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There are only a few days till Samsung's new flagship and Galaxy Note successor are released.
If you've been waiting for the Samsung Galaxy S22 on pins and needles, you won't have to wait much longer. The S22 series was allegedly pushed back from January to February to make room for the delayed Galaxy S21 FE in January. However, the first Galaxy Unpacked 2022 event will take place soon, bringing the Galaxy Tab S8 as well as the Galaxy S22, S22 Plus, and S22 Ultra.
The Galaxy S21 and S21 Ultra were both at the top of our list of the best Android phones for the majority of last year (before the new Pixels surpassed them), so how will Samsung follow up on such great hardware? According to rumors, its flagship phone will be a hybrid of the S and Note series, with a built-in camera.
We've heard credible rumors that the S22 and S22+ will ditch the S21's classic design in favor of proper glass backs. This will make them look nicer, but it will also make them more fragile without a case, and potentially more expensive.
We also believe that the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 will be used in North America (and possibly Asia) and the Exynos 2200 in Europe for the Galaxy S22 series. Either way, these phones should outperform the already-fast S21s.
If you're debating whether to buy a discounted S21, save money with the S21 FE, or wait for the S22, we've compiled all of the available information to help you make your decision. Everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy S22 is listed below.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Launch and release date
The next Galaxy Unpacked event will take place on February 9th at 7 a.m. PT / 10 a.m. ET. There, Samsung's president promised to unveil a "notable S series device."
From there, you can expect the S22 release date to arrive soon after. Jon Prosser, whose leak overestimated the Unpacked date by one day, has promised a February 18 ship date, but we'll have to wait and see if that's correct.
If you want to buy the Galaxy S22 on launch day, Samsung has opened up Galaxy S22 reservations, which will notify you via email when the new phones are available for pre-order. In addition, if you reserve a slot before February 9, you'll receive "exclusive offers."
Samsung Galaxy S22 Price
The S21, S21+, and S21 Ultra are each $799, $999, and $1,199. In comparison, the S20 phones ranged from $999 to $1,399, with the same $200 price differences. You can probably expect the same $200 price differences between the three S22 phones; we just don't know where the pricing will begin.
While leaking Galaxy S22 renders and specs, @OnLeaks and Zouton claimed the phones will cost between $799 and $1,199, which fits with Samsung's decision to stick with the status quo this year.
In terms of sales, the Galaxy S22 series will primarily compete with the iPhone 13 lineup. The 13, 13 Pro, and 13 Pro Max are priced at $799, $999, and $1,199, respectively, so if Samsung raises the price of the S22, it could affect sales.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Design and Display
Several leakers have already obtained the Galaxy S22 — or photos of it. Yogesh Brar, a prolific leaker, posted photos of all three Galaxy S22 phones side by side, giving a preview of how they should look in person.
Several reliable sources have confirmed that the Galaxy S22 will have a 6.06-inch display and a 3,700mAh battery, down from the 6.2-inch, 4,000mAh S21, making it the "smallest flagship phone in recent years." The S22 Plus will also (allegedly) shrink from 6.7 to 6.55 inches in size and from 4,800 to 4,500mAh in capacity. However, the S22, like the S21, will retain a 6.8-inch display and a 5,000mAh battery.
With flat displays, symmetrical bezels, and flatbacks, the S22 and S22+ will resemble the iPhone 13. The phones' fronts and backs are shown in the embedded tweet below by OnLeaks, highlighting the ultra-thin bezels around each display.
While the displays may have shrunk in size, the display technology will be identical in quality to the S21 lineup. The S22 and S22+ will both have FHD+ displays and refresh rates of 120Hz, while the S22 Ultra will have QHD+ resolution and an LTPO 120Hz display.
According to DigiTimes, Samsung considered incorporating vapor cooling into the S22, which it hasn't done since the Note 10+. FrontTron claims that upper management nixed the design idea to "cut costs," so we'll have to wait and see.
Samsung Galaxy S22 The return of the Note Ultra
According to multiple leak sources, the Galaxy S22 Ultra will have an S Pen slot and will be the only S22 model with S Pen support. According to the same leaks, the S22 Ultra will have less rounded edges than the S21 Ultra but will not be as rectangular as the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.
Given that Samsung's president, Dr. TM Roh, stated that "the most notable S series device" will be unveiled at Unpacked, and to "get ready for it,"
Smuggled images of the device showed its 6.8-inch curved AMOLED display and a P-shaped camera sensor arrangement, with the sensors sticking directly out of the backplate rather than being housed in a traditional camera module. The phone itself appears to be quite thick, but the curved design should make it easier to hold.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Specs and cameras
While Samsung hasn't confirmed it, the US Galaxy S22 variant will almost certainly use the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, Qualcomm's latest flagship chipset. During an earnings call, Qualcomm stated that it would power 40-50 percent of Galaxy S phones in 2022, and no other SoC makes sense for Samsung's flagship except the 8 Gen 1.
According to Qualcomm, it outperforms the S21's Snapdragon 888 by 20% in CPU performance, 30% in CPU efficiency, 30% in GPU performance, and 25% in GPU efficiency. It also supports faster AI, improved imaging, and 5G compatibility.
Meanwhile, the Exynos 2200 should be used in the international variant. The new 4nm Exynos is the first Samsung chipset with AMD's rDNA 2-based GPU, and was recently proclaimed as a chip ready to "redefine mobile gaming." This enables hardware-accelerated ray tracing, variable-rate shading, and immersive visuals of "console-quality." The CPU is the same Cortex X2 found in the most recent Snapdragon. A new "dual-core NPU" is said to improve mobile imaging performance.
We don't know how the two chips will compare to one another, or which countries will use the Snapdragon or Exynos CPUs. But we'll find out soon enough.
We expect RAM and storage to remain consistent with the S21 lineup for the S22 and S22+: 8GB and 128/256GB. We've heard conflicting reports about the S22 Ultra. While the S21 Ultra had either 12GB or 16GB of memory, we've learned that the S22 Ultra may have a memory downgrade, with only 8GB or 12GB available. Others, however, claim it will come with a 16GB/1TB memory variant.
All three phones should be IP68 water/dust resistant, but none are likely to have 3.5mm headphone jacks, and dual SIM support will vary depending on country and carrier.
According to reports, the Galaxy S22 Ultra may support 45W charging, while the S22 and S22+ may stick with the 25W charging of their predecessors.
Aside from the S22 chipset mystery, all of the other major rumors have revolved around the S22 lineup's cameras. According to a recent leak, the main cameras on the Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S22+ will use the 50MP ISOCELL GN5 sensor.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy S22 Ultra is said to have a 108MP main sensor, a 12MP ultra-wide lens with optical image stabilization, two 10MP telephoto lenses — one with 10X zoom and one with 3X zoom — and a hole-punch cutout selfie camera. Except for the 108MP lens, the majority of those specs are the same as the S21 Ultra. It may also include a new "Detail Enhancer" with improved camera processing for improved quality.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Software
The Galaxy S22 series will come pre-installed with One UI 4. From then on, it will receive three OS updates via One UI 7/Android 15, as well as four years of security updates until early 2026.
This new update includes Dynamic Color, which includes a color picker for the UI based on the color of your phone's background, virtual RAM upgrades, new widgets, camera software updates, and other significant improvements.