Samsung’s “Ultra” phones are meant to be the absolute pinnacle of the company’s (non-folding) mobile technology. And so the Galaxy S21 Ultra — the third Ultra phone after the S20 and Note 20 Ultras — spares very few expenses. The price is lower than before, starting at $1,199.99, but the phone itself is a perfect example of what happens when Samsung goes all-out.
It’s also a perfect example of how Samsung often whiffs on its first attempt at something but presses on anyway, eventually achieving the original vision it couldn’t the first time. The original Galaxy S20 Ultra from last year promised much more than its parts could achieve. The Note 20 Ultra fixed the worst bugs but didn’t improve image quality. Thus far, the “ultra” line hasn’t been especially ultra.
This year, I’m hard pressed to find major faults with the Galaxy S21’s hardware. (Software, unfortunately, is another story.) The S21 Ultra is a huge phone and an expensive one, so it won’t appeal to many — but if you’re okay with those qualities, then it is also the best Android phone right now.
I guess third time’s the charm.
The Galaxy S21 Ultra in phantom black.
The Galaxy S21 Ultra is another in a long line of truly massive Samsung phones. The screen measures 6.8 inches diagonally, which is basically tablet territory. If you are keeping score — and you know that Samsung is — the S21 Ultra’s screen spec is 0.1 inches bigger than the 6.7-inch iPhone 12 Pro Max. (If you account for the curved corners on the screen, the viewing area on both phones is technically smaller.)
Samsung kept the curved edges on the screen.
The metal rail blends into the camera bump.
The Galaxy S21 Ultra vs. the iPhone 12 Pro Max. The Galaxy is narrower and easier to hold.
Big Android phones are common now, though, so Samsung’s job is to not only make a powerful phone but to make one that feels well-made. Mission accomplished: the S21 Ultra looks great and feels better. It’s much more comfortable to hold than the iPhone 12 Pro Max because it is a little narrow and because it has curved edges.
Samsung’s main design change was to blend the metal rails on the sides into the camera array on the back. It looks as good as last year’s mesa-like camera bump looked bad. I’d become a little blind to just how weird and bad most camera bumps look, and the Ultra is a reminder that they can be better designed. Though, of course, there are five big holes (four cameras, one for the laser-focusing system) which are kind of a lot to look at.
There’s no getting around that this is a massive, relatively heavy phone. But Samsung also has a ton of experience making gigantic phones, and it has applied everything it has learned here. For example, contrary to the current trend, the screen is still just a little curved on the sides. I think it was the right call — it narrows the bezels on the left and right just that much more, making the phone easier to hold.
As you may have heard, Samsung is proud of its new, matted “phantom black” finish on the Gorilla Victus Glass on the back of the phone. It is indeed very black and it repels fingerprints well. However, I am a little worried about its durability. We have already put a tiny scratch on ours that shows through as silver simply by setting the phone down on concrete to take a photo of it. Something to watch out for.