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Your new Galaxy S22 Ultra is more than just a pretty face. Samsung filled the new flagship with tons of unique and useful features---so many, in fact, that some of the Galaxy S22 Ultra's best features may fly under your radar. So, here are seven cool things you can do with your Galaxy S22 Ultra.

Most of these tricks, minus those that require an S Pen, will work with the Galaxy S22 or S22+. Bear in mind that some of the features listed in this article debuted in older Galaxy phones.

Write and View Notes Without Unlocking Your Phone

Writing on the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra using an S Pen
Justin Duino / Review Geek

By default, removing the S Pen from your Galaxy S22 Ultra opens an "Air Command" dialog with a bunch of confusing options. But what if you just want to take notes without unlocking your phone or tapping through any nonsense?

A simple change to Settings will automatically create new notes when you remove the S Pen from your phone. This feature works even when your device is locked, and funny enough, you can actually pin new notes to your Always On Display for quick viewing.

To take notes without unlocking your phone, simply open Settings, go to "Advanced Settings," and select "S Pen." You should see a setting titled "When S Pen Is Removed." Tap this and select the "Create Note" option. (Bear in mind that your phone won't bring up the Air Command dialog when this setting is enabled.)

When you create a note from your lock screen, it should show a small "pin" icon. Click this icon to pin the note to your Always On Display. You can unpin notes from Always On Display at any time; just tap the small "X" button.

Improve Your Photos with Shot Suggestions

Having a great camera doesn't make you a great photographer. You just can't automate composition or framing---you know, the way that subjects are laid out in a shot. Still, your Galaxy S22 Ultra can improve your photo composition with a feature called Shot Suggestions.

I'm surprised that this isn't enabled by default; Shot Suggestions analyzes your subject and prompts you to improve your photos with subtle animations. These animations may help you level out your shot or re-frame subjects to get the best possible photo.

To enable Shot Suggestions, open the Camera app and tap the "Settings" icon (the gears). Under the "Intelligent Features" section, enable "Shot Suggestions."

Wirelessly Charge Other Devices

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and Galaxy S22 in-hand
Justin Duino / Review Geek

Earbuds and other accessories always die when it's least convenient. Thankfully, your Galaxy S22 Ultra doubles as a wireless charger. Need to juice up a smartwatch or smartphone on the fly? Just stick it on the back of your Galaxy S22 Ultra!

Well, it's not that simple. Reverse wireless charging doesn't happen automatically. To prevent accidental charging, you need to enable this feature every time you want to use it.

Pull down the notification share on your Galaxy S22 Ultra and look through the Quick Settings icons (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, auto-rotate, etc). You should see one titled Wireless PowerShare. Tap it to enable reverse wireless charging---this feature still works when your Galaxy S22 Ultra is charging by a USB-C cable.

Related: The Best Cases for Your Samsung Galaxy S22

Wireless PowerShare will automatically turn off after you stop charging another device. It may also turn off if your Galaxy S22 Ultra's battery falls below 30%, although you can adjust this threshold in your "Battery and Device Care" settings.

Also, Wireless PowerShare only works with devices that support Qi wireless charging. Most phones fit the bill, though many wireless earbuds and smartwatches require wired charging.

Improve Performance with Virtual RAM

A screenshot of the Galaxy S22 Ultra RAM Plus settings page for RAM virtualization.
Josh Hendrickson / Review Geek

Does the Galaxy S22 Ultra struggle to keep up with your intense multitasking habits? Maybe it's time to boost your phone's virtual memory through the RAM Plus settings. This process probably won't make your phone any faster, though it should prevent apps from restarting when they're pushed to the background.

RAM Plus takes a chunk of your phone's storage and turns it into virtual memory. The same process happens on your Windows or Mac computer---when the computer detects that it's running out of RAM, it dips into your storage for an extra bit of horsepower.

Related: 5 Cool Things You Can Do With the Pixel 6

By default, RAM Plus uses 4GB of your Galaxy S22 Ultra's storage for virtual memory. You can increase this value to 6GB or 8GB to improve multitasking performance. Simply open Settings, go to "Battery and Device Care," select "Memory," and tap "RAM Plus."

Bear in mind that your phone will reset when you make changes to RAM Plus. Also, you cannot deactivate RAM Plus. If you'd rather use that storage space for files, apps, and games, your best option is to go with 2GB of virtual RAM.

Read Faraway Signs with the Telephoto Lens

Lint built up around the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra's cameras
Justin Duino / Review Geek

One of the Galaxy S22 Ultra's most impressive features is its telephoto lens, which offers 10x optical zoom. I'm not sure how Samsung managed to fit this lens in such a low profile, but it's there, and it's like a pair of binoculars.

Let's say you pull up to a store and see a piece of paper taped to the door. Is the store closed? You don't need to get out of your car and find out, because the Galaxy S22 Ultra can zoom in enough to see what's on that piece of paper.

Using your Galaxy S22 Ultra's telephoto lens is a breeze. Just open the Camera app and tap the telephoto icon---the small circle with a single leaf. You can then increase the zoom ratio by spreading two fingers across the screen.

Now, your telephoto lens isn't a perfect replacement for binoculars. You may notice noise or smudging in a zoomed image, and of course, you need a relatively stable hand to use this feature effectively.

Use Your Front and Back Cameras Simultaneously

Some situations call for more than one camera. Maybe you're trying to put together a viral TikTok, or hey, maybe your band wants a fancy video for Instagram. But you don't need two phones for these situations, because you can use several of your Galaxy S22 Ultra's cameras simultaneously.

Your Galaxy S22 Ultra has a neat feature called "Director's View." When enabled, this mode lets you switch between all of your Galaxy S22 Ultra's cameras while recording. You can jump from a wide-angle shot to a zoom shot, for example, all by pressing a small on-screen thumbnail.

More importantly, you can enable "Vlogger Mode" to use your rear and selfie cameras at the same time. The benefits here are quite clear; you can fully capture a conversation with a stranger, your reaction to a birthday present, or two sides of a room.

Enabling Director's View is easy. Just open the Camera app, tap the "More" button, and select "Director's View." By default, this mode starts in multi-cam view. To enable "Vlogger Mode," tap one of the small white squares on the top or side of your screen. One of these options places your selfie feed in a small window over the main video feed, while the other places both camera feeds in split view.

Control Your Camera with the S Pen

Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra's S Pen sticking out of the phone
Justin Duino / Review Geek

The S Pen is more than just a stylus. It's also a remote control that you can use to operate your Galaxy S22 Ultra from a distance. Now, this feature isn't all that useful when browsing the web or shopping on Amazon, but it's super handy when you need to take a photo of yourself.

Try it now---open the Camera app and remove the S Pen from your Galaxy S22 Ultra. If you tap the S Pen's button, your phone will take a picture. It's the perfect solution for selfies, group shots, or photos that need to be super stable and consistent, such as product photography.

But what if you want to change which camera you're using? No problem, waving your S Pen upwards will swap between the rear and selfie cameras. You can also wave your S Pen to the right or left to switch between photo or video modes.


You're all set to make the most of your Galaxy S22 Ultra! We hope that you find these features useful, as they're some of the most unique (and least known) perks of owning Samsung's latest flagship.