JAKARTA - A new video published by National Geographic and Samsung has shown how far smartphone cameras have come in recent years. The Galaxy S21 Ultra is the first smartphone used for photographing and recording underwater expeditions.

Samsung India and National Geographic have teamed up to undertake what they claim is the first underwater expedition to be filmed with a smartphone. Unsurprisingly, the pair sported Samsung's current flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S21 Ultra. This handset can not only record 8K video at 24 FPS, but also has a 108 MP main camera that has a 1/1.33-inch sensor and an f/1.8 aperture.

The Galaxy S21 Ultra may be IP68 certified, but it's not waterproof enough to withstand the underwater expeditions shown below. However, the smartphone must withstand being submerged in water up to 1.5 meters for 30 minutes, even if only in fresh water. Saltwater is a completely different matter.

Unsurprisingly, National Geographic put the Galaxy S21 Ultra in a special underwater case for this expedition, although Samsung has yet to confirm whether the case is available for general purchase.

Samsung S21 Ultra.
The results of the Samsung S21 Ultra under the sea (photo: samsung)

Samsung financed this expedition, so it must be remembered that this is an advertising product. Nevertheless, the photos and videos that Malaika Vaz has taken are impressive. Not least because Vaz shot it from inside the underwater box. Photos are taken from 8K video, which corresponds to a resolution of 33 MP.

The pictures shown are quite good. However, it is unclear whether Samsung has professionally edited the video in post-production. Ultimately, this collaboration reminds us that one doesn't need special equipment to shoot in challenging situations.


The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)