The reduced slow-motion video performance of the Galaxy S21 Ultra is due to its larger sensor, according to Samsung

This story was originally published 2021/01/19
8:28 am PSTon January 19, 2021 and last update 1/20/20
14h58 PSTon January 20, 2021.

Samsung’s various models for the S21 are not all the same. If the price and physical size did not suggest, the specifications probably would. And nestled among the list of different named patterns and numbers is a curious snack that escaped detection on launch day: while the Galaxy S21 and S21 + low-end support 960 fps super slow motion video (in bursts of up to 0, 5s), which looks more like S21 Ultra premium, with its upgraded cameras, no – or at least, natively.

If that sounds familiar, it’s because last year’s S20 / S20 Ultra had a similar arrangement.

It’s not very simple if you’re not familiar with how it all works, but hidden in a footnote in the video recording section of the spec sheet, Samsung shows the difference:

“On the Galaxy S21 5G and S21 + 5G, users can record approximately 0.5 second of captured video at 960 fps with approximately 16 seconds of playback. On the Galaxy S21 Ultra 5G, users can record approximately 1 second of captured video at 480 fps and digitally enhance the video at 960 fps with approximately 32 seconds of playback. “

Simply put, this means that smaller S21 models can record 960 fps natively, instead of relying on digital interpolation to create frames between the 480 fps it I can registration, as with the S21 Ultra. In some cases, the difference will probably not be noticeable, but it does give smaller models an advantage when it comes to recording slow motion video.

The distinction is curious. As noted by the Android Authority, there is no difference in the chipset level between the phones, and the Snapdragon 888 that these phones share (in the U.S.) must support 960 fps capture at a hardware level.

After the publication, Samsung told us that the reason for the S21 Ultra’s digital upscaled slow motion video has to do with the phone’s larger image sensor, which operates at a lower shutter speed during video recording. Instead of artificially limiting smaller phones, which can achieve a higher shutter speed, Samsung chose to give them a full recording capacity of 960 fps and use its frame rate conversion technology on the larger phone, which implies that the difference between the two was not very noticeable.

I know it sounds like a strange explanation, but as far as we can tell, it is legitimate. This DP review article detailing the difference between shutter types states that the performance of electronic shutters (as you would with smartphone video) can be affected not only by the pixel count, but by the pixel / sensor size and the S21 Ultra does it has a larger primary sensor with a very high pixel count compared to the smaller S21 and S21 +.

If you plan to use the feature, it may be a good idea to keep that distinction in mind when choosing a model. While the “digitally enhanced” 960 fps is probably enough, slo-mo aficionados can be better served by the cheaper model.