The launch of the Samsung Galaxy S23 is looming on the horizon, with just two months left before the potential Galaxy S23 release date. It is understandable that attention is turning towards new Samsung phones, away from the flagship phones it released last year.
Which is a shame if you ask me. Because the Galaxy S22 family finally gave us three premium smartphones that deserve more recognition for what they brought to the market.
I say that as someone who has never been a huge fan of Samsung phones. Previous models lacked iPhone quality or noteworthy features like the great Pixel cameras or OnePlus phones’ fast charging capabilities. But with the Galaxy S22 series, Samsung got a lot more things right than in the past. And honestly, that’s encouraging for what’s to come with the Galaxy S23 releases next year.
But before these phones come around to grab all the headlines, it’s worth taking another look at the Galaxy S22 — especially if, like me, you think the current entry-level S22 looks like a better buy now than the rumored base Galaxy S23 model. . Here are four ways the Galaxy 22 models have made their mark this year.
Galaxy S22 has great displays
No matter which Galaxy S22 model you get, you’ll be staring at a great screen. Soon after, I turned on a flagship phone display that included the Galaxy S22, iPhone 14, and Pixel 7, and it was the Samsung phone that came out on top.
Brightness is a big reason for that, as Samsung made sure the screens on this year’s flagships could be seen even in the brightest sunlight. The Galaxy S22 Ultra and Galaxy S22 Plus both promise 1,750 nits of brightness, while the Galaxy S22 can hit 1,300. In our tests, we never hit those numbers with our light meter, but we did score some remarkably bright results. . We measured the S22 at 1,152 nits with HDR turned on and the S22 Ultra reached 1,359 nits in our tests.
Needless to say, you won’t need to squint when you take your phone outside. For my face-down screen, I went outside on a sunny, cloudless day and started lowering the screen brightness for each phone—the Galaxy S22 dropped to 70% before text became impossible to read. This beats both the iPhone 14 and Pixel 7.
Samsung displays excel in other ways, particularly with refresh rate as the Galaxy S series has set the pace for other phone makers to match. In the case of the Galaxy S22, I appreciate how the entry-level model can hit 120Hz. To get that kind of fast refresh rate on your iPhone or Pixel, you have to buy the more expensive models. The iPhone 14 is stuck at 60Hz even though it costs the same as the Galaxy S22. The Pixel 7 cranks things up to 90Hz, but that’s not as fast as every other S22 model offers.
The Galaxy S22 phones handle the zoom feature better
Heading our best camera phone rankings is a battle between Apple and Google, but don’t think that means Samsung’s current flagship phones are outclassed in photos. Even if they aren’t consistently up to iPhone/Pixel standards, the Galaxy S22’s cameras still perform well and actually outperform the competition in one key area – zoom shots.
The phone you’ll want to have if you want to zoom in for a closer look is the Galaxy S22 Ultra, which comes with two telephoto lenses – one that provides 3x optical zoom and the other to provide 10x zoom. You can zoom in up to 100 times with the Digital Space Zoom feature, though you’ll likely need a tripod to keep your phone stable.
The Galaxy S22 and S22 Plus don’t offer the same Space Zoom capability, though they do zoom things in up to 30x. And I should point out that Samsung’s entry-level flagship has a telephoto lens, something still missing from the iPhone 14 and Pixel 7. You’ll need a Pro model from Apple or Google to get a dedicated telephoto lens.
Consider the camera sample above taken with the Galaxy S22 Ultra, which shows a 10x zoom on the left and 30x on the right. The 10x zoom makes for a great detailed shot that maintains its sharpness even from a distance. You won’t get anything this clear from another smartphone. Admittedly, the 30x zoom is more like a painting than a photo, but it’s still impressive that there’s minimal noise in the shot and that the duck doesn’t have any noticeable blur.
Galaxy S22 Ultra’s built-in S Pen
The Galaxy S22 Ultra wasn’t the first phone outside of the recently inherited Note series to include S Pen support — Samsung added the feature to the Galaxy S21 Ultra as well as the Galaxy Z Fold 3 in 2021. But the S22 Ultra was the first phone since the Galaxy Note 20 to include a built-in slot. for the pen.
This slot offers more than just convenience – it makes the S Pen feel like an essential part of the phone. It’s a design decision we wish Samsung would adapt for the Galaxy Z Fold 4, as the S Pen remains optional and also requires a special case to carry around.
In a world where not many phones have their own stylus, the S Pen helps Galaxy S22 Ultra stand out from the crowd. This feature isn’t for everyone, but for people who like to draw, take notes, and edit photos on the go, it’s a welcome tool that’s more accessible than ever on the S22 Ultra.
There are few better compact phones than the Galaxy S22
I long ago gave up fighting for small phones. I might prefer devices with smaller screens that fit neatly in my hand or slip easily into a pocket, but the rest of the smartphone market doesn’t. They want big screens, and phone makers have responded in kind, with only a handful of devices offering screens 6 inches or smaller. (And with Apple not producing an iPhone mini this year, look for these numbers to dwindle further.)
But that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate when phones with screen sizes over 6 inches keep things compact. And that’s exactly what the Galaxy S22 does. The entry-level model may have a 6.1-inch screen, but it’s packed into a still relatively small frame of 5.7 by 2.8 by 0.3 inches.
In other words, the Galaxy S22 and iPhone 14 have identical screen sizes, yet the Samsung phone is an order of magnitude smaller. The curved edges make it more pleasant to hold, while the S22’s look gives the phone an elegant frame.
Small phone fans may feel forgotten, but if you can’t find a device that meets your stringent requirements, the Galaxy S22 seems to come pretty close.
Galaxy S22 forecast
These are the four things that impressed me with the Galaxy S22 after trying different models this year. You probably have a list of features that you liked about Samsung phones. But whether or not these reasons are the same, it should come as no surprise to find several S22 models among the best reviewed phones in 2022.
More importantly, the high quality of the Galaxy S22 gives Samsung something to build on with its upcoming phones. No one knows for sure what kind of phones Samsung will introduce when it showcases the Galaxy S23 models at its upcoming Unpacked event. But given what the S22 brings to the table, my expectations are definitely high.
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