S21 Ultra vs S21

[spgiva]

Help e decide AC peeps. I have been using my S9 with an otterbox defender case since it first came out (march/april 2018). I am finally willing to take the plunge and upgrade. I am titillated by the camera options on the Ultra, but I am turned off by the size of the thing. With no case the Ultra is the same width as my S9 with an otterbox deffender case. I find my current phone with its case about as big as I want a phone to be in my hand. The S21 is the right size but I am worried I wont get the battery life I want, and I am really wanting the camera options from the Ultra. I tend to keep my phone for several years (case in point I have not upgraded since my S9, and that also replaced a 3 yr old phone). Are there any good protective cases for the ultra that are not as clunky as the otterbox cases?

Those of you that love the Ultra, tell me why. Those of you that love the S21 tell me yours.

Thanks AC
-spg

 

[lattemaker]

The last part of your post was exactly what I was going to recommend...get the Ultra but get a less bulky case. There are thousands of cases out there, take a look on Amazon or something like that and see what they have. Maybe even do it now before you get the phone to see what your up against. But I have the Ultra, coming from and iPhone 12 Pro Max, and I love it. The transition was hard from iOS to Android(I'm heavily invested in the iOS ecosystem) but it was worth it. For me the camera on my Ultra has been nothing less than amazing. I will admit though, I don't know if I have a lot of things running and syncing in the background or what but the battery life is not what I expected. It will last a full day but with my usage(texts, social media(not uploading or downloading things, just browsing), and super light stuff like that) it still has to be charged every night for sure, and I expected it to last about two full days. And in my opinion it is the best looking phone on the market, I have the Matte Black model.

 

[Gayle Lynn]

When my hand is tired I reach for iphone X. Small light easy to hold and yet don't need larger.

I rarely "consume" video on a phone.

Next, S21 is in mid range and still small. It is wider than the S20 it replaced.

The S20 Note us my ideal. But gets weight as far as is comfortable. Nice boxy rectangular and actually seems faster than S21, could be One UI differences. I've always liked the Nite series.

I use to buy plus models but wanted to go with S20 and 21 this year.

Camera wise I like what Samsung has done but I'm impressed more by iphone Max. It is like Ultra just too heavy for me personally at 8 ou. I injured both wrists multiple times so that makes it more if an issue.

I'd look at the S21+ in your shoes.

 

[consultant1027]

If you can get an S20+ for less, it's the better value as only the S21 Ultra offers compelling improvements over the S20 line. And you get SD card expansion in the S20's, not in the S21's. Resist temptation to get "the latest" unless you can get it at a good price.

 

[anon(19759)]

Came from an S10, now on S21 base model. Love the size, anything bigger would be unwieldy to me. Battery life has been great, screen looks crisp and clear and photos are fantastic.

 

[talberry]

Totally agree! I'm coming from a S10 too, and the S21 ultra seems great for me. Took a little getting used to the weight, but its what makes it feel like a solid phone.

 

[Emig5m]

Just get a slim case like the Samsung leather and stop throwing your phone off sky scrapers to show off the durability of your Army case.

And who the hell expects a battery to last two full days of full on screen use? Wake up and smell the coffee peeps... I think some people should go back and use a standard S7 for a day to reset their mind on battery performance and how good a smart device like the S21 Ultra is!

Love the size if the S21 Ultra and the larger screen causes less eye strain but I would gladly sacrifice the all glass build to make it a little lighter. Hopefully batteries also become lighter as tech advances.

All in all, before I got the S20U I was probably worried more about size than anyone because I had always used standard phones with slim cases but you will get used to it and it will become the new normal. When I picked up my S7 yesterday the small size felt weird to me.

Honestly if I didn't buy flagship phones mainly to have the best camera I might just opt for a plus model. If not for the camera upgrade, I would still be content with my S10.

 

[Gayle Lynn]

Waiting for Ultra, I ordered a few cases. OFG they are huge! And one must be your military issue it's so thick.

I thought s20 note was perfect but I gave up, it is almost always now 40°C and that is warm in hand plus triggers GSam alerts. That's with Spigen case off. And light use, usually just Edge browser.