Samsung Galaxy A55 5G vs Samsung Galaxy A21s

Compared 2 smartphones : Samsung Galaxy A55 5G Manufactured in March, 2024, with display 6.6 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 1480, vs Samsung Galaxy A21s, Manufactured in June, 2020 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 850. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
  • Larger display: 6.6in
  • Higher pixel density: 390ppi
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.3 vs 5
  • Built-in eSIM
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy A21s
  • Lighter design: 192g vs 213g

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 6/128 GB
- 6/256 GB
- 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB
- 12/256 GB
- 2/32 GB
- 3/32 GB
- 3/64 GB
- 3/128 GB
- 4/32 GB
- 4/64 GB
- 4/128 GB
- 6/64 GB
- 6/128 GB

Review

Key Specs Samsung Galaxy A55 5G and Samsung Galaxy A21s
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.
Customize your score
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 PLS TFT
Size 6.6 in 6.5 in
Resolution 1080x2340 pixels 720x1600 pixels
Aspect ratio 19.5:9 20:9
Pixel density 390 ppi 270 ppi
Refresh rate 120 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate Yes (60-120 Hz) No
Max brightness 1000 nits 540 nits
HDR support Yes HDR10+ No
Touch Sampling Rate 240 Hz n/a
Screen-to-body ratio 85.8 % 82.9 %
Features - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
n/a
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
1011 nits
Samsung Galaxy A21s
487 nits
sRGB gamut100 %88.4 %
PWM (Flicker)120 Hz500 Hz
Response time1 ms30.4 ms
Contrast∞ Infinite1500:1

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 161.1 mm (6.34 in) 163.6 mm (6.44 in)
Width 77.4 mm (3.05 in) 75.3 mm (2.96 in)
Thickness 8.2 mm (0.32 in) 8.9 mm (0.35 in)
Weight 213 g (7.51 oz) 192 g (6.77 oz)
Water resistance IP67 No
Cooling system Vapor chamber n/a
Back panel Glass Plastic
Frame Metal Plastic
Colors - White
- Blue
- Purple
- Yellow
- Black
- Blue
- Red
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Display Yes rear
Screen-to-body ratio
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
85.8 %
Samsung Galaxy A21s
82.9 %

Performance

Testing Samsung Galaxy A55 5G and Samsung Galaxy A21s In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset Samsung Exynos 1480 Samsung Exynos 850
Max Frequency 2750 MHz 2000 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (4 + 4) 8 (8)
Architecture - 4/2 (Cortex-A55)
- 4/2.75 (Cortex-A78)
8/2 (Cortex-A55)
Process Samsung Samsung
Transistor Size 4 nm 8 nm
Neural Processor Yes No
Graphics Samsung Xclipse 530 Mali-G52 MP1
GPU Cores 128 24
GPU Frequency 1300 MHz 850 MHz
FLOPS 332.8 GFLOPS 40.8 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
1168
Samsung Galaxy A21s
484
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
3503
Samsung Galaxy A21s
1523
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)1168484
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)35031523
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
723621
Samsung Galaxy A21s
191375
CPU23361168748
GPU17531126807
Memory13942859210
UX17527136610
NanoReview Score723621191375
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
3898
Samsung Galaxy A21s
425
Max Surface Temp.n/a43.2 °C
Stabilityn/a98 %
Graphics Testn/a2 fps
Graphics Scoren/a425
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
13120
Samsung Galaxy A21s
5429
Writing score170875426
Web score117754708
Video editing72785145
Data manipulation113053808
NanoReview Score131205429

Memory

RAM
RAM Size 6 GB - 3 GB
- 4 GB
Memory Type LPDDR5 LPDDR4X
Memory Frequency 3200 MHz 1866 MHz
Channels 4 2
Storage
Storage Capacity128 GB- 32 GB
- 64 GB
Storage TypeUFS 3.1eMMC 5.1
Memory CardMicroSDMicroSD

Software

OS Android 14 Android 10 (Upgradeable to Android 12)
OS Size 20.1 GB 12 GB
UI Skin One UI 6.1 One UI 4.1

Battery

Volume 5000 mAh 5000 mAh
Max Charging Power 25 W 15 W
Battery Type Li-ion Li-Po
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No No
Reverse Charging No No
Fast Charging Yes (55% in 30 min) Yes (50% in 60 min)
Full Charge Time 1:03 h 2:10 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
26:41
Samsung Galaxy A21s
25:00
Web Browsing10:24 h09:45 h
Video Playback17:52 h14:13 h
Games05:16 h05:34 h
Standby Mode125 h128 h

Main camera

Matrix 50 MP 48 MP
Photo resolution 8160x6120 pixels 8000x6000 pixels
Zoom 75 Digital
Flash LED LED
Stabilization Optical Digital
8K Recording No No
4K Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) No
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 60 fps) Yes (Up to 30 fps)
Slow Motion 240 fps (720p) No
Wide-angle lens 123 ° 123 °
Lenses count Standard: 50 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Macro: 5 MP
Standard: 48 MP
Ultra-wide: 8 MP
Macro: 2 MP
Depth: 2 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
Bokeh effect
Main lens
Matrix50 MP48 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/2.0
Focal lengthn/a26 mm
SensorSony IMX906Samsung S5KGM2
Sensor size1/1.561/2.0
Pixel size1 μm0.8 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus
StabilizationOpticalDigital
Ultra-wide lens
Matrix12 MP8 MP
Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
SensorSony IMX258n/a
Sensor size1/3.061/4.0
Pixel size1.12 μm1.12 μm
StabilizationDigitalDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
110
Samsung Galaxy A21s
n/a
Video quality
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
117
Samsung Galaxy A21s
n/a
Overall camera score
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
108
Samsung Galaxy A21s
n/a
Bokeh45n/a
Preview54n/a

Front camera

Matrix 32 MP 13 MP
Photo resolution 6464x4864 pixels 4128x3096 pixels
Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
Focal length 26 mm n/a
Sensor Sony IMX616 CMOS
Sensor size 1/2.74 1/3.1
Pixel size 0.8 μm 1.12 μm
Autofocus No No
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 2160p (4K) at 30 fps 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5.3 5
Bluetooth features LE PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
- Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
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 *YesNo
Hybrid SlotYesNo
2G BandsGSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900
3G BandsUMTS B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900)B1 (2100), B2 (1900), B5(850), B8 (900)
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B20/B25/B26/B28/B66)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B5/B7/B8/B20/B28)
LTE category1813
5G SupportYesNo

Sound

Speakers n/a Mono
3.5 mm Jack No Yes
FM Radio No Yes
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Samsung Galaxy A55 5G
91.4 dB
Samsung Galaxy A21s
79.5 dB

Other

Class Mid-range Budget
Announced March, 2024 yr May, 2020 yr
Release Date March, 2024 yr June, 2020 yr
Launch Price ($) n/a 200
MSRP ($) 439 n/a
Sensors - Hall Sensor
- Barometer
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
- Hall Sensor
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
Charger Included No n/a

Note

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G:

The barometer is only available in the model for the USA. SM-A556B/DS and A556E/DS models come with two physical SIM cards.

* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Samsung Galaxy A55 5G the clear winner in this comparison.

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