Here we compare the Samsung Galaxy S22 flagship smartphone with its predecessor, the Galaxy S21 from, focusing on upgrades to camera technology, gaming capabilities, battery, and other specifications.
The Galaxy S21, known for its compact design with a 6.2-inch screen, stood out among flagship smartphones. Its charm was evident, especially when compared to the larger 6.7-inch devices of 2021.
Samsung maintains its winning formula with the Galaxy S22, which is slightly smaller at 6.1 inches. However, this reduction in size comes with a trade off a smaller battery. On the positive side, the S22 boasts improvements, including the enhanced Exynos 2200 chipset, an upgraded camera system, a more appealing display, and various other refinements.
Having had the opportunity for a hands-on experience with the Galaxy S22, I conducted a side-by-side comparison of the Samsung Galaxy S21 vs Galaxy GS22. This allowed me to precisely identify the changes and assess whether they contribute to an improved overall user experience.
Design and Durability
The Galaxy S22 is slightly smaller than its predecessor Galaxy S21 with a screen size reduction from 6.2 to 6.1 inches. When placed side by side, the difference is noticeable. Despite featuring slightly flatter edges, the Galaxy S22 feels more comfortable in hand and provides a secure grip.
Despite its more compact size Galaxy S22 maintains the same weight as the Galaxy S21, thanks to the materials used in its construction. The Galaxy S21 utilized Samsung’s lightweight glastic material for its frame, which, while surprisingly durable, felt somewhat cheap for a flagship device. The front of the phone features a Gorilla Glass Victus display, known for its shatter-resistant properties but prone to scratching easily.
In contrast, the Galaxy S22 replaces the glastic material with a Gorilla Glass Victus coating on both the front and back. Additionally, the frame has been upgraded to Samsung’s new armor aluminum design. Overall, the Galaxy S22 is more robust than its predecessor as evidenced by its durability when accidentally dropped during a hands-on session. However, it may still be susceptible to scratching, similar to the Gorilla Glass Victus screen on the S21. And both models are available in Phantom White and Phantom Black.
While the Galaxy S21 offered additional color choices like Phantom Pink and Phantom Violet, the Galaxy S22 introduces a stylish dark green variant and the classic pink gold. In terms of design, the Galaxy S22 is more visually appealing to me than the older S21. It exudes a premium feel and provides comfortable one-handed usage due to its slightly smaller size. Though the overall aesthetics are similar to the S21, some users may feel disappointed by the resemblance.
Software and OneUI
The Galaxy S22’s software isn’t vastly different from the Galaxy S21’s. It’s been upgraded to One UI 4, built on Android 12. While exploring the settings, I’m hard-pressed to spot any major differences from my old S21. But that’s okay by me since I’m fond of the S21’s software features. The One UI 4 launcher is top-notch, blending the finest aspects of Android 12, like enhanced customization and robust privacy measures.
Samsung’s Galaxy S22 sticks to its guns with essential features like the Knox security suite, Dex functionality for connecting to a monitor, and a slew of Samsung apps like Samsung Health and Bixby assistant. While it’s a tad inconvenient to have some Android features duplicated, it’s in line with what we saw in the Galaxy S21.
Security remains solid, with the S22 sporting an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor and face unlock, just like the S21. Storage-wise, you can max out at 256 GB internally, though sadly, neither the S21 nor the S22 supports microSD cards.
Display and Audio Quality
The Galaxy S22 shares the same display technology as its predecessor, the Galaxy S21. It boasts a Dynamic AMOLED screen, though slightly smaller in size. Despite this reduction, the Full HD+ resolution ensures crisp visuals in this more compact form. Whether you’re watching videos or viewing photos the display impresses with its detail and you can tweak color saturation to your liking through the display settings.
An added feature on the Galaxy S22 is Samsung’s Vision Booster which adjusts screen color and contrast based on ambient light making dark images more visible in brighter environments. Moreover, the S22 boasts a higher maximum brightness compared to the older S21 ensuring excellent visibility even outdoors.
Both the S21 and S22 can dynamically adjust the display’s refresh rate, supporting up to 120Hz for smooth visuals in games and compatible apps. However, the S22 improves upon the S21 by allowing a minimum refresh rate as low as 10Hz, which significantly reduces power consumption when viewing static images.
Similar to the S21, the S22 features a stereo speaker setup that delivers decent output. When cranked up, the volume produces reasonably loud sound with clarity. Unfortunately, like its predecessor, the Galaxy S22 lacks a headphone jack. However, it improves upon the S21 by upgrading the Bluetooth support from 5.0 to 5.2, enhancing the wireless streaming experience on the go.
Performance
A major upgrade in the Galaxy S22 compared to its predecessor, the Galaxy S21, is the Exynos chipset. The S22 runs on the 2200, while the S21 operated on the 2100. Although the RAM remains at eight gigs, the four-nanometer Exynos 2200, developed with AMD, features Samsung’s X-Clips GPU. The GPU supports advanced graphical features like ray tracing, delivering stunning graphics in supported games. Additionally, the Exynos 2200’s variable rate shading contributes to smoother gameplay and overall performance.
Gaming on the Samsung Galaxy S21 flagship had its drawbacks, especially with demanding titles like Genshin Impact. Frame rate drops were noticeable when increasing detail settings, which was disappointing compared to some competitors. Nonetheless, the Exynos 2100 chipset maintained cool temperatures during gaming to S21 stayed cool under pressure.
Both the S21 and S22 offer full support for 5G and Wi-Fi 6 making them future-proof flagship phone.
Battery life
The Galaxy S21 packed a 4,000 milliamp capacity battery. Although the Galaxy S22 is only slightly smaller, it now has a significantly reduced 3,700 milliamp capacity battery. This change worries me the most about the new Galaxy S22 because the S21’s battery life left much to be desired—I often struggled to make it through a full day. With the S22 sporting a smaller battery, we might face similar challenges. The key to overcoming this will depend on the energy efficiency of the Exynos 2200.
In terms of recharging support, there’s no alteration. The S22 still offers 25-watt wired charging, which seems a bit slow compared to competitors offering 66-watt or even 80 to 100 watts. However, the S22 maintains 15-watt wireless charging with full Qi support, consistent with the S21. It also retains the wireless power share feature allowing you to charge accessories like Galaxy Buds on the go by placing them on the back of the Phone.
Camera Comparison
Wrapping up this comparison between the S21 and S22, let’s focus on camera technology. The S22 swaps out the 12-megapixel primary sensor of the S21 for a 50-megapixel sensor with optical image stabilization. This upgrade, akin to recent advancements like the Pixel 6 over the Pixel 5, notably enhances overall photo quality. The S22 captures images with striking clarity maintaining natural-looking skin tones even in dim lighting. It excels in delivering crisp beautiful photos with lifelike colors and performs well in low-light conditions.
When shooting a moving subject, like a swiftly moving drink, you may encounter some motion blur. However, if your subject remains stationary, the S22 can produce attractive night shots. And video capabilities are robust even in low-light settings. Like the S21, the S22 supports a 12-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens, showing little variance in camera hardware.
While the S21 featured a 64-megapixel telephoto lens, the S22 switches it for a 10-megapixel true telephoto lens. This upgrade enables the S22 to zoom in before capturing the photo offering a three-times optical zoom. In my hands-on experience, it seemed to be an improvement over the S21, with sharper detail and less grain.
The S22 can shoot videos in up to 8K resolution, similar to the S21. The camera modes remain consistent including night mode, food mode, and the versatile single take feature for capturing multiple pictures and video clips simultaneously.
For selfies the S22 sports a 10-megapixel front camera matching the S21. In my experience there didn’t appear to be any noticeable difference.
My Final Thought
This concludes the comparison of the Galaxy S22 with the Galaxy S21. Meanwhile, you can explore my review of the Galaxy S21 to understand my thoughts on that device. I’m eager to hear from you too. If you currently own the S21, are you considering an upgrade to the S22?
