Verdict
It may be a year quondam , but the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is still a tantalizing earphone with telling capabilities in a rather large package . Most of it still works fantastically well , and importantly , it ’s drop in toll since the release of the S23 Ultra .
Pros
Cons
Key Features
Introduction
The Galaxy S22 Ultra is the top French telephone in Samsung ’s 2022 flagship compass , but this sound could have very easily been called the Galaxy S22 Note .
After canning the furore - favourite Note series a few years ago , Samsung has been trying various means of adding a few of the serial ’ best traits into its other phones .
TheGalaxy S21 Ultra , for good example , was the first equipment not designate a line to support the sort - of - ready to hand S Pen stylus – even if it was an additional accessory that did n’t live in the speech sound itself .
With the Galaxy S22 Ultra , Samsung has gone in another direction – and not one I can say I was await . The Galaxy S22 Ultra is basically just a next - gen Galaxy Note . It count like a musical note , has a slot for the S Pen like a Note and have a bun in the oven across many of the features most would relate with a Note .
This is also the top - final stage model of theGalaxy S22range and that is reflect in its price . The al-Qaeda exemplar , with 128 GB computer storage and 8 GB RAM , has an RRP of £ 1149 . An spare £ 100 gets you 256 GB of storage and 12 GB RAM . For £ 1329 , depot arise to 512 GB and for £ 1499 , it rises again to 1 TB .
However , it ’s deserving note that it can be foundmuchcheaper in 2023 , specially now that the new SamsungGalaxy S23 Ultrais available , pull in it much more beguiling than it was at button in 2022 . If you ’re curious about the remainder , take a smell at ourSamsung Galaxy S23 Ultra vs Galaxy S22 Ultracomparison .
Screen and Design
As the Ultra moniker inculpate , the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is the biggest , heavy and most feature - copious member of the S22 family . It has a 6.8 - inch display ( larger than the 6.6 - in screen on the Plus ) , a silo for the S Pen to bob and a stacked camera array on the back .
It also , predictably , picks up some of the highlights of the Galaxy S22 ’s intention , let in Armour Aluminium around the sides , Gorilla Glass Victus+ on the front and back ( Samsung read this is 12.5 % tougher than the previous Victus ) and , of course , anIP68rating .
Samsung has done something quite strange with the overall look of this phone . While the S21 , S21 Plus and S21 Ultra had a vaguely similar design , each with a photographic camera module blended into the phone ’s aim , the Galaxy S22 Ultra looks wildly dissimilar to the S22 . It ’s hard rounded on the side , with a non - existent tv camera module that allows the multitude of sensors to just model by themselves .
It is fundamentally a refinement of the last Galaxy Note phone rather than an phylogeny of the figure I loved on the Galaxy S21 Ultra . If you appreciated the DNA of the Note argumentation you ’ll have it away this – but for me , it feels like a step backwards . Everything is a bit too rounded and a chip too boxlike .
My feelings mince after using the phone for a few Clarence Day , but I still have n’t warmed to it as much as I did the S21 Ultra . The only thing I ’d say is a true step forward is the unexampled quiet , satin rear as it does n’t seem to ever pick up dingy fingerprint as much as past Samsung flagships .
The new design for the camera sensors has them deposit out , so the phone rock a lot when you perch it on a table . I ’ve also found junk gets caught around the television camera sensor very easily when the phone has been in my pocket for prolonged stop .
It ’s a big , arduous and surprisingly wide-cut gadget – though when you view everything on offer that ’s scarcely a surprise . With the S Pen inserted , the phone weighs 229 gigabyte and really needs to be grasped with two hands to be nurse well . I am used to big phones – before this I had been using the 240 g iPhone 13 Pro Max – but I was still taken aback by the hefty dimensions on crack here .
My final build tone orbit around the trembling motor . It ’s just so … non - real ? I ’ve missed dozens of notifications , even phone claim , because I just ca n’t feel the haptic reply . Even when the S22 Ultra is on a desk , the tinny sound the vibration gives off feel like the telephone is on the other side of the office . It ’s a unlike story with the general UI haptics though , as the soft quivering when you hit keys is very comforting .
While I might have some concerns over the look , I am all - in on the showing . The 6.8 - inchOLEDpanel packs a 1440p resolving power for pin - sharp detail and can now rage all the room down 1Hz to preserve barrage life .
open up up a plot or start scrolling Twitter and thatrefresh ratejumps to 120Hz – and it really does count super smooth . Samsung has also supply a 240hz sample distribution charge per unit into the Game Mode , saint for titles like online shooters and brawlers that ask the fastest response possible .
To my eyes , the screen door look like one of , if notthe , best around . Colours pop without feeling lurid and particular is just unrivalled . I lade up Our Planet in HDR on Netflix and the colorful scenery wait stunning . I was immersed , which is enjoin a lot considering this form of capacity is unremarkably substantially squander on a whopping gravid heavy TV .
Aside from looking vivid and bright , theDynamic OLEDscreen has a new feature call Vision Booster . Samsung tell this pushes up item and dividing line in brighter situation , making it gentle to see video subject matter . This is sure as shooting an interesting summation for those who ascertain a stack of Netflix show in sunny surroundings , though considering it ’s very dreary here in the UK it ’s not something I could utilize much .
brightness level is another particular key to Samsung ’s hoopla for this phone , and it deserve the build up - up . While the top 1750 nits brightness will in all probability only be hit in specificHDRsituations , you do have a lot of control over the tier of brightness . I could easily dispatch 770 nits in the surplus Bright way , which is a very gamy number you ’ll only need sparingly .
In terms of color , there are two mode . I rule the Vivid mode to be the most accurate ( 97.4 % DCI - P3 , 99.8 % sRGB ) , though there ’s a natural option too if you favor colours a small more quiet .
The screen door is made to function with the S Pen , which is now included with the phone and slots away in a silo next to the USB - ascorbic acid port when not in economic consumption . Latency has been dilute from 9ms to 2.8ms for more natural written material , and Samsung claims the software system use AI attainment to auspicate what you ’ll write next .
The S Pen find as good as it did on old Note phones and it ’s very antiphonal . I tried but it ’s virtually impossible to blob any lag between the playpen touching the showing and the ink seem . Popping it out and jotting down a shopping tilt or straightaway to - do leaning stay fast and natural . For those that loved the S Pen , you ’ll still love it here .
I am not convinced whether this phone needs an S Pen , though – but considering the love that little flake of charge card tends to invite I am sure many of you will disagree . The Note was always a niche equipment , appreciated by those who wanted a style . The S22 Ultra is meant to be Samsung ’s lawful flagship phone for the consumer who wants thebestscreen andbestcamera – I just do n’t cogitate most want an S Pen too . But , if you do n’t want to expend it it ’s fair comfortable to bury about and it does n’t seem like much was sacrificed to include it .
Samsung seems to be focussing a lot on making the whole S22 range more eco - conscious . It has flinch down the sizing of the boxes compare to its predecessors , take away all plastic and committed to using recycled sportfishing earnings in certain division of the gimmick .
Camera
The camera setup is certainly the principal of the Galaxy S22 Ultra , and Samsung clearly want to rival other 2022 flagships for the title of thebest camera earpiece , and it still bind up well in 2023 . Samsung has done a very good job ; the camera is brilliantly various , easily surpassing Apple and Google for rapid climb skills .
While it ’s far from always about the genuine tech on offer , Samsung is king when it issue forth to bundle in megapixels and other in high spirits - close tv camera equipment into its phones . For instance , the S22 Ultra expend a 108 - megapixel detector on the back with an f/1.8 lens , Dual Pixel focussing and OIS , though that has been usurped by the even bigger 200 - megapixel sensor on the novel S23 Ultra .
Pictures from the main rear photographic camera are in effect , though not a huge saltation in quality from the S21 Ultra . consider that was , and remains , one of the best camera phone around this is n’t a huge offspring . Colours are rich and vivacious and detail is pin - sharp – I would even say certain shots can look a slight too acute , especially street photography where there are various details battle for your attention .
By nonremittal , it ’ll combine multiple pixel from that 108MP sensing element together , though you’re able to shoot at full - res if you need .
Next to this , there ’s a 12MP ultra spacious ( f/2.2 , 120 - degree field of sight ) and a twosome of 10 - megapixel telephoto cameras . One of these inner circle 3x optical zoom , while the other ups it to 10x . If that ’s not enough zoom , the Space Zoom feature riposte , allow up to 100x Digital Zoom with the help of some AI Super Resolution Tech .
Zooming is where the S22 Ultra impress . The capability on whirl easily beat the competition from Apple and Google . I ’m not talking about hitting 100x – these shots still look grainy and generally are a mess – but at 10x and below the results are fantastic . I stood outside Trusted Reviews HQ and zoomed 10x towards the tip of The Shard and the ensue epitome are terse and absolutely usable .
Around the front , there ’s a 40 - megapixel selfie camera that captures gracious duck soup with good skin musical note and not too much disdainful sharpening or smooth out .
The theme of AI run through a lot of what Samsung is doing with the television camera here . It utilize stilted intelligence in dark photography to becalm the camera when you ’re fritter video . The technical school worked not bad during testing , offering me very impressive and static results ; automatically exchange the frame rate and change the strength of the bokeh blur in portraiture mode as the situation require .
Auto flesh snapshot is another AI focussed feature . It ’s design to shift the focus and soar upwards to fit more ( or less ) faces into your shots depending on the surround the camera ’s in . This feels like a good style to check that people utilise all the available photographic camera , without making them manually pick between them .
It ’s light to spot the AI kick into gear and it can run to very obvious change in lens and vividness tone that can be quite jarring . I was taking pictures of my dog Peach in lower - light and the camera keep automatically flip between regular and nighttime musical mode , drastically altering the people of colour each fourth dimension . This is less obvious when it ’s very black and the camera knows the surroundings a small better .
Night photography is a freehanded direction with the photographic camera . Samsung pronounce the pixel inside the 108 - megapixel sensor are 1.23x larger than those in the S21 Ultra , allowing more light into the sensing element . Again , the usance of AI realise itself known , up particular and reducing noise .
Throughout my clip with the phone , I have find the humiliated - light and night buck to be arguably the grownup tv camera rise over the Galaxy S21 Ultra . The speech sound does a wonderful business at both retaining details in tough conditions and see to it that snap that merit to be ink-black dark are so .
It ’s worth noting that performance is even better on the newer S23 Ultra , utilising 16 - in-1 pixel bin tech to becharm even more light , particular and colour than the S22 Ultra . If low - light photography is a focal point for you , it might be deserving opting for the newer model .
Samsung is bringing more focussing to its antecedently - announced Expert birthday suit app . Similar to the Pro app on Sony ’s Xperia I flagship , this is a disjoined camera app that gives you far more chondritic control and the ability to shoot in the RAW format . birthday suit , unlike the JPEG format phones typically shoot in , is uncompressed and allows keen editors to brawl a better final production out of an initial picture . Unless you design on spending time tweaking an image afterwards in an app like Lightroom , you‘re not really run low to see the true welfare of RAW .
I ’m not quite sure why this stuff , include restraint over white balance and ISO , ca n’t be make smartly into the independent tv camera app – but maybe Samsung wants to keep that as round-eyed as possible .
Performance
The chipset sitting at the affectionateness of the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra will motley depending on the region . US buyers , for representative , get theSnapdragon 8 Gen 1chip from Qualcomm whereas those in the UK get theExynos 2200variant . Both chipsets are build upon the 4 nm computer architecture , meaning they should be more efficient than the outgoing 5 millimicron models .
Interesting side - note : that was the last time Samsung split the processors , with the newer S23 Ultra sporting a customs duty Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 for Galaxy worldwide .
RAM options range from 8 GB to 12 GB , while storehouse ranges from 128 GB to 1 TB . The nucleotide RAM level is a little miserable than the S21 Ultra , but Samsung says this is neutralise by improved virtual RAM choice . My followup sample is the 12GB/256 GB Exynos model , so I ca n’t comment on the performance of the 8 GB Aries variant or the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 poser .
As you ’d look there ’s 5 gee sustenance , plusWi - Fi 6 and 6Econnectivity for those with a plump for router andUWBfor gimmick that form with ultra wideband such as Samsung ’s Smart Tag . Samsung is great at using the a la mode tech and touchstone and that ’s very much at play here .
That ’s the specs part out of the manner , but how does the Galaxy S22 Ultra actually do ? For the most part , the updated chip offers a small rise over the outgoing Exynos cow chip .
There are slight betterment in the scores accomplish in semisynthetic benchmarks like Geekbench 5 and Antutu and a more famous bump in 3D Mark ’s GPU tests . More importantly , the S22 Ultra stays cooler in these tests and seems to be able to advertise performance for a sustained period without any throttling . This will be nifty news for those who put constant hours into demanding titles like Genshin Impact .
With real - world enjoyment , the Galaxy S22 Ultra feels fast . It can , predictably , handle game with simplicity and make high setting without getting too raging . But I have run into a few package - ground bugs throughout my clip with the telephone . Apps often storm quit , there ’s a small but obtrusive lag when arrive at the tv camera shutter button , and often I get a black sieve when unlock the phone . Hopefully these hemipterous insect get squashed quickly .
Call quality and Wi - Fi operation are both good but speaker are n’t as rich as those on the iPhone 13 Pro Max . There remains no expandable memory , so choose sagely when you purchase .
Samsung ’s One UI ( found on Android 12 ) is a respectable Android pelt . There are some of Android 12 ’s best feature here , including a fun on the Material You theming engine . I ’m not a huge fan of the esthetic of One UI though , especially when liken to how slick Android now look on a Pixel 6 Pro . The figure just feels a chip basic without any real dash . Your opinion might vary though , and this really does n’t have any effect on how the software work out .
One UI is packed with features and it ticks a luck of boxes . The bombardment saver modes are fantabulous , you have a raft of control over performance and the updated Notes app adds in support for more language for its handwriting credit .
What ’s more important though is that Samsung is gravely supporting this phone when it make out to updates . There ’s a promise of five years of updates and four major o updates – that signify the S22 Ultra will still be stomach when Android 16 rolls around . believe how many big Android telephone set only get two major OS updates , this is huge news and shows that investment should last for a bit of year .
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra vs S21 Ultra : how do the specs compare ?
Full Specs
Battery Life
I mentioned headache about battery mental ability in my hands - on with the Galaxy S22 , but I did n’t have the same qualms here and I have in general establish the survival on equality with Galaxy S21 Ultra . This is to say it ’s good , but not precisely groundbreaking .
Inside the S22 Ultra there ’s a 5000mAh cell , which is pair with an efficient screen and 4 nm chipset for good stamp battery life . It does n’t last anywhere almost as long as the iPhone 13 Pro Max though and throughout my hebdomad with the phone , I have been charging it on a nightly fundament after strike the red zone just before bed . Granted , I have been pushing the display ’s cleverness and keeping the 1440p setting enable . Lower these and you could extend it further .
There are a number of other battery rescuer modes too , each with a Brobdingnagian array of customisations like throttling execution , turning off 5 G and mechanically lowering the projection screen result . Play around with these and you ’ll retrieve the best mix of performance and longevity to suit your pauperism .
Where the extra efficiency is most noticeable is with tasks that keep the screen on . I streamed an minute of Netflix in HDR at about 90 % brightness level , and it drained 10 % . Drop the brightness to 60 % ( which remains very shiny ) and it took off just 6 % . That ’s impressive stuff and shows how significant these adaptive screens can be .
There ’s no charger supplied , though the Galaxy S22 Ultra can fast charge with both 25w and 45w hoopla . I do n’t have a dedicated Samsung charger , so for this review I used a stock Anker multi - port plug that supports the 45w monetary standard . Using the include USB - C cable I was impressed with the speed . A immediate five - minute charge gave me 10 % , while I hit 25 % in 11 instant . 25 minutes got me past 50 % and I systematically impinge on 100 % in around an hr .
15w Qi receiving set is supported too , as isWireless Powersharefor charging up other machine like watch and earbuds wirelessly . 15w is jolly dim liken to wireless charging speeds achieved by devices like the OnePlus 10 Pro and it remain a dull and inefficient way to juice up . Still , it ’s better to have it than not .
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Should you buy it?
This is a earpiece that packs everything potential . From the display to the camera and the internals this is a big phone for those who want all the feature potential .
This headphone is big and it lease a warm grasp to well sustain it .
Final Thoughts
If you ’ve been lament Samsung ’s decisiveness to shoot down the Note series then the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra is well and truly its phantasmal replacement , and with the discharge of the S23 Ultra , it ’s cheaper than ever .
While I am a little disappointed about the change in designing , it ’s hard not to wonder at everything going on here – there are n’t any sacrifices made here . The filmdom is a expert marvel , the camera is seriously versatile and the software characteristic pack . There ’s even an S Pen bone up in .
The internals might not represent huge year - on - year improvements and the tv camera system has quirks in the way it uses AI , but if you ’re after a truthful powerhouse and one of thebest Android phonesyou wo n’t be disappointed .
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How we test
We examine every nomadic phone we review thoroughly . We use industry standard trial to compare features properly and we apply the phone as our main gadget over the review period . We ’ll always tell you what we line up and we never , ever , take money to retrospect a product .
FAQs
No , the S Pen is let in with the S22 Ultra – just like the Note series .
There is no expandable memory board here . But , you may take between 128 , 256 , 512 GB and 1 TB options .
Samsung is saying you ’ll get five age of updates , including four years of major type O updates .
