Fans of the Galaxy Note line were worried that there won’t be a new one last year. This is after Samsung launched the Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Galaxy Z Flip 3 in the usual spot of a new Galaxy Note. Those fans don’t need to worry anymore as the company just launched the Galaxy S22 Ultra! It combines the newest camera capabilities in the Galaxy S Series with the S Pen and the productivity capabilities of the Galaxy Note series. Yes, we got S Pen functionality in the S21 Ultra but this phone gets a built-in S Pen!
Built-in S Pen
You heard that right! The Galaxy S22 Ultra is the first Galaxy S device with a built-in S Pen. Of course, Samsung wouldn’t just add that and call it a day. The company improved on the capabilities of the S Pen, the phone itself, and the software.
You can be sure to get a smooth experience when using the S Pen with a lower 2.8 ms latency! This is significantly faster than the 9 ms latency on the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. Coupled with Samsung’s AI-based coordinate prediction technology, using the S Pen will basically be fast and smooth on the S22 Ultra.
Samsung Notes
The Samsung Notes app got significant updates to support these new S Pen updates. You get better handwriting-to-text support for up to 88 languages (including Tagalog)! There’s also a Quick Note feature that lets you put text, photos, links, and more from other apps in a pop-up note. A neat feature is Collaboration View where it takes advantage of the big canvas of the Galaxy Tab S8 Series. You can do all the writing and drawing on the tablet while changing the pen you use on the S22 Ultra.
Ultra Cameras!
Ever since Samsung introduced the Ultra model, they always put in the best cameras that the company has to offer. Building on the success of the S21 Ultra, the Galaxy S22 Ultra keeps that quad rear camera setup that consists of:
- 108MP main camera with f/1.8 aperture, Dual Pixel autofocus, and an 85° field-of-view
- Two 10MP telephoto cameras: normal telephoto with 3x optical zoom, f/2.4 aperture, and a 36° field-of-view, periscope telephoto with 10x optical zoom, f/4.9 aperture, and an 11° field-of-view
- 12MP ultrawide camera with f/2.2 aperture and a 120° field-of-view
Samsung’s making a big push towards night photography and videography. (The company calls it Nightography, for better or for worse.) Features such as Portrait Mode, Super Resolution, Super Steady System, Auto FPS, and Auto Framing are possible thanks to the new 2x faster NPU. It’ll be interesting to see whether the video capabilities of the S22 Ultra can keep up with the latest flagships.
For selfie lovers out there, you’ll still get that 40MP front camera with f/2.2 aperture and an 80° field-of-view. You can take advantage of all the built-in camera features in social media apps like Snapchat.
Ultra Performance!
Powering the Galaxy S22 Ultra is either a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 or an Exynos 2200 processor. Both processors were made with a 4nm process, so they can pack more performance while using less power. (The Philippines will be getting the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1.) It has up to 12GB of RAM and up to 1TB of internal storage for all those photos and videos you’ll be taking. You will be taking more of them thanks to its 5000 mAh battery. Don’t worry about charging this phone for long as it now has 45W wired fast charging! You still need a separate power adapter, but that can charge the S22 Ultra to 50% in less than 20 minutes. There’s also 15W wireless charging and Wireless PowerShare for charging your earbuds such as the Galaxy Buds 2.
The S22 Ultra has Bluetooth 5.2, 5G, and Wi-Fi 6E support for the best wireless connectivity that Samsung has to offer in a flagship.
Market-Leading Display
Let’s not forget Samsung’s display prowess! The Galaxy S22 Ultra comes with a 6.8-inch Edge QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X display. It comes with a Super Smooth 120Hz refresh rate that now dynamically adjusts to as low as 1Hz (from 10Hz in the previous generation). In Game Mode, the S22 Ultra has up to 240Hz touch sampling rate. Peak brightness now reaches 1750 nits which makes it plenty readable outdoors. Gorilla Glass Victus+ protects not just the display but the back of the S22 Ultra as well. It also comes with an ultrasonic in-display fingerprint sensor for a fast and secure way to unlock the phone.
Pricing and Availability
The Galaxy S22 Ultra comes in four colors: Burgundy, Green, Phantom White, and Phantom Black. It will retail for P68,990 for the 8GB RAM + 128GB storage model, P72,990 for the 12GB RAM + 256GB storage model, and P80,990 for the 12GB RAM + 512GB storage model.
You can preorder the S22 Ultra from Samsung.com on February 9, 2022, 11PM until March 3, 2022. If you preorder there, you can get freebies and discounts up to P13,200. (They consist a P10,000 Samsung Online Store e-voucher, a Silicone Case with Strap worth P1,999, and a Lucky Box Strap worth P1,299.)
You can also preorder through Samsung Experience Stores, select Authorized Samsung Stores, Lazada, Shopee, Abenson.com and MemoXpress Online from February 10 – March 3, 2022. If you preorder there, you can get as much as P13,200 worth of freebies! Those include a pair of Galaxy Buds Pro worth P9,990, a Silicone Case with Strap worth P1,999 and a Lucky Box Strap worth P1,299.
The Galaxy S22 Ultra will be available on March 4, 2022 in Samsung.com, Samsung Experience Stores, select Authorized Samsung Stores, Lazada, Shopee, Abenson.com, and MemoXpress Online, and telco partners.