Samsung Galaxy S21 vs S20 FE 5G

Samsung Galaxy S21 Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G

Here we compared two flagship smartphones: the 6.2-inch Samsung Galaxy S21 (with Exynos 2100) that was released on January 14 2021 against the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G which is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 5G and came out 4 months before. On this page you will find tests full specs strengths and weaknesses of each of the gadgets.

Differences
Review
Specs
Benchmarks
Battery life
Camera
Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy S21

18% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (772K versus 653K)
More recent OS version: Android 13 versus 12
More energy-efficient CPU – Exynos 2100
Weighs 21 grams less
14% faster in single-core GeekBench 5 test: 1033 and 908 points
Ready for eSIM technology

Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G

The rear camera has a 3x optical zoom
Shows 27% longer battery life (32:19 vs 25:31 hours)
Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 1024GB
Has a 0.3 inch larger screen size
Comes with 500 mAh larger battery capacity: 4500 vs 4000 mAh

Review

Display Screen quality color accuracy brightness Galaxy S21 87 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 84 Performance CPU/GPU performance in apps and games Galaxy S21 79 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 72 Battery Battery life charging type and speed Galaxy S21 71 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 82 Camera Photo and video recording quality Galaxy S21 76 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 78 Connectivity Networks ports data transmission Galaxy S21 94 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 89 NanoReview score Final comparison evaluation Galaxy S21 79 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 78

Value for money

You can enter your local price of these phones (in USD or any other currency) and click on the "Calculate" button to see which one has a better value for money. Samsung Galaxy S21 Price Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G Calculate

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests Phone: Galaxy S21 vs Galaxy S20 FE 5G

Display

Type	Dynamic AMOLED	Super AMOLED
Size	6.2 inches	6.5 inches
Resolution	1080 x 2400 pixels	1080 x 2400 pixels
Aspect ratio	20:9	20:9
PPI	421 ppi	407 ppi
Refresh rate	120 Hz	120 Hz
Max rated brightness	800 nits	400 nits
Max rated brightness in HDR	-	1200 nits
HDR support	Yes HDR10+	Yes HDR10+
Screen protection	Gorilla Glass Victus	Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Screen-to-body ratio	87.2%	84.8%
Display features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display

Display tests
RGB color space	99.5%	95.7%
PWM	240 Hz	227 Hz
Response time	5 ms	2.8 ms
Contrast	∞ Infinity	∞ Infinity

Peak brightness test (auto) Galaxy S21 +4% 863 nits Galaxy S20 FE 5G 830 nits Sources: NotebookCheck [3] [4]

Design and build

Height	151.7 mm (5.97 inches)	159.8 mm (6.29 inches)
Width	71.2 mm (2.8 inches)	74.5 mm (2.93 inches)
Thickness	7.9 mm (0.31 inches)	8.4 mm (0.33 inches)
Weight	169 gramm (5.96 oz)	190 gramm (6.7 oz)
Waterproof	IP68	IP68
Rear material	Plastic	Plastic
Frame material	Metal	Metal
Colors	White Gray Pink Purple	White Blue Green Red Orange Purple
Fingerprint scanner	Yes in-display	Yes in-display

Screen-to-body ratio Galaxy S21 +3% 87.2% Galaxy S20 FE 5G 84.8%

Performance

Tests of Samsung Galaxy S21 and Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G in the benchmarks

SoC
Chipset	Samsung Exynos 2100	Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 5G
Max. clock	2900 MHz	2840 MHz
CPU cores	8 (1 + 3 + 4)	8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 2.2 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 3 cores at 2.8 GHz: Cortex-A78 - 1 core at 2.9 GHz: Cortex-X1	- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Kryo 585 Silver (Cortex-A55) - 3 cores at 2.42 GHz: Kryo 585 Gold (Cortex-A77) - 1 core at 2.84 GHz: Kryo 585 Prime (Cortex-A77)
L3 cache	-	4 MB
Lithography process	5 nanometers	7 nanometers
Graphics	Mali-G78 MP14	Adreno 650
GPU clock	760 MHz	587 MHz
FLOPS	-	~1228 GFLOPS

Memory
RAM size	8 GB	6 8 GB
Memory type	LPDDR5	LPDDR5
Memory clock	2750 MHz	2750 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage
Storage size	128 256 GB	128 256 GB
Storage type	UFS 3.1	UFS 3.1
Memory card	No	MicroSD
Memory card max. size	-	Up to 1024 GB

Benchmarks

Geekbench 5 (Single-Core) Galaxy S21 +14% 1033 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 908 Geekbench 5 (Multi-Core) Galaxy S21 3252 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 3261 AnTuTu Benchmark 9 Galaxy S21 +18% 772188 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 653858

CPU	203417	185574
GPU	272156	217010
Memory	144766	112445
UX	146598	137783
Total score	772188	653858

3DMark Wild Life Performance Galaxy S21 +46% 5659 Galaxy S20 FE 5G 3865

Stability	66%	91%
Graphics test	33 FPS	23 FPS
Graphics score	5659	3865
PCMark 3.0 score	13812	11811

AnTuTu Results (101st and 169th place) Sources: 3DMark [3] [4] ▶️ Submit your AnTuTu result

Software

Operating system	Android 11 (Can be upgraded to Android 13)	Android 10 (Can be upgraded to Android 12)
ROM	One UI 5.0	One UI 4.1
OS size	28.1 GB	25.6 GB

Battery

Specifications
Capacity	4000 mAh	4500 mAh
Charge power	25 W	25 W
Battery type	Li-Ion	Li-Po
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes (15 W)	Yes (15 W)
Reverse charging	Yes (wireless)	Yes (wireless)
Fast charging	Yes (55% in 50 min)	Yes (37% in 30 min)
Full charging time	1:35 hr	1:35 hr

Battery life tests
Web browsing	07:17 hr	10:12 hr
Watching video	12:26 hr	15:39 hr
Gaming	04:20 hr	04:45 hr
Standby	92 hr	110 hr

General battery life Galaxy S21 25:31 hr Galaxy S20 FE 5G +27% 32:19 hr

Camera

Specs and camera test of smartphones

Main camera
Matrix	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	4000 x 3000	4032 x 3024
Zoom	Optical 1.1x	Optical 3x
Flash	Dual LED	Dual LED
Stabilization	Optical	Optical
8K video recording	Up to 24FPS	No
4K video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
1080p video recording	Up to 60FPS	Up to 60FPS
Slow motion	960 FPS (720p)	960 FPS (720p)
Angle of widest lens	120°	123°
Lenses	3 (12 MP + 64 MP + 12 MP)	3 (12 MP + 8 MP + 12 MP)
Wide (main) lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.76" Sony IMX555 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 1.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.76" Sony IMX555 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization
Telephoto lens	- 64 MP - Aperture: f/2.0 - Focal length: 28 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.72" Samsung Bright S5KGW2 (ISOCELL Plus CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel) - Optical stabilization	- 8 MP - Aperture: f/2.4 - Focal length: 76 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/4.5" (CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization
Ultra-wide lens	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55" Sony IMX563 (Exmor-RS CMOS) - Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.12 micron - Sensor: 1/3.0" (CMOS)
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support
Samples	Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy S21 from DxOMark	-

Selfie camera
Megapixels	10 megapixels	32 megapixels
Image resolution	3872 x 2592	6528 x 4896
Aperture	f/2.2	f/2.0
Focal length	26 mm	26 mm
Pixel size	1.22 microns	0.8 microns
Sensor type	CMOS	CMOS
Sensor size	1/3.24"	1/2.74"
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS

DxOMark camera tests

Photo quality Galaxy S21 123 Galaxy S20 FE 5G n/a Video quality Galaxy S21 93 Galaxy S20 FE 5G n/a Generic camera score Galaxy S21 116 Galaxy S20 FE 5G n/a

Connectivity

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
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	5
Bluetooth features	LE A2DP	LE A2DP
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
GPS	GPS GLONASS Beidou Galileo	GPS GLONASS Beidou Galileo
NFC*	Yes	Yes
Infrared port	No	No

Network
Number of SIM*	2	2
Type of SIM card	Nano	Nano
Multi SIM mode	Standby	Standby
eSIM support*	Yes	No
Hybrid slot	No	Yes
LTE Cat*	24	20
5G support	Yes	Yes

Sound

Speakers	Stereo	Stereo
Headphone audio jack	No	No
FM radio	No	No
Dolby Atmos	Yes	Yes

Speakers test Max. loudness Galaxy S21 87 dB Galaxy S20 FE 5G +4% 90.1 dB

Other

Category	Flagship	Flagship
Announced	January 2021	September 2020
Release date	February 2021	October 2020
SAR (head)	0.46 W/kg	0.5 W/kg
SAR (body)	1.51 W/kg	1.35 W/kg
Sensors	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint	- Hall-effect sensor - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint

*Disclaimer! NFC GSM network support and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

If the performance connectivity and design are more important to you then choose the Samsung Galaxy S21. But if the battery life is more of a priority – go for the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G.

Cast your vote

So which phone would you choose? Samsung Galaxy S21 46 (10.6%) Samsung Galaxy S20 FE 5G 387 (89.4%) Vote Total votes: 433

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