The Samsung Galaxy S21 5G & S21+ 5G are your new Android rivals to the iPhone 12

A grand don’t come for free, as our main man Mike Skinner once said, so if you haven’t got the G’s for an all powerful almighty Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, don’t fret because the Samsung Galaxy S21 5G & S21+ 5G are certainly not to be sniffed at. The smallest of the Galaxy S21 series (announced so far) is the standard S21 5G (from £769) which represents the successor to our ‘Stuff Awards’ Phone of the Year’ for 2020, the Samsung Galaxy S20 5G. It features a 6.2in screen and in terms of size is slightly wider than the S20. Then there’s the much larger S21+ 5G (from £949), with its Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max-equalling 6.7in screen. Both have 120Hz Full HD+ AMOLED displays that max out at 1300 nits – a shave off the Ultra’s 1500 nits and minus its variable refresh smarts – plus triple rear-camera setups consisting of a 12MP Dual Pixel main sensor, 12MP wide angle lens and 64MP telephoto with 1.1x optical and 3x hybrid zoom. In terms of materials, the S21+ has a Gorilla Glass back while the standard S21’s is made of polycarbonate. The larger handset also has a bigger battery, 4800mAh compared to 4000mAh, and comes with ultra-wideband. RAM stacks up at 8GB each, with 128GB or 256GB storage configurations, and an Exynos 2100 chip. 

James Day

About

You’ll find me covering every area of consumer electronics and technology alongside new and inventive ways to campaign for the return of the MiniDisc. A borderline audiophile, I DJ digitally to a mildly acceptable standard at weekends and tend to surround myself with smart home tech at all other times. In short, I’m hackable and likely to be wearing headphones and distracted while it’s happening.

Areas of expertise

Consumer electronics, audio kit, smart home devices and fondly remembered forms of removable media