Galaxy Note 20 Leak Points To Many Compromises

Samsung's flagships are getting more expensive every year and there has been a strong call for Samsung to either slow down or offer more affordable options. Samsung seems to be willing to concede a bit, especially after the almost disastrous performance of the Galaxy S20 series. That said, if these details for the Galaxy Note 20 are accurate, some might regret making that wish and ending up with what could be a disappointing Galaxy Note, at least in comparison to its Ultra sibling.

The two's names are actually a bit misleading. Given what we know so far, the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G is, for all intents and purposes, the base model. The non-Ultra Galaxy Note 20, on the other hand, is practically the Galaxy Note 20 Lite. We've expected some compromises, of course, to keep the price down but it seems we're getting more, or rather less, than we bargained for.

The flat screen might actually be a good thing for artists and scribblers, despite the lower resolution, but Samsung's rumored decision to use plastic for the Galaxy Note 20's back is unexpected and disappointing. This would definitely give the phone a cheap reputation more than it deserves. Samsung will also be cutting back on the screen features, locking it down to a 60Hz refresh rate only and skipping on the next-gen Gorilla Glass 7.

The cameras will actually be even more controversial as Samsung seems to have gone to the opposite extreme. Going back to Galaxy S9 days when Samsung wasn't so concerned about megapixel counts, the main camera will reportedly have a 12 megapixel Dual-Pixel AF sensor, joined by another 12MP wide-angle shooter. There's a larger 64 megapixel sensor, yes, but that one's for 3x optical telephoto shots, though.

Samsung will at least bring a "Real Feel" 9ms latency S Pen and the same Project xCloud deal to the Galaxy Note 20. It will also offer both a 4G-only and a 5G model, almost ensuring that the 5G version won't get much attention at all.