All have the same basic processor and modem. The S21
and S21 Plus are similar, other than their screen and
battery sizes. The S21 Ultra pours on features the other
two lack: a 108-megapixel main camera, a
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S Pen support, Wi-Fi 6E, and UWB directional
positioning.
These are all nice features, and all of them work. The
tricky bit is to understand whether they’re excessive,
and that’s going to be an individual choice. I’ve grown
skeptical of phones over $1,000 just on principle, in
this coronavirus-crushed time when people are begging
for government checks so they can pay rent and buy
food. The S21 Ultra’s price doesn’t affect our rating, but
it does mean we aren’t giving it our Editors’ Choice
award.
At $1,199.99, the S21 Ultra costs $100 less than the
Galaxy Note 20 Ultra and $300 less than the Galaxy
S20 Ultra did at launch. On the other hand, it costs
$100 more than the iPhone 12 Pro Max. You might not
have to pay full price, though; there are a lot of trade-in
and promo offers around that could reduce your out-of-
pocket cost for any of the S21 models.
Samsung Galaxy
S21 Ultra
PROS Beautiful
design and solid build.
Excellent photo
quality at up to 10x
zoom. Equipped for
next-gen C-band and
Wi-Fi 6E connectivity.
CONS Heavy.
Expensive. Some of
those next-gen
networks don’t exist
yet.
BOTTOM LINE The
Galaxy S21 Ultra
delivers a high-quality
superzoom camera
that truly works,
supports Samsung’s
excellent S Pen, and
sets the bar for
smartphone features
in 2021.