Samsung Galaxy S21 5G 256GB Pink - Amazon (Renewed)

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The easiest way to differentiate between case types is the material that they’ve been made for, as this typically determines the characteristics of a specific case. While it’s not as technically advanced as previous S series phones, the S21 feels like a solid device that’ll suit most people’s needs. It’s slim, ever so light and importantly, doesn’t skimp on performance. The design is also just downright fun and the colour options are nicely varied and interesting. 2. You want a reliable and versatile camera The Galaxy S21 phones were the first devices to use either Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888 (US) or Samsung’s own Exynos 2100 (just about everywhere else). Those were the latest generation of top-end chipsets when the S21 range launched, though they've since been superseded. The design is where Samsung has made the most obviously noticeable changes over the S20 (which we crowned 2020’s best smartphone), overhauling the materials used, the colors, and the overall look of the device. The Samsung Galaxy S21 release date was Friday, January 29, 2021 for most of the world, including the US, UK and Australia. That means you can readily buy the smartphone now from a variety of retailers, carriers and networks in all three of those countries.

Recharging the S21 is easy, using the company’s 25W fast-charging tech via the phone’s USB-C port. It’s also compatible with Qi wireless charging, and we found that worked well during our testing. We generally found that the phone would comfortably last a full day, but on one occasion, when we were making more use of the phone’s GPS signal and other power-hungry features we found the device ran out of steam by around 10pm. In Geekbench 5, the Samsung Galaxy S21 returned a multi-core score of 3367. That's notably better than the Galaxy S20 (the one featuring the Exynos 990 chipset) that returned a score of 2699. The S21 runs Android 11 out of the box with Samsung’s One UI 3.0 skin, which is among our favorite software interfaces. The phone has since been updated to Android 12, and it will be getting Android 13 when that's available too. Another benefit these chips have over their predecessors is that the 5G modem is built-in, rather than sitting separately. All Galaxy S21 models have support for at least sub-6Ghz 5G (that’s the only one available in the UK so don’t worry about mmWave support) and you don’t need to pay extra for the 5G version as you did last year. CameraHas Samsung made the right decision here? Largely, we think, yes. It won’t be popular with everyone, but crucially it’s allowed Samsung to cut the price of its Galaxy S21 series, and it won’t be hugely detrimental to most people’s everyday experience with the phone. It’s unlikely to be something you’ll notice unless you’re used to those curved edges, but it’s worth noting if you’re someone who particularly likes that design feature – and as is the case with other dropped features, Samsung has retained the curved-edge screen for the premium S21 Ultra.

Battery life on the Samsung Galaxy S21 is solid, although it’s not a game-changing improvement over the S20, as the company may have led some to believe with its new Exynos 2100 chipset. There have been two notable cuts, along with a couple of other smaller bits that have been left out. The biggest, especially for those who still want this to be a high-end flagship phone, is the drop in maximum screen resolution. Specifically, Samsung’s dropped it from WQHD+ to FHD+, basically 1440p down to 1080p. While yes, you can – if you really look for it – see a difference, on a 6.2-inch panel this isn’t much of an issue for me. We’ve got a full Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra review with a full in-depth look at the spec-beast in Samsung’s range. Price and release date All in all, the Samsung Galaxy S21 feels like a premium device, although it’s unlikely to feel as top-end as the Samsung Galaxy S20 if you own that handset, or the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

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The downgrade to the display is perhaps the most controversial change Samsung has made for the Galaxy S21, with the company switching to a lower-res Full HD+ screen than the Quad HD display available on 2020’s Galaxy S20. Benchmarking doesn't show everything, but we've found everyday tasks on the phone have been faster than previously with the handset more than capable at handling gaming, multi-tasking and having multiple apps open in split-screen view too.

The other thing to note here is that the Galaxy S21 doesn’t come with a charger in the box. Samsung has followed in Apple’s footsteps by not bundling a charger with its new phones as it seeks to cut down on e-waste. Reverse wireless charging is also supported, so you can use your phone’s power to top up devices such as Qi-compatible wireless headphones, but we found that to be slow, and it’s a feature you’d likely only want to use in emergencies. There’s a good 10MP selfie camera that produces far more realistic and natural images than previous Samsung attempts. The Samsung S21 was officially unveiled on January 14, 2021 which was the earliest in a year we've seen the company introduce its new smartphone technology.

A buyer's guide to Samsung Galaxy S21 cases

It comes with lots of new camera modes, including the ability to shoot from multiple sensors at once When you’re shooting with that main 12MP sensor with its f/1.8 aperture and optical image stabilisation (OIS), the pictures are generally very pleasing.

The company is instead just offering internal storage, and again this seems to be a cost-saving measure from Samsung, but it’s likely to disappoint anyone who wants the most affordable handset but needs a lot of storage. Along with that 8GB of RAM you’ve got the choice of either 128GB or 256GB of storage. The big news here is that Samsung has dropped microSD support from the S21, so you can’t expand on the built-in storage. The chipset – we’ve tested the Exynos 2100 version of the phone – is also powerful, delivering some fantastic results in real-world use as well as in benchmarking software. One thing missing is compatibility with Samsung’s 45W chargers that worked with the S20 series. Samsung told TechRadar that it’s made optimizations to the 25W charging capabilities of its new phones, so 45W charging wasn’t that significant a benefit.

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Samsung hasn’t hamstrung the Galaxy S21 with its chipset this year, but you’ll still be getting either the top-end Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 (US) or the Exynos 2100 (UK and other European territories). With its 4000mAh battery, the Samsung Galaxy S21 isn’t a multi-day device and you shouldn’t expect the same mammoth endurance offered by the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. But with real world use I never struggled to make it through the day on a single charge. Samsung has opted for a lower-spec screen than the one on the S20, with a Full HD+ 6.2-inch display, but it offers a 120Hz refresh rate for super-smooth scrolling and graphics, plusfantastic colors, and strong brightness levels – and we didn’t notice the lower resolution in most of our testing. Even though the panel is of a high quality, 6.2-inches is a little small if you want a phone for lots of gaming and media binges. Thankfully there’s the 6.7-inch Plus model which has a far roomier display. 2. You want a camera with an amazing zoom