Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) Camera test

We have already tested the camera of the Exynos international version of the flagship Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. In this review, we take a close look at the version that is mainly marketed in North America and China and uses a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset.

The camera specs between the two versions are identical, offering a 108MP sensor main module, a 12MP ultra wide-angle camera, and two dedicated cameras. The medium-range telephoto range is covered by a 3x lens with 10 MP resolution. For longer distances a 10x periscope style module is integrated.

In video mode, the S22 Ultra is capable of recording 8K movies at 24 frames per second or 4K resolution files up to 60 fps. With such an impressive spec sheet, the S22 Ultra competes with heavy weights like the Apple iPhone 13 Pro, Huawei P50 Pro or Xiaomi 12 Pro. Let’s see how it fared in the SBMARK camera test.

Key Camera Specifications:

Primary: 108MP 1 / 1.33 “sensor, 0.8μm pixel, 24mm equivalent, f / 1.8 aperture lens, OIS, PDAF, Laser-AF
Ultra-wide: 12MP 1 / 2.55 “sensor, 1.4μm pixels, 13mm equivalent f / 2.2 aperture lens, Dual Pixel AF
Tele 1: 10MP 1 / 3.52 ″ sensor, 1.12μm pixel, 230mm equivalent, f / 4.9 aperture lens, Dual Pixel AF, 10x optical zoom
Tele 2: 10MP 1 / 3.52 ″ sensor, 1.12μm pixel, 70mm equivalent, f / 2.4 aperture lens, Dual Pixel AF, 3x optical zoom
8K up to 24fps, 4K up to 60fps, 1080p to 60fps (tested at 4K / 30fps)

About SBMARK Camera Tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone camera reviews, SBMARK engineers capture and evaluate over 3000 test images and more than 2.5 hours of video in both controlled laboratory environments and indoor and outdoor natural scenes, using the default camera settings. This article aims to highlight the most important results of our tests. For more information on SBMARK Camera Test Protocol, please click here. More details on how we rate smartphone cameras can be found here.

Test summary

Pros

Accurate white balance and good detail
Good exposure and wide dynamic range
Nice color and good exposure in flash-off night shots
Accurate subject isolation and blur gradient in bokeh mode
Precise exposure and wide dynamic range in bright light and indoor video
Nice color and skin tone in the video
Accurate facial tracking in the video
Effective video stabilization when walking while recording

Cons

Luminance noise in photos and videos
Slow autofocus
Image artifacts, including rings, fringes, and blending artifacts
Strong instability of the plot in the canvas shooting
Loud ringing and loss of fine detail in the video
White balance projects bright light and video indoors

With a SBMARK Camera score of 131, the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) achieves the same result as the international model Exynos. Overall, the camera offers solid performance and some improvements over its S21 Ultra predecessor, particularly for zoom and video, but it falls short of the Ultra-Premium segment. This is especially true for night photography and in terms of the texture / noise trade-off.

This outdoor image shows good exposure of the subject and a wide dynamic range. The white balance is neutral and the level of detail is high.

When shooting still images, the camera overall performs well and shines, especially in the color category, thanks to accurate and pleasing color rendition. Compared to the Exynos variant, the luminance noise is less intrusive but still noticeable. The texture is also slightly better. Our testers observed ringing artifacts in all conditions and blending artifacts can appear in high-contrast scenes. However, ghosting is better controlled than the Exynos device.

Target exposure is generally good in all conditions and in this indoor scene, we can see that the Snapdragon device produces slightly better detail and lower noise levels than the Exynos version.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon), indoor scene

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Snapdragon), crop: good texture and fairly low noise

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos), indoor scene

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra (Exynos), crop: slight loss of detail, fine luminance noise

Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max, indoor scene

Apple iPhone 13 Pro Max, crop: slight loss of detail, fine luminance noise

Images recorded with the ultra wide-angle camera show good detail in the center of the frame, but details become noticeably softer towards the edges. Color rendition tends to be neutral, but noise is noticeable, even in bright outdoor light.

Cropping: good detail in the center of the frame but descending towards the edges

When shooting at telephoto settings, the S22 Ultra (Snapdragon) suffers from resolution instability, especially at close range when the light fades. In comparison, the Exynos model and iPhone 13 Pro Max offer more consistent resolution across light levels and zoom factors.

In video mode, the performance of the Snapdragon phone is similar to that of the Exynos device, especially the good exposure and wide dynamic range in bright light and indoors, as well as the good autofocus system. That said, excessive sharpness causes loud ringing on high contrast edges. This has a negative impact on detail rendering and is especially noticeable when videos are viewed on a large display. Our testers also observed higher noise levels in low-light conditions, especially in laboratory conditions.