Home Phone comparison Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon) - Which is better?

Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)

67 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
VS
93 out 100
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)

Compared 2 smartphones : Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus Manufactured in February, 2021, with display 6.7 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 2100, vs Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon), Manufactured in March, 2026with chipsetQualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. 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 Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    • Higher pixel density: 516ppi
    • Lighter design: 190g vs 200g
    • Higher battery capacity: 4900mAh vs 4800mAh
    • Newer Bluetooth version: 6.0 vs 5
    • Supports DisplayPort

    Versions

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

    Review

    Key Specs Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    Display
    Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
    Camera
    Main & front camera tests
    Performance
    App & system 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
    Smartphones:
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    vs
    Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)

    Display

    Display quality comparison
    Type Dynamic AMOLED Dynamic AMOLED
    Size 6.7 in 6.7 in
    Resolution 1080x2400 pixels 1440x3120 pixels
    Aspect ratio 20:9 19.5:9
    Pixel density 394 ppi 516 ppi
    Refresh rate 120 Hz 120 Hz
    Adaptive refresh rate Yes (48-120 Hz) Yes (1-120 Hz)
    Max brightness 1300 nits n/a
    HDR support Yes HDR10+ Yes, HDR10+
    Touch Sampling Rate n/a 240 Hz
    Screen-to-body ratio 88.7 % 91.7 %
    Features - DCI-P3
    - Always-On Display    		 - DCI-P3
    - Always-On Display
    Display test
    Peak brightness (auto)
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    879 nits
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a
    sRGB gamut98.9 %n/a
    PWM (Flicker)240 Hzn/a
    Response time6.2 msn/a
    Contrast∞ Infiniten/a
    Sources: NotebookCheck [Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus]

    Design & Build

    Design and ergonomics comparison
    Height 161.5 mm (6.36 in) 158.4 mm (6.24 in)
    Width 75.6 mm (2.98 in) 75.8 mm (2.98 in)
    Thickness 7.8 mm (0.31 in) 7.3 mm (0.29 in)
    Weight 200 g (7.05 oz) 190 g (6.7 oz)
    Water resistance IP68 IP68
    Cooling system n/a Vapor chamber
    Back panel Glass Glass
    Frame Metal Metal
    Colors - Black
    - Silver
    - Gold
    - Red
    - Purple    		 - White
    - Black
    - Silver
    - Blue
    - Pink
    - Purple
    Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Display Yes, In-Display
    Screen-to-body ratio
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    88.7 %
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    91.7 %

    Performance

    Testing Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus and Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon) In benchmarks
    Processor
    Chipset Samsung Exynos 2100 Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
    Max Frequency 2840 MHz 4740 MHz
    CPU Cores 8 (1 + 3 + 4) 8 (2 + 6)
    Architecture - 4/2.2 (Cortex-A55)
    - 3/2.81 (Cortex-A78)
    - 1/2.91 (Cortex-X1)    		 - 6/3.63 (Oryon Gen 3 Performance)
    - 2/4.61 (Oryon Gen 3 Prime)
    Process Samsung TSMC
    Transistor Size 5 nm 3 nm
    Neural Processor Yes Hexagon
    Graphics Mali-G78 MP14 Adreno 840
    GPU Cores 896 1536
    GPU Frequency 854 MHz 1200 MHz
    FLOPS 1530.4 GFLOPS 3686.4 GFLOPS
    GeekBench v6
    Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    1428
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    3393
    Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    3840
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    11515
    Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)14283393
    Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)384011515
    Sources: Geekbench v6 [Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)]
    AnTuTu 10
    AnTuTu 10
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    919348
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    3670711
    CPU2629731070381
    GPU2943821431843
    Memory147307420557
    UX214686747930
    NanoReview Score9193483670711
    3DMark Wild Life
    3DMark Wild Life
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    5538
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a
    Max Surface Temp.41.5 °Cn/a
    Stability67 %n/a
    Graphics Test33 fpsn/a
    Graphics Score5538n/a
    Sources: 3DMark [Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus]

    Memory

    RAM
    RAM Size 8 GB 12 GB
    Memory Type LPDDR5 LPDDR5X
    Memory Frequency 2750 MHz 5300 MHz
    Channels 2 4
    Storage
    Storage Capacity- 128 GB
    - 256 GB    		256 GB
    Storage TypeUFS 3.1UFS 4.1
    Memory CardNoNo

    Software

    OS Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 14) Android 16
    OS Size 27.2 GB 30.8 GB
    UI Skin One UI 6 One UI 8.5

    Battery

    Volume 4800 mAh 4900 mAh
    Max Charging Power 25 W 45 W
    Battery Type Li-ion Li-ion
    Removable No No
    Wireless Charging Yes (15 W) Yes (25 W)
    Reverse Charging Yes (Wireless) Yes, (Wireless)
    Fast Charging Yes (54% in 30 min) Yes
    Full Charge Time 1:12 h n/a
    Battery Life Test
    Battery Life
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    20:53
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a
    Web Browsing07:28 hn/a
    Video Playback13:15 hn/a
    Games05:04 hn/a
    Standby Mode105 hn/a

    Main camera

    Matrix 12 MP 50 MP
    Photo resolution 4000x3000 pixels 8160x6120 pixels
    Zoom Optical, 1.1x Optical, 3x
    Flash Dual LED LED
    Stabilization Optical Optical
    8K Recording Up to 24FPS Yes (Up to 30 fps)
    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 960 fps (720p) 240 fps (1080p)
    Wide-angle lens 120 ° 120 °
    Lenses count Standard: 12 MP
    Telephoto: 64 MP
    Ultra-wide: 12 MP    		 Standard: 50 MP
    Telephoto: 10 MP
    Ultra-wide: 12 MP
    Features - Bokeh effect
    - Pro mode
    - RAW support    		 - Bokeh effect
    - Pro mode
    - RAW support
    Main lens
    Matrix12 MP50 MP
    Aperturef/1.8f/1.8
    Focal length26 mm24 mm
    SensorSony IMX555Samsung ISOCELL S5KGN3
    Sensor size1/1.761/1.56 (0.64)
    Pixel size1.8 μm1 μm
    AutofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
    StabilizationOpticalOptical
    Telephoto
    Matrix64 MP10 MP
    Aperturef/2.0f/2.4
    Focal length28 mm67 mm
    SensorSamsung Bright S5KGW2Samsung ISOCELL S5K3K1
    Sensor size1/1.721/3.94 (0.25)
    Pixel size0.8 μm1 μm
    StabilizationOpticalOptical
    Ultra-wide lens
    Matrix12 MP12 MP
    Aperturef/2.2f/2.2
    Focal length13 mm13 mm
    SensorSony IMX563Sony IMX564
    Sensor size1/2.551/2.55 (0.39)
    Pixel size1.4 μm1.4 μm
    StabilizationDigitalDigital
    Main camera DxOMark results
    Photo quality
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    129
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a
    Video quality
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    137
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a
    Overall camera score
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    133
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a
    Bokeh70n/a
    Preview72n/a
    Zoom126n/a
    Sources: DxOMark [Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus]

    Front camera

    Matrix 10 MP 12 MP
    Photo resolution 3872x2592 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
    Aperture f/2.2 f/2.2
    Focal length 26 mm 26 mm
    Sensor Sony IMX374 Samsung S5K3LU
    Sensor size 1/3.24 1/3.2 (0.31)
    Pixel size 1.22 μm 1.12 μm
    Autofocus Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) Phase autofocus
    Stabilization Digital Digital
    Video resolution 2160p (4K) at 60 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 7 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax/be)
    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 6.0
    Bluetooth features LE, A2DP LE
    USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
    USB version 3.2 3.2
    USB features - Charging
    - USB Storage Mode
    - USB-Host mode
    - OTG    		 - Charging
    - USB Storage Mode
    - OTG
    DisplayPort n/a Yes, DP 1.2
    GPS - GPS
    - GLONASS
    - Beidou
    - Galileo    		 - GPS
    - GLONASS
    - Beidou
    - Galileo
    - QZSS
    NFC* Yes Yes
    Infrared Port No No
    Connectivity
    SIM Count*21
    SIM TypeNanoNano
    SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
    eSIM Support *YesYes
    Hybrid SlotNoNo
    2G BandsGSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHzGSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900
    3G BandsWCDMA Band 1, 2, 4, 5, 8UMTS B1(2100), B2(1900), B4(AWS), B5(850), B8(900)
    LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B32/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B14/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B29/B30/B38/B39/B40/B41/B48/B66/B71)
    LTE category24n/a
    5G SupportYesYes

    Sound

    Speakers Stereo n/a
    3.5 mm Jack No No
    FM Radio No No
    Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
    Speaker Test
    Max Volume
    Samsung Galaxy S21 Plus
    87.8 dB
    Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon)
    n/a

    Other

    Class Flagship Flagship
    Announced January, 2021 yr February, 2026 yr
    Release Date February, 2021 yr March, 2026 yr
    Launch Price ($) 1000 n/a
    MSRP ($) n/a 1099
    Sensors - Hall Sensor
    - 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 n/a No
    * Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

    Results

    After analyzing the data, we consider Samsung Galaxy S26 Plus (Snapdragon) the clear winner in this comparison.

    Survey

    Which smartphone would you pick?
    0 (0%)
    2 (100%)
    Total Votes: 2

    User comments

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