Galaxy S21 Ultra triumphs with a very narrow win in our blind camera comparison
We may earn a commission if you make a purchase from the links on this page.
The Galaxy S21 Ultra is the latest and greatest phone to come out of Samsung's conveyor belt. We've already compared its main and selfie cameras against the venerable Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, iPhone 12 Pro Max, and the Google Pixel 5. You can check out the comparisons right below to check out for yourselves, but the consensus is that the Galaxy S21 Ultra is a welcome improvement over last year's Galaxy S20 series and stacks very well against its top competitors.
FEATURED VIDEO
- Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra vs iPhone 12 Pro Max, Pixel 5, Note 20 Ultra camera comparison
- Galaxy S21 Ultra vs iPhone 12 Pro Max, Pixel 5, Note 20 Ultra selfie camera comparison
- Galaxy S21 Ultra vs iPhone 12 Pro Max review
- All you need to know about the Galaxy S21 Ultra
- Best Galaxy S21 Ultra deals
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
Scene 1: Playground
It seems that the iPhone has won your hearts in our first scene, leaving Android's finest behind.
Scene 2: 3X zoom
When it comes to zooming, the Galaxy S21 Ultra crushes the competition and wins with an overwhelming vote.
Scene 3: Rainbow girl
This one is a toss up between the iPhone 12 Pro Max and the Pixel 5. And rightly so, as both photos look great!
Scene 4: Sunset
This beautiful sunset scene goes to the Galaxy S21 Ultra, but the rest of the phones have done a mighty fine job and share the remaining votes quite evenly.
Scene 5: Storefront
The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra has done a commendable job in this particular scene, beating the iPhone, Pixel, and Galaxy S21 Ultra.
Scene 6: Toy
I was certain the Pixel 5 will win this one as it captured an excellent photo. There's no way of you knowing that, but it also got the colors just right, unlike its competitors. Great job, folks.
Scene 7: Night mode #1
Surprisingly to me, the Note 20 Ultra overwhelmingly gets this round. Personally, my preferences are in Galaxy S21 Ultra's favor, but vox populi, vox dei.
Scene 8: Night mode #2
Android's finest steal this round from the iPhone, and you seem to like the Galaxy S21 Ultra the most in this specific scenario. Personally, I'd go with the Pixel 5, but both photos are excellent.
Scene 9: Night mode #3
When the scene is better lit and tons of artificial light is involved, the iPhone does a much, much better job. This seems to be the general consensus here.
Scene 10: Selfie
Once again, despite people liking more realistic selfies, the iPhone's slightly warmer and more vivid auto-portraits win the popular vote.
Final results
To sum it up:
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra - 27.6%
Google Pixel 5 - 25.1%
Samsung Note 20 Ultra - 24%
Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max - 23.3%
That's a pretty close win by the new Galaxy S21 Ultra, but it's worth noting that all votes are quite even and spread evenly among the phones we've tested in this here blind comparison. There's a pretty logical reason explanation: all phones we've tested have great cameras and are unlikely to disappoint you. Of course, as evident by the results, some perform more appealing to most people in specific situations, but overall, any of these devices will be an admirable photography sidekick.
Related phones
- Display 6.8 inches 3200 x 1440 pixels
- Camera 108 MP (Quad camera) 40 MP front
- Hardware Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 12GB RAM
- Storage 128GB, not expandable
- Battery 5000 mAh
- OS Android 11 Samsung One UI
- Display 6.7 inches 2778 x 1284 pixels
- Camera 12 MP (Triple camera) 12 MP front
- Hardware Apple A14 Bionic 6GB RAM
- Storage 128GB, not expandable
- Battery 3687 mAh
- OS iOS 14.x
- Display 6.0 inches 2340 x 1080 pixels
- Camera 12.2 MP (Dual camera) 8 MP front
- Hardware Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G 8GB RAM
- Storage 128GB, not expandable
- Battery 4080 mAh
- OS Android 11
- Display 6.9 inches 3088 x 1440 pixels
- Camera 108 MP (Triple camera) 10 MP front
- Hardware Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+ 12GB RAM
- Storage 128GB, microSDXC
- Battery 4500 mAh
- OS Android 11 Samsung One UI
