Samsung’s flagship Galaxy S and Galaxy Note lineup has always generated plenty of interest among the masses. While the Galaxy S21 was only announced a few months ago, it was launched much sooner than the usual annual refresh schedule. But it wasn’t until recently that we heard about Samsung leaving out the S-Pen wielding Note 21 from its roadmap of upcoming smartphones. This has led to speculation that the South Korean manufacturer may actually pull back the release of a successor known as the Galaxy S22. Thou Samsung has expectedly remained tight-lipped about the Galaxy S22 rumors and its features, however, one can get a decent idea about the phone by going through some of the recent leaks and information, including design, from industry-renowned insider sources.
We’re going to piece together some of those specifications to get a better understanding of what the Samsung Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22 Ultra, Galaxy S22 Plus, or any other variant will bring to the table. Given that tech moves pretty fast now, we cannot rule out major upgrades.
With this in mind, let’s take a look at what we know about the Samsung Galaxy S22 rumors lineup.
Samsung Galaxy S22 Rumors: Release Date, Price, Specs, and Design
Design and Display
The iconic glass back/aluminum frame design from the Galaxy S21 Ultra and Plus models is likely to be retained by Samsung with the upcoming flagships. Meanwhile, the entry level S21 is likely to have a plastic back panel. All models will also feature Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus.
Samsung used three different displays for the early 2021 flagship lineup which consisted of the Galaxy S21, S21 Ultra, and the S21 Plus.
This would mean the Samsung Galaxy S22 will have a 6.2-inch display, while the Galaxy S22 Ultra and the Galaxy S22 Plus should have 6.8-inch and 6.7-inch displays, respectively. Meanwhile, the entry-level version of the lineup, the Galaxy S22 5G could likely sport a 6.2-inch display.
All variants of the next Samsung flagship are expected to have high-resolution displays accompanied by a 120 Hz refresh rate range. and HDR10+ technology. This should make it a treat to enjoy games or video content. It’s unlikely that Samsung will make a trade-off in this regard.
Camera
The quad camera setup from the Galaxy S21 has already won plenty of praise from experts and users alike. Keeping this in mind, Samsung may lean towards retaining the layout barring a few adjustments, especially with the placement of the cameras. Needless to say, the Galaxy S22 lineup will have exceptional video recording capabilities with 8K and 4K (30fps/60fps) supported by default.
The Galaxy S21 Ultra stands out among its siblings thanks to its layout consisting of an 108MP sensor accompanied by a 12 MP ultrawide camera, a 10MP standard telephoto and 10 MP periscope telephoto cameras. Meanwhile, the entry level Samsung Galaxy S21 and the Galaxy S21 Plus comes with a triple camera layout offering a 64MP primary telephoto sensor along with two 12MP sensors.
As for the selfie camera, the S21 Ultra features a single 40MP sensor, while the standard S21 and the S21 Ultra offer a more moderate 10MP selfie camera with the company’s dual-pixel tech packed in. All phones in the new lineup should have dual video calling and selfie capabilities.
Processor
The Samsung Galaxy S22 will likely debut a new processor, as has been the case over multiple annual upgrades. As of now, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 rules the mobile phone industry among smartphone/tablet SoCs, though rumors have said that the company is also working on a successor to the Snapdragon 888 codenamed “Waipio” internally and apparently bearing the model number SM8450.
Details on performance or benchmark scores are currently unavailable. However, sources say that Qualcomm is likely to unveil this chipset towards the end of 2021 which aligns nicely with the rumored arrival date of the Samsung Galaxy S22 and its power-packed siblings.
Battery Life
Samsung has made significant improvements in terms of battery life for its handset lineup, and the Galaxy S21 and S21 Ultra took that to the next level. With an estimated 11.5 hours on the Ultra’s 5,000 mAh battery, we expect the manufacturer to go a step further with the upcoming upgrade. However, the company will have to strike a balance between battery life and overall weight of the device.
Expectedly, the Samsung Galaxy S22 and the S22 Plus will have smaller batteries inside, likely 4,000 and 4,800 mAh units if the predecessors are an indication. A wide-range of fast features, including USB Power Delivery 3.0, 25W fast wired charging, and 15W fast wireless (Qi) charging should be included on all models. The battery capacity could also bring reverse wireless charging at 4.5W.
Other Features
Although Samsung frequently updates or changes the features of its flagship handsets, there are a few characteristics that we expect to remain in upcoming model upgrades, including the Galaxy S22.
Prominent among these features is IP68 protection for water/dust resistance. The Galaxy S21, S21 Ultra, and the Plus model boasted of the same protections, and we don’t expect things to be different with the Samsung Galaxy S22.
Ultra-Wideband or UWB was an excellent addition to the Galaxy S21 Ultra and the S21 Plus earlier this year. This is a short-range wireless communication protocol capable of operating on a high frequency (GHz). Similarly, we expect the Samsung Galaxy S22 and the Galaxy S22 Ultra and Plus variants to offer this by default.
Samsung Pay has been a standard feature on the company’s flagship and mid-range phones for quite some time now, and we expect that to continue with the Galaxy s22 lineup as well. The highly touted Bixby voice assistant is also expected to be front and center.
The onboard stereo speakers will yet again feature the ‘Tuned by AKG’ moniker, and there should be no change in that regard with the Galaxy S22 lineup. However, the performance of the onboard speakers is expected to be enhanced with the refresh.
Galaxy S22 Rumors: Price
Many have expressed hope that the Galaxy S22 will finally bring about a price reduction to the lineup. However, this could be just wishful thinking as the Galaxy S22 variants are expected to be significantly more powerful and juiced up than phones like the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21 Ultra, and the Galaxy S21 Plus.
For reference, the Galaxy S21 Ultra launched with a price tag of $1,199 while the Galaxy S21 Plus costs $999 and up depending on the storage/RAM configuration. Lastly, the standard Galaxy S21 sold for $799 at launch. The company is also likely to launch a Galaxy S22 FE as a successor to the Galaxy S21 FE which is yet to hit the markets.
Samsung is known for its ability to surprise customers and fans from time to time. So with that in mind, the company may just choose to retain the same pricing for the Galaxy S22, Galaxy S22 Ultra, and any other variant launching alongside.
Galaxy S22 Rumors: Release Date
As we’ve touched on above, the S-Pen toting Samsung Galaxy Note 21 appears to be canceled, with many sources saying that this hints at an early Galaxy S22 release date.
However, there’s also speculation about Samsung unveiling a foldable display flagship such as the Galaxy Fold, in lieu of the Galaxy Note 21.
Leaks aren’t at a very reliable stage at the moment, but going by the company’s 2021 timeline, it’s likely that the Samsung Galaxy S22 release date will be January 2022, though we would much rather have it sooner, given that phone launch timelines have gone for a toss since 2020.