Samsung announced the Galaxy S22 range at its Unpacked event on 9 February.
The company revealed the Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22+ and the Galaxy S22 Ultra, succeeding the S21, S21+ and S21 Ultra from 2021. The latest devices also sit above the recently announced Galaxy S21 FE.
With that in mind, this is how the Samsung Galaxy S22 and S22+ compare to the Galaxy S21 FE and the Galaxy S21 and S21+. If you want to know how the Galaxy S22 Ultra compares to its predecessor, you can read our separate feature.
Design
- S22: 146 x 70.6 x 7.6mm, 168g
- S22+: 157.4 x 75.8 x 7.6mm, 196g
- S21 FE: 155.7 x 74.5 x 7.9mm, 177g
- S21: 151.7 x 71.2 x 7.9mm, 172g
- S21+: 161.5 x 75.6 x 7.8mm, 202g
The Samsung Galaxy S22 and S22+ follow a similar design to their predecessors, but change up the camera housing on the rear slightly. The S22 and S22+ have colour-matched camera housings that wrap around the frame, like the Galaxy S21 FE.
The Galaxy S21 and S21+ both have camera housings that wrap around the frame too, though apart from the black model, the housings on the 2021 models are a different colour to the rear.
All devices being compared here feature flat displays and a punch hole camera centralised at the top and they are all IP68 water and dust resistant, whilst offering a ‘glasstic’ rear and metal frames.
In terms of physical size, the Galaxy S22 is smaller than the Galaxy S21, while the Galaxy S22+ is smaller than the Galaxy S21+. The Galaxy S21 FE meanwhile, sits in the middle of the standard and plus models of the Galaxy S22.
Display
- S22: 6.1-inch, Full HD+, 10-120Hz
- S22+: 6.6-inch, Full HD+, 10-120Hz
- S21 FE: 6.4-inch, Full HD+, 120Hz
- S21: 6.2-inch, Full HD+, 48-120Hz
- S21+: 6.7-inch, Full HD+, 48-120Hz
The Samsung Galaxy S22 comes with a 6.1-inch display, which offers a Full HD+ resolution. The Galaxy S22+ comes with a 6.6-inch display, which also offers a Full HD+ resolution.
By comparison, the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE comes with a 6.4-inch display, also with a Full HD+ resolution, while the Galaxy S21 has a 6.2-inch display and the Galaxy S21+ has a 6.7-inch display, both with Full HD+ resolutions.
The Galaxy S21 FE has a 120Hz refresh rate, though it’s not variable, while the S21 and S21+ have variable refresh rates between 48Hz and 120Hz. The S22 and S22+ also offer variable refresh rates, though between 10Hz and 120Hz, marking some improvements over the S21 devices.
All devices being compared here offer flat displays with under-screen fingerprint readers.
Hardware and specs
- S22: Qualcomm SD 8 Gen 1/Exynos 2200, 8GB RAM, 128/256GB, 3700mAh
- S22+: Qualcomm SD 8 Gen 1/Exynos 2200, 8GB RAM, 128/256GB, 4500mAh
- S21 FE: Qualcomm SD888/Exynos 2100, 6GB/8GB RAM, 128/256GB, 4370mAh
- S21: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 or Exynos 2100, 8GB, 128/256GB, 4000mAh
- S21+: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 or Exynos 2100, 8GB, 128/256GB, 4800mAh
The Samsung Galaxy S22 and S22+ run on either the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor, or the Exynos 2200, depending on the region. They both offer 8GB of RAM and the storage options are 128GB and 256GB.
The Galaxy S21 FE, Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S21+ all run on either the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset or the Exynos 2100, region dependent, so the Galaxy S22 models see a bump in processor over all three models.
The Galaxy S21 FE comes in 6GB and 8GB RAM variants, while the S21 and S21+ come with 8GB of RAM. All three models offer 128GB and 256GB storage options, with none offer microSD support for storage expansion, which the Galaxy S22 models don’t offer either.
In terms of battery capacity, the Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S22+ come with 3700mAh and 4500mAh cells respectively and the charger doesn’t come in the box. The Galaxy S21 FE has a 4370mAh battery, while the S21 and S21+ come with 4000mAh and 4800mAh batteries respectively, so the new models drop the capacity.
Camera
- S22/S22+: Triple rear (50MP + 12MP + 12MP), 10MP front camera
- S21 FE: Triple rear (12MP + 12MP + 8MP), 32MP front camera
- S21: Triple rear (12MP + 12MP + 64MP), 10MP front camera
- S21+: Triple rear (12MP + 12MP + 64MP), 10MP front camera
The Samsung Galaxy S22 and S22+ feature a triple rear camera consisting of a 50-megapixel main sensor, plus two 12-megapixel sensors for ultrawide and telephoto, with the telephoto camera capable of 3x optical zoom.
The Samsung Galaxy S21 and S21+ both come with a triple rear camera too, but a different make up with a 12-megapixel main sensor with 1.8µm pixel size, f/1.8 aperture and optical stabilisation (OIS), a 12-megapixel ultra-wide sensor with 1.4µm and f/2.2, and a 64-megapixel telephoto sensor with 0.8µm, f/2.0 and OIS.
The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE meanwhile, also has a triple rear camera, but again, the make-up is different. The S21 FE has a 12-megapixel main camera with f/1.8 aperture and OIS, 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera with f/2.2 and an 8-megapixel telephoto sensor with f/2.4 on board.
There’s a 10-megapixel, 1.22µm, f/2.2 front camera on both the S21 and S21+, as well as the S22 and S22+. The S21 FE has a 32-megapixel front camera.
Price
- S22: From £769
- S22+: From £949
- S21 FE: From £699/$799
- S21: From £769
- S21+: From £949
The Samsung Galaxy S22 costs from £769 in the UK, and the S22+ costs from £949 in the UK.
The Samsung Galaxy S21 started at £769 in the UK when it first launched and $799 in the US, while the S21+ started at £949 in the UK and $999 in the US, though you should find them cheaper following the launch of the S22.
The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is cheaper than the Galaxy S21 and therefore the S21+, and the S22 models. The Galaxy S21 FE starts at £699 in the UK for the 5G model and $799 in the US.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy S22 and S22+ offer a similar design to their predecessors but in smaller packages, and they are even more similar in terms of design to the Galaxy S21 FE.
They of course offer processor advancements and camera improvements and there are some small display changes too, but otherwise, the S22 and S22+ are more about incremental improvements rather than a drastic redesign this time around.
Naturally the S22 model win on paper in terms of specifications, but the smart move would probably be to opt for the S21 FE, where you a good blend of features and value.