Opinion
Samsung’s Galaxy S21 FE is the most worthy phone of 2022
The Galaxy S21 FE 5G was the first Samsung smartphone launched this year. I have been using this device for quite a while now as my daily driver. And, now all I want to say about it is that Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is the most worthy phone of 2022.
Being a tech writer, I have used a lot of smartphones. It’s not that I didn’t like any other phone apart from the Galaxy S21 FE. But some smartphones, which have good features, are more expensive, and less pricey phones do not have such good functions. And if some phones have good features at a low cost, then their design is not that satisfactory.
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Be it design, performance, camera, display, or software, the affordable flagship Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is much better than many other high-end phones of this year and that is why I call it the most worthy phone of 2022. Here’s what I loved most about this smartphone –
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Processor:
The Galaxy S21 FE equips the Octa-Core Samsung Exynos 2100 5nm EUV processor paired with 8GB LPDDR5 RAM and 128GB internal storage. This processor handles almost any task thrown at it with ease.
At the time of my usage – which includes social media apps, continuous browsing, and watching videos on YouTube, the Galaxy S21 FE performed very well. I have also played casual games in it and that too ran smoothly.
Camera:
Samsung offers three rear cameras for the Galaxy S21 FE smartphone and all are quite commendable. This camera setup consists of a 12MP primary camera (with f/1.8 aperture), an 8MP telephoto camera (with f/2.4 aperture, 3X optical zoom, 30x Super-Resolution Zoom), and a 12MP 123-degree ultra-wide camera (with f/2.2 aperture).
All three cameras perform very well in the daylight but the night shots’ details are not so satisfactory. However, the low-light images have been improved compared to the Galaxy S20 FE. Lastly, the 32MP front camera also captures good selfies.
Software:
The biggest thing which makes Galaxy S21 FE the best smartphone of this year is its pre-loaded Android operating system. Samsung launched the Galaxy S21 FE smartphone with Android 12-based One UI 4.0 software system.
Most notably, it is eligible for Samsung’s new software update policy. It means it will get four generations of Android upgrades and five years of security patches. It has recently grabbed its first major software update which is Android 13-based One UI 5.0.
- Don’t forget to read – One UI 5 update made my Galaxy S21 FE AWESOME, thanks Samsung!
Design:
Samsung brings a Galaxy S21-like design for the Galaxy S21 FE that has a contour-cut camera module. However, there are some minor changes – the shell around the cameras is plastic, the display is flat, and has a thin metal frame.
The back is made of plastic but it doesn’t feel cheap anywhere, whereas, it has a soft matte finish which made me fall in love with the design. Also, the device comes in four beautiful colors – White, Lavender, Graphite, and Olive. And, Graphite and Lavender are my favorites.
Samsung replicated Google’s promise of Android updates, but the plus point is that mid-range and budget Galaxy phones are eligible for at least four major OS upgrades. The upcoming Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Z Fold 6 will also be honored with 7 major Android updates.
The Korean tech giant offers the longest software update support in the Android industry. Google’s OS update promise starts from the Pixel 8 series. While mid-range and budget Samsung phones get four Android updates, the premium Galaxy Z Flip 6 and Z Fold 6 will get 7.
Earlier this year, Samsung launched the Galaxy S24 series smartphones. The lineup is guaranteed for at least seven OS upgrades. The strategy was earlier expected to be applied to Galaxy A55, but the company kept it limited to the flagship phones.
Samsung doesn’t officially consider Galaxy Z as flagship lineup, but it’s the most premium segment. All the novelties that Galaxy S receives also come to foldable phones. Therefore, it’s certain that the company will support its upcoming Galaxy Z phones for 7 years.
Will they survive 7 years?
Sporting a foldable display entirely ends the discussion of longevity. Besides, the pre-applied screen protection film starts to damage within a year of normal usage. Samsung’s innovative foldables are available internationally but support isn’t.
Samsung Care+ plan is also offered by the phone maker for additional protection. However, it still requires the owner to pay the processing fee, which isn’t considerable. Also, the Care+ plan doesn’t cover the Samsung-slapped screen protector film.
So if the Korean phone maker is willing for longer software support, it should rather offer a two-year replacement guarantee on manufacture defects. It would push consumers to prefer foldable phones as they won’t have to worry about display concerns.
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When it comes to Android updates, Samsung is leading the Android world. However, this could be the last day of Samsung’s leadership as Google is expected to double up its current Android updates support for Pixel smartphones launching today.
2020 was a remarkable year in Samsung’s history when the company extended Android updates support from two years to three. A few months later, the company extended the security support as well, totaling it to four years for flagship Galaxy devices.
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In 2022, Samsung launched the Galaxy S22 series, which offers four generations of OS upgrades. In its announcement, the company listed all flagships launched in 2021 and later along with select Galaxy A series smartphones for 4 OS and 5 years of security patches.
With this decision, the South Korean tech giant surpassed Google’s support policy, which owns Android. To be noted, Tensor-powered Pixel smartphones come with three years of Android and five years of monthly security updates support.
Today, Google will launch the Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro smartphones. And as per the leaks, both phones will offer up to 7 years of software support, surpassing the longest support provided by Apple to its iPhones. Pixel 8 and later might be eligible for 7 major OS upgrades, which sounds a bit confusing.
There are speculations that there will be five major OS versions and 7 years of regular security patches and quarterly Pixel Feature Drops for the latest flagship smartphones. If it happens, it will force other Android vendors to further extend their support.
While Pixel phones are limited to support 3 major OS versions, Samsung is offering 4 generations of OS upgrades to cheaper Galaxy devices that costs approx $249. Samsung won’t take too long to beat Google yet again in terms of software support.
Let’s see, what Google has to offer to the Android world!
After One UI 5.1, we started hearing a lot of news, leaks, and rumors about the upcoming One UI 6. Recently, Samsung has also started releasing One UI 6.0 support for stock apps, starting with the Calculator app.
Looking at all this, we can expect that Samsung will provide this support to more apps in the future too. But the question is, why is Samsung providing One UI 6.0 support to its stocks apps before the official release? If you are thinking that by getting their support, you will get some new features in your apps, then it is not only the reason.
Samsung One UI 6.0 support can also bring new features for apps, but the main reason for this is something else. But what? The answer is that Samsung is going to release a new One UI update in the coming weeks or months and the company aims to make its stock apps compatible with that accordingly. Once the app is supported, the app will not stop working or get crash whenever the company releases that update for the smartphone.
A recent report revealed that Samsung’s stable Android 14 update will be available in October. This is the same time frame as last year’s UI rollout, with the latest Galaxy S lineup being the first to secure it. Meanwhile, beta activity is seeing an early start if everything goes as planned by the internals.
Still, for the time being, we can consider this information as a pinch of salt as the company has not yet announced any official timeline for One UI 6.0.
Samsung confirms One UI 6 and Good Lock features finding underway