Samsung Galaxy A21s is a budget smartphone that tries to offer all the essentials for everyday life: 4GB of RAM, 64GB of storage, 48MP camera and a 5000 mAh battery are among its strengths. Are you curious? Keep reading.

Samsung is a Korean multinational specialized in electronic products. From SSD storage drives to televisions and mobile phones, its presence and popularity have not stopped growing since its foundation in 1938 and especially since the 1990s.

Technical specifications of Samsung Galaxy A21s

Samsung Galaxy A21s unboxing

The packaging of the Samsung Galaxy A21s arrives in a box with a case type cover with a matte finish. On its cover we can see the product on both sides with a satin effect as well as the brand logo and model name. In the lower area we find the quality seal together with the product label that includes its specifications.

Upon removing the cover we immediately find the Samsung Galaxy A21s inside a protective case. It is located on a box with documentation that in turn hides the rest of the components. The contents of the box are summarized in:

Samsung Galaxy A21s Design

We are facing a smartphone with very manageable dimensions of 163.7 x 75.3 x 8.9 mm and 192g of weight. Originally the A21s line is available in four colors: Red, Blue, Black and White. However, the first of them seems to have been discontinued since it no longer appears as an alternative on the Official Samsung Website. For this review we have received the white model.

finishes

We extract the Samsung Galaxy A21s and initially do not recognize anything special about its appearance. The materials used consist of a sheet of tempered glass with rounded edges and plastic for the back cover and the silhouette bezel.

Around the tempered glass we can see a thin black bezel that facilitates the connection with the structure on the back of the phone, made in white with a pearly touch. Subsequently, the white reverse is also plastic, although with slightly iridescent reflections.

The group of rear cameras is integrated into a single piece of glass in the form of a sheet located in the upper left area. Centered, a little lower, we also see the fingerprint reader. Finally, in the lower section we see the Samsung logo screen-printed in gray with a reflective finish accompanied by some product data.

Buttons, ports and connections

Observing the sides, on the left we only find the tray for Nano SIM cards (dual) and Micro SD slot for storage. In the base, for its part, we have both a USB-C port for charging and data transfer of the Samsung Galaxy A21s as well as a 3.5 jack for headphones (included in the box). Also in this section we can see the main speaker as well as the hole for the microphone. The upper edge also has an identical hole, which in its case we venture is for another microphone or infrared.

The right side has the only two analog buttons of the Samsung Galaxy A21s, which are limited to one for turning it on and off and another to regulate the volume. Both are made of the same surface material and are pill-shaped, protruding slightly from the chassis.

Screen

The Samsung Galaxy A21s panel is a TFT LCD PLS model, a technology currently under development by Samsung and can be considered an upgrade to the IPS panel based on better angles, image quality, brightness, and lower price.

Its dimensions are 6.5” with an HD+ resolution (1600x720p), which gives it slightly more panoramic proportions and aspect ratio (16:20) compared to conventional 16:9.

Currently the mobile phone market is being dominated by AMOLED panels due to their impressive image quality, although it is also worth mentioning that their presence tends to increase the budget of the device, something that Samsung did not seek for the A21s range, which is of a utilitarian.

front and rear camera

In total, Samsung Galaxy A21s has five cameras: four rear and one front.

Starting with the rear set, in descending order we find a 2MP depth of field camera, 48MP main camera, 8MP ultra wide angle and 2MP macro. In total, the aperture index of the set ranges between F2.0, F2.2, F2.4 and F2.4, in addition to having autofocus.

The 48MP main camera includes an 80º wide angle, while the ultra wide angle slow camera extends them up to 123º.

Returning now to the front section, here we find the integrated selfie camera in the upper left corner of the tempered glass. Its dimensions are very small, occupying 4mm of inactive zone completely isolated as a point. In this case, the lens resolution reaches 13MP with an F2.2 aperture but without autofocus.

Samsung Galaxy A21s internal hardware

Having seen the aesthetic and technical aspects of the Samsung Galaxy A21s, it is now time to take a look at the internal components. For this we have used the GPU-Z application, thus obtaining more precise information.

From the outset we find an Exynos 850 SoC made up of an eight-core ARM Cortex A55 CPU. working at 2.00 GHz. Accompanying it, an ARM Mali G52 graphics processor. In terms of storage, by default we have 64GB, of which the effective memory is reduced to around 48.1GB. Here it should be noted that if it falls short we can expand it up to 512GB with an external Micro SD. Regarding RAM memory, we have 4GB by default.

When it comes to sensors, all the essentials are present: accelerometer, fingerprint sensor, gyroscope, geomagnetic, proximity sensor and virtual light sensor. To all this is added Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2.4+5GHz (also WiFi Direct) and PC Sync with Smart Switch. Finally, the equipped battery is a 5000 mAh lithium-ion model with a 15W fast charge.

Putting Samsung Galaxy A21s into use

As we mentioned initially, this is a low/medium range smartphone, so its features are not of the highest level, but it does offer basic functions for a very competitive budget.

display qualities

Aesthetically it is difficult to notice, although if we turn on the screen you will immediately understand where the differences are. A TFT LCD PLS panel offers lower color perception and contrast than is present in AMOLED screens. Black tones are shallower and color appears to have less intensity and sharpness.

Chromatic aberration at steeper angles as well as distortion are present, even though the pixel density per inch is 266dpi. This is a pretty good figure and to put it down we should probably point out that the maximum brightness of the panel is less high than we would have liked. It maintains good visibility in full sunlight, although the colors lose quality.

Saving the technicalities of the screen, the handling of Samsung Galaxy A21s is quite friendly. Its Android 10 operating system allows us to access the usual theme customization options, security encryption for the SD card, facial recognition or fingerprint, among many others.

Noteworthy in this section is the presence of Samsung Knox, which guarantees a multi-layered security system (workspace > Android SE > TIMA > Knox) ​​and thus helps protect the most sensitive content of our smartphone against viruses or cyberattacks.

The management and handling of the smartphone as such presents a slight delay when opening applications or panels due to their animation, although effectively we will normally use 1.8GB of the 4GB of available RAM.

For the rest, those of you who occasionally play a few games with Candy Crush or similar games will be able to do it, but remember that the Samsung Galaxy A21s is not a gaming model and you will be able to notice a certain increase in its internal temperature after long periods of use.

Integrated camera, microphones and speakers

The jewel in the crown of current mobiles is and will continue to be, in addition to the screen, the camera. In the digital age, it's inexcusable not to get the perfect shot, and Samsung has made sure the A21s's array of cameras isn't far behind.

Rear camera

We have initially started by comparing a photograph in normal mode with the ultra wide angle. The differences in terms of coverage of the field of view are quite generous without visually noticing a lens deformation in the buildings or trees present here. We have not noticed any setbacks in this section.

In shorter shots, on the other hand, we do not appreciate a big difference between the normal camera and the macro camera. Yes, we retain a very remarkable quality when we get closer to take images with greater detail, but it is not really effective unless we are about 5-3cm away from the object to be photographed, in which case the default camera does not focus properly and we will have to go to macro mode.

Regarding color, the balance of saturation seems adequate. Yes, it is possible that some contrast is missing, but the lighting conditions reflected in the photographs are very similar to the real ones, so we can be satisfied. The zoom for its part is quite efficient and maintains correct sharpness even at its maximum capacity. The objects acquire slightly diffuse shapes but it is something to be expected, let's not forget that we have a maximum resolution of 48MP.

Frontal camera

Lastly, we have the 13MP selfie camera, with which the inevitable beauty filter comes into play. Here it should also be noted that this same filter is also present (along with other photography filters) for the front set in case we take a picture of someone else. Basically we can configure a total of four parameters with their respective regulators:

If we add up all the effects with a progression from 0 to 100, the truth is that in general the result is quite subtle, except for the softening filter (and a little for the eyes), which are evident from about 2/3 intensity . Otherwise the beauty filter is quite natural.

For photographs we can also activate the automatic HDR function from settings to capture a greater number of details and improve the contrast between dark and light areas.

When it comes to video and audio recording, the maximum resolution for both the rear set and the front camera is Full HD (1920 x 1080) at 60fps with a wide range of formats at our disposal, the audio quality being Dolby Atmos.

Samsung Galaxy A21s performance tests

When it comes to the test bench, we have resorted to the usual suspects when performing SoC resistance tests:

1. AnTuTu BenchMark
2. Geek Bench 5
3. 3DMark Sling Shot Extreme (Open GL ES)

The results only confirm what we initially told you: this is not a gaming smartphone nor is it designed for heavy workloads or used as a second office.

Samsung Galaxy A21s is designed for more everyday, simpler activities: surf the internet, watch streaming, check email, some applications and games, social networks... Its storage and RAM are moderate, although functional. It is not the fastest or most powerful phone on the market, but if you are only interested in a device with which to do a little of everything without many requirements, then it is the ideal candidate.

Battery and autonomy

The battery of the Samsung Galaxy A21s increases by 20% compared to the previous generation (from a 4,000 mAh cell we went to 5,000 mAh). This adds up to a good number of hours of autonomy by default, which we manage with the various consumption modes offered by the operating system. At 100% load:

Each of these modes sets performance and consumption limitations for both the processor and applications and background tasks, thus optimizing consumption. If we add details such as dark mode or reduced brightness, we have Samsung Galaxy A21s for a while.

Final words and conclusions about Samsung Galaxy A21s

As a smartphone designed for an average user who makes use of the basic functions of both the phone and applications and social networks, the Samsung Galaxy A21s is a great asset to value. Its 64GB of memory is expandable to 512GB with an external Micro SD card, we can install dual SIM and it has a fingerprint reader and facial recognition.

Its set of cameras reaches 48MP and is capable of recording 1080p at 60fps, which meets the current standard. Yes, it is likely that some users will miss a somewhat better panel (AMOLED), but then the price would probably also be affected. As compensation, the 5000 mAh battery can last more than eight days without charging with energy saving mode, which can also get us out of trouble.

We recommend reading: Best Chinese smartphones.

With a price of €229.00, the Samsung Galaxy A21s is a very affordable smartphone with which we can carry out all the basic day-to-day activities. Its simple and functional design maintains a manageable format and low weight, rounding off the product.

ADVANTAGES	DISADVANTAGES
BETTER CAMERAS AND BATTERY THAN THE PREVIOUS MODEL	LITTLE INNOVATION
LIGHT AND MODERN DESIGN	THE SCREEN IS NOT AMOLED
INCLUDES 3.5MM JACK AND HEADPHONES

The Professional Review team awards him the Gold Medal:

Samsung Galaxy A21s - 6.5" Smartphone (4 GB RAM, 64 GB internal memory, WiFi, Octa Core Processor, 48 MP main camera, Android 10.0) WhiteBuy on Amazon

Last updated on 2021-12-17

Samsung A21s

DESIGN - 80%

MATERIALS AND FINISHES - 80%

DISPLAY - 75%

AUTONOMY - 90%

PRICE - 85%

82%