The Samsung Galaxy S22, S22+, and S22 Ultra are set to go on sale from Feb 25 in major worldwide markets.

Design

The Galaxy S22 and S22+ pay homage to their predecessors with the signature Contour Cut design that houses a camera hump on the back. The S22 Ultra, however, differs by integrating all its cameras into the back without any unsightly island.

The S22 Ultra can also be considered a reimagined Galaxy Note with the provision of an S-Pen slot.

All three come with Gorilla Glass Victus+ in the front and back for that premium feel. Samsung’s very own Armour Aluminium frame, which can be found in the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3, also features across this trio.

The S22 and S22+ will come in Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, and Pink Gold, while the S22 Ultra will be available in Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green, and Burgundy shades.

All of them are IP68-certified against dust and water.

Processor

Malaysia has had the Exynos-powered Galaxy S series for a while now, though Samsung bucks the trend this time around by offering the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset in this new series, instead of the Exynos 2200 found in European models.

According to Qualcomm, the Kryo CPU used in the Snapdragon 8 is 20% faster than its predecessor while offering 30% more power savings.

The Adreno GPU is also said to boost speed by 30%, while being 25% more efficient in terms of power consumption.

Cameras

The S22 and S22+ come with a 50 megapixel main rear camera and a sensor that is 23% larger than the 12MP shooter of their predecessors.

Also on board are a 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, in addition to a 12MP ultra-wide camera and 10MP front camera.

The S22 Ultra’s quad-camera configuration features an additional laser autofocus module, but it is its main 108MP shooter with dual-pixel autofocus and an 85° field of view (FOV) that steals the show.

This is accompanied by a 12MP ultra-wide camera with 120° FOV, 10MP telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, and another 10MP telephoto camera capable of 10x optical zoom. In the front lies a 40MP selfie shooter.

Display

Samsung continues to stretch its lead in the display category. The S22 sports a 15.5cm Full HD + Dynamic Amoled 2X display, while the S22+ features a 16.8cm FHD+ Dynamic Amoled 2x display.

The S22 Ultra, meanwhile, carries a 17.3cm Quad High Definition + Dynamic Amoled 2X curved edge panel.

At a maximum brightness of 1,750 nits on the S22 Ultra, expect to use them outdoors without any issues.

All three feature ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensors with Ultra-wideband (UWB) support on the S22+ and S22 Ultra. The punch-hole notch in front remains standard fare for housing the selfie camera.

Adaptive refresh rates of 120Hz dominate all Amoled displays, while Samsung claims its Vision Booster algorithm will offer the best-looking images even when viewed under direct sunlight.

Battery

The S22 features good ol’ 25W charging, but its two siblings boast 45W charging – a welcome upgrade, although it still makes them lag behind Chinese manufacturers when it comes to charging speeds.

Wireless charging is also supported on all three models, with reverse wireless charging being another rare feature.

The S22 packs a 3,700mAh battery, while the S22+ and S22 Ultra feature a 4,500mAh and 5,000mAh battery, respectively.

These should be enough to get you through the day without any issues – unless you are a real heavy user, which is where 45W charging comes in handy.

Note that the 45W charger has to be purchased separately.

Software

Samsung’s OneUI 4.0 skin, which is based on Android 12, is included with all three smartphones right out of the box.

Price

Both the S22 and S22+ arrive in 8GB RAM/128GB and 8GB RAM/256GB storage configurations, and will retail for RM3,499, RM3,699, RM4,099, and RM4,299, respectively.

As for the S22 Ultra, choose between 8GB RAM/128GB, 12GB RAM/256GB, and 12GB RAM/512GB storage configurations, which retail for RM5,099, RM5,499, and RM5,899, respectively.

Conclusion

Overall, the Samsung Galaxy S22, S22+, and S22 Ultra offer a breath of fresh air by bridging the gap in features between all three handsets, and offering an unprecedented four years of software updates and five years of security updates.

However, the high entry price means these phones are likely to remain out of reach for most, underlining their role as a statement device or status symbol.

Ultimately this trio, with their minimal hardware advancements, show how software will be the differentiating factor for smartphones in the future.

Edwin Kee dreamt of being a pro-gamer only to have circumstances mould him into a programmer in a past life. He has since moved on to write about consumer electronics and other topics. Check out his blog at manatau.com.