Samsung Galaxy Unpacked

[Ravynmagi]

Samsung Galaxy Unpacked coming tomorrow morning. Samsung will announce a few new phones, a tablet, watch, and buds.

The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra looks like an unsurprising iterative upgrade to the Note series. Fastest processor, improved AMOLED 120Hz QHD display, over the top 108MP camera with an assortment of accompanying cameras. Don’t think the Note 20 Ultra will surprise anyone.

The cheaper non-Ultra Note 20 however sounds like it could be full of surprises. Samsung seems to be downgrading a number of things we wouldn’t normally expect in a Note series. Only 1080p display, no 120Hz, older version of Gorilla Glass, no MicroSD slot, and a plastic body. This would all be hard to swallow if the rumored $1,000 starting price is true. But I’m hoping that price can’t be true considering all the rumored downgrades the Note 20 is said to have. I wouldn’t mind all these trade offs if the price was right. Maybe $700 or $800. Especially when Samsung is probably going to ask $1,300 to $1,400 for the Ultra. And releasing a $2,000 foldable phone as well.

I also kind of miss a premium plastic phone. All this glass is getting boring, and the glossy glass Samsung insists on gets yucky looking and feeling super quick. So hopefully the Note 20 isn’t as depressing as rumors are making it out.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Samsung was surprisingly brief with the Note 20 presentation.

Note 20
6.7" 1080p 60Hz flat AMOLED display
Snapdragon 865+ or Exynos 990
8GB RAM
128GB storage (without MicroSD)
Plastic body with matte finish, in bronze, green, and grey
Regular S-Pen with 49ms latency
64MP camera (probably same as S20)
4300 mAh battery
$1,000

Note 20 Ultra
6.9" 1440p 120Hz AMOLED 2X 1500 nits curved display (adaptive 120Hz only works at 1080p)
Snapdragon 865+ or Exynos 990
12GB RAM
128GB or 512GB storage (plus MicroSD)
Glass body with matte finish in bronze, white, black
Gorilla Glass 7
9ms low latency S-Pen
108MP camera (same as S20 Ultra)
4500 mAh battery
$1,300 for 128GB, $1,500 for 512GB

So as expected no surprises for the Note 20 Ultra. Some spec bumps from last year, but nothing really new and exciting. But definitely looks like a new premium $1300 phone.

Note 20 however surprised me. It's keeping it's $1,000 price, but only getting a 1080p display without 120Hz, took away microSD slot, and removed the curved display and glass body that a lot of people think of as premium features. They couldn't even give it the same S-Pen.

Samsung Announces Note 20 & Note 20 Ultra: Better S-Pen, New Finishes

www.anandtech.com

Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra first look: Surprises, both good and bad

Samsung's Note line has often struggled to differentiate from the Galaxy S phones earlier in the year. In 2020, it has one hit with the Note 20 Ultra, and one questionable offering in the standard Note 20. But both bring the S Pen power loyal Note fans crave.

www.androidcentral.com

 

[KentState]

Hopefully we will see some good trade-in and bundle deals. I'm grown tired on my iPhone 11 Pro Max and would love to move back to Android. Since my Tesla doesn't offer screen mirroring, I have little reason to stick with Apple which was the main factor last year.

 

[thilanliyan]

I'm so glad they went to a flat screen with the regular Note. The curved screen on my Note 9 is utterly useless and takes away from actual usable space.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Some other things I've learned...

Note 20 Ultra screen will only do 120Hz as 1080p again. However now the 120Hz mode is adaptive and will automatically adjust between 60 and 120Hz depending on the need. So that'll help save battery over running 120Hz all the time. Which is good since Samsung made the phone 10% thinner with a 10% smaller battery from the Note 10 Plus. That thinner phone also makes the camera bump massive.

The Ultra display is an AMOLED 2X that gets up to 1500 nits bright. Not sure what hand-me-down display the regular step-child Note is getting.

The S-Pen latency went from 49ms to 9ms, but only on the Ultra model. Also on the Ultra model the moved the pen silo to the left side, which may be a little awkward for right handed users (lefties celebrating).

Both phones are getting Snapdragon 865+ in the usual markets that get Snapdragons. Unfortunately Exynos people are getting the same Exynos 990 that the S20 phones got. Exynos people are kind of upset since the 990 was already noticeably slower than the 865 and now the gap is bigger on the Note series. However there is a rumor next year's Exynos flagship chips will be powered by AMD graphics, I'm curious how that will turn out, maybe Samsung will turn the tables and make Snapdragon owners jealous next year?

Finally Samsung is making their phones with a matte finish. I very much appreciate that. The Ultra comes in bronze, white, and black. The Note 20 comes in bronze, green, and grey.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Galaxy Buds Live
Active noise canceling
3 microphones
Reduced latency in Game Mode
6 hours battery with ANC on (8 without) and up to 29 hours with case
IPx2 rating
glossy black, white, and bronze colors
$169

These are interesting. They are in the shape of a bean that fits in your ear. It's not a seal-off design some the Galaxy Buds, so I wonder how well they'll stay in the ear with activity. But seems like a decent price if you want the active noise cancellation.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Galaxy Tab S7
11" 120Hz LCD 2560x1600
Snapdragon 865+
6GB or 8GB RAM
128GB or 256GB
Wifi or 5G models
Starting at $650


Galaxy Tab S7+
12.4" 120Hz AMOLED 2800x1752
Snapdragon 865+
6GB or 8GB RAM
128GB or 256GB
Wifi or 5G models
Starting at $850

Samsung Announces Galaxy Tab S7 & S7+: S865+ & 120Hz Tablets

www.anandtech.com

This looks like pretty good improvement over the Tab S6. Though disappointing that the 11 inch model no longer has an AMOLED display. But both have 120Hz now that Anandtech article says runs at full resolution.

I'm happy to see the keyboard layout has been fixed over the Tab S6 which had small number row keys that didn't line up properly with the keys below (terrible for touch typers), now the S7 keyboard has full sized number keys that are correctly positioned and even a function key row and larger trackpad. The kickstand back cover on the S6 was quite terrible also, stuck by an adhesive like grip pad that was hard to remove without bending something. I'm hoping the S7 uses magnets, but I haven't found any info on how it's applied yet.

Update: Looks like it's all magnetically attached now.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Galaxy Z Fold 2
7.6" interior and 6.2 exterior displays
Hole punch display (notch is gone)
Snapdragon 865+
Black, brown, and white colors

Samsung Announces Galaxy Z Fold 2: Second-Generation Foldable

www.anandtech.com

Samsung has replaced the plastic display with a flexible glass that is more durable. Also the hinge has been improved and is more durable and can be opened in a half-way position for more viewing options. They've reduce the size of the gab between screens when closed and made the entire package a bit thinner. And the exterior display is pretty much full sized now, making it more usable when the big screen is closed. Overall nice design improvement and getting closer to something I'd consider buying. You still have the crease in the middle of the screen, I can't imagine that'll go away anytime soon. No word on price, but I imagine this will still be at least $2,000. Too rich for me still.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Galaxy Watch 3
45mm with 1.4" display and 41mm with 1.2" display AMOLED
Exynos 9110
1GB RAM
8GB storage
rotating bezel
Bronze, silver, and black colors
IP68/5ATM
$400 for 41mm, $450 for 45mm, LTE models coming later

I was going to list some of the features of the watch, like SPO2, ECG, blood pressure, run tracking, etc. But it seems like most of the features are either Korea only or coming later. Some of these features were even promised to come later on the Galaxy Watch 1 and never did. So I'm not holding my breath on getting ECG monitoring in the US on this watch.

 

[CakeMonster]

What's even the point of the Note anymore? The pen? You can get large S20's.

Also puzzled by the trend of worse hardware in the "smaller" phones. I really, really hope this doesn't spread to the regular lineups. Although it kind of has already, but I cross my fingers that it doesn't get worse (S9 had less RAM than S9+, S20Ultra has better camera than S20 (although it turned out to not really be better)).

 

[SKORPI0]

Galaxy Watch 3
45mm with 1.4" display and 41mm with 1.2" display AMOLED
Exynos 9110
1GB RAM
8GB storage
rotating bezel
Bronze, silver, and black colors
IP68/5ATM
$400 for 41mm, $450 for 45mm, LTE models coming later

I was going to list some of the features of the watch, like SPO2, ECG, blood pressure, run tracking, etc. But it seems like most of the features are either Korea only or coming later. Some of these features were even promised to come later on the Galaxy Watch 1 and never did. So I'm not holding my breath on getting ECG monitoring in the US on this watch.

Wanting the titanium version.


Sent from my SM-N960U1 using Tapatalk

 

[mnewsham]

I ended up preordering the Note20 Ultra. My Note8 is still a decent phone, but the battery life after 3 years is for lack of a better term, dog shit.
I went to bad last night at ~45% battery life, forgot to plug it in to charge, and woke up with it at sub 5%. I guess I could've just gone for a battery replacement, but the $200 pre-order credit pays for the new wireless earbuds that I'd need (since no more headphone jack).

I ordered white, I guess we'll see how I like it in a few weeks.

 

[Ravynmagi]

I started thinking about getting the Note 20 Ultra. But finally stopped myself.

Entry price for highest Note model (ie. the lowest storage option available)...
2015 Galaxy Note 5 = $700
2016 Galaxy Note 7 = $850
2017 Galaxy Note 8 Plus = $930
2018 Galaxy Note 9 Plus = $1,000
2019 Galaxy Note 10 Plus = $1,100
2020 Galaxy Note 20 Ultra = $1,300

This trend is really annoying me. The price of a flagship Note phone has almost doubled in the last 5 years. It's so ugly Samsung has had to start adding an alternative less expensive option. But this year's alternate option is almost insulting in the number of items they've downgraded and the price they still ask for it. I almost wish they'd just pull an Apple and take the Galaxy Note 9 and just put a Snapdragon 865+ in it and add new color options and sell it for a decent price.

 

[Ravynmagi]

Speaking of the Note 9. Yesterday Samsung also announced that their high end phones will now get 3 generations of Android upgrades. This starts with the Galaxy S10 series and forward.

S10 and Note 10 started with Android 9 and have gotten Android 10 and will get Android 11 and Android 12.
S20 and Note 20 started with Android 10 and will get Android 11, 12, and 13.

Unfortunately for Note 9 owners, they didn't make the cut off. They shipped with Android 8, and two upgrades to Android 9 and 10 and that's it. They also probably won't get the One UI 2.5 update, that would enable Android 10 style gesture support for third party launchers.

 

[Zaap]

Meh. I try, but I just don't care.

No compelling reason to upgrade my Note 9. Also, I don't trust Samsung's promises.

Flash forward a few years ... Note 20 owners awaiting their Android 13 update will be told 'just wait for it... keep waiting.... now wait some more..." as Sammy focuses on its folding gizmo phone and the Note 30 Mega Whiz Bang minus SD expansion and no USB port for $1800...

 

[mnewsham]

Meh. I try, but I just don't care.

No compelling reason to upgrade my Note 9. Also, I don't trust Samsung's promises.

Flash forward a few years ... Note 20 owners awaiting their Android 13 update will be told 'just wait for it... keep waiting.... now wait some more..." as Sammy focuses on its folding gizmo phone and the Note 30 Mega Whiz Bang minus SD expansion and no USB port for $1800...

If my battery on my Note8 were better i'd have probably waited another 6-12 months until the S21/30 or Note21/30.

As it is, adaptive 120hz was enough to draw me over to a new device, that and the $200 credit towards wireless earbuds.

 

[mnewsham]

Some reports that the Note 20 ultra preorders are shipping out early for some people. Mine still says 19th with delivery on 21st. But apparently people with fedex accounts set up to alert them when a fedex label is printed with your address have reported the fedex tracking claims shipping on the 17th with delivery on the 19th.

Either way should be sometime next week.

 

[mnewsham]

Youtube reviews are up


MKBHD
Galaxy Note 20 Ultra Review: It Better Be Good!

Mrwhostheboss
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra Review!

MrMobile
Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra Review: The Only Thing It Doesn't Do Is Fold

 

[Oyeve]

Some reports that the Note 20 ultra preorders are shipping out early for some people. Mine still says 19th with delivery on 21st. But apparently people with fedex accounts set up to alert them when a fedex label is printed with your address have reported the fedex tracking claims shipping on the 17th with delivery on the 19th.

Either way should be sometime next week.

Mine is coming today. Can't wait!

 

[mnewsham]

Mine is coming today. Can't wait!

Yup, mine is out on the truck for delivery as of about an hour ago.

 

[mnewsham]

Been using my Note20 Ultra for about an hour now getting everything installed and setup. Getting all my 2FA accounts transferred, etc.

So far it's a pretty good phone, the haptic feedback is much improved over the Note8. And the speakers sound great, actual stereo separation is a nice change.

 

[Oyeve]

So far I'm liking it. Only beef right now is that they removed the 3d scanning in the camera. The app is there but says the sensor isn't. Can someone confirm? I can't see why the app would be there but not work.

 

[mnewsham]

So far I'm liking it. Only beef right now is that they removed the 3d scanning in the camera. The app is there but says the sensor isn't. Can someone confirm? I can't see why the app would be there but not work.

I BELIEVE because the Note20 Ultra dropped the depth-sensing camera module in favor of the Laser autofocus module, there is no 3d scanning ability. It's honestly a welcome trade-off for me at least, my friend's S20 ultra has HORRIBLE issues focusing, and the Note20 ultra focuses instantly and perfectly thanks to the autofocus module.