Amazon.com: Customer reviews: SAMSUNG Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G Factory Unlocked Android Cell Phone 256GB US Version Smartphone Pro-Grade Camera 8K Video 108MP High Res, Phantom Black

Top positive review

A mind-blowing and incredible experience.

Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2021

I wanted to give this phone some full usage before I wrote my review and I can finally get into full detail. Before I jump into my pros vs cons let's just mention my personal final thoughts.
Get it! Thought over.
Whether you are transitioning from Apple to Android or just upgrading, this is without question the correct choice. With the latest chipset, processors, camera array, and intelligent software there are so many possibilities.

Pros:
1) The battery life is absolutely insane. Now at first I wasn't sure how I felt about the battery. It seemed average after the first day or two of use. But something clicked half way through the third day of use. I had read from articles and watched YouTube reviews from TechTubers about this intelligent software. I expected them to be referencing the Ai. But it is so much deeper in that. This phone continues to monitor your usage and learn the way you operate with it. Pair it with a smart watch to perfectly shift usage and workload. At no point since purchase has this device seemed to struggle. I can comfortably say this is a 2 day phone easily. 2 days of continuous normal usage before needing a recharge.

2) The finger print reader is vastly improved from previous devices and can now be compared to the likes of devices like One Plus. Yes you will have to spend a good minute or so letting every point of your finger be thoroughly mapped out but it has proven to be lightning fast in response.

3) This camera...phew. if there was ever a single reason to choose the Ultra variant over the other two it is absolutely due to the camera. Laser focus, combined with smart lenses, and a true melody of beautiful spec options results in a user paradise. One could literally place a fruit, a leaf, and some random option side by side for a shot and notice visible suggestion. The fruit will display a food shot mode. The leaf will suggest aspect ratio options or even the ultrawide/ Auto-Focus macro shot mode. Truly mastering this camera will not only take time but also lot of practice, something I personally look forward to.

4) This may seem like something that at first should be obvious. But use of this device just truly feels so effortless and fluid. Everything works how I would want it to, and at just a speed that truly leaves you with a sense of relief.

Cons:
1) Inevitably as with all Samsung products of course there is some bloatware. But from what I've seen it at least is not overwhelming. A few apps I know I'll never used sprinkled around. But those have just been compiled into a folder and forgotten about.

2) To some this may be a nuisance so it's worth mentioning. Although this device has an Android OS, it is noticeable the amount of strictly Samsung branded apps/Widgets available. It will take some navigating to better arrange your set up to one's preference. Especially when it comes to something such as utilizing the Google Play Store vs Samsung Store.

3) Third but maybe most importantly, given the circumstances everyone is facing due to Covid-19 the price is certainly a factor. Even with sales yes this is a price handset. Yes there was a price drop from last year, but that doesn't really soften the blow.

4) No charging brick. No matter how it is explained or reasoned, the absence of the brick is felt! On first charge I did use a prior usb-C to usb-a charger and wow.....talked about watching paint dry. There was absolutely no way that is truly the best option across the board for all the relevant phone companies. (Ended up buying a usb-c IQ charger from Anker. I think that was like $14 approximately. Definitely an immediate and noticeable remedy, thanks Anker for that save.)

If one were to say is this phone worth the 999$-1200$ price tag. Honest answer, absolutely, depending on how one plans to use it. If you want the BEST experience out of the three variants (S21, S21+,S21 ultra) there is only one choice. However if that price point just isn't within your budget or path of purchase, I can still say the other two options will suffice also.

169 people found this helpful

Top critical review

Critical reviews›

Matt

Incredible hardware; meh software

Reviewed in the United States on June 16, 2021

It has been years since I've had a Samsung phone. The last one that I owned was an S4. Since then, I have avoided them like the plague. The software experience of the old TouchWiz ran me off and kept me away.

In recent years I've heard more and more about how much better one UI is so I decided after all of these years, and in the lack of a pixel flagship, to give the S21 Ultra a shot. Things have greatly improved compared to those days of TouchWiz but nevertheless the incredible hardware that Samsung builds is still completely devastated by their disappointing software.

Surprisingly, this time around I have very little problem with the overall UI. I have managed to work around most of the problems that I did have. For example, I can't stand the horizontally scrolling app drawer so I switched launchers and as usual with Android that's no big deal. I've removed or disabled most of the extraneous Samsung apps that can be removed or disabled and the rest can be ignored. Bixby can be remapped to Google Assistant for the most part but Bixby routines for hardware control are pretty useful. Most of the UX ranges from perfectly fine to really good.

Unfortunately, where the software really really falls short is where this phone is meant to shine. The Galaxy camera software is bloated beyond usability and largely unable to take a usable photo of anything that either moves or is in low light. The S21 Ultra, in particular, is more of a camera than a phone but the software that you have to use for the camera part of it simply doesn't work well enough to use in many cases.

If you want to take a photo of a landscape or a building or a car in broad daylight it will come out looking amazing. If you want to take a photo of a child or a pet playing in the Sun it probably won't work. If you want to take a photo of something in a little like then it probably won't work.

It seems unable to take a photo of a moving object without motion blur even in broad daylight. When it does manage to take one then it misses the focus and focuses on some random thing in the background rather than the moving subject. Along those same lines, it is unable to focus at all in many cases in the dark.

The camera app spends so much for the phones processing power trying to present you with an image in the viewfinder that looks better than the final photo will that it can't actually take the photo when you press the button. Instead of understanding your button press to mean take the photo now the phone interprets it as a request to take the photo at some point in the future. If you shutter lag is immense and it is real.

This is all an entirely software problem. I know this because when I use a port of the Google camera the phone produces amazing photos in nearly all scenarios. Unfortunately, you are unable to use the Google camera ports using Hardware shortcuts to launch the camera if the phone is locked which makes this solution unusable.

Fortunately, many of the problems with the Samsung camera software seem to be slowly getting resolved. The June update has made massive strides to improving the shutter lag. If they continue on this trajectory then the S21 Ultra camera might be usable by the time the s22 ultra gets released and then they can start all over again.

Moving off of the camera, my only other real problem with the device is the fingerprint sensor. Under screen fingerprint sensors are both unnecessary and poorly functioning. Don't get me wrong, the fingerprint sensor works fine without a screen protector or with a film screen protector. However, this is a $1,200 7-in slab of glass that I carry with me all day, everyday. It needs more protection than a simple film screen protector. It needs a glass screen protector but they simply don't work well enough with the fingerprint sensor.

I've tried multiple glass screen protectors for this phone and none of them work with another fingerprint sensor. Even the $50 ones that are applied using liquid adhesive and cure under UV light don't work reliably with the fingerprint sensor. They work sort of, but not well enough to rely on. With them in place, the fingerprint sensor is unable to read your finger properly in most situations. It will eventually get it if you try three or four or 15 times but you can't expect it to get it on the first try and that is unacceptable.

Just put the fingerprint sensor on the back so that we can please use the phone with proper protection.

The fingerprint sensor is the only Hardware problem that I have with this device. The camera software is my primary software complaint. Unfortunately, on a $1,250 phone those two complaints are significant enough to run me off and keep me away again. They are also significant enough to knock a five-star review down to two.

I can't wait for the Pixel 6 release, I want a different phone.

10 people found this helpful

5,587 total ratings, 868 with reviews

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From the United States

Jalen

A mind-blowing and incredible experience.

Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2021

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom SilverMemory Storage Capacity: 128 GBVerified Purchase

169 people found this helpful

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Britt Hopson

S21 Ultra, recommendation for all

Reviewed in the United States on April 14, 2021

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom BlackMemory Storage Capacity: 256 GBVerified Purchase

I upgraded from the Galaxy s8 to the S21 Ultra with 256 gb of storage and 12gb of ram. I will start off by saying go with the Ultra or the base, you pay $200 extra for half an inch of screen on the plus (this is called decoy price, you see this at movies where the popcorn medium is only 1 dollar less than the large, but is 3 more than the small, so you might as well go large.)
I'll give more detial at the end.

Camera is super high quality, zoom is incredible. Front camera even takes good pics (I mean I looked good, so should you)

Processor is as advertised, insanely fast, even at the standard limited benchmark (there is an enhanced processing mode to take away cpu 70% limit). Desktop mode is great, this phone is almost as fast in Dex as my actual Acer laptop.

Battery life is phenomenal, can get 2 full days out of 1 charge if you use the phone less than 4 or 5 hours a day at 1080p res.
1440p, super clear and one of the bargaining point for the Ultra over the base. The refresh rate of 120 hz is incredible, I spent the first 10 minutes just swiping on the phone in awe of this. The ultra is also the only version with the curved screen,, the s21 and plus have flat screens.. This phone does an excellent job of cooling, even witha case on. (FYI heat causes the major wear and tear on the internal components like the cpu, so better cooling means better lifespan and performance).

Customizable routines allow you to add features to your phone, from automatically silencing when you show up to work or school, automatically going into power save mode at certain times like when you are asleep, or even for when you turn on your Bluetooth headphones your phone can automatically switch to 1440p resolution and turn Dolby atmos on movie mode sound. Dozens of scenarios or time stamps for each feature.

If you are the friend that walks on the grass, don't worry about bringing that bulky charger for when your friends' phones are about to die, this phone can wireless charge other devices (will stop charging when the phone drops to 30% minimum).

If you are concerned about no color options, just remember, I had that beautiful orchid gray s8, and who got to see it? Nobody, because it was hidden behind a lovely teal case for 4 years.

If the fact that Samsung dropped their charging from the 45w of the s20 series to a 25w for the s21, rest assured, there is very little added time for charging, and the 25w is less volatile than the 45w. This means, charging does not get the phone as hot, and the battery will have a better lifespan since slower charging is better long term.

If you multi task a ton and/or save tons of files, consider spending the extra money to get the 512 gb edition, as it comes with an additional 4gb of ram (16gb total).
Ram is what is used to have tabs open, so more ram means more tabs open while still maintaining speed and smoothness. The s21 ultra also has Spen support (need a case that can hold it).

Why the ultra or base and not the plus?
The s21 has a better ppi (pixel density, higher the density, better the picture) than the s21 plus. They both have the same 8gb of ram, the same storage sizes, same resolution, same cameras, same material, same flat screen, the same backwards wireless charging capability (same for ultra), etc. The only difference is the screen size and that the s21 plus has a 4800 mAh battery while the s21 has a 4000 mAh. The ultra however, offers higher resolution, much higher ppi, the larger screen, larger battery than both (5000mAh). The ultra has much more powerful camera as well, the curved screen, camera features and settings. So if you want all the features and performance and screen resolution (I like the stream movies on my lunch breaks) then go with the Ultra, if you just want to upgrade to the newest and fastest phone, and you don't need to have 100000 tabs open, get the base s21.

60 people found this helpful

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ddodson208

Best Phone I've Ever Owned

Reviewed in the United States on August 19, 2021

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom BlackMemory Storage Capacity: 256 GBVerified Purchase

It's hard to know where to really begin with reviewing this phone, because everything about it is simply amazing! But here goes:

Build Quality & Design: So I was at first a bit apprehensive about the curved display because I wasn't sure how I would feel about it (every other phone I've had had a flat display), but the curve is subtle enough that it's very easy to get used to and actually adds a bit to the ergonomics of the design. The color looks just as stunning in person as it does in photos and the overall design of the phone looks incredible. The phone feels sturdy and the buttons have a very satisfying click to them and the fingerprint sensor has a great placement and works wonderfully.

Display: The 1440p, 120Hz, display on this phone lives up to its reputation of being the best display you can get on a smartphone in 2021. The colors are vibrant and punchy, the clarity is top-notch, the high refresh rate (variable) really makes the phone feel snappy and quick. The touch sensitivity is also great and never feels like I have to put too much effort into moving around the UI.

UI: I was a bit apprehensive of One UI as I hadn't used a Samsung phone since the Galaxy S4 (and the days of the old TouchWiz) and I have been using Pixel/Nexus phones for the last 6 years. I have been pleasantly surprised, though, by how much it retains the core functionalities of stock Android while adding in features that are actually more useful than I would have guessed they would be (having Google One feed to the left of the homescreen is a great addition by Samsung). From the ease of connecting Samsung peripherals (I have Galaxy Buds+ and a Galaxy Watch 3) to the extended screenshot feature to the baked in screen record and everything in between, Samsung has really matured in their UI to now offer a lot of useful add ons while limiting the unnecessary bloat.

Battery: This is the first phone I've had where I really can feel confident that my battery is going to last me the full day if I'm going to be out and about and away from the charger. Even with full 1440p and 120Hz enabled, I'm easily able to achieve 5 to 6 hours of screen on time with roughly 20 to 24 hours of total battery endurance. On days that I don't push the phone as hard, I can get up to 8 or even 9 hours of screen on time and up to 2 days of overall battery endurance. Only on days that I'm scrolling through videos on TikTok, taking a lot of photos and videos, and really just having the screen on all day do I need to charge it even a little before the day is up (and even then getting it to even 50% is enough to give me confidence for hours).

Camera: My last phone was a Google Pixel 3XL which, at the time, was basically the leading smartphone camera and could produce amazing shots every time. I wouldn't say that this camera is as consistently and easily good, but the potential for great shots is even greater with this phone. Occasionally I have to take a few different shots to get the one that I want, but when I get what I want, it looks incredible. And this applies to all of the cameras, which brings me to the second point ... The variety of cameras here makes the experience wonderful. I'll frequently take 3 or 4 different shots utilizing all of the cameras to gain different perspectives and image profiles and nearly every time I get impressive photos from every lens (yes, even the 10x zoom camera can pull off pretty stunning imagery). The camera is definitely a high point for this camera, but you do need to be willing to work with it a bit more than you would on a Pixel or iPhone which are better quick point and shoot cameras, but lack some of the diversity of use that you can get with the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

Conclusion: Overall, this phone is just incredible from top to bottom and is by far the best phone that I've ever owned. I would recommend this to anyone that is willing to pay a bit more for a premium device.

11 people found this helpful

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Paul E. King

It's not the most seamless Samsung experience, but damn if it isn't the best I've run across

Reviewed in the United States on June 15, 2021

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom SilverMemory Storage Capacity: 128 GBVerified Purchase

TL;DR - hardware amazing, software you'll like it or you won't, battery life is inconsistent, let's talk "cinema quality" from the ads

Inconsistent battery life /charging speeds - when I first got this, we're talking 19 hours of me using it. That was impressive. Screen on time in the 6+ hour range, I could kill it if I tried but I'm a psycho power user. Somewhere around month 2 that dropped to finding myself needing to charge after I got home from work, where I wasn't using it.

Your battery life is screen on time, power used to do WiFi or Cell transmission and how much of that you're actually doing, whether you're actually doing anything. Battery should have been nearly full.

Cut to this past week, right back to all day power, with standard usage. Nothing tends to show in the battery usage summary, due to my rather unexciting life I'm usually in the same two places so it's not like I'm dealing with a lot of variables here. Something's up with their power management and here's the other thing I didn't mention - my wife has the same phone. The same issues popped up on hers and we don't really share software in common other than the basic Samsung and Google sets that come preinstalled.

Probably firmware as no battery usage for apps seemed untoward.

Next, this "cinema quality" 8K advertising nonsense. Nah, this is quite a few more pixels than that. 8K is surprisingly not a good experience. You'll be shooting it and it's jerky to watch on screen while shooting, and the end results are - they're good, but looking closely it's just better than 4K, not a whole lot clearer, not a whole lot of effective pixel addition. The codec seems to be set at "awww, they're never going to notice that" as opposed to "save all the image datas!"

Absolutely great phone, second Android phone I've had that I've had no desire to root it.

I will point out the one complaint I have here is Samsung support is completely useless - something's wrong with my wife's account and they refuse to read a ticket I put in about it - they see that I have an account, skip over all the words I wasted time writing that explained in complete detail what is wrong, and copy and paste how to log into my account.

No Samsung, for some reason her account doesn't work, her birthday claims it's incorrect so you refuse to send a password reset link or text message... this is the problem, not that me, the husband, has an account and can't log in....

4 people found this helpful

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Justin B.

For the cost, could've been better

Reviewed in the United States on May 12, 2022

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom BlackMemory Storage Capacity: 128 GBVerified Purchase

So I spent nearly 3 weeks reviewing the Note 20 ultra this phone and the S22 Ultra comparing everything I could watching videos ect. I ultimately went with this over the S22 just because there was a lot of complaints with the S22. I've had this phone for just over a month now, and my first impressions on it are somewhat lower than I was hoping for. All of my feelings toward the s21 Ultra are based off of my prior experience with the Note 10+ which I switched over from after I cracked the screen. I figured 2.5 years was a damn good run for it.

The Bad:
So to start things off I noticed right out of the starting gate that he battery life isn't quite as good as my Note 10's was and it tends to get a little hot, however it's not horrible I still average a day to a day and a half if I let it go all the way dead. Next thing I was a little sad to see the micro sd slot removed, as I've liked having a removable memory card for backing up stuff just incase. I strongly feel not including a charging block is just a cash grab, but we won't get into that lol. The finger print reader was something a lot of video breakdowns raved about, however I feel its pretty bad. I only have my thumbs set for all 4 scans and more times than not it still can't pick it up. Size is somewhat bulkier, primarily due to the raised camera overlay, which results in the case being somewhat bulkier. Again not horrible but the Note 10+ was just so much slimmer and more comfortable in the hand. Lastly the cost. I bought my Note directly from Samsung for $700 brand new with a pair of galaxy buds and a charger included, so at $1200 this phone should have outperformed my 2.5 year old Note across the board, but to be quite honest its mediocre at best.

The Good:
So even with all the ranting there is some good with this phone. To start things off the camera has some nice new features. The fact that you can zoom in 100x is pretty impressive, even though at that distance any picture looks like it was taken with a potato. The camera also has a laser auto focus which is pretty interesting to watch in video, the camera will literally adjust to movement without you actually moving. You can notice some slight rendoring differences comparing to the Note 10+ but nothing crazy. Pretty much the only key differences is the Laser Focus and the higher zoom and telephoto capabilities. Next I can say the overall functionality is almost Identical to the Note 10+ aside from slightly faster operating when it's in 120 hz, so you will notice slightly faster touch response at times. Last but not least the memory on this thing is pretty much on par with the Note 10, both feature a 12gb chip of RAM which is just ridiculous for a phone, so with good internet connection both phones can run videos or games with ease.

Conclusion:
To be honest the phone is nice, I can't say it isn't. It does everything I'd need it to do and a bit more. However when comparing it to my old phone that had a hard 2.5 years of life filled with dusty environments and plenty of drops, it still averaged a full day of battery and fairly decent operation speeds and functions. I just don't know If I could recommend this phone, if you have an older generation Note (9,10,20) I would honestly probably say to save your money. However If you are in the same boat as I was and need to upgrade due to it being damaged it isn't a bad phone to go with. That being said I'd almost say it's worth looking into just having your current phone repaired. All in all the phones good, It suites my needs, but it seems more like an Android Iphone with everything it lacks at this point. I hope maybe Samsung will can make some better improvements in future models, but I guess only time will tell. I'd say I've rambled enough though, thanks for reading hopefully my input can help someone make a decision on which way to go.

18 people found this helpful

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Loyal Galaxy user

Reviewed in the United States on January 5, 2024

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom SilverMemory Storage Capacity: 128 GBVerified Purchase

I love Galaxy and this one has a great camera which was very important to me. I've we been taken photos of the Northern Lights in night mode and the Milky Way in astrophoto/Expert RAW. The only draw back is not bring able to add an SD card me I could on previous models. My pictures and videos take up a lot of space so I have to move them to the cloud or other storage.

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Xavi

Best Galaxy phone I have ever owned!

Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2021

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom BlackMemory Storage Capacity: 128 GBVerified Purchase

I switched from a Samsung Galaxy S8+ that I owned since 2017, and boy can I appreciate the upgrade! The phone is super fast, with great visuals and an abundance of features. Some of my favorite features include the Wireless power sharing, DeX (turning your phone into a computer with a tv or pc monitor), live caption (especially when I have to keep my phone on silent and want to watch something) and the amazing cameras, just to name a few. In regards to the cameras, the selfie camera is clean with great quality and the 100x zoom feature is in a league of its own. I will admit that going all the way to 100x zoom for pics will not give you best quality, but even at 20x zoom, it is amazing how this camera can behave like binoculars and pick up objects without any issues and maintain good clarity. The battery life is also quite amazing! I had to charge my s8+ 2-3 times a day with heavy usage, but I can easily go a day and a half with this bad boy. One negative I will say is that the phone does not come with a charger, which can be annoying if you don't already have any existing charger on hand. In my opinion, to preserve the quality of the battery, Samsung should have included a charger that was made for the phone, to prevent persons from possibly sourcing 3rd party chargers that may not be the best for this particular phone. On another note, I know some individuals are unhappy about the expandable storage not being a feature anymore, but as an S8+ user I never used expandable storage and will not miss it. With cloud storage and other ways to upload and store your data, it is not that big of a deal in my opinion. I can go on and on about this phone but I'll just conclude by saying that I am extremely happy with my purchase. Great job Samsung!

80 people found this helpful

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Edward Polanco

Very useful in 2022.

Reviewed in the United States on February 8, 2022

Wireless Provider: UnlockedColor: Phantom BlackMemory Storage Capacity: 128 GBVerified Purchase

Going into the process of buying a new phone, I was very skeptical about buying it on Amazon because you never know what you'll really get. I took the risk and bought it. Once it was delivered, it wasn't damaged at all and appeared brand new as listed.

BATTERY: this phone really has a giant battery that can last you up an entire day, possibly two days if you're not a heavy user.
DISPLAY: the screen looks so damn beautiful and the fact that you have the options to switch between FHD+ at 90hz and QHD+ at 120hz is so cool. The colors are vibrant as well.
FINGERPRINT: Very responsive, though it will take some time for you to remember where it is on the phone.
CAMERA: I love the amount of options you have at your disposal when taking videos and photos. From Night Mode to Director's View, there's so much to take advantage of to make your videos and photos look amazing.
BUILD: The build quality looks and feels premium, though the matte back can cause your phone to be very slippery. Strongly recommend getting a case.

VERDICT: The Galaxy S21 Ultra is such an incredible phone that packs so much for you to take advantage of. It's a phone that has gotten better as time passed and that's due to Samsung releasing software updates. I would absolutely recommend picking up this phone, even though the S22 series is arriving very soon at the time this review will be posted. Whether you choose to purchase this on Amazon or your specific phone carrier or wherever is entirely up to you. You won't be disappointed with what the S21 Ultra can offer you.

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