The last of the S21 series caters to the true fans of the brand and combines all Galaxy S21 essentials into one powerful no-nonsense smartphone. Samsung has focused on three fan-favorite features for this Fan Edition – display, performance, and camera. Then there is performance – quite expectedly, the Galaxy S21 FE offers the same hardware as the rest of the S21 series – either the Snapdragon 888, or the Exynos 2100 chipset. But the chipset segmentation is reversed here – the international model is the one with the Snapdragon, while Samsung’s silicon is limited to Australia (so far).
It looks like a copy-paste from the Galaxy S20 FE – a 12MP primary, another 12MP camera for ultrawide photos, and an 8MP tele for 3x optical zoom. Samsung is not advertising the hardware as more capable, but it brags with better processing and cool features like Object Eraser – all possible thanks to the new chipset.
The stereo speakers and the UD fingerprint scanner are here to stay, too, but the microSD slot didn’t make the cut. But on a positive note – the S21 FE now features a proper proximity sensor instead of a virtual one, something that should solve the numerous complaints.
Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC; Bixby natural language commands and dictation, Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified). The phone supports 25W fast charging, but if you want to enjoy that and you haven’t purchased such an adapter yet, now is a good time to do it.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G infographic highlights key specs and design
After several months of teasers, canceled launch rumors and countless leaks, Samsung finally went ahead and announced its Galaxy S21 FE 5G earlier today. While we’re talking about the back – there’s a triple camera setup here with a 12MP main cam with OIS, a 12MP ultrawide snapper and an 8MP telephoto module with 3x optical zoom.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G hands-on review
Samsung has upgraded two of the most important aspects of the previous Galaxy S20 FE with S21 features. And then, it’s about performance – the Galaxy S21 FE utilizes the same chipsets as the S21 series – the Snapdragon 888 for the European unit and Exynos 2100 for Australia and possibly other markets.
It is also among the first Galaxies to come with the latest Android 12 and One UI 4.0, and we can’t wait to see them in action.
Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC; Bixby natural language commands and dictation, Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified).
We are glad Samsung updated the screen and the chipset, though we are not as excited about the same camera kit even if there are some new tricks in the bag. We do agree this is the optimal setup for a smartphone these days, though – a good main camera, an ultrawide shooter, and a 3x telephoto.
Both of these developments would put some serious competitive pressure on the S21 FE even within its own portfolio, so it remains to be seen how well it can handle it.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G review
It still has the usual 1,080 x 2,400 px resolution (411ppi), supports a 120Hz refresh rate and Always-on features. This, with the combination of the Widevine L1 DRM support, allows you to stream Full HD HDR10 content from all popular services (we tried).
Unfortunately, the 120Hz mode is not a dynamic one – 120Hz is always forced no matter the content on the screen – video, streaming, browsing, gaming. This came as a surprise as we expected a dynamic refresh rate like on the rest of the Galaxy S21 devices.
Once we reached the end of the slider (when manually adjusting), we captured 385 nits at point white. Then we readjusted it a bit and hit the end again, a warning appeared, and then the screen lit up as high as 792 nits.
The minimum brightness we measured at point white was 1.8nits – an outstanding result. Display test 100% brightness Black, cd/m2 White, cd/m2 Contrast ratio Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G 0 792 ∞ Samsung Galaxy S21 5G 0 416 ∞ Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Max Auto) 0 856 ∞ Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 0 404 ∞ Samsung Galaxy S20 FE (Max Auto) 0 823 ∞ Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G 0 459 ∞ Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G (Max Auto) 0 883 ∞ Apple iPhone 13 0 802 ∞ Apple iPhone 13 Pro 0 856 ∞ Xiaomi Mi 11 0 498 ∞ Xiaomi Mi 11 (Max Auto) 0 926 ∞ Xiaomi Mi 11T Pro 0 516 ∞ Xiaomi Mi 11T Pro (Max Auto) 0 837 ∞ Asus Zenfone 8 0 440 ∞ Asus Zenfone 8 (Max Auto) 0 800 ∞ OnePlus 9 Pro 0 525 ∞ OnePlus 9 Pro (Max Auto) 0.038 871 22921:1 Realme GT 5G 0 443 ∞ Realme GT 5G (Max Auto) 0 650 ∞
The Galaxy S21 FE 5G scored a good endurance rating of 92 hours on our battery life test.
The new FE does marvelously when handling calls and playing videos, while its web time stays above the average. The endurance rating denotes how long the battery charge will last you if you use the device for an hour of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. Video test carried out in 60Hz refresh rate mode.
Web browsing test done at the display’s highest refresh rate whenever possible. To adjust the endurance rating formula to match your own usage patterns check out our all-time battery test results chart where you can also find all phones we’ve tested. The Galaxy S21 FE 5G supports up to 25W fast charging, but it ships without a power adapter.
A full charge requires 1 hour and 15 minutes, another adequate time.
The Galaxy S21 FE 5G supports up to 15W wireless charging with compatible Qi pads. It can also wirelessly charge other devices such as earbuds, watches, and even phones – you just need to activate this from the battery settings and then put the power-hungry gadget on its back.
The two speakers are balanced very well if you are listening to music in landscape or portrait orientation. When compared separately, the bottom piece is a bit louder and slightly more bassy.
Use the Playback controls to listen to the phone sample recordings (best use headphones).
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