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Asus made a Zenbook that looks like a foldable phone, blown up to laptop size
Asus made a Zenbook that looks like a foldable phone, blown up to laptop size
This story is part of CES, where CNET covers the latest news on the most incredible tech coming soon.
Folding screen phones are an interesting niche market that at least has a couple of flagship products, like the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. Folding screen laptops are much more conceptual. To date, only a couple have gone on sale, like the Lenovo X1 Fold. Most of the others, like Dell's Ori concept, are still just prototypes.
Asus diving right into the deep end of the pool at CES 2022, not with an iPad-like 13-inch screen, but a massive 17-inch folding OLED display, called the Asus Zenbook 17 Fold. Asus calls it "the world's first 17.3-inch foldable OLED laptop," which I believe, as I think I'd have noticed something similar.
This 2,560x1,920, 4:3 aspect ratio touchscreen can be propped up behind a bluetooth keyboard for something that feels like a 17-inch all-in-one desktop. Or, it can fold in half and become a 12.5-inch clamshell laptop with an on-screen keyboard on its lower half. There's a custom software package for deciding which half of the folded display different apps should appear on, as Windows is not very savvy at that yet.
Asus
The system will be powered by 12th-gen Intel processors and have 16GB RAM and 1TB of SSD storage, along with WiFi 6 and a 75Wh battery. It's about 3.75lbs, not counting the bluetooth keyboard, which seems reasonable. A 16-inch MacBook Pro is about 4.8 pounds for comparison. It's got two Thunderbolt 4 ports, more than some, less than others.
This is one of the devices I really regret not getting a chance to see in person at CES 2022. There's no price yet, but Asus says it's coming "mid-year" in 2022.
Best Chromebook Deals: 9 Picks for Students From Acer, Asus, HP, Lenovo and Samsung
Best Chromebook Deals: 9 Picks for Students From Acer, Asus, HP, Lenovo and Samsung
Chromebooks have become standard equipment in most US schools, with many school districts now providing them to students. But the district-provided Chromebooks are usually smaller, underpowered models with limited utility. There's only so much you can do on an 11.6-inch display powered by an outdated CPU. Larger Chromebooks with displays in the 12.2-inch to 15.6-inch range and more modern processors are still very affordable. Comparable Windows laptops and MacBooks come with a higher price. And Chromebooks are easy to use, designed with kids in mind and made to be ready to go from the minute it comes out of the box. The Chrome OS software comes preinstalled and is streamlined for user comfort.
Read more:Best Chromebooks for 2022
With the 2022-23 school year getting underway as we reach mid-August, we've gone through and collected a list of the best deals on Chromebooks, with prices starting at $200. Many factors were considered in the compilation of this list, such as cloud storage, battery life, display size, keyboard quality, ease of web browsing, and whether it includes a headphone jack for music or lecture listening and classroom participation. If you want to snag a good deal on the best Chromebooks for the students in your life, look at our picks below. We regularly update this list, so check back for all your Chromebook needs.
Asus
This Asus model is on sale for only $200 right now and features a 14-inch display powered by an Intel Celeron processor and 4GB of RAM. Those are average components for a budget Chromebook, but it adds a bit more storage than usual with 64GB. It has a 1,920x1,080-pixel resolution display for a sharper picture and more workspace than you'd get with the 1,366x768-pixel resolution found on other low-end Chromebooks.
Sarah Tew/CNET
This Samsung Chromebook has a smaller display at 12.2 inches than the other models here, but the touchscreen can rotate 360 degrees into tablet mode so you can play Android games -- once homework is done, of course. The display boasts a sharp 1,920x1,200-pixel resolution and pen support for the included stylus. Inside, the system features an Intel Celeron processor, 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.
Read our Samsung Chromebook Plus V2 review.
Lenovo
This convertible Chromebook features a 15.6-inch touchscreen that can rotate into tablet mode, and is powered by an eighth-gen Intel Core i3 CPU. It's an older Core i3 than you get in the above Lenovo model, but more powerful than Intel Pentium and Celeron chips commonly found in Chromebooks. The C340 also offers 4GB of RAM and 64GB of flash storage, both average for the price.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Acer's midrange convertible Chromebook, the 14-inch Spin 514, boasts a slim and durable all-metal body and features an AMD Ryzen 3 processor. It's a good middle ground between smaller, 11.6-inch models that might cramp your computing style and larger, 15.6-inch models that you might not want to lug across campus each day. This AMD-based model is on sale right now at Best Buy, but you should know that an Intel model is expected soon that will feature the latest Wi-Fi 6 standard, better video-conferencing capabilities and a more compact enclosure.
Read our Acer Chromebook Spin 514 review.
Lenovo
Did you know that you can get an OLED display on a Chromebook? Lenovo's two-in-one Chromebook Duet 5 is proof that such a thing is possible. It features a detachable, 13.5-inch OLED display with a full-HD resolution powered by an eight-core Qualcomm Snapdragon and 8GB of RAM. It also supplies a 128GB SSD, which is rather spacious for a Chromebook. It's on sale at Best Buy right now with a sizable $120 discount.
Josh Goldman/CNET
This HP Chromebook x360 is a two-in-one convertible powered by a Core i3 chip and a generous 8GB of RAM. It also has a 128GB of eMMC storage, which is bigger than you get with most Chromebooks at this price. The 14-inch display is a widescreen, which means more scrolling through web pages and documents but better for watching movies and viewing two windows side by side. It's $330 off right now at Best Buy.
Josh Goldman/CNET
This Samsung two-in-one Chromebook features an all-metal chassis, which is a step up in both looks and durability from the usual plastic Chromebook fare. It boasts a 13.3-inch, AMOLED touchscreen powered by a 10th-gen Core i3 CPU and 8GB of RAM. It also supplies 128GB of solid-state storage.
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Motorola Edge Plus hands-on: A $1,000 5G phone with premium specs
Motorola Edge Plus hands-on: A $1,000 5G phone with premium specs
Motorola, a company best known for its budget and midrange phones, on Wednesday took an enormous step forward into the premium phone market and launched the Motorola Edge and Edge Plus. Both phones join the Motorola Razr as high-end offerings from the Chicago-based company. Whereas the Razr was criticized for its middle-of-the-road tech, the Edge and Edge Plus are brimming with cutting-edge specs that rival Samsung, OnePlus and Apple. It is as if Motorola went to the specs grocery store and emptied the shelves.
The $1,000 Motorola Edge Plus has the same price as the Samsung Galaxy S20, the same size screen as the Galaxy S20 Plus and the same 5,000-mAh battery and 108-megapixel camera as the Galaxy S20 Ultra. (The Edge Plus is not currently available in the UK and Australia, but as a guide, the Galaxy S20 starts at £799 and AU$1,349 in those countries. The Edge will cost £549 in the UK.)
The Edge is meant as a slightly pared-down and less expensive option. Motorola hasn't announced the price, but the more affordable phone will launch sometime this summer. Motorola is taking a similar approach to both phones as OnePlus did with its 8 and 8 Pro, although both Edge phones use the same size display.
Motorola Edge Plus specs vs. Motorola Edge, OnePlus 8 Pro, Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus, Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra
5G enabled; 120Hz refresh rate; water resistant (IP68)
5G enabled; 120Hz refresh rate; 100X zoom; water resistant (IP68)
Price off-contract (USD)
$999 - Verizon exclusive
TBD
$899 (8GB RAM/128GB), $999 (12GB RAM/256GB)
$1,199, $1,349
$1,399 (128GB), $1,599 (512GB)
The Motorola Edge Plus has 5G
We've seen a lot of phones with 5G launched this year, and the Edge was designed from the start to run on 5G. The Motorola Edge Plus supports both sub-6 and millimeter wave up to 5 gigabits per second. Motorola claims its optimizations will result in the "fastest ever" 5G. We'll have to test those claims.
The Motorola Edge Plus was built from the ground up to be a 5G phone.
Sarah Tew/CNET
The Edge Plus has a 108-megapixel rear camera
There are three rear cameras on the Motorola Edge Plus. The main camera has a 108-megapixel sensor which combines groups of four pixels to produce a 27-megapixel image. Motorola says that the sensor is almost three times larger than the 12-megapixel sensors used in other phones, which could help improve brightness and reduce image noise.
I'm excited to try out the Edge Plus camera system in more depth. But the few photos I took looked good on Edge Plus' screen.
The Edge Plus can record 6K videos with 20-megapixel photo grabs during recording. Despite the Edge Plus having a Snapdragon 865 processor, which is capable of 8K recording, Motorola thought 6K better paired to the main camera sensor.
There are three rear cameras: A main wide-angle camera, a telephoto camera and an ultrawide-angle camera.
Sarah Tew/CNET
There's also a video portrait mode, a special long exposure mode with a shutter speed of up to 32-seconds and Night Vision which stacks eight photos and combines them into a single shot that's brighter, sharper and has more detail.
And then on the front, housed in the hole-punch display, is a 25-megapixel selfie camera.
The Motorola Edge Plus has a 90Hz waterfall display
The name Edge refers to the 6.7-inch "endless edge" display that wraps around the sides of the phone. While it's not the first phone to have a waterfall display, it is absolutely stunning in-person. The edge can light up different colors to show your battery charging, alarms and notifications. There's also a neat widget you can access for shortcuts. Motorola built-in grip and touch suppression to minimize any accidental screen touches.
The display wraps around the edges and has a tiny hole for the 25-megapixel front-facing camera to poke through.
Sarah Tew/CNET
If the edges are too much, you can go into Settings and select which apps use the edges and which don't. When the edges are off, they turn black and the screen looks like a normal regular display. During my time with the phone, I didn't see an "all or nothing" switch for turning the edge on and off.
The edges get well-used in the new Moto Gametime mode. You can set them up as shoulder buttons or reposition your on-screen buttons so they're in a better place for gameplay.
I'm not sure how helpful the Edge screen will be in daily use. It's obviously reminiscent of Samsung Galaxy phones and their edge displays. But the gaming functionality pushes it toward gaming phones such as the Asus ROG Phone 2 and Black Shark 2 Pro but without the glowing logo.
Speaking of gaming phones, the Edge's 21:9 ratio screen has a 90Hz variable refresh rate which makes animations look smoother, text and images more crisp and can make gaming (especially high-frame-rate games) more immersive. You can also choose to override the variable setting and lock it in to 60Hz or 90Hz.
The 90Hz display is impressive and automatically adjusts its refresh rate depending on what content is on screen.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Motorola Edge Plus vs. Motorola Edge
In many ways the Motorola Edge is fundamentally the same phone with the same display as the Edge Plus, but made with a more svelte body. It has Sub-6 5G support but not the faster millimeter-wave flavor of 5G. Instead of a Snapdragon 865 found in the Edge Plus, it has a Snapdragon 765 processor. Instead of a 5,000-mAh battery, it has a 4,500-mAh battery. Instead of an 108-megapixel main camera, it has a 64-megapixel main camera.
The biggest difference is price. We don't know exactly what that will be yet, but we have to surmise that if the Motorola Edge Plus is $999 then the Motorola Edge will be cheaper when it's released sometime this summer.
The Motorola Edge is a slightly scaled back and more affordable version of the Edge Plus.
Motorola
Also I should note that in the US the Edge Plus is a Verizon exclusive, but the Edge will be sold unlocked. We look forward to testing out both phones for a review.
Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review: Samsung's premier phone is pretty badass
Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review: Samsung's premier phone is pretty badass
The Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, unveiled alongside Samsung's Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus phones, proves that sometimes you have to do something twice to get it right. While just as bold as last year's Galaxy S20 Ultra, the S21 Ultra is a refined second take on the concept. There's still the 100x Space Zoom, but it's easier to use. There is still the "big for the sake of being big" design, but it looks more appealing. And there's still a high price, but at $1,200 (£1,149, AU$1,849) it costs $200 less than the S20 Ultra in the US.
If you want the absolute best specs and features, the S21 Ultra is undoubtedly appealing. The phone will also attract camera nerds, thanks to the improvements. The addition of S-Pen support -- it's the first Galaxy S phone to support the stylus -- will likely catch the eye of Galaxy Note users looking for a different option.
Like
Gorgeous phantom black finish
Two telephoto cameras
The screen is spectacular
S-Pen support
Don't Like
It's heavy
Lacks a microSD card slot
$1,200 is still expensive
Last year's Ultra model seemed like it came out of nowhere. It was a phone all about excess that, by sheer fate, was launched at the beginning of a global pandemic and recession. Its bold, behemoth take on the Galaxy S line was undercut by its $1,400 (£1,199, AU$1,999) price and issues with its nearly domino-size camera system.
Overall, the S21 Ultra is a major update both in terms of hardware and software over the S20 Ultra. And when you factor in a lower price, it all kind of makes sense. And that's why the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra earned a CNET's Editors' Choice Award. The whole Galaxy S21 lineup is available to purchase -- here's how you can buy one.
Read more: Samsung Galaxy S21 vs. S21 Plus vs. S21 Ultra
The Galaxy S21 Ultra has the best black finish
I wouldn't call the S21 Ultra's design radically different, but my review unit has the best black finish I've ever seen on a phone. It's the stuff that goth dreams are made of. The color is called phantom black, and seeing it in person makes you understand why Samsung made a nearly three-minute video explaining the blackest black finish. The S21 Ultra also comes in phantom silver and there are limited-edition phantom finishes in titanium, brown and navy, which can only be found on Samsung's website.
The camera bump is large and melts into the sides of the phone, which are glossy black. And while the regular S21 and S21 Plus looks snazzy in their two-tone colors, the all-black S21 Ultra is cool, elegant and badass all at the same time.
Read more: Galaxy S21 drop test: It broke on the first drop
The S21 Ultra is heavier than last year's S20 Ultra and the iPhone 12 Pro Max. It's the second heaviest phone I have tested in the past year, just behind the Asus ROG Phone 3.
The display is brighter and adds S-Pen support
Around the front is one of the most impressive displays I've seen. It has a Wide Quad HD resolution and a variable refresh rate between 10 and 120Hz, which is determined by what's on the screen. And just to be clear, it can be set to 120Hz without the hit to resolution that the S20 Ultra had. The 6.8-inch display is bright and the contrast is gorgeous. Covering the front and back is Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus.
Support for the S-Pen means you can draw, write, edit photos and sign documents on the S21 Ultra.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Under the screen is a larger ultrasonic fingerprint reader which feels peppy. I had a hard time telling if it was faster than the one on the S20 Ultra. The display also has S-Pen support.
The Galaxy Note phones line always tempted me, but I didn't think I'd use the S-Pen enough to justify getting one. I like the iPad Pro-Apple Pencil approach Samsung took with the S21 Ultra. Without an S-Pen, you can still enjoy using the S21 Ultra. But if you're S-Pen curious, you can buy a new S-Pen or find an old one and it will work. There's a lot you can do like draw, take notes and sign documents. I love editing photos and making adjustments with the S-Pen.
There are a few S-Pen considerations. The S21 Ultra doesn't come with an S-Pen and doesn't support Bluetooth or gesture functionality. For example, the S21 Ultra can't send you a notification if you leave your S-Pen behind. Also, the Ultra doesn't have a built-in slot to store an S-Pen. Samsung does sell cases for the phone that include S-Pen storage.
The S21 Ultra has two telephoto cameras
The S21 Ultra's camera system received several significant updates. There are four rear cameras: one wide, one ultrawide and two telephoto cameras. The time-of-flight sensor on the S20 Ultra is gone; in its place is a laser autofocus module.
The 108-megapixel sensor on the main camera is new and has better autofocus for both photos and videos. There's even a new focus enhancer tool that pops onscreen to help the phone focus faster. The tool looks like it might be switching to a wider view to do so.
Read more: S21 Ultra vs. iPhone 12 Pro Max vs. Pixel 5: Which phone has the best night mode?
There are four rear cameras: wide, ultrawide and two telephotos.
Patrick Holland/CNET
The dual-telephoto cameras add a number of benefits. One has 3x magnification and the other 10x. This means when you zoom in, there are two places in your zoom range where the image isn't cropped and where you'll capture the best image quality. Another benefit is stability. The two cameras are paired to help make zooming in, even at 100x, easier and more steady.
At 30x or higher, a zoom guide appears to help you find the specific spot that you're zoomed in at. You can lock it so the cameras don't move, which turns the guide yellow. This works quite well. Obviously you have to be careful not to move the phone around too much, but it's less finicky and frustrating than the S20 Ultra.
Photos from the S21 Ultra are excellent, with good detail and a wide dynamic range. There is a 108-megapixel mode, but I found that the 12-megapixel photos that come from pixel binning look consistently great.
Below are several photos I took with the S21 Ultra.
The main camera was set to 12 megapixels, which uses pixel binning to combine nine pixels into one.
Patrick Holland/CNET
One benefit of pixel binning is that it can bring out the details in a photo. Notice the different textures and details.
Patrick Holland/CNET
I used the single-take mode in the camera app to capture photos and videos of this cute dog. Here's one of the pictures my S21 Ultra chose.
Patrick Holland/CNET
There's so much for the S21 Ultra to capture correctly here: the barren tree branches, the water and the white fluffy clouds in the blue sky.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Here are three different photos I took from the exact same spot using the wide 1x camera (left), the 3x telephoto camera (middle) and the 10x telephoto camera (right).
Patrick Holland/CNET
In low light, the S21 Ultra's night mode is outstanding. Flaring on the lens is minimized and photos look bright without a bunch of image noise or noise-reduction smearing. Below are a few night mode photos I took:
This might be my favorite night mode photo of the bunch.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Here's another night mode capture. I like how the S21 Ultra brought out the colors in the sculpture.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Night mode on any of the S21 Ultra's cameras. I took this shot with the ultrawide.
Patrick Holland/CNET
For selfies there's the same 40-megapixel camera that the S20 Ultra had. You now have an option to change the color tone to either bright or natural which is excellent.
Here is a selfie I took with the natural setting.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Samsung added the ability to take raw 12-bit color photos. There's a new video feature called Director's View, which gives you a thumbnail preview of the video feeds coming from all of the cameras on the phones. As you record, you can switch between them. Within Director's View, there's a vlogger setup that gives you a side-by-side video view or a stacked one if you're shooting vertically. This means you can record yourself with the selfie camera and show what you're seeing or reacting to with any of the rear cameras.
On paper, Director's View seemed like something I might try once and not really use. But after some time using it, some people will definitely be into the feature. A downside to Director's View is that the final video is saved in HD instead of 4K or 8K. I'd love to see a similar thumbnail preview interface of all the rear cameras when recording a regular 4K video.
I'm excited to pit the S21 Ultra and its cameras against the iPhone 12 Pro Max and Google Pixel 5. Each phone takes a different approach to photography and will appeal to different people.
S21 Ultra has a Snapdragon 888 chip and 12 or 16GB of RAM
Powering the S21 Ultra is the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chip, along with 12GB of RAM, or 16GB in the most expensive model -- which also has 512GB of storage (see the chart below for prices). In my benchmark tests, the S21 Ultra scored better than last year's S20 Ultra. And in use, it handled everything I threw at it, even playing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate games on it.
You can use the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate app to play Xbox games on your S21 Ultra.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Supplying juice to the phone is a 5,000-mAh battery. I've easily been averaging a day and a half on a single charge. Battery tests on the S21 Ultra for continuous video playback on Airplane mode clocked an average of 22 hours and 57 minutes with the refresh rate set to Auto 120Hz. That's actually an hour less than the S20 Ultra lasted in the same test. Though keep in mind, in real world use my colleague Jessica Dolcourt found the S20 Ultra's battery drained like it was being bitten by a "thirsty vampire."
Below are the results of my benchmark tests for the S21 Ultra.
3DMark Slingshot Unlimited
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Geekbench v.5.0 single-core
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Geekbench v.5.0 multicore
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Android 11 and 5G support
The Galaxy S21 Ultra runs Android 11 with Samsung's OneUI 3.1 top layer. And I like it a lot. I can now default to Google Pay or Google Discover News feed instead of Samsung's versions. The look for everything from settings to pop-up windows is clean and contemporary. And with a phone this big, OneUI helps make it easier to use one-handed.
Last, the Galaxy S21 Ultra has 5G and supports both sub-6 and mmWave flavors of 5G. You shouldn't get the Ultra for its 5G. But as 5G networks get better, so will your 5G speeds and connection. And then we'll really have something to talk about.
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Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review: Samsung's premier phone is pretty badass
Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G review: Samsung's premier phone is pretty badass
The Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, unveiled alongside Samsung's Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus phones, proves that sometimes you have to do something twice to get it right. While just as bold as last year's Galaxy S20 Ultra, the S21 Ultra is a refined second take on the concept. There's still the 100x Space Zoom, but it's easier to use. There is still the "big for the sake of being big" design, but it looks more appealing. And there's still a high price, but at $1,200 (£1,149, AU$1,849) it costs $200 less than the S20 Ultra in the US.
If you want the absolute best specs and features, the S21 Ultra is undoubtedly appealing. The phone will also attract camera nerds, thanks to the improvements. The addition of S-Pen support -- it's the first Galaxy S phone to support the stylus -- will likely catch the eye of Galaxy Note users looking for a different option.
Like
Gorgeous phantom black finish
Two telephoto cameras
The screen is spectacular
S-Pen support
Don't Like
It's heavy
Lacks a microSD card slot
$1,200 is still expensive
Last year's Ultra model seemed like it came out of nowhere. It was a phone all about excess that, by sheer fate, was launched at the beginning of a global pandemic and recession. Its bold, behemoth take on the Galaxy S line was undercut by its $1,400 (£1,199, AU$1,999) price and issues with its nearly domino-size camera system.
Overall, the S21 Ultra is a major update both in terms of hardware and software over the S20 Ultra. And when you factor in a lower price, it all kind of makes sense. And that's why the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra earned a CNET's Editors' Choice Award. The whole Galaxy S21 lineup is available to purchase -- here's how you can buy one.
Read more: Samsung Galaxy S21 vs. S21 Plus vs. S21 Ultra
The Galaxy S21 Ultra has the best black finish
I wouldn't call the S21 Ultra's design radically different, but my review unit has the best black finish I've ever seen on a phone. It's the stuff that goth dreams are made of. The color is called phantom black, and seeing it in person makes you understand why Samsung made a nearly three-minute video explaining the blackest black finish. The S21 Ultra also comes in phantom silver and there are limited-edition phantom finishes in titanium, brown and navy, which can only be found on Samsung's website.
The camera bump is large and melts into the sides of the phone, which are glossy black. And while the regular S21 and S21 Plus looks snazzy in their two-tone colors, the all-black S21 Ultra is cool, elegant and badass all at the same time.
Read more: Galaxy S21 drop test: It broke on the first drop
The S21 Ultra is heavier than last year's S20 Ultra and the iPhone 12 Pro Max. It's the second heaviest phone I have tested in the past year, just behind the Asus ROG Phone 3.
The display is brighter and adds S-Pen support
Around the front is one of the most impressive displays I've seen. It has a Wide Quad HD resolution and a variable refresh rate between 10 and 120Hz, which is determined by what's on the screen. And just to be clear, it can be set to 120Hz without the hit to resolution that the S20 Ultra had. The 6.8-inch display is bright and the contrast is gorgeous. Covering the front and back is Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus.
Support for the S-Pen means you can draw, write, edit photos and sign documents on the S21 Ultra.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Under the screen is a larger ultrasonic fingerprint reader which feels peppy. I had a hard time telling if it was faster than the one on the S20 Ultra. The display also has S-Pen support.
The Galaxy Note phones line always tempted me, but I didn't think I'd use the S-Pen enough to justify getting one. I like the iPad Pro-Apple Pencil approach Samsung took with the S21 Ultra. Without an S-Pen, you can still enjoy using the S21 Ultra. But if you're S-Pen curious, you can buy a new S-Pen or find an old one and it will work. There's a lot you can do like draw, take notes and sign documents. I love editing photos and making adjustments with the S-Pen.
There are a few S-Pen considerations. The S21 Ultra doesn't come with an S-Pen and doesn't support Bluetooth or gesture functionality. For example, the S21 Ultra can't send you a notification if you leave your S-Pen behind. Also, the Ultra doesn't have a built-in slot to store an S-Pen. Samsung does sell cases for the phone that include S-Pen storage.
The S21 Ultra has two telephoto cameras
The S21 Ultra's camera system received several significant updates. There are four rear cameras: one wide, one ultrawide and two telephoto cameras. The time-of-flight sensor on the S20 Ultra is gone; in its place is a laser autofocus module.
The 108-megapixel sensor on the main camera is new and has better autofocus for both photos and videos. There's even a new focus enhancer tool that pops onscreen to help the phone focus faster. The tool looks like it might be switching to a wider view to do so.
Read more: S21 Ultra vs. iPhone 12 Pro Max vs. Pixel 5: Which phone has the best night mode?
There are four rear cameras: wide, ultrawide and two telephotos.
Patrick Holland/CNET
The dual-telephoto cameras add a number of benefits. One has 3x magnification and the other 10x. This means when you zoom in, there are two places in your zoom range where the image isn't cropped and where you'll capture the best image quality. Another benefit is stability. The two cameras are paired to help make zooming in, even at 100x, easier and more steady.
At 30x or higher, a zoom guide appears to help you find the specific spot that you're zoomed in at. You can lock it so the cameras don't move, which turns the guide yellow. This works quite well. Obviously you have to be careful not to move the phone around too much, but it's less finicky and frustrating than the S20 Ultra.
Photos from the S21 Ultra are excellent, with good detail and a wide dynamic range. There is a 108-megapixel mode, but I found that the 12-megapixel photos that come from pixel binning look consistently great.
Below are several photos I took with the S21 Ultra.
The main camera was set to 12 megapixels, which uses pixel binning to combine nine pixels into one.
Patrick Holland/CNET
One benefit of pixel binning is that it can bring out the details in a photo. Notice the different textures and details.
Patrick Holland/CNET
I used the single-take mode in the camera app to capture photos and videos of this cute dog. Here's one of the pictures my S21 Ultra chose.
Patrick Holland/CNET
There's so much for the S21 Ultra to capture correctly here: the barren tree branches, the water and the white fluffy clouds in the blue sky.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Here are three different photos I took from the exact same spot using the wide 1x camera (left), the 3x telephoto camera (middle) and the 10x telephoto camera (right).
Patrick Holland/CNET
In low light, the S21 Ultra's night mode is outstanding. Flaring on the lens is minimized and photos look bright without a bunch of image noise or noise-reduction smearing. Below are a few night mode photos I took:
This might be my favorite night mode photo of the bunch.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Here's another night mode capture. I like how the S21 Ultra brought out the colors in the sculpture.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Night mode on any of the S21 Ultra's cameras. I took this shot with the ultrawide.
Patrick Holland/CNET
For selfies there's the same 40-megapixel camera that the S20 Ultra had. You now have an option to change the color tone to either bright or natural which is excellent.
Here is a selfie I took with the natural setting.
Patrick Holland/CNET
Samsung added the ability to take raw 12-bit color photos. There's a new video feature called Director's View, which gives you a thumbnail preview of the video feeds coming from all of the cameras on the phones. As you record, you can switch between them. Within Director's View, there's a vlogger setup that gives you a side-by-side video view or a stacked one if you're shooting vertically. This means you can record yourself with the selfie camera and show what you're seeing or reacting to with any of the rear cameras.
On paper, Director's View seemed like something I might try once and not really use. But after some time using it, some people will definitely be into the feature. A downside to Director's View is that the final video is saved in HD instead of 4K or 8K. I'd love to see a similar thumbnail preview interface of all the rear cameras when recording a regular 4K video.
I'm excited to pit the S21 Ultra and its cameras against the iPhone 12 Pro Max and Google Pixel 5. Each phone takes a different approach to photography and will appeal to different people.
S21 Ultra has a Snapdragon 888 chip and 12 or 16GB of RAM
Powering the S21 Ultra is the new Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chip, along with 12GB of RAM, or 16GB in the most expensive model -- which also has 512GB of storage (see the chart below for prices). In my benchmark tests, the S21 Ultra scored better than last year's S20 Ultra. And in use, it handled everything I threw at it, even playing Xbox Game Pass Ultimate games on it.
You can use the Xbox Game Pass Ultimate app to play Xbox games on your S21 Ultra.
Sarah Tew/CNET
Supplying juice to the phone is a 5,000-mAh battery. I've easily been averaging a day and a half on a single charge. Battery tests on the S21 Ultra for continuous video playback on Airplane mode clocked an average of 22 hours and 57 minutes with the refresh rate set to Auto 120Hz. That's actually an hour less than the S20 Ultra lasted in the same test. Though keep in mind, in real world use my colleague Jessica Dolcourt found the S20 Ultra's battery drained like it was being bitten by a "thirsty vampire."
Below are the results of my benchmark tests for the S21 Ultra.
3DMark Slingshot Unlimited
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Geekbench v.5.0 single-core
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Geekbench v.5.0 multicore
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Android 11 and 5G support
The Galaxy S21 Ultra runs Android 11 with Samsung's OneUI 3.1 top layer. And I like it a lot. I can now default to Google Pay or Google Discover News feed instead of Samsung's versions. The look for everything from settings to pop-up windows is clean and contemporary. And with a phone this big, OneUI helps make it easier to use one-handed.
Last, the Galaxy S21 Ultra has 5G and supports both sub-6 and mmWave flavors of 5G. You shouldn't get the Ultra for its 5G. But as 5G networks get better, so will your 5G speeds and connection. And then we'll really have something to talk about.
