Samsung Teases Galaxy S21 With Family Design Lineage, Here’s What We Know So Far

Though Samsung has already invited consumers to go ahead and actually preorder its next Galaxy S flagship device, today the company teased the Galaxy S21 yet again. In a 30 second sizzle reel highlighting the industrial design chops of its flagship Galaxy S family of over several generations, Samsung underscored that it will be a new year with “new ways to express yourself” with “the next Galaxy” that is incoming for 2021. And though we don’t actually get a glimpse of the Galaxy S21 in this new tease entitled “A new Galaxy awaits,” there have been numerous leaks detailing some of the high-level features of Samsung’s next-gen flagship Android handset that is expected to debut in the next couple of weeks, in concert with the now all-digital CES 2021 show. Here’s a quick rundown of what to expect…

First, it’s rumored that there will be three models of devices, as follows:

• Galaxy S21 Ultra: 6.8-inch Infinity-O-Edge (AMOLED display), 3200×1440, 120Hz refresh, 1,600 nits
• Galaxy S21 Plus: 6.7-inch Infinity-O (AMOLED display), 2400×1080, 120Hz refresh, 1,300 nits
• Galaxy S21: 6.2-inch Infinity-O (AMOLED display), 2400×1080, 120Hz refresh, 1,300 nits

All of these devices are rumored to be powered by either Qualcomm’s new Snapdragon 888 platform for US models, or Samsung’s Exynos 2100 platform in some other regions. I’m particularly interested in how the Snapdragon 888-powered Galaxy S21 will perform, as I expect it will deliver a significant lift on a number of levels, especially with respect to computational photography. It has also been rumbled that the Galaxy S21 Ultra will be backed by 12GB of RAM and 128GB, 256GB or 512GB storage options, while the Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus will sport 8GB of RAM and 128GB or 256GB of storage.

According to HotHardware, battery sizes will also vary. The Galaxy S21 Ultra is reportedly backed by a 5,000 mAh battery, while the Galaxy S21 Plus and Galaxy S21 will be powered by 4,800 mAh and 4,000 mAh batteries, respectively. All three support Qi wireless charging and I’d expect higher wattage quick charging options to make top-offs super-speedy as well.

Camera-wise, there are various reports that the GS21 Ultra will again bring a 108MP primary shooter with a 12MP ultra-wide camera but also dual 10MP telephoto cameras and a 40MP front facing camera. Meanwhile the Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus are rumored to wield a 64MP main/telephoto combo shooter, two 12MP ultra-wide angle shooters, and a 10MP front-facing camera. These quad camera arrays apparently sport similar sensor arrangements to the Galaxy S20 series as well, but again, with the help of the Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 888, bring new tricks like “triple hybrid-optical zoom.” That said, I’d take these camera specs with a grain of salt especially (as with almost everything in the rumor mill) because camera details for the new Galaxy S21 series have been all over the map.

Of course all devices will have some form of 5G connectivity, though it’s not clear if both mmWave and Sub-6 will be supported across all devices. Finally, when it comes to color options, well-known leaker Evan Blass has already bestowed upon us images of the devices themselves, noting hues like Phantom White, Phantom Black, Phantom Silver, Phantom Violet and Phantom Pink.

And that about wraps-up what we know so far about Samsung’s next Galaxy, but stay tuned for details coming in the next couple of weeks. With Samsung already taking preorders on these devices, you know we’re getting really close to the official launch.