It’s 2022, which means that we’re staring down the barrel of a Samsung Galaxy S22 announcement. It’s going to happen, that’s never been in doubt. Unless Samsung’s suddenly started hating money, there will be a new flagship smartphone out soon.
Usually, Samsung tries to take the lead, so we’re expecting something official either this month or early in February. Last year, the company took its swing on 14 January. That’s just late enough that folks have woken up from December, but too soon for anyone else to be hogging headlines.
So what can we expect from the Galaxy S22? Well, based on what’s floating around online, here’s our very best guess:
The rule of three
Samsung’s not expected to deviate from its habit of letting three smartphones out of the bag. There’s a Galaxy S22, the S22 Plus, and then there’s supposedly a new S22 Note on the way. The Ultra badge might fall away in favour of keeping the stylus-having version in the stable.
Samsung’s been trying to trim back its premium phones for a while, in order to make space for the company’s folding smartphones. Handling three different product headliners is a little too complex, so we’re not expecting any shocks in terms of phones beyond that possible name-change for the Ultra.
On the inside
We can expect Samsung silicon inside its S22 devices, no matter how they’re named. In the States, they’ll all arrive with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 inside but, here at home, Exynos 2200 is the name of the game. We’ll see 120Hz Super AMOLED screens all-round, in sizes of 6.06in (S22), 6.55in (S22 Plus), and a mighty 6.81 (S22 Note). At least, that’s what the rumours say. Not much is expected to change in terms of storage. Maybe a little more RAM over 2021’s models. Maybe.
The two smaller Samsung devices are expected to scale up to a 50MP main + dual 12MP sensors in terms of camera hardware. Opinion is a little split on the S22 Ultra/Note. Some reckon there’s a 108MP main sensor, with three 12MP lenses backing it up. Others believe that Samsung will scale its big boy up to a 200MP main sensor — which would certainly be something to yell about, even if it’s mostly just a larger number on the box.
On the outside
In terms of phone design, Samsung’s Galaxy S22 lineup might drop the ball a little. Early reports — at the time of writing — show a lacklustre design for Samsung’s newest. You’ve seen the Galaxy S21, right? If early reports are to be believed, that’s exactly what you can expect from the S22 crop. With one exception.
The S22 Note (if that’s what it winds up being called) is supposed to take its design language from the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. There is one change there too — that ginormous camera bump has, supposedly, shrunk into the body entirely. We’re not sure how this bit of sorcery has been achieved, if indeed it has, but it would certainly be something to see.
There’s not much reason to muck around with rumours much longer, though. An official invitation from Samsung should be along any minute now. As soon as we know what’s going on, we’ll let you know.