1×3.00 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.40 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.70 GHz Cortex-A510) – USA/China/India
GPU Xclipse 920 – International
Adreno 730 – USA/China/India
MEMORY Card slot No
Internal 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM
UFS 3.1
MAIN CAMERA Triple 50 MP, f/1.8, 24mm (wide), 1/1.56″, 1.0µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS
10 MP, f/2.4, 70mm (telephoto), 1/3.94″, 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 120˚ (ultrawide), 1/2.55″ 1.4µm, Super Steady video
Features LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama
Video 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS
SELFIE CAMERA Single 10 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.24″, 1.22µm, Dual Pixel PDAF
Features Dual video call, Auto-HDR
Video 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps
SOUND Loudspeaker Yes, with stereo speakers
3.5mm jack No
32-bit/384kHz audio
COMMS WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot
Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE
GPS Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
NFC Yes
Radio Unspecified
USB USB Type-C 3.2, USB On-The-Go
FEATURES Sensors Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer
Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support)
Bixby natural language commands and dictation
Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified)
BATTERY Type Li-Ion 3700 mAh, non-removable
Charging Fast charging 25W
USB Power Delivery 3.0
Fast Qi/PMA wireless charging 15W
Reverse wireless charging 4.5W
MISC Colors Phantom Black, White, Pink Gold, Green, Graphite, Sky Blue, Violet, Cream
Models SM-S901B, SM-S901B/DS, SM-S901U, SM-S901U1, SM-S901W, SM-S901N, SM-S9010, SM-S901E, SM-S901E/DS
SAR EU 1.21 W/kg (head) 1.59 W/kg (body)
Price $ 799.99
Galaxy S22 Plus
BODY Dimensions 157.4 x 75.8 x 7.6 mm (6.20 x 2.98 x 0.30 in)
Weight 195 g / 196 g (mmWave) (6.88 oz)
Build Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus+), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus+), aluminum frame
SIM Single SIM (Nano-SIM) or Dual SIM (2 Nano-SIMs + eSIM, dual stand-by)
IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins)
DISPLAY Type Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1750 nits (peak)
Size 6.6 inches, 105.3 cm2 (~88.3% screen-to-body ratio)
Resolution 1080 x 2340 pixels, 19.5:9 ratio (~393 ppi density)
Protection Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+
Always-on display
PLATFORM OS Android 12, One UI 4.1
Chipset Exynos 2200 (4 nm) – International
Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4 nm) – USA/China/India
CPU Octa-core (1×2.8 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.50 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.8 GHz Cortex-A510) – International
Octa-core (1×3.00 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3×2.40 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4×1.70 GHz Cortex-A510) – USA/China/India
GPU Xclipse 920 – International
Adreno 730 – USA/China/India
MEMORY Card slot No
Internal 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM
UFS 3.1
MAIN CAMERA Triple 50 MP, f/1.8, 24mm (wide), 1/1.56″, 1.0µm, Dual Pixel PDAF, OIS
10 MP, f/2.4, 70mm (telephoto), 1/3.94″, 1.0µm, PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 120˚ (ultrawide), 1/2.55″ 1.4µm, Super Steady video
Features LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama
Video 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS
SELFIE CAMERA Single 10 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.24″, 1.22µm, Dual Pixel PDAF
Features Dual video call, Auto-HDR
Video 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps
SOUND Loudspeaker Yes, with stereo speakers
3.5mm jack No
32-bit/384kHz audio
COMMS WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot
Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE
GPS Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
NFC Yes
Radio Unspecified
USB USB Type-C 3.2, USB On-The-Go
FEATURES Sensors Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer
Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support)
Bixby natural language commands and dictation
Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified)
Ultra Wideband (UWB) support
BATTERY Type Li-Ion 4500 mAh, non-removable
Charging Fast charging 45W
USB Power Delivery 3.0
Fast Qi/PMA wireless charging 15W
Reverse wireless charging 4.5W
MISC Colors Phantom Black, White, Pink Gold, Green, Graphite, Sky Blue, Violet, Cream
Models SM-S906B, SM-S906B/DS, SM-S906U, SM-S906U1, SM-S906W, SM-S906N, SM-S9060, SM-S906E, SM-S906E/DS
SAR EU 0.57 W/kg (head) 1.40 W/kg (body)
Price $ 999.99
Galaxy S22 Ultra
BODY Dimensions 165.1 x 75.6 x 8.9 mm (6.5 x 2.98 x 0.35 in)
Weight 227 g (Sub6), 229 g (mmWave) (8.01 oz)
Build Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus), aluminum frame
SIM Single SIM (Nano-SIM) or Dual SIM (2 Nano-SIMs + eSIM, dual stand-by)
IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins)
Stylus support
DISPLAY Type Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1500 nits (peak)
Size 6.8 inches, 112.1 cm2 (~89.8% screen-to-body ratio)
Resolution 1440 x 3200 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~515 ppi density)
Protection Corning Gorilla Glass Victus
Always-on display
PLATFORM OS Android 11, One UI 3.1
Chipset Exynos 2100 (5 nm) – International
Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm) – USA/China
CPU Octa-core (1×2.9 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3×2.80 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4×2.2 GHz Cortex-A55) – International
Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680) – USA/China
GPU Mali-G78 MP14 – International
Adreno 660 – USA/China
MEMORY Card slot No
Internal 128GB 12GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM
UFS 3.1
MAIN CAMERA Quad 108 MP, f/1.8, 24mm (wide), 1/1.33″, 0.8µm, PDAF, Laser AF, OIS
10 MP, f/4.9, 240mm (periscope telephoto), 1/3.24″, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, 10x optical zoom
10 MP, f/2.4, 72mm (telephoto), 1/3.24″, 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm (ultrawide), 1/2.55″, 1.4µm, dual pixel PDAF, Super Steady video
Features LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama
Video 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS
SELFIE CAMERA Single 40 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.7µm, PDAF
Features Dual video call, Auto-HDR
Video 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps
SOUND Loudspeaker Yes, with stereo speakers
3.5mm jack No
32-bit/384kHz audio
Tuned by AKG
COMMS WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot
Bluetooth 5.2, A2DP, LE
GPS Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO
NFC Yes
Radio FM radio (Snapdragon model only; market/operator dependent)
USB USB Type-C 3.2, USB On-The-Go
FEATURES Sensors Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer
Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support)
Bixby natural language commands and dictation
Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified)
Ultra Wideband (UWB) support
BATTERY Type Li-Ion 5000 mAh, non-removable
Charging Fast charging 25W
USB Power Delivery 3.0
Fast Qi/PMA wireless charging 15W
Reverse wireless charging 4.5W
MISC Colors Phantom Black, Phantom Silver, Phantom Titanium, Phantom Navy, Phantom Brown, Navy
Models SM-G998B, SM-G998B/DS, SM-G998U, SM-G998U1, SM-G998W, SM-G998N, SM-G9980
SAR 0.77 W/kg (head) 1.02 W/kg (body)
SAR EU 0.71 W/kg (head) 1.58 W/kg (body)
Price € 979.00 / $ 790.00 / £ 983.31 / C$ 1,479.99 / Rp 18,999,000
Those prices, right?
Samsung definitely makes some of the best if not the best Android flagships. They have good software support, at list compared to other Android smartphone producers. So they have that on their side.
But they always look up to Apple and try to do what Apple does, including asking for a lot of money. But they don’t offer what Apple offers for that money. They don’t have the same ecosistem, with the same great apps and services.
Android is good, but it’s still not that buttered like iOS. There plenty things to say here, but you get the point.
So Samsung and other Android developers benefit from Apple dragging the prices up, but they only have control of the hardware. They ask for more money but don’t offer the same value. Not to say that Apple’s not cheeky. But they have the right, until some point.
That being said, I think that the base model, Galaxy S22, is going to be worth it’s money within a couple of months before the next year’s model gets release. That means that now would be a good time to get a S21 or ever a S20 for a lower price.
If money is not a problem, I would say pass to Galaxy S22+ and go straight for the Galaxy S22 Ultra. At list I won’t make any compromise.