while testing the Galaxy S22 Ultra 5Gthe most advanced among Samsung models — and a kind of Galaxy Note replacement, I had some doubts. One of the main ones was: to what extent does the owner of this device really use all its power and functions?
That’s because we’re talking about a cell phone with extremely robust specifications, a camera system that squanders megapixels, a huge screen and even a feature that many people who were fans of the Galaxy Note liked: the S Pen pen.
In theory at least, the S22 Ultra 5G will be best enjoyed by anyone who wants the ultimate in performance in a device and who will also use their phone for work. Check out the full review of the S22 Ultra below.
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High-quality panel results in optimal gaming and video experience
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Set of four lenses, with different functions, allow excellent quality photos.
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It’s not quite a heavyweight, but it’s far from being a light device.
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S Pen is featured, but large size hinders one-handed use.
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All the qualities of the device do not justify the very high price charged for it.
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Strengths
- Free from choking, it’s that kind of device capable of running anything without difficulties.
- Excellent and versatile camera set.
- Screen has great size and performance for watching videos and playing games.
- Battery holds the wave well and helps keep the cell phone away from the socket.
- S Pen is a great peripheral that, if taken advantage of, adds very interesting ways to use your cell phone.
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Negative points
- Large size prevents easy one-handed use.
- Price practiced makes it a device for few
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Verdict
The S22 Ultra 5G shines when it comes to performance, display, cameras and unique features. It justifies the positioning as a great high-end cell phone. The problem is the price, which makes its “smaller brothers” S22 and S22+ more rational choices.
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On the contrary S22 e S22+the tested model has its own look and is considerably different even from the S21 Ultra. It is shorter in length (163.3 mm) than its predecessor, but wider. The other measurements are: 77.9 mm wide and 8.9 mm thick, weighing 228 grams.
O S22 Ultra 5G looks more boxy on the front, with straight cuts on both the top and bottom. The sides, however, are rounded.
The greater width is due to the fact that the smartphone now incorporates the S Pen, a pen that allows you to write on your screen. The S21 Ultra had peripheral support, but on the S22 Ultra 5G it has its own niche to be stored inside the device, through an entry at the bottom.
Even though it’s relatively thin, Samsung’s phone isn’t exactly comfortable to carry in your pants pocket, especially if it’s tighter — it gets even bigger with the use of a protective cover.
In terms of construction, the smartphone has a metal housing, made of a material that Samsung calls Armor Aluminum. Front and back are covered in glass (Gorilla Glass Victus+) and it has specification IP68 seal for dust and water — at least in theory, it can survive after being submerged in 1.5 meters of water for 30 minutes.
The S22 Ultra has only one input USB-C at its bottom. It is the same used for battery charging. As has been customary, Samsung did not put a charger in the box of the device.
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The screen kept the measurements of the previous generation: the display is 6.8 inches (17.27 cm). That alone makes the device great for watching videos.
The refresh rate is 120 Hz (which represents how smoothly animations are displayed; the higher the number, the better). This index, which varies according to the situation to save battery, proves to be a differential specifically when playing games that require quick reactions.
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O S22 Ultra 5G is an extremely fast device, with opening and switching between apps happening quickly. Tested games, case of Asphalt 9, Call of Duty Mobile and Free Fire ran without any kind of choking.
A more accurate way to measure the performance of a device is to perform a benchmark test. using the app Geekbench 5, the S22 Ultra 5G scored 3,498 points in the test that evaluates all the handset’s cores together and 1,237 points in the single-core test.
These are responsa numbers, but they are behind a competitor of the device: the iPhone 13 Pro Max. The Apple device recorded 4,647 points and 1,735 points in the same tests, respectively.
The version sold in Brazil uses a Qualcomm SM8450 SoC (acronym for “System-on-a-Chip”, or “Sistema no Chip”, a solution that brings together a processor, graphics processing unit and modem) Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, the same adopted in the rest of the S22 line.
Highlight for the construction method of four nanometers, which makes the set more efficient and generates less heat in the phone. Still, the cell phone is not immune to a slight heating, especially when it is used for tasks that demand more of the set, such as in games. But nothing that detracts from the experience.
The differential in relation to its “smaller brothers” is the RAM memory (which helps in performance), which has 12 GB.
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Overall, it’s the same set of cameras as the S21 Ultra. There are four sensors at the back:
- 108 MP wide angle
- 10 MP periscopic telephoto lens (10x optical zoom)
- 10 MP telephoto (3x optical zoom)
- ultra-angular de 12 MP.
The main difference for the S21 Ultra is in the telephoto lenses, capable of capturing slightly more open images.
Galaxy S22 Ultra: check out photos taken with the Samsung phone
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: main camera
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: Flower detail captured with macro lens
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: night photo
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: night photo
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: modo zoom 5x
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: modo zoom 10x
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: modo zoom 30x
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: modo zoom 100x
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: zoom comparison
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: modo normal
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: photo detail with many colors
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Galaxy S22 Ultra: Front camera used for selfie
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In practice, the result involves excellent photos, even in low light situations. Depending on the level of darkness, the device has a night camera mode that slows the shutter speed to capture as much light as possible.
The zoom, in turn, can reach up to 100x, but this has more of an effect of curiosity than it works as a practical thing, since it is difficult to focus on objects in this situation and the images come out very pixelated. When using the zoom up to 10x, then the performance is quite interesting, aided by the image stabilization system.
The portrait mode is competent in blurring the background of the photos, not leaving the skin looking plasticized and also in dealing with light situations that are not ideal.
The device’s photo application also allows you to control various aspects of the camera, something useful for those who have more experience with photography and don’t like to depend so much on the intervention of smartphone algorithms. On the front, we have a wide-angle lens with sensor de 40 MP.
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The battery is often the Achilles heel of more powerful cell phones. And this is the result of a directly proportional relationship: the greater the amount of available resources, the more these devices tend to consume their energy reserves.
The S22 Ultra 5G, however, did well in this regard. The large size of the device results in a larger battery than the other models in the line: they are 5,000 mAh.
Using a standard test video Tilt, the battery took 13h23 to drain. In almost normal use — after all, most of the time was spent indoors, with the smartphone connected via Wi-Fi — I only had to “feed” him almost two days after the last recharge.
Support for fast chargers also helps in those times of trouble.
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In general, the S22 Ultra 5G would be “just” a bulky cell phone with great performance. But he has something that, at first, I didn’t think he would use so much: the S Pen.
Inherited from the late Galaxy Note, this little pen proved to be something surprisingly useful in many situations. With the device’s giant screen, it’s easy to write on it as if it were a sheet of “digital paper”. And even for people like me, whose handwriting would make ancient Egyptians proud, the cell phone has an attractive feature: it turns those incomprehensible scrawls into “typed” text.
Here, of course, the type of use made of the cell phone varies a lot. If you’re in the habit of taking quick notes on paper as you work, this feature of the S22 Ultra 5G can make you retire any “analog method” for doing so. And you don’t even need to unlock your phone to use the peripheral.
You can also draw, highlight texts, etc. And the S Pen also does well in less trivial functions. An example is its function as a remote control for shooting photos.
Other than that, the S22 Ultra 5G also has two types of biometric authentication: facial recognition (which is still not as efficient as the iPhone’s Face ID, but doesn’t disappoint) and an under-display fingerprint sensor. They serve both to log in to access certain apps and to unlock the device’s screen.
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So far the S22 Ultra 5G was doing super well. The biggest problem is how much you charge to have access to its advanced features: considering the launch prices, the variant with 256 GB of storage went for R$9,499, while the 512 GB variant cost R$10,499.
Of course, the S22 Ultra 5G is not a cost-effective device.
Anyone with a bank account full enough not to worry about paying that on a smartphone of this category will certainly not regret it.
The S22 Ultra 5G probably offers the best experience possible with an Android device and has unique features like the S Pen. However, it is not a cell phone for everyone, in fact.
It is worth researching the settings of the S22 5G brothers and the S22+ 5G, if you want to pay less for a top-of-the-line cell phone. They share a good part of the S22 Ultra’s specifications and make the interested person save more than R$ 2 thousand.
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