Home Phone comparison Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Samsung Galaxy S21 - Which is better?

Apple iPhone SE (2022) vs Samsung Galaxy S21

59 out 100
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
VS
65 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S21
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
Samsung Galaxy S21

Compared 2 smartphones : Apple iPhone SE (2022) Manufactured in March, 2022, with display 4.7 with chipsetApple A15 Bionic, vs Samsung Galaxy S21, Manufactured in February, 2021with chipsetSamsung Exynos 2100. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery Life
  6. Cameras
  7. Comments (0)

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Apple iPhone SE (2022)
  • Lighter design: 144g vs 169g
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S21
  • Larger display: 6.2in
  • Higher pixel density: 421ppi
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Higher battery capacity: 4000mAh vs 2018mAh
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 4/64 GB
- 4/128 GB
- 4/256 GB		 - 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB

Review

Key Specs Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Samsung Galaxy S21
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
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Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison
Smartphones:
iPhone SE (2022)
vs
Samsung Galaxy S21

Display

Display quality comparison
Type IPS LCD Dynamic AMOLED
Size 4.7 in 6.2 in
Resolution 750x1334 pixels 1080x2400 pixels
Aspect ratio 16:9 20:9
Pixel density 326 ppi 421 ppi
Refresh rate 60 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (48-120 Hz)
Max brightness 625 nits 800 nits
HDR support Yes Dolby Vision Yes HDR10+
Screen-to-body ratio 65.3 % 85.9 %
Features DCI-P3 - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
642 nits
Samsung Galaxy S21
854 nits
sRGB gamut99.9 %99.5 %
PWM (Flicker)n/a240 Hz
Response time38 ms5 ms
Contrast1655:1∞ Infinite
Sources: NotebookCheck [Apple iPhone SE (2022)], [Samsung Galaxy S21]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 138.4 mm (5.45 in) 151.7 mm (5.97 in)
Width 67.3 mm (2.65 in) 71.2 mm (2.8 in)
Thickness 7.3 mm (0.29 in) 7.9 mm (0.31 in)
Weight 144 g (5.08 oz) 169 g (5.96 oz)
Water resistance IP67 IP68
Back panel Glass Plastic
Frame Metal Metal
Colors - White
- Black
- Red		 - White
- Gray
- Pink
- Purple
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Button Yes In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
65.3 %
Samsung Galaxy S21
85.9 %

Performance

Testing Apple iPhone SE (2022) and Samsung Galaxy S21 In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Apple A15 Bionic Samsung Exynos 2100
Max Frequency 3223 MHz 2900 MHz
CPU Cores 6 (2 + 4) 8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture - 4/2.02 (Blizzard)
- 2/3.23 (Avalanche)		 - 4/2.2 (Cortex-A55)
- 3/2.81 (Cortex-A78)
- 1/2.91 (Cortex-X1)
Process TSMC Samsung
Transistor Size 5 nm 5 nm
Neural Processor Apple Neural Engine Yes
Graphics Apple A15 GPU Mali-G78 MP14
GPU Cores 640 896
GPU Frequency 1338 MHz 854 MHz
FLOPS 1712.6 GFLOPS 1530.4 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
2228
Samsung Galaxy S21
1331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
5045
Samsung Galaxy S21
3593
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)22281331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)50453593
Sources: Geekbench v6 [Apple iPhone SE (2022)]
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
1144659
Samsung Galaxy S21
903780
CPU264978253391
GPU376457281676
Memory201571158352
UX301653210361
NanoReview Score1144659903780
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
7893
Samsung Galaxy S21
5715
Max Surface Temp.46.2 °C38.9 °C
Stability72 %66 %
Graphics Test47 fps34 fps
Graphics Score78935715
Sources: 3DMark [Apple iPhone SE (2022)], [Samsung Galaxy S21]
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
13123
Writing scoren/a16101
Web scoren/a11909
Video editingn/a7097
Data manipulationn/a10153
NanoReview Scoren/a13123

Memory

RAM
RAM Size 4 GB 8 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5
Memory Frequency n/a 2750 MHz
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage Capacity- 64 GB
- 128 GB
- 256 GB		- 128 GB
- 256 GB
Storage TypeNVMeUFS 3.1
Memory CardNoNo

Software

OS iOS 15.3 (Upgradeable to iOS 18.3.2) Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 14)
OS Size 12 GB 28.1 GB
UI Skin n/a One UI 6.0

Battery

Volume 2018 mAh 4000 mAh
Max Charging Power 20 W 25 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging Yes Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging No Yes (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes (61% in 30 min) Yes (55% in 50 min)
Full Charge Time 1:18 h 1:35 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
17:41
Samsung Galaxy S21
17:54
Web Browsing07:07 h06:01 h
Video Playback10:31 h11:06 h
Games03:43 h04:21 h
Standby Mode87 h95 h

Main camera

Matrix 12 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 4032x3024 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 1.1x
Flash Quad LED Dual LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K Recording No Up to 24FPS
4K Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion 240 fps (1080p) 960 fps (720p)
Wide-angle lens n/a 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 12 MP Standard: 12 MP
Telephoto: 64 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix12 MP12 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.8
Focal lengthn/a26 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX555
Sensor sizen/a1/1.76
Pixel size1.22 μm1.8 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto
Matrixn/a64 MP
Aperturen/af/2.0
Focal lengthn/a28 mm
Sensorn/aSamsung Bright S5KGW2
Sensor sizen/a1/1.72
Pixel sizen/a0.8 μm
Stabilizationn/aOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrixn/a12 MP
Aperturen/af/2.2
Focal lengthn/a13 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX563
Sensor sizen/a1/2.55
Pixel sizen/a1.4 μm
Stabilizationn/aDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
126
Samsung Galaxy S21
129
Video quality
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
106
Samsung Galaxy S21
137
Overall camera score
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
100
Samsung Galaxy S21
133
Bokeh5070
Preview7172
Zoom29126
Sources: DxOMark [Apple iPhone SE (2022)], [Samsung Galaxy S21]

Front camera

Matrix 7 MP 10 MP
Photo resolution 3088x2320 pixels 3872x2592 pixels
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length n/a 26 mm
Sensor n/a Sony IMX374
Sensor size n/a 1/3.24
Pixel size n/a 1.22 μm
Autofocus n/a Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display		 - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5 5
Bluetooth features LE LE, A2DP
USB type n/a USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG		 - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- USB-Host mode
- OTG
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*12
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM Moden/aDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *YesYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsGSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
3G BandsUMTS/HSPA+/DC‑HSDPA (850, 900, 1700/2100, 1900, 2100 MHz)WCDMA Band 1, 2, 4, 5, 8
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B14/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B29/B30/B32/B34/B38/B39/B40/B41/B42/B46/B48/B66/B71)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B32/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)
LTE categoryn/a24
5G SupportYesYes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
3.5 mm Jack No No
FM Radio No No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Apple iPhone SE (2022)
85.9 dB
Samsung Galaxy S21
87 dB

Other

Class Mid-range Flagship
Announced March, 2022 yr January, 2021 yr
Release Date March, 2022 yr February, 2021 yr
Launch Price ($) 429 800
Sensors - Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor		 - Hall Sensor
- Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
Charger Included No n/a
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

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