Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G Review: A Solid Phone at a Great Price

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G is an excellent phone at an incredible price. 

Regular readers of our site know that we have very high standards when it comes to phone design and performance. When I heard about the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G, I was intrigued by its price point and was eager to see if it could compete with more expensive options. 

After using the phone extensively over the last week, I’m happy to report that while there are definitely some things we like and some things we don’t, this phone’s strengths far outweigh its weaknesses. 

Let’s take a closer look at what we liked and didn’t like about this phone!

Introduction

It’s an incredibly powerful and well-rounded device that checks off all of our boxes for what we look for in a new flagship. 

If you’re looking to upgrade your phone or looking for your first 5G experience, you’ll want to check out Samsung’s latest offerings.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G brings with it some exciting new features. 

It’s one of Samsung’s first devices to launch with 7-nanometer processing, which makes it more powerful than most other phones on the market. 

Today’s best deals on Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G At Amazon.

The display is brilliant, and it pairs perfectly with an equally impressive audio system that uses Dolby Atmos technology to give you sound in all directions around you. 

There are also plenty of storage options available for music and movies so you can take everything that you need on your phone wherever you go.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G has an in-display fingerprint sensor that quickly and accurately unlocks your phone. It’s one of those features you don’t realize how much you love until you actually try it, and it works flawlessly with both your thumbs and index fingers.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Price

The price of a phone is always going to be an important factor when deciding on whether or not to buy it. The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G isn’t likely to break any records for the price, but it is still very reasonably priced for what you get. 

At just $599 in most cases, it’s hard to go wrong with that kind of deal. The unlocked version can sometimes be found for as little as $599 above, making it all that much more appealing.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G is being sold by several major retailers, including T-Mobile and Best Buy. Also, we have a great deal on this smartphone on Amazon! 

This can make finding one for sale much easier, but it also drives up pricing. Since there’s no need to subsidize phones with contracts these days, it is entirely possible to find better deals elsewhere. 

It’s always important to compare prices before buying any phone to get a good idea of what you should expect. 

Stores like Amazon usually have price comparison tools so you can get an idea of whether or not they’re offering any deals that would make buying from them worthwhile.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Design

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE is definitely an eye-catching phone. In terms of looks, it’s not quite as sleek and curvy as many other flagship models, but it has a strong, sharp aesthetic. It feels solid in your hand and well-built overall. 

However, you might be surprised to learn that Samsung actually made two versions of its new flagship phone—the original model with a rectangular screen (like on most smartphones) and another with an oval screen that curves around both sides. 

This one we’re reviewing here is obviously that latter version. I think they did a good job balancing form and function with this design choice—it certainly makes for a unique look without making the phone uncomfortable to hold or use.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE has an interesting shape that definitely doesn’t conform to traditional smartphone standards. It has a thick frame, rounded edges, and even curved glass on both sides—not your typical phone shape. 

Still, I think most people will find it fine to hold and use over time. Overall, I like how Samsung chose to design its new flagship phone. It looks different from most other phones out there without being too flashy or gimmicky.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: The Display

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G features a gorgeous Super AMOLED display with a full 1080x2400px HD resolution. It really is superb, and there’s no other way to say it. However, some might find that its brightness isn’t up to par with other models on the market. 

This can be problematic in direct sunlight and for use in dark environments where you need your screen to be very bright for easy visibility. 

Despite these issues, however, there are certainly worse things than not being able to see your phone easily—and you don’t have that problem here. 

The speakers work well and come with decent clarity; they’re just not as great as those found on more expensive models.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G features a sizeable 6.4 AMOLED display with full HD resolution. It’s an impressive screen and one that will make all of your media look great. 

You can view multiple windows simultaneously, so switching between applications is easy. This makes using your phone for multitasking much simpler than with other models where you have to switch back and forth every time you want to use something else. 

The only real downside here is that its brightness isn’t quite up to par with competing models—but you really don’t have any problems viewing your screen in normal lighting conditions! 

The speakers work well and come with decent clarity; they’re just not as great as those found on more expensive models.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Camera

The Samsung Galaxy S21’s camera is quick and performs well in most scenarios. It’s not going to give you DSLR quality, but it’s an excellent option for taking quick snapshots and recording video clips. 

It has a 12MP wide camera and 8MP telephoto lens with a 32MP great front camera. The photos aren’t high-resolution enough for printing out, but they’re great if you need to send or upload photos with friends or family. 

Video quality is good enough to share on social media as well. You can always record high-quality videos on your smartphone, but sometimes it’s nice just to use your phone’s camera for convenience reasons rather than bringing around a separate device for photos and videos. 

On top of that, having additional lenses can be expensive, whereas most smartphones have cameras that are already pretty good.

You can expect to take crisp, detailed shots with minimal blurriness and pixelation. 

However, even though they may look good on your phone’s screen, you should avoid using them for printing purposes. It may not be apparent when you’re just looking at your phone’s display. 

But photos that are taken on cell phones don’t tend to print out well unless they’re printed in higher resolutions than you can achieve on an average cell phone camera. 

If you want high-quality printed pictures to share with family or friends or if you’re hoping to use your photos for professional purposes, like applying for photography jobs, then it may be worth investing in a separate device with better camera technology so that you can capture more detailed images.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Performance and features

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G has enough power to get you through each day comfortably. Navigating its interface is fluid and responsive, and light gaming sessions don’t cause any performance issues. 

I also experienced no issues when running my regular apps, including music streaming services like Spotify, Twitter, email apps, and productivity suites like Google Drive, well, there are better choices.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G is fast enough to do what you need it to do, whether that’s browsing social media or streaming videos from your favorite services. 

Multitasking is also pretty easy, and I never noticed any lag when switching between apps. That said, it’s still somewhat slow compared to other devices on the market. If speed is a top priority for you, there are better choices in its price range. 

But if getting more bang for your buck is your main concern, then it’s tough to beat what you get with Samsung’s latest budget offering.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G doesn’t match its competitors when it comes to sheer speed, but I was still impressed with its performance overall. 

The phone doesn’t suffer from any major slowdowns and is reliable enough to get you through each day. It can handle simple games like mobile casino games just fine, but it’s no match for more intense titles like Shadowgun Legends and Into The Dead 2.

If gaming is important to you, then you should look elsewhere. But if performance isn’t an issue for you, then I think that most users will be happy with what they get out of their Samsung device.

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G offers solid performance that should keep most users happy. The phone comes with 128GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM, and 256GB 8GB RAM of internal storage, but you can expand its capacity by up to 400GB by adding a microSD card. 

You also get access to unlimited cloud storage through Samsung’s proprietary service. If you want more space, then you’ll need to pay for it.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Battery life

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G is fitted with a huge 4,500mAh battery which Samsung claims will last over two days of use on one charge. 

I didn’t quite achieve those results in my testing, but even so, I was impressed with how long it lasted before needing to be recharged. 

The battery is removable, so if you are planning on using your phone extensively you might want to carry a spare around with you, but most people will find they never need to go that far. 

You might also want to buy an external charger or power bank in case you don’t have access to electricity for extended periods of time.

One of my favorite features of Samsung phones is their power-saving modes. When enabled, these options automatically decrease performance, change your screen’s brightness and disable many background processes to help you stretch out your battery life even further. 

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G comes with three main options – Power Saving Mode, Ultra Power Saving Mode, and regular Battery Optimisation. 

Power Saving mode will automatically kick in when your battery is low and makes changes such as reducing your screen’s brightness and automatically disabling some features, while Ultra Power Saving Mode turns off almost all of your phone’s functions except for making calls and sending messages.

Today’s best deals for Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Software

The Samsung Galaxy S21 5G FE comes with an Android 12, One UI 4. An Experience Samsung’s skin is one of its weakest points. It isn’t necessarily bad, but it often has trouble adapting to new trends in Android. 

As such, many people feel that Samsung phones aren’t worth it—but things are changing. This year, Samsung introduced One UI, which doesn’t resemble TouchWiz anymore than last year’s version did. So if you like stock Android or OnePlus-style OxygenOS, you might enjoy One UI.

The software on Samsung phones is getting closer to stock Android, with only minor customizations. As such, it’s much better than it used to be. 

While One UI isn’t necessarily bad, some of its design choices make more sense for 7-inch devices. For example, if you don’t use app icons as folders and haven’t adopted one of Google’s font replacements. 

Like Noto Serif or Roboto Slab, then you’ll probably find that One UI looks slightly out of place on your phone. On top of that, there are some ugly parts—such as how the keyboard looks in landscape mode—and not everything has been updated for One UI yet. 

For example, there is no software-level support for making screenshots in AR Core mode yet.

Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G: Verdict – Should you buy it?

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G may not be as powerful as most modern flagships, but it’s still plenty fast and capable. 

Its 8GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and expandable memory card slot give you plenty of space for storing your photos, videos, and documents without needing to invest in extra cloud storage or worrying about running out of room on your phone.

If you’re looking for a solid phone and don’t want to spend top dollar, it’s hard to go wrong with Samsung’s mid-range offering. Yes, there are better phones out there, but they cost a lot more than Samsung’s $600 solution. 

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G is a great choice if you need something that won’t break your budget while still giving you plenty of power. 

And with its long battery life, water-resistance, and good camera quality, it’s even a good option if you plan on using your phone for photography or video recording. 

The Samsung Galaxy S21 FE 5G may not be perfect—and its low-end processor does show its age—but when combined with an attractive price tag and solid performance across most other metrics. 

It becomes an easy recommendation for anyone who wants to save some money without sacrificing too much power or flexibility in their smartphone purchase. Get it now from Amazon today’s best deals.