Home Phone comparison Asus Zenfone 9 and Samsung Galaxy S21 - Which is better?

Asus Zenfone 9 vs Samsung Galaxy S21

70 out 100
Asus Zenfone 9
VS
65 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S21
Asus Zenfone 9
Samsung Galaxy S21

Compared 2 smartphones : Asus Zenfone 9 Manufactured in August, 2022, with display 5.9 with chipsetQualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1, vs Samsung Galaxy S21, Manufactured in February, 2021 with 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 Asus Zenfone 9
  • Higher pixel density: 445ppi
  • Higher battery capacity: 4300mAh vs 4000mAh
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.2 vs 5
  • Includes charger
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S21
  • Larger display: 6.2in
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Supports Dolby Atmos
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 6/128 GB
- 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB
- 16/256 GB		 - 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB

Review

Key Specs Asus Zenfone 9 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:
Asus Zenfone 9
vs
Samsung Galaxy S21

Display

Display quality comparison
Type Super AMOLED Dynamic AMOLED
Size 5.9 in 6.2 in
Resolution 1080x2400 pixels 1080x2400 pixels
Aspect ratio 20:9 20:9
Pixel density 445 ppi 421 ppi
Refresh rate 120 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (48-120 Hz)
Max brightness 800 nits 800 nits
HDR support Yes HDR10+ Yes HDR10+
Screen-to-body ratio 84.3 % 85.9 %
Features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
- DC dimming		 - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Asus Zenfone 9
830 nits
Samsung Galaxy S21
854 nits
sRGB gamut98.8 %99.5 %
PWM (Flicker)478 Hz240 Hz
Response time2 ms5 ms
Contrast∞ Infinite∞ Infinite
Sources: NotebookCheck [Asus Zenfone 9], [Samsung Galaxy S21]

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 146.5 mm (5.77 in) 151.7 mm (5.97 in)
Width 68.1 mm (2.68 in) 71.2 mm (2.8 in)
Thickness 9.1 mm (0.36 in) 7.9 mm (0.31 in)
Weight 169 g (5.96 oz) 169 g (5.96 oz)
Water resistance IP68 IP68
Back panel Plastic Plastic
Frame Metal Metal
Colors - White
- Black
- Blue
- Red		 - White
- Gray
- Pink
- Purple
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Button Yes In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Asus Zenfone 9
84.3 %
Samsung Galaxy S21
85.9 %

Performance

Testing Asus Zenfone 9 and Samsung Galaxy S21 In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 Samsung Exynos 2100
Max Frequency 3190 MHz 2900 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (1 + 3 + 4) 8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture - 4/2 (Cortex-A510)
- 3/2.75 (Cortex-A710)
- 1/3.2 (Cortex-X2)		 - 4/2.2 (Cortex-A55)
- 3/2.81 (Cortex-A78)
- 1/2.91 (Cortex-X1)
Process TSMC Samsung
Transistor Size 4 nm 5 nm
Neural Processor Hexagon Yes
Graphics Adreno 730 Mali-G78 MP14
GPU Cores 1024 896
GPU Frequency 900 MHz 854 MHz
FLOPS 1843.2 GFLOPS 1530.4 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Asus Zenfone 9
1776
Samsung Galaxy S21
1331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Asus Zenfone 9
4732
Samsung Galaxy S21
3593
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)17761331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)47323593
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Asus Zenfone 9
1364290
Samsung Galaxy S21
903780
CPU399673253391
GPU499023281676
Memory194900158352
UX270694210361
NanoReview Score1364290903780
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Asus Zenfone 9
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
5715
Max Surface Temp.n/a38.9 °C
Stabilityn/a66 %
Graphics Testn/a34 fps
Graphics Scoren/a5715
Sources: 3DMark [Samsung Galaxy S21]
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Asus Zenfone 9
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 - 8 GB
- 16 GB		 8 GB
Memory Type LPDDR5 LPDDR5
Memory Frequency 3200 MHz 2750 MHz
Channels 4 2
Storage
Storage Capacity- 128 GB
- 256 GB		- 128 GB
- 256 GB
Storage TypeUFS 3.1UFS 3.1
Memory CardNoNo

Software

OS Android 12 (Upgradeable to Android 14) Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 14)
OS Size n/a 28.1 GB
UI Skin ZenUI 9 One UI 6.0

Battery

Volume 4300 mAh 4000 mAh
Max Charging Power 30 W 25 W
Battery Type Li-Po Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging Yes Yes (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes (57% in 30 min) Yes (55% in 50 min)
Full Charge Time 1:15 h 1:35 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Asus Zenfone 9
21:01
Samsung Galaxy S21
17:54
Web Browsing08:26 h06:01 h
Video Playback14:17 h11:06 h
Games05:47 h04:21 h
Standby Mode92 h95 h

Main camera

Matrix 50 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 8192x6144 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 1.1x
Flash LED Dual LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K Recording Up to 24FPS Up to 24FPS
4K Recording Yes (Up to 120 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion 480 fps (720p) 960 fps (720p)
Wide-angle lens 113 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 50 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP		 Standard: 12 MP
Telephoto: 64 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support		 - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix50 MP12 MP
Aperturef/1.9f/1.8
Focal length238 mm26 mm
SensorSony IMX766Sony IMX555
Sensor size1/1.561/1.76
Pixel size1 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
Matrix12 MP12 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal length144 mm13 mm
SensorSony IMX363Sony IMX563
Sensor size1/2.551/2.55
Pixel size1.4 μm1.4 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Asus Zenfone 9
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
129
Video quality
Asus Zenfone 9
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
137
Overall camera score
Asus Zenfone 9
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
133
Bokehn/a70
Previewn/a72
Zoomn/a126
Sources: DxOMark [Samsung Galaxy S21]

Front camera

Matrix 12 MP 10 MP
Photo resolution 4247x2826 pixels 3872x2592 pixels
Aperture f/2.5 f/2.2
Focal length 275 mm 26 mm
Sensor Sony IMX663 Sony IMX374
Sensor size 1/2.93 1/3.24
Pixel size 1.22 μm 1.22 μm
Autofocus Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 2160p (4K) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 6E (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 5.2 5
Bluetooth features LE LE, A2DP
USB type USB Type-C 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
- NAVIC		 - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*22
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotNoNo
2G BandsEDGE/GPRS/GSM (2, 3, 5, 8)GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
3G BandsWCDMA (Bands 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 8, 19)WCDMA Band 1, 2, 4, 5, 8
LTE Bands*LTE (B(B/B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B17/B18/B19/B20/B26/B28/B34/B38/B39/B40/B41/B42))LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B32/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)
LTE category2024
5G SupportYesYes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
3.5 mm Jack Yes No
FM Radio No No
Dolby Atmos No Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Asus Zenfone 9
88 dB
Samsung Galaxy S21
87 dB

Other

Class Flagship Flagship
Announced July, 2022 yr January, 2021 yr
Release Date August, 2022 yr February, 2021 yr
Launch Price ($) 800 800
Sensors - Hall Sensor
- 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 Yes 30 W n/a
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

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