A Note By Any Other Name

I've always been a Note guy. I don't really know why... especially given the thing that really separated Samsung Galaxy Notes from the rest of the pack was always the famous, built-in S-Pen stylus - a stylus I hardly ever used.

There was just something about knowing this was the pinnacle of Samsung's current handset technology, all on display in one powerhouse phone. So I suppose more of a phone-snobbery thing than anything else.

But with the introduction of Samsung's foldables, suddenly it wasn't so clear if the Note was still the top of the range and with the addition of S-Pen capability on the most recent Galaxy Z Fold last year, the writing was on the wall (and the screen) for the Note range. It now just seemed a bit redundant.

Still, old habits die hard...

There's simply no denying the Galaxy S22 Ultra is just a Note in disguise - and it's not much of a disguise. In recent years Samsung's S-range has included three models; the base version, a larger "Plus" and and even bigger and more specced-up Ultra.

This year, Samsung has followed the same formula although the Ultra looks quite different when compared with its other 2022 siblings. While the vanilla and plus models look more like a direct evolution of last year's S21's, with a slightly more streamlined camera module and a few different colour options, the S22 Ultra is almost an exact clone of 2020's Note 20 Ultra.

Available in Phantom Black, Phantom White, Green and Burgundy, it's basically the same size and shape with the same curved edges and flat top and bottom. The only obvious departure is the rear-facing camera array; four individually raised lenses and a Laser Auto Focus sensor each protrude from the rear casing in what I consider to be a much more aesthetically pleasing fashion than the massive square glass chunks we've accepted as the norm for a few years now.

And what cameras! Just like the Notes of old, Samsung has crammed pretty much every photographic innovation it can get its hands on into the S22 Ultra's camera setup - even inventing words like "Nightography" to describe the improvements in low-light shooting. As you can see from this picture I snapped using Night Mode, it's easy to take clear, detailed night shots, even of lights, with little to no glare or halo effect. Note, the people inside the restaurant aren't real - that's a picture on the wall.

The new combination of larger sensors, Super Clear Glass lenses and of course, the very latest in chip technology means it's not just night shooting that gets a boost. These two shots show off just how brilliantly the S22 Ultra brings all its camera tricks together to combat stark changes in lighting and the challenges of focus over varying distances.

Video performance is just as impressive and features like Portrait Video and Director's View are now more powerful than ever. Not only can you instantly snap between lenses while shooting your video, you can also use the selfie cam simultaneously - introducing the Dual Recording capability we saw on the recently released S21 FE.

The 40MP forward-facing shooter shares many of these new refinements and features too. As I've mentioned, a lot of this improved camera performance isn't just down to the lenses and sensors - sheer processing power makes a big difference too. Without geeking out too much, it's certainly interesting to note the S22's we're getting in New Zealand will be powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, rather than the Exynos equivalent we're more used to seeing in this region. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 is the very latest and greatest chip to be found in Android phones right now - and certainly in my week or so of testing I've been totally blown away by the instant response of this device in all uses; browsing, streaming, photography, gaming, whatever.

This fluid operating experience is aided by yet another sublime Samsung display; a huge 6.8-inch Edge QHD+ Dynamic AMOLED screen with a variable refresh rate - automatically adjusting from 120Hz right down to 1Hz if that's all that's required, saving as much battery as possible. The screen always looks and feels incredible - bright and easy to see in all lighting conditions, inside and out.

Admittedly, I'm only moderately impressed with the battery performance. 5000mAh should be heaps but there's a lot going on with this handset, including wirelessly charging the internally stored S-Pen. The S22 Ultra is capable of fast charging - up to 45W - but that's by no means the fastest on offer these days and there's no charging brick included in the box anyway. Personally, I'm a wireless guy so I seldom run into any charge issues; I have wireless chargers on my bedside table, my desk and even my car so basically, when I put the phone down, I'm charging it.

There are three storage options, 128GB, 256GB and 512GB. Oddly, you get a bit less RAM with the 128GB version, (the one I'm reviewing) just 8GB instead of 12GB. Can I honestly say I've missed that extra 4GB? Nope.

How's the durability? The S22 Ultra is sheathed in Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus Plus, both front and back, reputed to be Corning's toughest offering yet. This is held in place, top, bottom and narrowly along the sides by a metal frame Samsung describes as "Armour Aluminium."

So, indestructible, right?

Ummm... I was doing the supermarket shopping yesterday and was carrying the S22 Ultra in my inside jacket pocket, pulling it out to check off items on my shopping list and safely tucking it away again each time. Or so I thought. When I got to the canned corn, it was on the bottom shelf and when I leaned over, the super-slippery S22 Ultra whooshed out of my jacket pocket and clattered to the polished concrete of the Pak'n'Save floor.

That moment. That moment you reach for the dropped phone expecting the worst. You can age pretty dramatically in that moment - especially when you don't actually own the two-thousand dollar phone you just dropped.

Miraculously, on first inspection, there appeared to be no damage at all - no broken glass anyway. Not on the screen, the rear panel or even the camera lenses. A closer look revealed a slight burnish on the top left corner of the Amour Aluminium frame - apparently the Gorilla Glass Victus Plus is indeed very tough, just as advertised. I've certainly destroyed phones with similar drops before. I really need to stop doing that.

And the S-Pen? What can I say? I'm not really a hand-writer but it's certainly nice to know it's right there, safely tucked away if I need it. Somehow, Samsung has reduced the latency on this unique accessory yet again, so when you use it feels more realistic than ever. As with previous iterations it really is quite a powerful tool, not just for drawing and making notes but also for selecting text and pictures, translation and it can even be used as a remote for the camera.

You might think it's the S-Pen that makes a Note a Note but it's always been all that other stuff too; class-leading processing power, the latest mobile photography advances and a truly massive screen. While this is no longer called a note, there's no argument Samsung has delivered the exact device Note fans have been waiting for.

        

Click here for more information and pricing on the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra.