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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).
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) Battery test
We put the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) through our rigorous DXOMARK Battery test suite to measure its performance in autonomy, charging and efficiency. In these test results, we will break down how it fared in a variety of tests and several common use cases.
6.4-Inch 1080 x 2400 120 Hz OLED display Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 82 battery 72
Charging Full charge 110 224 Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) Best: Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) (224) Quick boost 95 212 Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) Best: Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) (212) 80 Efficiency Charge up 112 205 Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro Best: Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro (205) Discharge 68 194 Apple iPhone 14 Pro Best: Apple iPhone 14 Pro (194) Key performances These key points are derived from the lab measurements during testing and do not figure into the overall score.
The lab measurements, however, are used for the overall score. Oppo Find X6 Pro 151 3.
Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) 147 5. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon) 142 10. Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max 136 19. OnePlus Nord CE 5G 136 19.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G 136 19. Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max 134 29.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon) 134 29. Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G 134 29. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max 133 33. Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro 129 52.
Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max 121 70. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon) 111 107.
Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon) 109 111. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon) 108 111.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) 103 123. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos) 100 126.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos) 98 139. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos) 95 143.
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos) 93 152. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon) 90 154. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 82 159. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos) 75 35th 35 Position in Premium Ranking 1. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon) 109 22. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon) 108 23.
Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos) 100 27. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon) 90 35. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 82 35. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos) 75
Pros Strong autonomy when calling on the go Very low residual power drain Cons 5% of power drained during the night in a typical usage scenario
Poor autonomy recovered after a quick boost Very high discharge current when gaming Impressive specifications on the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon), such as the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G chipset, a 4500 mAh battery and wireless charging, could not help the device overcome an overall poor performance. The autonomy is low, and the charging time is quite long, whether wired or wireless. It stands near the last in our general database, as well as in its price segment. About DXOMARK Battery tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone battery reviews, DXOMARK engineers perform a variety of objective tests over a week-long period both indoors and outdoors. (See our introductory and how we test articles for more details about our smartphone Battery protocol.)
The following section gathers key elements of our exhaustive tests and analyses performed in DXOMARK laboratories. Detailed performance evaluation reports are available upon request. The table below shows the battery capacity, tested charger, display type and resolution, and processor specifications for the comparison devices.
Battery Charger Wireless Display Processor Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 4500mAh 25W 1080 x 2400 Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G Apple iPhone 13 3227mAh 20W
i How Autonomy score is composed Autonomy score is composed of three performance sub-scores: Stationary, On the go, and Calibrated use cases. Each sub-score comprises the results of a comprehensive range of tests for measuring autonomy in all kinds of real-life scenarios. Battery Life (moderate) 158th 158 Position in Global RankingBattery Life (moderate) 1. Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max 69h 20.
Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max 68h 24. Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro 67h 25.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon) 67h 26. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max 65h 35. OnePlus Nord CE 5G 64h 38. Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G 62h 45.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G 62h 47. Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon) 61h 50. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon) 51h 106. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon) 50h 114.
Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max 49h 122. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon) 48h 125. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) 47h 132. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos) 46h 135.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos) 44h 142. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos) 41h 150. Samsung Galaxy S22+ (Exynos) 40h 155. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon) 39h 156.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 38h 159. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos) 35h 163. Battery Life (moderate) 35th 35 Position in Premium RankingBattery Life (moderate) 1. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon) 51h 16. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon) 50h 20. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Exynos) 46h 26.
Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon) 39h 34. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 38h 36.
Samsung Galaxy S22 (Exynos) 35h i A robot housed in a Faraday cage performs a set of touch-based user actions during what we call our “typical usage scenario” (TUS) — making calls, video streaming, etc.
— 4 hours of active use over the course of a 16-hour period, plus 8 hours of “sleep.” The robot repeats this set of actions every day until the device runs out of power. Typical Usage Scenario discharge curves
i Using a smartphone on the go takes a toll on autonomy because of extra “hidden” demands, such as the continuous signaling associated with cellphone network selection, for example. DXOMARK Battery experts take the phone outdoors and perform a precisely defined set of activities while following the same three-hour travel itinerary (walking, taking the bus, the subway…) for each device
Autonomy for on the go use cases (full charge)
i For this series of tests, the smartphone returns to the Faraday cage and our robots repeatedly perform actions linked to one specific use case (such as gaming, video streaming, etc.)
Starting from an 80% charge, all devices are tested until they have expended at least 5% of their battery power. Autonomy for calibrated use cases (full charge)
Charging 102 Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 218 Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) i How Charging score is composed Charging is fully part of the overall battery experience.
In some situations where autonomy is at a minimum, knowing how fast you can charge becomes a concern. The DXOMARK Battery charging score is composed of two sub-scores, (1) Full charge and (2) Quick boost. Wired 48% in 30 min 0h53 0 – 80% 1h42 Full charge Wireless 21% in 30 min 1h48 0 – 80% 2h37 Full charge
Full charge 110 Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 224 Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) i Full charge tests assess the reliability of the battery power gauge; measure how long and how much power the battery takes to charge from zero to 80% capacity, from 80 to 100% as shown by the UI, and until an actual full charge. Two charts here below illustrate the full charge performance of the smartphone: (1) The charging curves, in wired and wireless (if available) showing the evolution of the battery level indicator as well as the power consumption in watts during the stages of charging toward full capacity. (2) The time to full charge chart breaks down the necessary time to reach 80%, 100% and full charge.
Wireless Power consumption and battery level during full charge Power consumption and battery level during wireless full charge Wireless Time to full charge Time to full charge
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro 5G 0h33 55. Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra (Snapdragon) 0h37 61.
Samsung Galaxy S23 Plus (Snapdragon) 0h37 65. Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro 5G 0h38 66. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) 0h39 69. Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos) 0h40 70.
OnePlus Nord CE 5G 0h42 74. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Snapdragon) 0h46 83. Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon) 0h49 89. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon) 0h50 94.
Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon) 0h50 96. Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G (Exynos) 0h51 102.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 0h53 109. Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro 0h55 113.
Apple iPhone 15 Pro Max 0h56 114.
Apple iPhone 12 Pro Max 0h57 119.
Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max 1h01 127. Apple iPhone 14 Pro Max 1h06 137.
Samsung Galaxy S21 5G (Snapdragon) 0h49 27. Samsung Galaxy S22 (Snapdragon) 0h50 27. Samsung Galaxy S23 (Snapdragon) 0h50 29. Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 0h53 32.
Quick boost 95 Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 212 Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) Realme GT Neo 5 (240W) i With the phone at different charge levels (20%, 40%, 60%, 80%), Quick boost tests measure the amount of charge the battery receives after being plugged in for 5 minutes.
The chart here compares the average autonomy gain from a quick 5-minute charge. Average autonomy gain for a 5 minute charge (wired)
i How Efficiency score is composed The DXOMARK power efficiency score consists of two sub-scores, Charge up and Discharge rate, both of which combine data obtained during robot-based typical usage scenario, calibrated tests and charging evaluation, taking into consideration the device’s battery capacity.
DXOMARK calculate the annual power consumption of the product, shown on below graph, which is representative of the overall efficiency during a charge and when in use. Annual Consumption Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 5.6 kWh Efficient Good Bad Inefficient Charge up 112 Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 205 Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro Nubia RedMagic 7 Pro
i The charge up sub-score is a combination of four factors: the overall efficiency of a full charge, related to how much energy you need to fill up the battery compared to the energy that the battery can provide; the efficiency of the travel adapter when it comes to transferring power from an outlet to your phone; the residual consumption when your phone is fully charged and still plugged into the charger; and the residual consumption of the charger itself, when the smartphone is disconnected from it. The chart here below shows the overall efficiency of a full charge in %. Discharge 68 Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G (Snapdragon) 194 Apple iPhone 14 Pro Apple iPhone 14 Pro
i The discharge subscore rates the speed of a battery’s discharge during a test, which is independent of the battery’s capacity.
It is the ratio of a battery’s capacity divided by its autonomy. A small-capacity battery could have the same autonomy as a large-capacity battery, indicating that the device is well-optimized, with a low discharge rate.
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE review: Good phone, wrong time
To me, fans are the people who are first in line, first to read all the related news and rumors, and most importantly, the first to check out the latest products from their favorite device makers. So when Samsung announced the $700 Galaxy S21 Fan Edition almost a full year after the original S21 came out, it felt long overdue.
Elsewhere, the S21 FE essentially has the same design as its forebears, featuring a centrally located selfie cam in front, a power button and volume rocker on the right, and a USB-C port on bottom for data and charging. There’s a speaker grille down below that works with the phone’s earpiece to provide stereo audio, which sounds fine even if it’s a little light on bass for my taste. Samsung makes the best phone displays in the industry, and even though the screen on the S21 FE isn’t quite as big or high-res as the S21 Ultra’s, there’s not much to complain about. Visually, this doesn’t have a big impact on the S21 FE’s overall UI and layout, though the extra personalization options do make it easier to customize your home and lock screens.
And because Samsung’s spin on Android has long included support for features like scrolling screenshots, the most important upgrade in One UI 4.0 is the new Privacy Dashboard. On the flip side, Samsung actually increased the resolution of S21 FE’s front cam to 32-MP (up from 10MP on the S21), which is nice if you like a lot of selfies or videos for social media.
But at the same time, I don’t really think this one upgrade is enough to change the overall impact of the device, leaving it feeling more like a nice bonus and less like a notable improvement. It delivers speedy performance and helps support features like 4K video capture across all of the phone’s cameras (at 60 frames per second on the main wide-angle and front selfie cams and 30 fps for the rest). But for people who do a lot of memory-intensive tasks like gaming or video editing, the FE’s lower base RAM is probably the biggest reason to pay $70 to upgrade to the 8GB model or just opt for a standard S21 or S21+. It’s annoying for sure, but like Apple, Google and others, Samsung says not including a power adapter with its phones should help cut down on e-waste.
It’s still a solid phone, but the standard Pixel 6 shoots better photos, has a more attractive design, and if you get the unlocked model directly from Google, it costs $100 less, too. So even if you’re a huge fan of Samsung’s latest FE handset, at the very least, you should wait to see what the S22 has to offer before purchasing what is essentially a year-old phone.
Instead of a repackaged year-old phone, why not make a premium remixed version sporting a microSD card slot and headphone jack? Not only would this be a welcome alternative to a lot of today’s flagships with minimal ports, but it’d also be a considerate nod to old-school Galaxy phone fans who may have felt betrayed when Samsung removed those features from the S20 in 2019. 411ppi, up to 120Hz Dimensions 6.13 x 2.93 x 0.31 inches / 155.7 x 74.5 x 7.9 mm; 6.24 oz / 177 g Processor, RAM and Storage Qualcomm Snapdragon 888;6GB DDR5 RAM;128GB / 256GB UFS 3.1 storage Rear cameras 12MP f/1.8 wide, 1.2-micron pixels, 1/1.31″ sensor and f/1.85 aperture12MP ultrawide camera, 1.25-micron pixels, 114-degree FOV and f/2.2 Front camera 32MP, 1.22-micron pixels, f/2.2 Battery 4,500 mAh, 25-watt fast-charging, fast wireless charging Sensors and connectivity Under-display fingerprint sensor, single sim, NFC, WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.0 Water resistance IP68
Dive into anything
The A54 is less ergonomic to hold in hand for me (this is quite important to me) and although the processing power is enough, I would welcome the extra juice of the S21 FE. In fact, I absolutely love every single thing about the S21 FE – camera, power, size, display, ergonomics etc. My phone usage looks like this: Texting, online video streaming, web browsing, light apps, music, etc. Also, I do NOT want to cut corners like switching to 60hz at all times, or disabling bluetooth, mobile data, or such.
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