Pros | Cons |
+ AMOLED HDR10 Screen with 120Hz Refresh rate | - No headphone jack and microSD |
+ Light-weight | - Easy to heat up |
+ Aesthetically pleasing | - Pretty pricey for a Fan Edition |
Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G
RM2,899
It’s been awhile since my last phone review and I can’t possibly be more excited about reviewing Samsung’s latest fan edition - the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G.
Design
Upon first glance, the phone looks very minimalist with a frosted matte back and Samsung’s logo engraving on the bottom and that’s probably it. The unit I received came in the colour Lavender but if that’s not your forte, there are other colours available such as Graphite, Olive and White.
Another thing worth mentioning is the phone is made out of plastic - or as what Samsung calls it, Glasstic. With that being said, the material used definitely allows the phone to be lighter but it also resulted in making the phone feel cheap.
The phone itself is pretty user friendly as the lock button and volume rocker are located on the right side of the phone while the sim card slot, USB Type-C charging port and mono speaker is located on the bottom. I am however upset with the lack of headphone jack.
Display
Display-wise, it comes with an AMOLED 2X display to further enhance vibrant colours and brightness - and yes, the brightness is maintained despite using the phone in a bright place.
As for refresh rates, this phone has a 120 Hz refresh rate to ensure fast touch response and accuracy for normal social media scrolling or casual gaming. Though - you can opt to change your refresh rate down to 60 Hz if you plan on saving up battery. Multitasking is also made simpler with the split screen feature it comes with.
Camera
Another important feature we all consider when choosing a phone is if the camera is good - even if it’s just for selfies and casual social media postings.
The rear camera can provide high-quality photos and videos with the 12MP Ultra Wide, Wide-Angle camera and a 8 MP Telephoto Camera. I have to say that the camera this phone has, is pretty impressive as the photos came out clear and should suffice for social media postings.
Aside from using the rear camera to take pictures of the scenery, I also opted to do a mini photoshoot to see how well it would do and I am fairly impressed with how it turned out. The subject is fairly clear and does well in evening out harsh lighting.
It also has a 30x Space Zoom technology that incorporates a 3x Hybrid Optic Zoom and a 30x digital zoom to provide high resolution close ups, whereas the Engage Zoom Lock will reduce shakiness the further you zoom when taking a picture, allowing this to ensure a clear photo despite zooming.
For those who love posting selfies on social media, I personally think this can deliver pretty good selfies as it comes with a 32 MP front camera. With that being said, I still look decent enough for my casual Instagram postings as it doesn’t look overly touched up and imperfections can still be seen though not too much that I need a filter.
Specifications
In terms of specs, the Samsung S21 FE uses a Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G which can provide great performance and reliability for casual gaming and multitasking. The unit I’m reviewing comes on board with 128 GB of storage and 8GB of RAM. But, if it’s still not enough for your needs, there is also another variant available that comes with 256GB of storage.
As it’s also a 5G phone, upgrading further is no longer needed nas it supports the latest generation of network to enable faster speed, lower latency, more reliability and a bigger network capacity. Which means, lagging or staying behind is the least of our concerns since Malaysia has officially launched the 5G network as well.
Buy or no buy?
All-in-all, I think that the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is pretty jam-packed with specifications and features that are good enough to be your next phone, from the design all the way to the camera. I even did a mini-photoshoot with it and I personally think the pictures came out spot on. I personally think that it’s worth the price even if it’s on the pricier side.
