Update Feb 23: We’ve included a video of the display issue in action below and a response from a Samsung rep.
It’s only a couple of days until the Samsung Galaxy S22 launches, but unfortunately some models of the Galaxy S22 Ultra may be shipping with a dodgy display.
Complaints on Reddit sourced by 9to5Google show users who got their Galaxy S22 Ultras powered by an Exynos 2200 chip early are experiencing flashing bands of what looks like TV static across the width of the display when watching video or playing games.
One unlucky user has even found the issue happening on the S22 Ultra’s always-on display and lock screen too. Ignore the flicking effect though, as that’s apparently caused by the camera they were recording with.
If you have an Exynos #GalaxyS22Ultra pls check if your device is affected by this bug, too.(Notice the graphic glitches/artifacts on lock screen clock.)Seems to be a widespread issue now.Reproduce steps in comments. pic.twitter.com/gjznCHTTX2February 22, 2022
Users who have encountered this issue have all had their S22 Ultra displays to 1440p (QHD) resolution with Samsung’s natural color profile. Changing either of these seems to bypass the problem, although if you prefer natural to vivid color, or want to use the full capability of the S22 Ultra’s display resolution, it’s disappointing that it’s seemingly necessary to alter these just to use the phone properly.
Note that this display problem seems to be affecting only Galaxy S22 Ultra phones with the Exynos 2200 chip, not the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 version that American and Chinese buyers get. This is causing concern that the issue is therefore hardware-based, since a software problem would theoretically affect both versions of the phone, although without further research it’s hard to confirm that.
Samsung responds
Samsung hasn’t made a statement itself, but a moderator on its Community Forum, replying to a long thread about these display problems, gave the following response, apparently from Samsung:
“We are aware of a limited number of Galaxy S22 Ultra devices experiencing a pixelated line on the display when customer plays Youtube or unlocks the device with fingerprints.
This issue may occur rarely when user set the device resolution to WQHD and Screen mode to Natural mode.
We have already worked to develop a patch on Galaxy S22 Ultra and will release software updates to address the issue soon.
We recommend that until then, please change the screen mode to Vivid or resolution to FHD+ of your device.
And please keep your devices updated with the latest software.”
We have not experienced the above issue with our Galaxy S22 Ultra review unit, but it is powered by a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip.