After months of waiting and leaking, Samsung has formalized the Galaxy S21 FE, a revamped version of the Galaxy S21. Even if the smartphone seems to arrive very late, or even too late, compared to the Galaxy S22 expected in the coming weeks, the Galaxy S21 FE is not uninteresting. Here are all the technical details.
We have been talking about the Galaxy S21 FE in our columns for several months. The first rumors appeared in March 2020. In May, Samsung left a mention on the Galaxy S21 FE, suggesting that the smartphone was indeed planned. A technical sheet was gradually emerging, assuming that the Galaxy S21 FE, worthy heir to the Galaxy S20 FE, would benefit from a configuration between the Galaxy S21 and the Galaxy S21 +.
Read also – Galaxy S22: official renderings of all models unveiled before launch
Originally, the smartphone was to accompany the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Z Flip 3 launched in August. But that was obviously without counting the shortage of components which affects many electronics and computer industries. Samsung is obviously not spared. Rumors claimed that the Galaxy S21 FE would be pushed back. And this was confirmed in August: the smartphone was conspicuous by its absence at the Unpacked conference.
The Galaxy S21 FE is finally official, but isn’t it too late?
During the weeks following the announcement of the latest Galaxy Zs, rumors have blown hot and cold on the Galaxy S21 FE. Will come out? Will not come out? In order to avoid any misunderstanding, Samsung decided in September to remove all references to its future smartphone. Why ? Because the firm was no longer certain of the interest of this product. In question: the advanced release of the Galaxy S22, expected at the very beginning of 2022. And it is true that the relevance of a Galaxy S21 FE vis-à-vis a Galaxy S22, hardly more expensive according to rumors, is not easy to establish.
And yet, this Tuesday January 4, 2022, Samsung formalizes the Galaxy S21 FE. A smartphone which therefore takes not only the positioning of its predecessor, but also the price. Indeed, the Galaxy S21 FE is offered at 759 euros in its lightest version, with 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage, like the Galaxy S20 FE 5G. Note that there is a better equipped version at 829 euros. It has 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage. No 4G version reduced to less than 700 euros on the other hand. That’s a shame.
Galaxy S21 FE photo sensors are taken from Galaxy S20 FE
Side photo, small disappointment: the S21 FE takes again identically the configuration of the S20 FE. We therefore find a main sensor 12 megapixels with Dual Pixel autofocus and stabilized lens opening at f / 1.8, a first secondary sensor 12 megapixels with wide-angle lens opening at f / 2.2 and a second secondary sensor 8 megapixels with phase detection autofocus and stabilized telephoto lens opening at f / 2.4. The optical zoom ratio is 3x and the digital zoom ratio is 30x. Finally, the selfie sensor is a model 32 megapixels with lens opening at f / 2.2.
The disappointment comes from two things. First of all, the digital zoom ratio seems very high to us vis-à-vis the definition of the sensor. The digital zoom of the Galaxy S21 offers the same report, but it takes advantage of a 64-megapixel sensor (ie a definition eight times higher). Then, the selfie sensor offers a better definition than that of the S21 (10 megapixels), but it loses its excellent Dual Pixel autofocus.
Galaxy S21 FE: new screen, new SoC and identical battery
For the rest, no surprise. You find at the heart of the phone the Snapdragon 888, for top-of-the-range performance. It replaces the Snapdragon 865 from the S20 FE and the Exynos 2100 from the S21. It animates a screen 6.4 inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X (0.1 inch less than the S20 FE) compatible Full HD + and 120 Hz. The S20 FE benefited from a panel of a previous generation. This promises some improvements on the colorimetry. We also find a battery of 4500 mAh, unchanged from the S20 FE. The charging power does not change: 25 watts in wired, 15 watts wireless and 4.5 watts in reverse wireless charging.
The Galaxy S21 FE is therefore intended to be a very slightly cheaper version of the Galaxy S21, the biggest flaw of which will be to be marketed at the same time as the S22 series, whose arrival is expected in the coming weeks. While waiting for a complete test, you can already find in our columns a first handling of the Galaxy S21 FE.
