Samsung S21 Ultra spec leak confirms additional camera hardware

Today we have another Galaxy S21 leak, which appears to confirm some of the specs around, released by WinFuture. News and images on Samsung’s upcoming Galaxy S21 series phones have landed almost daily as Samsung’s January event approaches. With this new leak, we now have a better idea of ​​what to expect – especially in the camera department. In short, hardware seems to be a big part of Samsung’s plan to tackle the high-performing iPhone 12 Pro Max.

The S21 Ultra would offer 3x and 10x telephoto lenses (72mm and 240mm equivalent focal lengths, respectively), both with optical image stabilization. It’s an additional rear camera compared to the three rear sensors on the S20 Ultra.

Photo: WinFuture

The S21’s 10x lens will use a folded optical design like that of the S20’s telephoto lens. We expect Samsung to again offer a hybrid zoom that goes well beyond this 10x optical range.

Other subtle camera updates appear to be on the way as well. The 108-megapixel main camera gets a slightly larger 24mm lens (down from 26mm). It will also benefit from laser-assisted autofocus: something the S20 Ultra didn’t offer, but the Note 20 Ultra introduced later. And WinFuture says that despite the similarities on paper of the camera’s main sensor to the last generation, it is a new sensor that should offer better image quality than the previous one.

Samsung will need all the perks to compete with the iPhone 12 Pro Max, which we believe is the best smartphone camera on the market today. Historically, Samsung has taken a heavier approach to hardware for mobile imaging, increasingly using its own in-house sensors rather than taking Sony off the shelf, and being early on to adopt dual and triple lens cameras on the market. its devices.

Part of the reason Samsung has leaned so hard on advanced hardware is that its computer photography hasn’t followed Apple or Google. It’s only recently that it has lived up to features like night mode. But now it’s another year, and there is still work to be done to catch up with the iPhone 12 Pro Max.

Video may also be a reason for Samsung to level the playing field with Apple. This is an area where software cannot do much without the right hardware. Samsung generally has great specs to boast when it comes to video – the S21 Ultra will offer 8K recording over the 4K of the 12 Pro Max – but the proof will be in the pictures. Samsung says it is committed to continuing to build capacity in this area.

There are some notable details unrelated to the camera in WinFuture’s report. Those specs confirm a 6.8-inch display with varying refresh rates from one to 120Hz, a battery-saving move also adopted by the Note 20 Ultra. There is also an S Pen holder, which will be sold separately.

Samsung will also follow Apple’s lead by shipping the S21 devices without a wall charger in the box. The company, like Apple, will likely cite environmental benefits as the motivation for this change, although the cynics among us will notice that this is also good for every company’s bottom line. But reducing e-waste is definitely a good thing, and Samsung’s use of USB-C rather than a proprietary connector earns it even more environmental bonus points.

There is no launch date or confirmed pricing for the S21 Ultra yet, although reports point to an announcement on January 14.