The Samsung Galaxy S22 series of smartphones are expected in early 2022 – here’s everything we know so far.
The Samsung Galaxy S22 series could land fairly soon, with a January or February 2022 launch date looking highly likely, and the leaks and rumors have been coming in thick and fast for all three devices in the line. These are to be the successors to 2021’s Samsung Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21 Plus and Galaxy S21 Ultra, but have also got the big boots of the Samsung Galaxy Note 21 to fill, with 2021’s late-year flagship actually canceled, much to the chagrin of Samsung fans. The Galaxy S22 is therefore the next big flagship from Samsung, and since the Samsung Galaxy Note 21 was cancelled, it will be the first big traditional phone from the company to come out in a year. We did see the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 come out with S Pen stylus support, and the clamshell Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 3 launch at the same price as flagship phones – but for most consumers, the Galaxy S22 is the next big Android phone. Below is where we’ll be collating all the leaks, rumors and news we hear about the Samsung Galaxy S22 until its launch, likely in early 2022. We’ll be keeping track of details of the Galaxy S22 release date, price, features and much more, from rumors about its new features to leaked images of what the phone could look like. Samsung Galaxy S22 release date: Rumors point to a February release for the Samsung Galaxy S22, with an announcement possibly on February 8. That’s not been confirmed, but we’d be surprised if it didn’t land in early 2022. Samsung Galaxy S22 price: Pricing is unknown, but for reference the Samsung Galaxy S21 started at $799 / £769 / AU$1,249, and we may be looking at a similar price again. Design: The Samsung Galaxy S22 and Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus will probably look similar to their predecessors, with the S22 Ultra rumored to be getting a more angular design reminiscent of the Galaxy Note range. Colors: A leak suggests the Samsung Galaxy S22 and Galaxy S22 Plus may come in white, black, rose gold, and green shades, while the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra might come in black, white, green, and dark red. Display: The Samsung Galaxy S22 is rumored to have a 6.06-inch screen, the S22 Plus a 6.55-inch one, and the S22 Ultra a 6.81-inch one. All three models are expected to have a 120Hz refresh rate, but that’s likely to be paired with a FHD+ resolution for the cheaper two and a QHD+ resolution for the Ultra. Camera: 50MP main,12MP ultra-wide and 12MP telephoto cameras have been rumored for the S22 and S22 Plus. Things are less clear for the Ultra, but it may have a 108MP main snapper, a 12MP ultra-wide, and two 10MP telephoto ones. Specs: Expect either the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 or Exynos 2200 chipset depending on region, coupled possibly with the same RAM and storage amounts as the S21 range. That would mean up to 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage in the Ultra model, or 8GB of RAM and up to 256GB of storage in the other models. Battery: Leaks point to a 3,700mAh battery in the S22,4,500mAh in the S22 Plus, and 5,000mAh in the S22 Ultra. Other than the Ultra those would all be smaller than the batteries in the S21 range. Charging speed on the S22 Ultra might be improved though, possibly coming in at 45W. Most early Samsung Galaxy S22 release date rumors pointed to January 2022, but it would now appear that a February launch is more likely. Multiple sources have now pointed to February, with leaker Jon Prosser saying the phone will be unveiled on February 8, then sold on February 18. That rough time frame makes sense, as we’d expect Samsung to follow a similar schedule to its 2021 plans where the company pulled forward its launch compared to previous years and revealed the phone in mid-January. We’ve also heard that the phones entered mass production in late October, which would likely work for a late January or early February launch. Does that mean we’ll see the Samsung Galaxy S22 series in January or February 2022? There’s no guarantee, and another leak suggests that the company will push back the phone to release the delayed Samsung Galaxy S21 FE instead. Samsung could decide to default back to its usual flagship release window and push the phone out in February or March. That said, the company may even bring the launch forward and announce the handsets even earlier. That’s specifically been rumored, with a leaker suggesting that the Samsung Galaxy S22 range could land in December. An earlier launch is especially possible since there won’t be a Samsung Galaxy Note 21, and since the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE might also have been canceled, meaning there could otherwise be a big gap between mainstream (read: non-foldable) Samsung flagships. But we doubt Samsung would launch two S numbers in one year. So while no-one knows yet what to expect from Samsung, our best guess for now is a January or February launch, but we’ll be sure to provide more details when leaks start giving us a clearer expectation of the release date. So far we don’t know anything for sure about the price of the Samsung Galaxy S22 range, but we’d expect it will be around the same price as the Galaxy S21 range when it launched. The Samsung Galaxy S21 started at $799 / £769 / AU$1,249, the S21 Plus started at $999 / £949 / AU$1,549, and the S21 Ultra started at $1,199 / £1,149 / AU$1,849. The overall design of the Samsung Galaxy S22 and Samsung Galaxy S22 Plus might be very similar to the current range, according to one leak, so don’t expect big visual changes – other than for the Galaxy S22 Ultra, which might be significantly different. We’ve now seen unofficial renders of all three handsets, from a reliable source, which we’ve embedded below. You can see that the S22 and the S22 Plus stick with the conventional look of their predecessors, while the S22 Ultra goes for something a little bit different. We’ve also seen a leaked backplate for the S22 Ultra showing a similar design. These renders also come with whispers that these phones will actually be called the Samsung Galaxy S22, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Pro, and the Samsung Galaxy Note 22 Ultra. The talk so far has been that the S22 Ultra might replace the Note 22, and if these leaks are right, that’s going to come to pass. Another source has chimed in saying the biggest phone will be called the S22 Note. Based on these renders, the S22 Ultra (or Note 22 Ultra) has a look that’s distinctly different from the S22 and the S22 Plus (or S22 Pro) – and it’s very reminiscent of what we’ve seen from Note handsets in the past. Last year’s S21 Ultra supported the S Pen stylus, and so should its follow-up. We’ve also now seen additional unofficial renders of the Samsung Galaxy S22, which show a camera block with slightly less rounded corners than the Galaxy S21, and a flatter back to the phone, but an otherwise similar design. You can see some of these above. And we’ve even now seen hands-on photos that seem to show the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra, as you can see below. These match some of the leaks above, complete with an S Pen slot, a curved screen, and cameras that individually jut out from the rear, rather than being housed in a block.
