The newest Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G is surprisingly one of the best smartphones to ever come out this year and so far, it’s leading the Android smartphone market by far.
The device comes loaded with tons of cool specifications and carries the Galaxy Note series design aesthetics which marks the end of the “Galaxy Note” lineup for good – since Samsung will be focusing more on its foldable smartphones (Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip series) as being the high-end flagship.
But don’t just write off your older Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G or the slightly older Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G because both devices despite how long they’ve been around, they’re still performing extremely great in 2022.
And that is why I’m going to be comparing the trio in order to help guide your decision whether to drop either of the older Galaxy devices for the newest Galaxy S22 Ultra – or not.
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But first of all, if you just want to move with the current trend and have the budget to do so, then, by all means, you can swap for the latest Galaxy S22 Ultra but if you’re never a fan of the Galaxy Note series design aesthetics – especially the S-Pen, your Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G should certainly be enough in 2022 as it’s still going strong thanks to all the cool features and specs the device came with back in 2021.
Specifications: Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G vs Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G vs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G
| Features | Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G | Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G | Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G |
|---|---|---|---|
| Date Announced | 2022, February 09 | 2021, January 14 | 2020, August 05 |
| Network technology | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G |
| Dimension | 163.3 x 77.9 x 8.9 mm (6.43 x 3.07 x 0.35 in) | 165.1 x 75.6 x 8.9 mm (6.5 x 2.98 x 0.35 in) | 164.8 x 77.2 x 8.1 mm (6.49 x 3.04 x 0.32 in) |
| Protection | IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins) Armour aluminum frame with tougher drop and scratch resistance Stylus, 2.8ms latency (Bluetooth integration, accelerometer, gyro) |
IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins) Stylus support |
IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 mins) Stylus, 9ms latency (Bluetooth integration, accelerometer, gyro) |
| Build | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus+), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus+), aluminum frame | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus), aluminum frame | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus), stainless steel frame |
| Chipset | Exynos 2200 (4 nm) – Europe Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4 nm) – ROW |
Exynos 2100 (5 nm) – International Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm) – USA/China |
Exynos 990 (7 nm+) – Global Qualcomm SM8250 Snapdragon 865 5G+ (7 nm+) – USA |
| Storage | 128GB of storage and 8GB RAM, 256GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 512GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 1TB of storage and 12GB RAM | 128GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 256GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 512GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 512GB of storage and 16GB RAM | 128GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 256GB of storage and 8GB RAM, 256GB of storage and 12GB RAM, 512GB of storage and 12GB RAM |
| Sensors | Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer | Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer | Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer |
| Bluetooth | 5.2, A2DP, LE | 5.0, A2DP, LE | 5.0, A2DP, LE, aptX |
| Services | Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support) Bixby natural language commands and dictation Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified) Ultra-Wideband (UWB) support |
Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support) Bixby natural language commands and dictation Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified) Ultra-Wideband (UWB) support |
Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support) ANT+ Bixby natural language commands and dictation Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified) Ultra-Wideband (UWB) support |
| Performance | AnTuTu: 968359 (v9) GeekBench: 3657 (v5.1) GFXBench: 37fps (ES 3.1 onscreen) |
AnTuTu: 657150 (v8) GeekBench: 3518 (v5.1) GFXBench: 33fps (ES 3.1 onscreen) |
AnTuTu: 508760 (v8) GeekBench: 2603 (v5.1) GFXBench: 42fps (ES 3.1 onscreen) |
The closeness of the above features and specifications is well pronounced and that might change your mind about which of the trio is more superior. Of course, the latest iteration is often depicted as being the best because you get a little bit more but if you’re on the market for a new Samsung Galaxy smartphone, you can rest assured that getting either the Galaxy S21 Ultra from last year or the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G will certainly be a good deal.
Apart from the fact that both devices are now cheaper compared to the current Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G, both devices also offer some interesting features as they were on top of their lines when they were announced.
While the Galaxy S22 Ultra is certainly an upgrade in some aspect, the older Galaxy Note 20 Ultra still offer some value that is nowhere to be found in 2022 – I’m talking about things like the power brick, MicroSD card support to further expand your storage option rather than opting for a more expensive variant that has more storage space.
One problem though is the international version of the previous Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G which was powered by the South Korean tech giant’s Exynos 990 chipset. There were complaints across the internet back then that the device often gets hot or lags slightly behind compared to its US and China counterparts that were shipped with the Snapdragon 865+ chipset.
But that seems to have changed since the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G and even improved with the newer Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G thanks to the Exynos 2200 (4nm) while the new generation Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is also a performance beast.
All devices support the Samsung Desktop eXperience or DeX, all are IP68 certified and all devices are well protected using the Gorilla Glass Victus. The exception is the Galaxy S22 Ultra which is protected by a tougher Gorilla Glass Victus+ both at the front and back while sporting a solid aluminum frame at the middle.
All devices support the S-Pen but it got even better with the Galaxy S22 Ultra with a super-low latency making the device even faster when writing on the screen. For enthusiasts, this might just be the right tool for you even though the difference may not be so noticeable to a novice like me.
Display: Galaxy S22 Ultra vs Galaxy S21 Ultra vs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra
| Features | Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G | Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G | Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G |
|---|---|---|---|
| Display Technology | Dynamic AMOLED 2X HDR 10+ 1750 nits peak brightness |
Dynamic AMOLED 2X HDR 10+ 1500 nits peak brightness |
Dynamic AMOLED 2X HDR 10+ |
| Refresh Rate | 120Hz refresh rate | 120Hz refresh rate | 120Hz refresh rate |
| Display Resolution | 1440 x 3088 pixels (~500 PPI density) | 1440 x 3200 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~515 PPI density) | 1440 x 3088 pixels (~496 PPI density) |
| Always-on | Supported | Supported | Supported |
| Size | 6.8 inches, 114.7 cm2 (~90.2% screen-to-body ratio) | 6.8 inches, 112.1 cm2 (~89.8% screen-to-body ratio) | 6.9 inches, 116.7 cm2 (~91.7% screen-to-body ratio) |
As for the display technology of all the devices, they all sport great display technologies. The older Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G sports a bigger 6.9-inch display while the others (Galaxy S22 Ultra and S21 Ultra) both have a slightly smaller 6.8-inch display.
Left for me, there isn’t any significant difference in terms of the sizes of all the displays but there are some slight differences in terms of the technology used on the devices.
The display of the Galaxy S22 Ultra for example has a brighter AMOLED panel with LTPO technology that can dynamically switch the display’s refresh rate from 120Hz all the way down to just 1Hz depending on what you’re consuming – in other to conserve battery.
The same technology is similar in older models but the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra suck in this realm as using the high refresh rate would require stepping down the device’s display resolution to just FHD+.
The Galaxy S21 Ultra is very close to the S22 Ultra in terms of display technology and has a slightly similar peak brightness. The Galaxy S22 Ultra’s peak brightness can reach a whopping 1750 nits while that of the Galaxy S21 Ultra is about 1500 nits.
As for their resolution, all devices have powerful displays resolutions. We all know how great Samsung is when it comes to display technologies and that shouldn’t be surprising at all.
Camera technology: Galaxy S22 Ultra vs Galaxy S21 Ultra vs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra
| Features | Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G | Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G | Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rear camera module | Quad sensors 108 MP (wide angle) primary sensor 10 MP periscope lens 10 MP telephoto 12 MP ultra-wide |
Quad sensors 108 MP (wide angle) primary sensor 10 MP periscope lens 10 MP telephoto 12 MP ultra-wide |
Triple sensors 108 MP (wide angle) primary sensor 12 MP periscope lens 12 MP ultra-wide |
| Features | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama |
| Rear camera video capability | 8K@24fps 4K@30/60fps 1080p@30/60/240fps 720p@960fps HDR10+ stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS |
8K@24fps 4K@30/60fps 1080p@30/60/240fps 720p@960fps HDR10+ stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS |
8K@24fps 4K@30/60fps 1080p@30/60/240fps 720p@960fps HDR10+ stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS |
| Front-facing camera | 40 MP wide-angle | 40 MP wide-angle | 10 MP wide-angle |
| Video capacity | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps |
While all devices have really great camera capabilities, there are just little differences or even unnoticeable changes as far as the camera system of all devices is concerned.
One thing obviously though is that the newest Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G has the leading camera capacity. Newer camera sensors that can capture better pictures in both normal and low light situations.
While there isn’t so much difference among all the three devices’ camera output, if you already own either of the older versions, you can rest assured that what you’re gonna be getting won’t be totally different from the other.
Take the camera hardware specification as an example, the Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G sports a quad rear setup which consists of a 108MP main sensor has a wide-angle lens, and features an f/1.8 aperture, a PDAF, Laser AF, and OIS.
Then there is a 10MP periscope telephoto sensor with a 10X optical zoom capacity and OIS, another 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, and lastly, a 12MP ultrawide sensor with Super Steady Video recording capacity.
The Galaxy S22 Ultra can record an 8K video at 24 frames per second.
But the Galaxy S22 Ultra isn’t the only device endowed with high-end camera hardware and features as the same setup can be found on the previous Galaxy S21 Ultra as well – 108MP primary sensor with OIS, 10MP periscope sensor with 10x optical zoom, the same 10MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom and OIS and lastly, a 12MP ultra wide-angle sensor.
Last but not least is the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra whose camera hardware may be slightly lower in terms of spec but it’s certainly a great performer in this comparison. The GN20 Ultra also has a 108MP wide-angle sensor with OIS and the device can record an 8k video at 24FPS. It has a triple setup compared to the aforementioned devices.
Miscellaneous features: Galaxy S22 Ultra vs Galaxy S21 Ultra vs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra
All three devices offer the best value and even though the older Galaxy Note 20 Ultra was released as far back as 2020, the device is still a performance beast even in 2022 and its price point is now way lower compared to the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G or the current Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G.
As for the battery capability, both the Galaxy S22 Ultra and the Galaxy S21 Ultra have a 5,000mAh battery while the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra has a 4,500mAh battery. The latter can also charge at 25W while the current Galaxy S22 Ultra can charge at a faster 45W charging.
As mentioned, the Galaxy S22 Ultra costs about US$1,200 while the older devices are now much cheaper.
As for the design aesthetics, I personally find the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra much more amusing while the Galaxy S21 Ultra blew my mind. The Galaxy S22 Ultra is quite simplified especially with the camera arrangement even though the front of the device looks similar to the older Galaxy Note 10 Plus released back in 2019.
