150-photo Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra test: 100x zoom, 108MP camera, 40MP selfies
With 150 photos, we determine how impressive the Galaxy S20 Ultra is compared to other phones in our official camera test
The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera is excellent when zoomed in, even if the 100x 'Space Zoom' won't exactly be your next prized Instagram photo. But what happens when shadows creep in? At 30x and 100x zoom, things do get blurrier, but so do the 10x zoom ranges of Samsung's top phone competitors.
Note: You can set most of the photos sets to 10x zoom and scroll down to see the differences, though both the Google Pixel 4 and Pixel 3a max out at an 8x zoom. Every other phone maxes out at 10x zoom, except for the S20 Ultra that goes to 100x and also has a 30x preset in the UI.
The comparison photos (those photos with the slider bar tool) are set to compare shots at the 1x (meaning no zoom) level.
Galaxy S20 Ultra 100x 'Space Zoom' at night
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera – 1x (no zoom)
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera – 2x zoom
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera – 4x zoom
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera – 10x zoom
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera – 30x zoom
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra camera – 100x zoom (max zoom)
Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra ultra-wide camera – 0.5x zoom
Galaxy S20 chief competitors at night
iPhone 11 Pro Max
iPhone 11 Pro Max camera – 1x (no zoom)
iPhone 11 Pro Max camera – 2x zoom
iPhone 11 Pro Max camera – 4x zoom
iPhone 11 Pro Max camera – 10x zoom (max zoom)
iPhone 11 Pro Max ultra-wide camera – 0.5x zoom
Google Pixel 4
Google Pixel 4 camera – 1x (no zoom)
Google Pixel 4 8x digital zoom (max zoom)
S20 Ultra vs last year's big Samsung phones
Galaxy S10
Samsung Galaxy S10 camera – 1x (no zoom)
Samsung Galaxy S10 camera – 10x (max zoom)
Galaxy Note 10 Plus
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 camera – 1x (no zoom)
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 camera – 2x zoom
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 camera – 10x zoom
Samsung Galaxy Note 10 ultra-wide camera – 0.5x zoom
S20 Ultra vs much cheaper phones
OnePlus 7 Pro
OnePlus 7 Pro camera – 1x (no zoom)
OnePlus 7 Pro camera – 3x zoom
OnePlus 7 Pro camera – 10x (max zoom)
Google Pixel 3a
Google Pixel 3a camera – 1x (no zoom)
Google Pixel 3a camera – 8x (max zoom)
Now onto the Galaxy S20 Ultra 'Live Focus' mode, which is Samsung calls its portrait mode, and more comparisons to tell how Samsung's new phone stacks up to its competitors.
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