Samsung Galaxy S21 vs Note 10 Plus

70 out of 100

65 out of 100

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 Note 10 Plus, which is powered by Exynos 9 Octa 9825 and came out 17 months before. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

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

Higher display refresh rate – 120 Hz
30% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (806K versus 618K)
Uses a faster type of memory: LPDDR5 2750 MHz
Delivers 8% higher peak brightness (864 against 798 nits)
More recent OS version: Android 13 versus 12
The phone is 1-year and 5-months newer
Ready for eSIM technology

Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus

Has a 0.6 inch larger screen size
The rear camera has a 2x optical zoom
Shows 7% longer battery life (27:35 vs 25:44 hours)
Has 50% more RAM: 12GB versus 8GB
Expandable storage via MicroSD card up to 1000GB
Comes with 300 mAh larger battery capacity: 4300 vs 4000 mAh
18% higher pixel density (495 vs 421 PPI)
Supports higher wattage charging (45W versus 25W)
Thinner bezels – 5.19% more screen real estate

Review

Evaluation of Samsung Galaxy S21 and Note 10 Plus crucial features

Display

Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness

Type	Dynamic AMOLED	Super AMOLED
Size	6.2 inches	6.8 inches
Resolution	1080 x 2400 pixels	1440 x 3040 pixels
Aspect ratio	20:9	19:9
PPI	421 ppi	495 ppi
Refresh rate	120 Hz	60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate	No	No
Max rated brightness	800 nits	700 nits
HDR support	Yes, HDR10+	Yes, HDR10+
Screen protection	Gorilla Glass Victus	Corning Gorilla Glass 6
Screen-to-body ratio	87.2%	92.39%
Display features	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display	- DCI-P3 - Always-On Display

RGB color space	99.5%	95.4%
PWM	240 Hz	250 Hz
Response time	5 ms	3.6 ms
Contrast	∞ Infinity	∞ Infinity

Height	151.7 mm (5.97 inches)	162.3 mm (6.39 inches)
Width	71.2 mm (2.8 inches)	77.2 mm (3.04 inches)
Thickness	7.9 mm (0.31 inches)	7.9 mm (0.31 inches)
Weight	169 g (5.96 oz)	196 g (6.91 oz)
Waterproof	IP68	IP68
Rear material	Plastic	Glass
Frame material	Metal	Metal
Colors	White, Gray, Pink, Purple	White, Black, Red
Fingerprint scanner	Yes, in-display	Yes, in-display

Chipset	Samsung Exynos 2100	Samsung Exynos 9 Octa 9825
Max clock	2900 MHz	2730 MHz
CPU cores	8 (1 + 3 + 4)	8 (2 + 2 + 4)
Architecture	- 4 cores at 2.2 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 3 cores at 2.81 GHz: Cortex-A78 - 1 core at 2.91 GHz: Cortex-X1	- 4 cores at 1.95 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 2 cores at 2.4 GHz: Cortex-A75 - 2 cores at 2.73 GHz: M4
Lithography process	5 nanometers	7 nanometers
Graphics	Mali-G78 MP14	Mali-G76 MP12
GPU shading units	896	432
GPU clock	854 MHz	770 MHz
FLOPS	~1530.4 GFLOPS	~651.5 GFLOPS

CPU	150223	182103
GPU	340353	170400
Memory	151885	120562
UX	158712	143370
Total score	806977	618715

Max surface temperature	38.9 °C	38.8 °C
Stability	66%	97%
Graphics test	34 FPS	20 FPS
Graphics score	5714	3377

Web score	12591	7253
Video editing	7113	5833
Photo editing	29385	19457
Data manipulation	10438	6782
Writing score	16561	10979

RAM size	8 GB	12 GB
Memory type	LPDDR5	LPDDR4X
Memory clock	2750 MHz	2133 MHz
Channels	2	2

Storage size	128, 256 GB	256 GB
Storage type	UFS 3.1	UFS 3.0
Memory card	No	MicroSD
Memory card max size	-	Up to 1000 GB

Operating system	Android 11 (Can be upgraded to Android 13)	Android 9.0 (Can be upgraded to Android 12)
ROM	One UI 5.1	One UI 4.0
OS size	28.1 GB	31.6 GB

Capacity	4000 mAh	4300 mAh
Max charge power	25 W	45 W
Battery type	Li-Ion	Li-Po
Replaceable	No	No
Wireless charging	Yes (15 W)	Yes, Qi/PMA (15 W)
Reverse charging	Yes, (wireless)	Yes, (wireless)
Fast charging	Yes (55% in 50 min)	Yes, Samsung Adaptive Fast Charge (65% in 30 min)
Full charging time	1:35 hr	1:05 hr

Battery life tests
Web browsing	07:27 hr	07:37 hr
Watching video	12:26 hr	14:19 hr
Gaming	04:31 hr	04:43 hr
Standby	92 hr	97 hr

Main camera
Matrix	12 megapixels	12 megapixels
Image resolution	4000 x 3000	4000 x 3000
Zoom	Optical, 1.1x	Optical, 2x
Flash	Dual LED	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 240FPS
Slow motion	960 FPS (720p)	960 FPS (720p)
Angle of widest lens	120°	123°
Lenses	3 (12 MP + 64 MP + 12 MP)	4 (12 MP + 12 MP + 16 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/1.5 - 2.4 - Focal length: 27 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Samsung SAK2L4 (ISOCELL 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	- 12 MP - Aperture: f/2.1 - Focal length: 52 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.6", Samsung S5K3M3 (ISOCELL 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)	- 16 MP - Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 12 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.1", Samsung S5K3P9 (ISOCELL CMOS)
Depth lens	-	Yes
Camera features	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support	- Bokeh mode - Pro mode - RAW support
Samples	Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy S21 from DxOMark	Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus from DxOMark

Selfie camera
Megapixels	10 megapixels	10 megapixels
Image resolution	3872 x 2592	3648 x 2736
Aperture	f/2.2	f/1.6
Focal length	26 mm	26 mm
Pixel size	1.22 microns	1.22 microns
Sensor type	CMOS	CMOS
Sensor size	1/3.24"	1/2.65"
Video resolution	2160p (4K) at 60 FPS	2160p (4K) at 30 FPS

Wi-Fi standard	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)	Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 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 Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot
Bluetooth version	5	5
Bluetooth features	LE, A2DP	PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP
USB type	USB Type-C	USB Type-C
USB version	3.2	3.1
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

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

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

Category	Flagship	Flagship
Announced	January 2021	August 2019
Release date	February 2021	August 2019
SAR (head)	0.46 W/kg	0.19 W/kg
SAR (body)	1.51 W/kg	1.4 W/kg
Sensors	- Hall-effect sensor - Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint	- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Compass - Fingerprint
Bundled charger	-	Yes, 0 W

Samsung Galaxy S21 vs Note 10 Plus

Samsung Galaxy S21 vs Note 10 Plus

Key differences

Review

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Display

Design and build

Performance

Benchmarks

Memory

Software

Battery

Camera

DxOMark camera tests

Connectivity

Sound

Other

Conclusion