The day has finally come. After months of rumors, renders, and leaks, Samsung has finally taken the stage to introduce the Galaxy S22 series in all its glory, consisting of the Galaxy S22, the S22+, and the S22 Ultra. On the surface, not too much seems to have changed compared to last year's S21 lineup, with the two smaller phones in the series retaining the signature camera bump that wraps around the corners and the same basic shape and form, and the hardware isn't exactly a surprise either. That makes the S22 Ultra the most interesting phone in the series, as it comes with a distinct design language and a slot for the S Pen — you see, it's a Note in all but the name.

Phone

Galaxy S22

Galaxy S22+

Galaxy S22 Ultra

Chipset

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1/Exynos 2200

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1/Exynos 2200

Snapdragon 8 Gen 1/Exynos 2200

RAM & Storage

8+128, 8+256GB

8+128, 8+256GB

8+128, 12+256, 12+512GB, 12GB+1TB

Display

6.1" FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2x, 10~120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate

6.6" FHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2x, 10~120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate

6.8" QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2x LTPO, 1~120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate

Software

Android 12 / One UI 4.1

Android 12 / One UI 4.1

Android 12 / One UI 4.1

Battery

3,700mAh, 25W fast charging, 15W wireless charging, Reverse wireless charging

4,500mAh, 45W fast charging, 15W wireless charging, Reverse wireless charging

5000mAh, 45W fast charging, 15W wireless charging, Reverse wireless charging

Rear Cameras

50MP f/1.8 primary, Dual Pixel AF, OIS; 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide (120° FoV); 10MP f/2.4 3x optical zoom sensor with OIS; 30x digital zoom

50MP f/1.8 primary, Dual Pixel AF, OIS; 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide (120° FoV); 10MP f/2.4 3x optical zoom sensor with OIS; 30x digital zoom

108MP f/1.8 primary, 0.8µm large pixels, OIS and PDAF; 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide (120° FoV); 10MP f/2.4 3x optical zoom sensor with OIS; 10MP f/4.9 10x optical zoom with OIS; 100x digital zoom

Front Camera

10MP f2.2

10MP f2.2

40MP f/2.2 with autofocus

Connectivity

5G, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC

5G, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, ultra-wideband

5G, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, ultra-wideband

Dimensions

70.6 x 146 x 7.6mm, 168g, IP68 certified

75.8 x 157.4 x 7.6mm, 196g, IP68 certified

163.3 x 77.9 x 8.9 mm, 229g, IP68 certified

S Pen

-

-

Yes

Colors

Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, Pink Gold; Online exclusive colors: Graphite, Cream, Sky Blue, Violet

Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, Pink Gold; Online exclusive colors: Graphite, Cream, Sky Blue, Violet

Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, Burgundy; Online exclusive colors: Graphite, Sky Blue, Red

Price

Starting at $799.99

Starting at $999.99

Starting at $1,199.99

Galaxy S22 Ultra

The Galaxy S22 Ultra is, quite obviously, Samsung's flagship smartphone for 2022. While its predecessor, the Galaxy S21 Ultra, already built up on what made the Note20 a great phone, the S22 goes a step further and basically looks more like it's a part of the axed Note series rather than the S lineup. Most notably, it brings back an integrated slot for storing the signature S Pen, but there are more hints that give out that the S22 Ultra is different from its siblings. There's the camera array that consists of individual protruding lenses rather than a smooth block that curves around the side of the phone and blends in with the edge, and there's the boxier design, completed by a curved screen.

Galaxy S22 Ultra ransom 2

To get into the weeds of the hardware, we're once again looking at a 6.8-inch 1440x3080 OLED screen with curved edges, though Samsung has further improved the dynamic 120Hz refresh rate, which can now go down to as little as 1Hz — an impressive feat, even compared to the 10Hz its predecessor already supported. While the display is the same size as the S21 Ultra's, the phone does look considerably different from the front thanks to its more boxy shape. You'll also notice that the corner radiuses are ever-so-slightly reduced, making way for just a little more on-screen content. The edges are made of a sleek metal frame, with a "luxurious" glass and haze effect making for an elegant design front and back. All of this — the boxy design, the integrated S Pen holder, and the frame — make for a design that even Samsung itself compares with the "Galaxy Note's iconic sharp angles," all while offering even better protection from thanks to Gorilla Glass Victus+ front and back.

Comparing edge Galaxy S22 and S22 Ultra

The Galaxy S22 Ultra (bottom) vs. the S22 (top)

Despite this new design direction, the interior hardware is pretty much what we can expect. In the US, the S22 Ultra is powered by the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 while it will get the Exynos 2200 in many international markets. Like its predecessor, a 5,000mAh battery is powering everything, though this time around, 45W fast charging is available. For wireless charging, you'll have to stick with 15W. Reverse wireless charging is also on board, for what it's worth. As for connectivity, the S22 Ultra offers only state-of-the-art components. The phone supports Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, ultra-wideband, and, of course, 5G and LTE.

On paper, the camera array should feel familiar, too. There's a 108MP primary sensor, with two 10MP telephoto lenses enabling zoom capabilities and a 12MP ultrawide for those dramatic wide shots. However, Samsung says that it has upgraded some of the sensors, with the primary one supposedly completely reengineered. And as always, software processing is an important factor, so we might be in for some surprises in this regard. A "Super Clear Glass" lens for the 108MP sensor is also supposed to give you even better, you know, clearer results.

Galaxy S22 Ultra Camera macro

In contrast to the Galaxy S21 Ultra, there's one regression, though. The S22 Ultra supports a maximum of 12GB of RAM, with 8GB available for the base model while the S21 Ultra started at 12GB and could go all the way to 16GB. Samsung claims that thanks to more intelligent RAM management that also utilizes the storage, you can get up to 4 GB of virtual RAM, so you shouldn't notice any differences. As for storage, the S22 Ultra comes in variations sporting 128, 256, 512, and a whopping 1TB.

Galaxy S22 Ultra stylus half out

The most interesting addition to the S22 Ultra is probably the S Pen slot, complete with the stylus itself in the box (or rather, in the phone). While the S Pen was an optional accessory on the S21 Ultra, the S22 Ultra doubles down on the Note legacy and includes it as one of the default options to interact with the phone. That means those familiar with the Note series should feel right at home with the new Ultra. You can draw, scribble, take screenshots, and more using the stylus. Samsung claims that the new S Pen has a 70% lower latency compared to the S21 Ultra, making for an even more paper-like experience.

Samsung Store exclusive colorways

The Galaxy S22 Ultra will be available through the Samsung Store as well as retailers and carriers starting February 25, 2022, while pre-orders start today, on February 9. The phone will be available from $1,199.99 and come in Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, and Burgundy. There are also three Samsung Store exclusive colors: Graphite, Sky Blue, and Red.

Buy the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra

From $1200 at Samsung

Galaxy S22, S22+, and S22 Ultra

Galaxy S22 and S22+

If it wasn't for the same "S22" moniker, you could think that the Galaxy S22 and S22+ were part of a different series than the S22 Ultra. In contrast to the Ultra variant, the smaller two phones stay much more in line with the design that Samsung introduced with the S21 series. There are the familiar smooth curves and the camera bump that wraps around the side of the phones.

Galaxy S22 and S22+

The S22 and the S22+ are mostly identical, except for the size, some battery details, and ultra-wideband support. The S22 comes with a 6.1-inch FHD+ AMOLED with refresh rate of 10-120Hz while the S22+ has a 6.6-inch screen otherwise sharing the same specifications. The bigger display makes the phone itself slightly larger, which also allows for a better battery. There are 4,500mAh in the S22+ as opposed to 3,700mAh in the S22. This bigger battery also comes with a speed upgrade for wired charging, allowing for up to 45W compared to 25W on the S22. Both support 15W wireless charging, though.

It's a bummer that Samsung decided to make the batteries smaller compared to the predecessors (coming with 4,000mAh and 4,800mAh, respectively), and we're very skeptical about the company's claims that everything will be fine thanks to improvements to the display and the processor, but here we are.

s22-handheld

With these differences out of the way, we can dive into the design that seems mostly identical to the S21, though we did notice that Samsung seems to have physically redesigned a lot of components and is not just merely reusing parts from the older phones. Notably, Samsung has left behind the less premium feeling "glasstic" material that it popularized with the preceding S21 lineup, going for a full glass finish front and back this time around for all three phones. Samsung also says its redesigned "armor aluminum" frames and Gorilla Glass Victus+ are doing the rest to protect the phones from any damage.

Storage configurations and connectivity other than ultra-wideband and Wi-Fi 6E support (which is only available on the S22+ and S22 Ultra) are also identical across the two phones. As for RAM and storage, the S22 and S22+ have to make do with 8GB of RAM and either 128 or 256GB of storage.

Galaxy S22 all colors

The cameras are seeing considerate changes compared to the S21 lineup, which could be good or bad, depending on how you look at them. The S22 and S22+ both come with a 50MP main camera, a 10MP tele-lens, and a 12MP ultra-wide lens, as opposed to the 12MP main / 64MP tele / 12MP ultrawide setup on the S21. While it's a bummer that the telephoto lens isn't as high-res as it used to be, pictures weren't really useable at more than 3x zoom anyway. The S22's new main camera is supposed to be much better equipped for low-light situations and Samsung's new "Autoframing" feature that automatically keeps people in the frame when shooting videos, though. Either way, we'll have to wait for our review to properly judge this.

A few things connect all three phones in the lineup. As part of the Galaxy for the Planet program, Samsung is recycling discarded fishing nets and transforms them into plastics suitable for internal components. The phones also incorporate further recycled plastics in their speaker modules and the inner parts of the power and volume keys. All three are additionally certified for water and dust resistance as per the IP68 specification.

05_Recycled material of S22 Ultra_LI

Another thing connecting all three devices is the Android 12-based One UI 4.1. While we haven't heard too much about what it's capable of just yet, it's the latest and greatest software from Samsung. You can expect the usual mass of customization options and some Material You coloring niceties for sure.

Samsung is also stepping up its Android update game once again. As we already covered based on a leak, the S22 lineup will get a whopping four Android software upgrades and up to five years of security patches, outpacing even Google. This commitment is also making its way to the S21 series, the Z Flip3, the Z Fold3, and the Galaxy Tab S8 lineup.

The Galaxy S22 will start at $799.99 while the S22+ will be available from $999.99. You can pre-order them starting today, on February 9, and they will come to stores and carriers starting February 25. You may pick between Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, and Pink Gold colors, and you can choose between the 128GB and 256GB models. The Samsung Store also has exclusive colors on offer: Graphite, Cream, Sky Blue, and Violet.

Buy the Samsung Galaxy S22/S22+

From $800 at Samsung

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