Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra 5G

 


SAMSUNG GALAXY S22 ULTRA SPECIFICATIONS

  • Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1
  • Main display: 6.8 inches, 3088 x 1440 pixels resolution (500PPI), Dynamic AMOLED 2X Infinity-O with adaptive 120Hz refresh rate
  • Operating system: Android 12 with OneUI 4.1
  • RAM: 12GB/16GB LPDDR5
  • Storage: 128/256/512GB/1TB internal storage options
  • Cameras: 10MP rear f/4.9 telephoto with 10x optical zoom and a second 10MP f/2.4 telephoto camera with 3x optical zoom, 108MP f/1.8 wide-angle camera, and 12MP f/2.2 ultra-wide camera (120 degrees field-of-view). 40MP f/2.2 front-facing under display camera.
  • Connectivity: Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2, GPS/Galileo/GLONASS/Beidou, NFC, UWB
  • Sensors: Accelerometer, Barometer, Ultrasonic Fingerprint Sensor, Gyro Sensor, Geomagnetic Sensor, Hall Sensor, Proximity Sensor, RGB Light Sensor
  • Dust/water resistance: IP68 rating
  • Battery: 5000mAh non-removable with fast wireless charging. Wireless PowerShare is also available.
  • Dimensions: 163.3 x 77.9 x 8.9mm and 228g
  • Colors: Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, Burgundy, Graphite, Sky Blue, Red

When you look at the S21 Ultra in comparison, the only obvious differences, in terms of specifications, are the newer Qualcomm processor, colors, and better integration of the S Pen. The display, RAM, storage (except for the 1TB option), connectivity, camera hardware, battery capacity, and the rest are all the same. The cameras have been enhanced with software improvements, but the focus here is clearly on the slightly different form factor and S Pen support.

HARDWARE

Last year's S21 Ultra incorporated Samsung's Contour Cut camera housing that extends the metal frame out from the right side and around the back. The S22 and S22 Plus looks to have a similar design as last year's S21 models while the S22 Ultra has a simple, minimalistic rear camera layout with five raised circles protruding out the back of the phone on a field of matte Gorilla Glass Victus Plus. Both my wife and I first thought of a spider's eyes when we saw the cameras on the back of the Phantom Black S22 Ultra, so now, whenever I look at the back, I think of a spider.

Four cameras are found on the back, with two of them serving as telephoto cameras, one as an ultra-wide, and the other as the main 108MP shooter. Ten times optical looks great, while zooming in up to 30 times still results in usable images with readable text. The 100x Space Zoom is fantastic for capturing photos of the moon, but for other objects in daylight, you are going to want to mount the phone to a tripod to stabilize the shot.


I've always used Samsung phones for their superb macro results, but this year my testing revealed that the iPhone 13 Pro Max  performed better for close-up shots.

One other hardware difference that I did not notice for the first couple of hours is that the 40MP front-facing camera is not a traditional center hole punch camera as it appears. The camera is actually positioned under the glass display, so the glass over the camera is smooth with no cutout for the camera. It turns out this is not a true under-display camera like we see on the Z Fold 3, and that's a good thing because that front-facing camera is really only good for video calls. The camera is under the glass but is still cut out of the viewable display, so there is no display layer over the top of the camera, and front-facing camera shots look great.

The major change here with the S22 Ultra is the inclusion of the S Pen and a silo to store and charge it. Since it is a Bluetooth stylus, it is charged in the silo and supports wireless Air Actions. Samsung also reduced the S Pen latency to just 2.8 milliseconds (from 9 milliseconds), so your pen will flow flawlessly across the display.


The Galaxy S22 Ultra is a gorgeous piece of hardware with minimal top and bottom bezels and no side bezels, with the sides of the display curved down into a rounded side design. The curved sides are subtle, and I have not experienced any inadvertent screen activations or degradation in the performance of the S Pen. The display is gorgeous, bright, and vivid, just like one would expect from Samsung.

The top and bottom are flat, so the design elements of the old Note series is clearly present here. The power/Bixby and volume buttons are on the right side, with nothing on the left side. The SIM card slot, USB port, and bottom-firing speaker are on the bottom. A mic opening is just a couple of millimeters away from the SIM card release opening on the bottom with a microphone opening on the top.