The chipset – we’ve tested the Exynos 2100 version of the phone – is also powerful, delivering some fantastic results in real-world use as well as in benchmarking software. The Samsung Galaxy S21 release date was Friday, January 29, 2021 for most of the world, including the US, UK and Australia. That means you can readily buy the smartphone now from a variety of retailers, carriers and networks in all three of those countries.

If you’re after a camera that can get really close to a subject without sacrificing detail, you might be better off with the S21 Ultra as that has a duo of dedicated zoom lenses. 3. You want a phone that’ll last multiple days Another benefit these chips have over their predecessors is that the 5G modem is built-in, rather than sitting separately. All Galaxy S21 models have support for at least sub-6Ghz 5G (that’s the only one available in the UK so don’t worry about mmWave support) and you don’t need to pay extra for the 5G version as you did last year. Camera While it’s not as technically advanced as previous S series phones, the S21 feels like a solid device that’ll suit most people’s needs. It’s slim, ever so light and importantly, doesn’t skimp on performance. The design is also just downright fun and the colour options are nicely varied and interesting. 2. You want a reliable and versatile camera

A buyer's guide to Samsung Galaxy S21 cases

In Geekbench 5, the Samsung Galaxy S21 returned a multi-core score of 3367. That's notably better than the Galaxy S20 (the one featuring the Exynos 990 chipset) that returned a score of 2699. The software available on this phone works well, and you've got access to a whole host of extra Samsung services on top of the normal Android apps you expect from a modern smartphone.

It’s unlikely to be something you’ll notice unless you’re used to those curved edges, but it’s worth noting if you’re someone who particularly likes that design feature – and as is the case with other dropped features, Samsung has retained the curved-edge screen for the premium S21 Ultra. We’ve only had the chance to test the Exynos 2100 version of the S21, and it seems like a major improvement over previous generations of Samsung’s chipset. In the past, the Exynos variant tended to lag behind the Qualcomm-powered phones in some areas but here the gap seems to have narrowed. We generally found that the phone would comfortably last a full day, but on one occasion, when we were making more use of the phone’s GPS signal and other power-hungry features we found the device ran out of steam by around 10pm.The company is instead just offering internal storage, and again this seems to be a cost-saving measure from Samsung, but it’s likely to disappoint anyone who wants the most affordable handset but needs a lot of storage. There’s a 6.2-inch Full HD+ AMOLED display on this handset, which we’ll dive into more in the display section below. This phone is the smallest member of the Galaxy S21 family, and while it may not be as trim as the iPhone 13 mini, those with smaller hands shouldn’t have too much trouble using it.