New on the Galaxy S21 Ultra this year, is the ability to run the display at its full Quad HD+ resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. This is new because the Galaxy S20 series and Note 20 series released last year, did not support 120Hz at its full resolution. Instead, you needed to use it at FHD+ resolution. So you could choose either the highest resolution or the highest refresh rate. With that said, here’s how you can enable QHD+ resolution and 120Hz on the Galaxy S21 Ultra.
How To Enable QHD+ Resolution & 120Hz Refresh Rate
Here’s how you can enable QHD+ resolution along with 120Hz refresh rate.
Firstly, open the Settings app.
Then scroll down and tap on Display.
Now, tap on Screen resolution.
Tap on the WQHD+ (3200×1400) resolution option (it should be on the FHD+ resolution option by default).
Now, back out of that menu, and within the Display menu, find Motion Smoothness.
Tap on Motion Smoothness.
This should be at Adaptive (aka 120Hz) out of the box, but if not, tap on Adaptive.
And that’s it. It’s just that simple to use QHD+ resolution at 120Hz.
By default, Samsung is enabling Adaptive refresh rate on the Galaxy S21, and it does default to FHD+ resolution, however on the Galaxy S21 Ultra you do have the option to jump to QHD+ resolution. Now, if you need to conserve some battery, it’s a good idea to change some of these settings. We’d recommend switching back to FHD+ resolution first. And if you need more battery, to change from Adaptive motion smoothness to Standard. And you’ll see a big change in battery life.
It’s great that Samsung finally allows us to use 120Hz at the full resolution on the Galaxy S21 series – the Galaxy S21 and S21 Plus are limited to FHD+ since they have FHD+ displays and not a QHD+ display.