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When we compiled our ultimate list of current smartphone models, Samsung’s Galaxy S22 Ultra easily stood out as the best Android option. It’s on sale on Amazon right now for $300 off list price, bringing it down to just $900. That’s only ten dollars more than its lowest price ever on Prime Day in October – still a bargain. We considered the S22 Ultra “a great phone and the best premium Android flagship you can buy” before giving it a solid score of 89. And because Samsung promised at least four years of updates/support , it’s an investment that won’t leave your phone dry in just a few years.
Those who remember Samsung’s Note series will find plenty of familiar things here, especially the S Pen, the built-in stylus that lets you take notes, mark up photos, draw scribbles, and use as cursor. In fact, the S Pen is part of what differentiates the S22 Ultra from the S22+ and the S22, as neither of the latter include the stylus.
The S22 Ultra also offers a larger camera setup, bigger screen, and longer battery life than its less premium siblings. The Ultra’s cameras include a 108MP main sensor, a 12MP ultrawide option, and a pair of 10MP telephoto lenses. And while there’s a new Adaptive Pixel feature meant to capture more light and make images look clearer, we didn’t find a huge difference in our testing. That said, the S22 Ultra’s photos held up against those of comparable phones made by Apple and Google.
The huge 6.8-inch 120Hz OLED display is smooth, fast and colorful (in fact, we called it ‘sumptuous’). In our battery tests, we got 17 hours and 16 minutes in a video preview, which is a shorter battery life than its predecessor, the Ultra S21 – an issue that may be related to the fact that the S Pen consumes power, even when stored in its slot.
The rugged exterior has an IP68 dust and water resistance rating – meaning it can withstand a dip in five feet of water for up to 30 minutes – and the screen is wrapped in the latest Victus + Gorilla Glass for improved resistance to cracks and scratches (it survived a dive from the top of a cabinet in our review and emerged unscathed).
The $300 offer applies to all three storage sizes, 128GB, 256GB, and 512GB options. it’s a good time to buy.
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