Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra price leak is good news

Opinion
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Apparently, the Galaxy S22 Ultra will be the same price

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra front and back render with S Pen
(Image credit: Evan Blass)

Samsung's Unpacked 2022 event is coming up fast, as it gets underway Wednesday, February 9. That's where we'll hear all about the new Galaxy S22 phones, but the handsets have leaked so much up to this point that we're not sure what Samsung has left to tell. 

Even so, a Reddit thread has popped up from u/iSmokeGSCookies, who claims to be a Verizon sales rep. They say they've held a Galaxy S22 Ultra and offered to answer questions based on their limited knowledge of the device.

We reported on some of the findings from this thread, where the original poster (OP) claims that the base model Galaxy S22 Ultra will have 8GB of RAM, a downgrade over last year's phone. But the user has answered more questions in the time since we wrote that article.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra price

The biggest tidbit to glean from the thread is that Samsung might actually be planning to keep the starting price the same this year. That's $1,199 for those that don't remember the Galaxy S21 Ultra's starting price. That's good news and I can happily say it counters what we heard previously, which was that Samsung planned to raise the price to $1,299. I even wrote about my thoughts on that rumor.

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra compared to Galaxy S21 Ultra in an Unbox Therapy video

Galaxy S21 Ultra (left), alleged Galaxy S22 Ultra (right) (Image credit: Unbox Therapy)

Sometimes, I like being wrong, and I hope the OP is right. (They say to "expect the $1200 range previous to last year's models.") Even though it seems like Samsung has downgraded some aspects of the Galaxy S22 Ultra, like its RAM, I think the addition of Note-like features will help make up for the downgrades. Remember that the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra launched at $1,299 in 2020, so getting a newer version for $100 less seems like a win in my book.

Of course, you're giving up the microSD card slot in the Galaxy S22 Ultra, which the OP in the Reddit thread claims is still missing on the new Galaxy. Based on the comments, a lot of people aren't too happy about that. The presence of the microSD card slot has long been a poweruser feature adored by many Galaxy fans. It's often been hailed as major boon over other phones.

Otherwise, we have less than a week until we find out about the Galaxy S22 Ultra, including the price and configuration options. The return of the S Pen seems all but given at this point, especially since the OP confirms its return. Galaxy Note fans probably have a lot to look forward to this year — the Galaxy S22 Ultra stands be a big upgrade over the Galaxy Note 20 family.

Next, see how the Samsung Galaxy S22 cameras could finally beat the iPhone. 

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Jordan Palmer
Jordan Palmer
Phones Editor

Jordan is the Phones Editor for Tom's Guide, covering all things phone-related. He's written about phones for over six years and plans to continue for a long while to come. He loves nothing more than relaxing in his home with a book, game, or his latest personal writing project. Jordan likes finding new things to dive into, from books and games to new mechanical keyboard switches and fun keycap sets. Outside of work, you can find him poring over open-source software and his studies.