In the second generation, it remains perhaps the best flagship killer despite the delay. Coming from the S20 FE (Exynos), I have the following to mention:
1. Perfect display, similar to before but improved in calibration and color reproduction, beautiful and naturally much superior to cheap AMOLED screens of other models, with support for HDR/HDR10 content. It remains accurate in color reproduction if desired. The protection with Gorilla Glass Victus gives an extra sense of security. Unfortunately, the screen still does not have a variable refresh rate, which affects the battery life.
2. Compact in size (considering the proportions), with a nice, natural feel and a premium feel in hand. It is smaller than the S20 FE and other 6.5" phones. The matte plastic back is not bothersome, quite the opposite. It is slippery.
3. Snapdragon 888 with all its performance capabilities. It is instant everywhere. 6GB of fast DDR5 RAM are easily sufficient, but after some time and with many open applications, some may need to be restarted.
4. Battery life: surprisingly better than expected. Generally, processors in flagships are getting stronger without a corresponding improvement in cooling. It is like a 5-year-old laptop in terms of power, without a fan. Therefore, the battery life of mobile phones and overheating will unfortunately continue to be an issue. The S21 FE manages quite well, with a little effort, you can have all-day battery life and many hours of screen-on time (during vacations with everything open and maximum brightness, 4 hours of SOT). It does heat up, but it takes a lot of effort to overheat. Compared to the Exynos 990 in the S20, it is slightly cooler.
5. The speakers are very good, loud with balanced sound, perhaps slightly worse than the S20 FE, especially in the bass.
6. If I have to complain about the cameras, it is that there is a tendency towards oversaturation. Otherwise, it has tremendous dynamic range, abundant detail, and very clear night photos without even using the Night mode. The processing is very mature, almost at Pixel levels, and although it has the exact same setup as the S20, the photos are noticeably improved everywhere. It also remains the only phone in its price range with a usable telephoto lens. The ultra-wide is neither good nor bad - it needs autofocus.
7. In more general terms: the selfie camera is average but does its job, the GPS is traditionally fast for Snapdragon, the under-display fingerprint sensor is slow but accurate (under-display sensors are never very good). It is 100% waterproof with the highest possible IP68 standard. The signal is average, as Samsung always strives for low radiation.
8. 4 years of updates is class-leading support and gives Samsung a clear advantage over all other Android manufacturers.
The category of flagship killers is growing, which means you can get excellent phones in the range of 450-600 euros without going to the thousand-euro range, which is excessive. As for the competition, the similar Realme GT2/OnePlus 9, although very good, do not have a telephoto lens or waterproofing. The Xiaomi 12X has one of the best displays on the market but lacks the same features, while the Pixel 6 has impeccable camera quality and waterproofing but also an unstable operating system, a higher price, and a 90Hz display. Finally, the iPhone 12 has an excellent processor, but lacks a high refresh rate display and zoom capabilities. In conclusion, if someone wants everything, they easily choose the S21 FE as a jack of all trades, as it offers by far the best value for money, with versatile cameras, a very good screen, stability, and a lot of software support and IP68.