The cheapest version of the Samsung Galaxy S21 series is this Samsung Galaxy S21 FE. On paper, the device has a lot on board that the best smartphone from Samsung currently also has. You can read more about it in this Samsung Galaxy S21 FE review.
Samsung Galaxy S21FE
Recommended retail price € 649,-
Colors black, green, purple, white
OS Android 12 (One UI)
Screen 6.4 inch OLED (2400 x 1080, 120hz)
Processor 2.9GHz octa-core (Snapdragon 888)
RAM 6GB
Storage 128 or 256 GB
Battery 4,500 mAh
Camera 12, 12 and 8 megapixels (rear), 32 megapixels (front)
Connectivity 5G, 4G (LTE), Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi, GPS, NFC
Format 15.6 x 7.5 x 0.8 cm
Weight 177 grams
Other Fingerprint scanner behind screen, waterproof and dustproof
Website www.samsung.com/nl
8 Score 80 
- Pros
- Design
- Cameras
- Update Support
- Negatives
- unnecessary apps
- No audio port, memory card slot and adapter
Smartphone manufacturers like to copy from each other. Nowadays it is also a trend to pretend that you don’t have customers, but ‘fans’. As if companies are sports clubs. OnePlus does it by pretending to have a ‘community’ and Xiaomi also claims to have a fan club. Samsung is participating in the marketing party by no longer calling the cheapest device from their top series ‘Lite’, but ‘Fan Edition’, or FE.
The Lite/FE version of the Galaxy S21 appears at a somewhat curious moment. Normally this appears in the autumn, half a year after the top models from the series come out. The Galaxy S21 FE will appear later, the introduction may have been delayed due to the chip shortage. This does mean that the smartphone will probably be overshadowed by the introduction of the next Galaxy S22 series, which was announced on February 8.
Handy and accessible
Such an overshadowing of an S22 series would be a shame, because the Galaxy S21 FE is a great smartphone and perhaps the smartest choice in the series. The smartphone feels light and handy. It is nice that the back feels luxurious, even though it is made of plastic. This means you won’t be bothered by glass, which is always vulnerable and fingerprint-sensitive, but still a luxury smartphone that you can charge wirelessly.
The FE version is slightly larger than the regular Samsung Galaxy S22, but still handy. In terms of price, the smartphones are also almost the same and ensures that a second shadow falls over the device. The device is very light and the three cameras are nicely processed along the edge at the back. The disadvantage of the camera placement is that the device does not lie flat on the table, with a cover you will not notice this.
The device feels sturdy and is quite thin. You can open the SIM card slot at the bottom, unfortunately Samsung has decided that no memory card may be placed with this S22 series. Also, the audio port and charging adapter are missing from the box.
FE or not
Yet there are differences with the regular Galaxy S21, the battery capacity is higher, which is a very nice advantage. The chipset is also more powerful: a Snapdragon 888, which, like its counterpart, also supports 5G. This Snapdragon outperforms Samsung’s own Exynos chipset in the benchmarks.
There are also downsides: there is less RAM on board: 6GB is not particularly spacious, but sufficient for your games and apps. There is also a slightly less impressive camera on the back. The balance therefore also seems that if you can get both devices for the same price, the regular S22 is the smartest option – and those prices are therefore very close to each other. But keep actively comparing them on Kieskeurig.nlbecause Samsung products usually change prices regularly.
Display
The screen of the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is also almost the same as that of the Galaxy S21. The image size is slightly larger: 6.4 inches. Furthermore, the AMOLED screen also has a Full HD resolution and a high refresh rate of up to 120 hertz, so that images run more smoothly. The screen does not have a dynamic refresh rate, which makes images run more smoothly when possible. In the settings you can set this to 120 hertz, which ensures a smooth running image – or 60 hertz, which is a normal value and loads the battery much less.
The image quality is good and so is the brightness, which ensures that you can also read your smartphone in sunlight.
Battery
The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE therefore has a battery capacity of 4,500 mAh, which is one stroke larger than the regular S21. Moreover, you can charge this battery wirelessly and quickly, provided you buy a charger for that. This battery offers enough capacity to last a day and a half under normal circumstances, with a little economical use you might get through two days. So it helps if you adjust the refresh rate.
Camera
On paper, the cameras of the Galaxy S21 FE are slightly less impressive than those of the regular Galaxy S21. In practice, you hardly notice that. In addition to the regular camera, you will find a zoom and wide-angle lens on the back.
This zoom lens in particular is less impressive on paper. With enough light, this is hardly noticeable, except that shadow parts show less detail. If there is even less light available, you will notice that this lens can see less. The wide-angle lens shows more noise, just like on the regular Galaxy S21. You can also use this lens to zoom in up to 30x, but this does result in a (software) sharpened crop. A kind of digital zoom.
It is mainly the regular camera that performs very well. Little noise, a lot of detail and beautiful colors. In addition, Samsung knows how to ensure that you take an excellent photo in all lighting conditions through the software adjustment, image recognition and night mode.
The front camera in turn makes little impression, and is more suitable for basic photos (read: selfies).
From left to right: zoom camera, regular camera, wide angle camera.
Software
Samsung recently announced that it will provide its new smartphones, including this one, with four version updates of Android and at least five years of security updates. That also applies to this Galaxy S21 FE. This puts Samsung other Android manufacturers a lot to look at in terms of update policy. In addition, the Galaxy S21 FE comes with the latest version, Android 12.
Samsung’s OneUI software shell is unmistakable and has many useful features. Maybe just too much. Especially the number of pre-installed apps from other parties is not neat, think of an arsenal of Microsoft apps and data-guzzling Facebook app. Samsung can also do something about it, including its own application store, Samsung Free news app and unfortunately still the Bixby assistant. During testing, reports of unnecessary services that try to impose themselves regularly appeared.
With its revised update policy, Samsung gives Android competition a run for its money
Alternatives to the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE
The delay of the announcement actually causes the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE to fall a bit between two stools. If you are in doubt between the regular Galaxy S21 and the Galaxy S21 FE, this one seems to be the slightly smarter choice. This is mainly due to the chipset and battery. The Galaxy S21 is slightly smaller and has slightly better performing cameras.
If we look at the smartphones of the competition, it can be concluded that Samsung trumps these enormously thanks to the support. Manufacturers such as OnePlus, Motorola and Xiaomi simply can no longer keep up in terms of software and camera. Apple and Google offer better alternatives, but for the iPhone 12 (which can be seen as an alternative) you soon pay a lot more. The Pixel 6 from Google is not (well) available in the Netherlands.
You will find another alternative with the Samsung Galaxy S22, although it has only just been announced – and has therefore not yet been tested. In addition, this device has a considerably higher suggested retail price. The fact that the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE falls between two stools with the Galaxy S21 and Galaxy S22 gives you a luxury position, so keep a close eye on the price comparisons!
Conclusion: Buy Samsung Galaxy S21 FE?
The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE may fall between two stools, but the smartphone is an excellent choice that you can use for years to come thanks to the improved update support from Samsung. Add to that the luxurious design, good cameras, excellent battery life, image quality and enough computing power and you can only conclude that this is an excellent smartphone.
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