It’s been just over a couple of weeks since I received the Samsung S22 Ultra and so far I can say that I have been enjoying it. The first thing that struck me when I unboxed the phone was the size but it didn’t feel too big in the hand, what I would say is that it is quite smooth so could slip out of your hand so I would recommend getting a case for it pretty quickly.
So in this blog post, I want to give you my initial thoughts on a few key areas:
The Screen:
This was the main reason that I chose to buy the Samsung S22 Ultra and so far I have not been disappointed. The screen is 6.8” in size so you get a lot of screen, but I don’t think that the phone feels that big. It comes with an adaptive 120Hz refresh rate which is the same as on the iPhone 13 Pro so the scrolling experience is very nice. This screen is bright so it’s great when you are outside and it’s sunny, you will have no issue with seeing the screen.
I like the edge-to-edge screen rather than a flat-screen. This means that there is very little bezel that you can see and use the full 6.8” of the screen. I am enjoying the size of this screen as it makes consuming content such as reading articles and watching videos on YouTube etc very easy.
I really enjoyed the iPhone 13 Pro display but I can see why Samsung is often referred to as the best in this area when it comes to smartphones.
Biometrics:
the S22 Ultra has both face recognition and an under-screen fingerprint scanner. The face recognition is OK but is not as good as it is on the iPhone I don’t find it as quick and consistent as the iPhone.
On the other hand, I do like the ultrasonic fingerprint scanner that is under the screen. It is fast and works pretty much every time. You can have multiple fingerprints set up so it makes it easy to unlock your phone. I find this very useful if I am wearing a mask and need to use google pay or check my phone.
Operating System:
The Samsung 1 UI has been nice to use, I like the layout and look of the launcher so I haven’t really found myself changing it up too much. I have found that it’s quick and easy to use and not too far away from iOS. I have it setup so that I can use the gestures rather than the 3 buttons that are set as the default. It’s easy to change this you just need to head into the settings menu under Advanced features to change it. This makes it much more like iOS as you can swipe up and down for notifications and the app drawer.
Battery Life:
I have found that the battery life is not as good as the iPhone 13 Pro but it’s not too bad. Most days I will get to bed and still have between 20-30% battery left whereas with iPhone it is more like 40%. I wouldn’t say that I am not a power user so I can see how those that are would struggle to go on one charge for the whole day.
I do like that the charger is USB-C so now all my devices can be charged using a USB-C charge rather than having to carry a separate one for charging my phone like with the iPhone.
I don’t have the super-fast power adaptor but I still, find that it charger pretty quickly with my Samsung wireless charger. As I charge my phone at night when I go to bed super-fast charging is not a big thing for me but I can see how it would be really useful for those power users out there.
One feature that I am looking forward to trying out when my Galaxy Buds Pro arrives is the Wireless PowerShare. I think this will be a really useful feature when out and about and running low on battery.
The Camera:
I am not going to go into too much detail on the camera as I haven’t really put it through its paces yet. What I can say is that it takes great pictures, whether it’s better than the iPhone 13 Pro I am not sure. The zoom on the phone is great and captures a lot of detail whilst still being really clear.
I am hoping to spend some more time over the coming weeks to get more to grips with this camera.
S-Pen:
I am not sure how I feel about the S-Pen just yet. It’s a nice addition but I am not sure how much I will use it really. I have the Apple Pencil for my iPad and I don’t really use that so I am not sure why this would be different.
What I have used it for so far is jotting down my shopping list. The pen itself is very responsive and there is very little if no lag so it does give a good writing experience. I am not too sure about the noise it makes when you do write on the screen but it’s not something that is going to be that annoying.
Performance:
I have read and seen some reviews where the performance has been questioned a bit. I have found that the performance has been pretty solid. It is quick but not quite as quick as the iPhone. There has been the off bit of lagging when opening up apps but nothing to make me really frustrated at the moment, I am hoping that this will improve with software updates.
Conclusion:
So down to my verdict two weeks in. This is a very good phone and everything that you would expect from a premium flagship device. There are a couple of things that could be better maybe such as battery life, can I see this as my device past the year I have set – maybe. Nothing so far has screamed at me to say switchback, yes there are things that are different but so far so good. I will look to do a long-term review in the coming months to see if after the initial honeymoon period my opinion changes.