Samsung Galaxy A26 5G vs Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra

Compared 2 smartphones : Samsung Galaxy A26 5G Manufactured in March, 2025, with display 6.7 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 1380, vs Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra, Manufactured in February, 2021 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 2100. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
  • Lighter design: 164g vs 227g
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.3 vs 5.2
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
  • Larger display: 6.8in
  • Higher pixel density: 515ppi
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 6/128 GB
- 6/256 GB
- 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB
- 12/128 GB
- 12/256 GB
- 12/512 GB
- 16/256 GB
- 16/512 GB

Review

Key Specs Samsung Galaxy A26 5G and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
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
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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

Display

Display quality comparison
Type Super AMOLED Dynamic AMOLED
Size 6.7 in 6.8 in
Resolution 1080x2340 pixels 1440x3200 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 20:9
Pixel density 385 ppi 515 ppi
Refresh rate 120 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate Yes Yes (10-120 Hz)
Max brightness n/a 1500 nits
HDR support n/a Yes HDR10+
Screen-to-body ratio 86.7 % 89.5 %
Features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
- DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
772 nits
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
1019 nits

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 164 mm (6.46 in) 165.1 mm (6.5 in)
Width 77.5 mm (3.05 in) 75.6 mm (2.98 in)
Thickness 7.7 mm (0.3 in) 8.9 mm (0.35 in)
Weight 164 g (5.78 oz) 227 g (8.01 oz)
Water resistance IP67 IP68
Back panel Glass Glass
Frame Plastic Metal
Colors - White
- Black
- Green
- Pink
- Black
- Silver
- Gray
- Blue
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Button Yes In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
86.7 %
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
89.5 %

Performance

Testing Samsung Galaxy A26 5G and Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Samsung Exynos 1380 Samsung Exynos 2100
Max Frequency 2400 MHz 2900 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (4 + 4) 8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture - 4/2 (Cortex-A55)
- 4/2.4 (Cortex-A78)
- 4/2.2 (Cortex-A55)
- 3/2.81 (Cortex-A78)
- 1/2.91 (Cortex-X1)
Process Samsung Samsung
Transistor Size 5 nm 5 nm
Neural Processor Yes Yes
Graphics Mali-G68 MP5 Mali-G78 MP14
GPU Cores 320 896
GPU Frequency 950 MHz 854 MHz
FLOPS 608 GFLOPS 1530.4 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
1017
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
1449
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
2792
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
3892
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)10171449
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)27923892
Geekbench Compute (GPU)3061n/a
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
594395
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
843008
CPU188061232358
GPU134686256356
Memory113361163007
UX158287191217
NanoReview Score594395843008
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
5221
Max Surface Temp.n/a40.8 °C
Stabilityn/a69 %
Graphics Testn/a31 fps
Graphics Scoren/a5221

Memory

RAM
RAM Size - 6 GB
- 8 GB
- 12 GB
- 16 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5
Memory Frequency 2133 MHz 2750 MHz
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage Capacity- 128 GB
- 256 GB
- 128 GB
- 256 GB
- 512 GB
Storage TypeUFS 2.2UFS 3.1
Memory CardMicroSDNo

Software

OS Android 15 Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 14)
OS Size 21.7 GB 26.4 GB
UI Skin One UI 7.0 One UI 6

Battery

Volume 5000 mAh 5000 mAh
Max Charging Power 25 W 25 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging No Yes (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes (51% in 30 min) Yes (54% in 30 min)
Full Charge Time 1:26 h 1:11 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
18:04
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
22:05
Web Browsing05:45 h07:58 h
Video Playback10:52 h13:59 h
Games05:18 h05:14 h
Standby Mode98 h111 h

Main camera

Matrix 50 MP 108 MP
Photo resolution n/a 12000x9000 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 10x
Flash LED Dual LED
Stabilization Optical Optical
8K Recording No Up to 24FPS
4K Recording Yes (Up to 30 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 120 ° 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 50 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 2 MP
Standard: 108 MP
Telephoto: 10 MP
Telephoto: 10 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix50 MP108 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.8
Focal length27 mm26 mm
SensorSamsung ISOCELL S5KJN1Samsung S5KHM3
Sensor size1/2.761/1.33
Pixel size0.64 μm0.8 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusLaser autofocus
StabilizationOpticalOptical
Telephoto
Matrixn/a10 MP
Aperturen/af/4.9
Focal lengthn/a240 mm
Sensorn/aSamsung S5K3J1
Sensor sizen/a1/2.65
Pixel sizen/a1.22 μm
Stabilizationn/aOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrix8 MP12 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
Focal lengthn/a13 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX563
Sensor size1/41/2.55
Pixel size1.12 μm1.4 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
121
Video quality
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
100
Overall camera score
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
115
Bokehn/a70
Previewn/a67
Zoomn/a106

Front camera

Matrix 13 MP 40 MP
Photo resolution 4160x3120 pixels 7864x5200 pixels
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length n/a 26 mm
Sensor n/a Samsung S5KGH1
Sensor size 1/3.06 1/2.65
Pixel size 1.12 μm 0.7 μm
Autofocus No Phase autofocus
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No
Selfie camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
133
Video quality
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
140

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 6E (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- 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 5.3 5.2
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
DisplayPort No n/a
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS
- GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
NFC* Varies by region Yes
Infrared Port No No
Connectivity
SIM Count*22
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotYesNo
2G BandsGSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900GSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
3G BandsUMTS B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900)WCDMA Band 1, 2, 4, 5, 8
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B17/B20/B26/B28/B32/B38/B40/B41/B66)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B32/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)
LTE category1824
5G SupportYesYes

Sound

Speakers Stereo Stereo
3.5 mm Jack No No
FM Radio n/a No
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Samsung Galaxy A26 5G
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra
88 dB

Other

Class Mid-range Flagship
Announced March, 2025 yr January, 2021 yr
Release Date March, 2025 yr February, 2021 yr
Launch Price ($) 299 1200
Sensors - 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.

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