Samsung·phone
Galaxy S21 Ultra
Based on 28 credible posts from Hacker News & Bluesky. 7 filtered out as bot-like or off-topic.
Medium confidenceA solid sample; expect small shifts as more owners post. How we score
Scored November 11, 2026
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Owner reviews
Overall owner mood
Most owners are happy with it: 61% of 28 reviews are positive and 21% negative. Praise centers on camera. The most common complaint is customer support (3 owners). Owners are divided on display and software & ai. Owners with 6+ months of use are less positive (50%), which suggests it wears on people over time.
What owners like
Camera praised by 4 owners (2 disagree)
“Even now, the phone barely stutters, the battery life holds, the camera is surprisingly good and I was recently able to play GTA San Andreas (Netflix version) on it with surprising smoothness.”
What owners complain about
Customer support raised by 3 owners
“Changed it in warranty, and the replacement died just after the warranty was over.”
Build & durability raised by 2 owners
“My S21 Ultra phone is an e-waste because of broken screen.”
Owners are split on
- Display 2 like it · 3 don't
- Software & AI 2 like it · 2 don't
- Battery & charging 2 like it · 2 don't
Worth reading the reviews on these if they matter to you.
What owners talk about
- Camera4 praise · 2 complain
- Display2 praise · 3 complain
- Software & AI2 praise · 2 complain
- Battery & charging2 praise · 2 complain
- Customer support0 praise · 3 complain
- Build & durability0 praise · 2 complain
Built from the reviews themselves — every quote links to the owner who wrote it.
Every credible owner review, most detailed first. Bots, off-topic comments, and ones that say nothing about using it are left out.
[...] I just checked my S21 Ultra and yep, they were there. It took like 20 seconds to force stop and disable them, though I'm sure they'll be re-enabled during the next update. [...] When I think of that sort of useless software, I imagine all the OEM crap that Windows laptops come with that usually cause instability and hog resources.
I have S21 Ultra and bought it refurbished for less than $500 few years ago. [...]
[...] My S21 Ultra phone is an e-waste because of broken screen. [...] I don't have knowledge and tool to recyle/reuse those priceless parts. [...]
I bought a used Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra phone and it's astonishing how future proof it was to begin with. Even now, the phone barely stutters, the battery life holds, the camera is surprisingly good and I was recently able to play GTA San Andreas (Netflix version) on it with surprising smoothness. [...]
[...] I upgraded from a S21 Ultra (Exynos) to a S23 Ultra (Snapdragon). Battery life is so much better. I use the 80% battery protection option and nearly always make it through the day. Only if I constantly watch videos the battery is flat in the evening. With power saving and 100% battery I can reach 2 1/2 to 3 days. [...]
[...] I was adamantly anti-iOS and pro-Android, using Samsung’s latest flagships (S10 Ultra, S21 Ultra, Fold4), until our carrier had a pretty amazing trade-in deal and I said screw it, let’s give iPhone a shot. [...]
Totally. My S21 Ultra 512 with OneUI 6 with Android 14 is a very, very nice UI experience; got the update around the new year. I'm in love with the new drop down settings screen especially.
[...] I own currently the Samsung s20+ and the Samsung s21 ultra and all the models of both phones have locked bootloaders and Samsung's garbage, unused Knox security. [...]
[...] I have an S21 Ultra (2021). It's big and somewhat heavy, but it has 16 GB of RAM, 512 GB of storage, a good camera, it will get 4-5 years of updates in total, and it's easily the best Android I had thus far. [...] The first device I got had screen issues. Changed it in warranty, and the replacement died just after the warranty was over. [...]
IME, the difference is negligible. I went from a iPhone 12 to a Galaxy S21 Ultra and yes, there is a difference, but it's not something I notice, even when occasionally using my wife's iPhone 12. The bigger difference I notice is in loading times for apps.
[...] I owned a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra in between, and it was decent but the photos always felt weird to me. Overall I much prefer the 9 Pro to the S21 Ultra. [...]
[...] I had a Samsung S21 Ultra, and while it did some neat party tricks, I tended to dislike most of the photos, especially if you get anywhere near 100% view. Just so much automatic editing that maybe looks OK for a compressed web photo, but is not a high quality photo. I'm on a OnePlus 9 Pro and I am back to loving taking photos with it. They aren't as "impressive" as the 10x zoom photos, but they look good and do not look massively overworked. But it makes me nervous for when I need a replacement and have to come forward on this arc.
I've been wanting to get off of my s21 ultra because it's extremely bulky and has gotten slow over the years. The killer feature keeping me on it is the 100x zoom for identifying birds and I haven't seen another phone rival it yet. To be clear the 100x zoom is awful quality and not really useful for anything beyond getting basic shapes and colors but for identifying far birds it's awesome.
ooh, this happened to me last year with my previous Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. I got it 2nd hand, the screen that came with it was a replacement, and it was still going to cost $250-480 CAD to replace with a similar off-market screen.
My phone has been charging a lot slower than usual lately, and I'm really hoping the battery isn't dying. I admit I don't actually remember how long I've had this particular phone (Galaxy S21 Ultra) but it can't have been for more than a few years!
To be totally fair: I'm a pixel peeper Photos shared for most web usage on little mobile phone screens are fine Had an S21 Ultra, bought it for the 10x zoom. But ultimately the quality loss with zoom and subsequent software processing left the phones looking unpleasant for my tastes.
Exactly--this plus the usability original commenter communicated made this why I did so much work to keep my Pixel 3 alive for so long. I still think about the rear fingerprint sensor after a Pixel 3 - pixel 6 - S21 Ultra - S24 Ultra journey, and further how much fun i had back in the ROM + kernel + modding + undervolting days.
I feel the same about my s7 edge I keep as a spare, although currently using the s21 ultra and no complaints
I have an S21 Ultra 5G and I can skip the update for months if I want to. They don't force any updates at all, not even the security ones.
What the fuck I sent my phone in for repair (Samsung galaxy S21 ultra) and they send me back an S22 Ultra Thanks?!? HEH?
I bought a phone specifically for the camera, the Samsung galaxy s21 ultra. I think they have better cameras on newer ones, but i am poor and love my phone, heh. I also balanced out the photo with lightroom. Usually, I'd use my mirror less cam, but when I dont have it, my phone comes in clutch
[...] I can't scroll on this app without it locking up, and I had to go to the web browser on my laptop to post this. Android Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G I uninstalled and reinstalled. [...]
Good 👍 I had a iPhone 15 pro max & I traded it in for the Samsung galaxy s21 ultra 5g & I brought me the Samsung galaxy watch to match my phone best decision I've ever made. Cus, apple be doing too much & charging for everything for example storage & music
my phone camera just be like that! samsung galaxy s21 ultra. really good for moon photos! zoomed in 30x
Really quick sketch on my phone while waiting in the ER. Done with Sketchbook for Android and an s-pen on my Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.
Yeah android has a similar shortcut and on my phone at least (Galaxy s21 ultra) it can be activated as one of the options on the Poweroff/Restart screen.
My data stopped working (telus) this afternoon even though it said 5G on the bar. Reseting network settings ultimately fixed it, but I did completely update my phone software first. (Samsung galaxy s21 ultra)
You can definitely buy the battery only, at least for the S21 Ultra, as I just went through that.
The claims, and the evidence
What the brand claims
No published claims on file for this product yet.
What owners report
“[...] I just checked my S21 Ultra and yep, they were there. It took like 20 seconds to force stop and disable them, though I'm sure they'll be re-enabled during the next update. [...] When I think of that sort of useless software, I imagine all the OEM crap that Windows laptops come with that usually cause instability and hog resources.”
after 5 yearsView on Hacker News“I have S21 Ultra and bought it refurbished for less than $500 few years ago. [...]”
after 3 yearsView on Hacker News“[...] I own currently the Samsung s20+ and the Samsung s21 ultra and all the models of both phones have locked bootloaders and Samsung's garbage, unused Knox security. [...]”
“[...] I owned a Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra in between, and it was decent but the photos always felt weird to me. Overall I much prefer the 9 Pro to the S21 Ultra. [...]”
Common Galaxy S21 Ultra problems
Problems most owners who mention them agree on, plus ones owners are split on.
- Customer support3 owners report thisView on Bluesky
“I got it 2nd hand, the screen that came with it was a replacement, and it was still going to cost $250-480 CAD to replace with a similar off-market screen.”
- Build & durability2 owners report this
- DisplayOwners split: 3 complain, 2 happy
- Software & AIOwners split: 2 complain, 2 happyView on Hacker News
“But ultimately the quality loss with zoom and subsequent software processing left the phones looking unpleasant for my tastes.”
- Battery & chargingOwners split: 2 complain, 2 happyView on Bluesky
“My phone has been charging a lot slower than usual lately, and I'm really hoping the battery isn't dying.”