Samsung Galaxy S20 5-minute review
What happened to the Galaxy S11? Samsung skipped some numbers for its latest Galaxy S20, which takes over the flagship mantle from 2019’s Galaxy S10. While it should be a confusing jump, there’s a decent reason for it, as Samsung has packed a lot in it is a massive upgrade, especially if you’re keen to get your first 5G phone.
The Galaxy S20 is cheaper, and easier to handle, than the Galaxy S20 Plus and gargantuan Galaxy S20 Ultra, but that doesn’t mean this can be a cheap or low-spec device.
Here's what you're getting: a 6.2-inch screen with a quick 120Hz refresh rate, 5G download speeds (where available), high-spec cameras on each side of the phone, and a giant battery also.
This is the phone to get if you would like to try out the new tech that Samsung must offer, but you don’t desire a large phone or an outsized dent in your wallet. you may go for the Ultra if you would like more storage or a 108MP camera and may stretch to the price tag, except for day-to-day use, the S20 goes to be the most effective choice for many people.
Under the hood is a powerful new chipset, either a Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 or Exynos 990 (where you live will determine which you’ll get) as well as either 8GB or 12GB of RAM, counting on whether you purchase the 4G or 5G phone. and a few people will only be able to buy the 5G phone – you'll read on below to find out which versions are available in your region.
The camera is another highlight of this phone, with Samsung boosting a great deal of specs on the rear array. All three main cameras are improved (including increased pixel sizes to enhance night-time photography by allowing more light in), and there also are some software tweaks to boost the overall experience.
The zoom lens is even better than the one on the Galaxy S10 too, allowing you to shoot high-quality 3x optical zoom shots or stretch all the way to 30x digital zoom. The Galaxy S20 Ultra includes a better camera overall, but most of the people are going to be more than satisfied with the shooter on this phone.
Another highlight of the Galaxy S20 is its 4,000mAh battery. It’s larger than the cell within the S10, and we’ve found the battery life to be strong with typical use – this phone isn’t going to last you for much longer than at some point of normal use, but what smartphone does?
The expanded capacity has had one negative consequence: it’s squeezed out the headphone jack. it is the same story with the S20 Plus and S20 Ultra, and it is the first time Samsung has dropped the feature from its S range.
The Galaxy S20 is missing some of the top-end features that the Galaxy S20 Ultra is showing off, but it’s cheaper and easier to carry or store in your pocket, and while it should not be the most impressive device from Samsung in 2020, it’s a powerful phone which will over satisfy most who buy it.
Samsung Galaxy S20 release date and price
Brace yourself: you’re getting to pay more for the Galaxy S20 than the Galaxy S10 because of its 5G upgrade, improved cameras, and bigger 6.2-inch 120Hz display.
In the US, the UK, and UAE the Galaxy S20 5G price is $999 / £899 / AED 3,199 for the version with 128GB of storage and 12GB of RAM. you'll be able to add extra storage with a microSD card up to 1TB, but if you would like 256GB or 512GB of internal storage you’ll get to buy the S20 Ultra. (we give an offer by us )
The phone is additionally available in a 4G version in some markets, including the UK, Australia, and UAE, priced at £799 / AU$1,349 / AED 3,199 for 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Those in the US are only ready to get the 5G variant.
That 4G phone aside, the addition of 5G means you're paying more for this year's base model than for the base-model S10. in the US a minimum of, the flagship inherits the Galaxy S10 Plus launch price – $100 over the base-model S10. It also matches the $999 iPhone 11 Pro launch cost within the US, although Apple’s phone features a smaller 5.8-inch display, which price gets you just 64GB of storage.
You can buy the Samsung Galaxy S20 now in the US, UK, and UAE.
Design and display
The Samsung Galaxy S20 includes a 6.2-inch display, offering exactly 0.1-inch more screen property than 2019’s 6.1-inch S10. It doesn’t dramatically change the general size of the phone, and its max resolution remains the same as that of recent Samsung Galaxy S models at WQHD+ (3040 x 1440).
Samsung remains offering a default resolution of Full HD+ (2220 x 1080), which looks over sharp enough for many tasks, and saves battery; you’ll got to head into the settings to change to the higher resolution.
A big upgrade for the Galaxy S20 is that the maximum 120Hz refresh-rate display. this is often double the speed at which the display refreshes on most phones, including previous Samsung devices, and what it means in practice is smoother scrolling and animations.
This is particularly pertinent when you’re mobile gaming because it allows for a more immersive experience and will even offer you the sting over an opponent, but it makes everyday things like scrolling through your social media feeds look smoother too.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen this on a smartphone - both the Asus ROG Phone 2 and Razer Phone 2 feature similar tech - but this is often arguably the first time we’ve seen it on a mainstream device.
The new 120Hz refresh rate isn’t WQHD+-compatible though meaning you've got to choose whether you want the higher resolution display or the faster loading picture.
Touch-sensitivity is additionally upped, to 240Hz from 120Hz to make games more responsive, by sensing your finger brushes on the screen at a much higher rate than previously.
This isn’t something we found noticeable once we were using the phone, but those more dedicated to their mobile gaming may find that it makes a difference.
We know an increase in screen size may well be off-putting for a few (there’s pent-up demand for smaller one-hand-friendly phones), and that we have excellent news and bad news that. First the great news: while the S20 is taller than the S10, it’s also a bit narrower, with a 20:9 ratio, and therefore the screen is barely marginally bigger.
Here’s the bad news: there’s no Galaxy S10e sequel (that was the littlest, and cheapest, of the S20 range) to supply those with smaller hands a 5.8-inch display size.
The S20 is as small as Samsung’s 2020 S phones get, and while we appreciate the smaller front-facing camera punchole and return of HDR10+ to the display for punchier and more detailed images when gaming and watching movies, a small amount of screen size diversity would be even more welcome.
The Galaxy S20 has one among the simplest screens available on a smartphone immediately, and if you’re after a top-end phone screen that doesn’t overwhelm your pocket you’re bound to just like the 563 pixels per inch this phone offers.
The rest of the Samsung Galaxy S20 sports a well-known look, with two pieces of glass sandwiching an aluminum frame. There’s still a curve to the proper and left edges of the screen, but it’s not as pronounced as on the S10, which can hopefully mean fewer accidental presses along the edges of the display.
The S20 phones are the primary within the S range not feature a 3.5mm headphone jack. which means you’ll have to use an adapter (which isn’t included within the box) along with your current 3.5mm wired headphones or get a pair with a USB-C connection.
This is the case with a lot of flagship phones now, and while it's going to disappoint some, the feature is a smaller amount of a deal-breaker with more and more people using wireless and true-wireless headphone and earbuds – and after all Samsung has you covered with its own Galaxy Buds and Galaxy Buds Plus.
The rear of the phone is formed of glass, but it feels more premium than ever. The raised camera bump is our main pain point, but it’s something that Samsung has had to do in order to incorporate all that camera tech. It does mean the phone will rock from side to side if you place it flat on a surface though.
There are five Galaxy S20 colors in total, but not all of those are available in every market. the choices are Cloud Blue (the handset pictured most during this review), Cosmic Gray, Cloud Pink, Cloud White, and Aura Red.
Those in the US, UK, and Australia will only be able to select from the Cosmic Gray, Cloud Blue and Cloud Pink options at launch, but you'll even be able to find the others at a later date. It’s worth mentioning that there aren’t any bold color choices here, and these are all relatively subdued options compared to the Galaxy S10 color range.
As on the S10 range, the fingerprint scanner is embedded within the display. We found this to be faster and more reliable than the choice on the Galaxy S10, but it isn’t perfect with us regularly having to retry our digits on the reader to be ready to access the phone.
This isn’t a significant issue, but if you wish to quickly unlock your phone you'll want to bear in mind that in our experience a fast PIN code entry can sometimes be quicker than using the scanner.
This isn’t something we found noticeable once we were using the phone, but those more dedicated to their mobile gaming may find that it makes a difference.
We know an increase in screen size may well be off-putting for a few (there’s pent-up demand for smaller one-hand-friendly phones), and that we have excellent news and bad news that. First the great news: while the S20 is taller than the S10, it’s also a bit narrower, with a 20:9 ratio, and therefore the screen is barely marginally bigger.
Here’s the bad news: there’s no Galaxy S10e sequel (that was the littlest, and cheapest, of the S20 range) to supply those with smaller hands a 5.8-inch display size.
The S20 is as small as Samsung’s 2020 S phones get, and while we appreciate the smaller front-facing camera punchole and return of HDR10+ to the display for punchier and more detailed images when gaming and watching movies, a small amount of screen size diversity would be even more welcome.
The Galaxy S20 has one among the simplest screens available on a smartphone immediately, and if you’re after a top-end phone screen that doesn’t overwhelm your pocket you’re bound to just like the 563 pixels per inch this phone offers.
The rest of the Samsung Galaxy S20 sports a well-known look, with two pieces of glass sandwiching an aluminum frame. There’s still a curve to the proper and left edges of the screen, but it’s not as pronounced as on the S10, which can hopefully mean fewer accidental presses along the edges of the display.
The S20 phones are the primary within the S range not feature a 3.5mm headphone jack. which means you’ll have to use an adapter (which isn’t included within the box) along with your current 3.5mm wired headphones or get a pair with a USB-C connection.
This is the case with a lot of flagship phones now, and while it's going to disappoint some, the feature is a smaller amount of a deal-breaker with more and more people using wireless and true-wireless headphone and earbuds – and after all Samsung has you covered with its own Galaxy Buds and Galaxy Buds Plus.
The rear of the phone is formed of glass, but it feels more premium than ever. The raised camera bump is our main pain point, but it’s something that Samsung has had to do in order to incorporate all that camera tech. It does mean the phone will rock from side to side if you place it flat on a surface though.
There are five Galaxy S20 colors in total, but not all of those are available in every market. the choices are Cloud Blue (the handset pictured most during this review), Cosmic Gray, Cloud Pink, Cloud White, and Aura Red.
Those in the US, UK, and Australia will only be able to select from the Cosmic Gray, Cloud Blue and Cloud Pink options at launch, but you'll even be able to find the others at a later date. It’s worth mentioning that there aren’t any bold color choices here, and these are all relatively subdued options compared to the Galaxy S10 color range.
As on the S10 range, the fingerprint scanner is embedded within the display. We found this to be faster and more reliable than the choice on the Galaxy S10, but it isn’t perfect with us regularly having to retry our digits on the reader to be ready to access the phone.
This isn’t a significant issue, but if you wish to quickly unlock your phone you'll want to bear in mind that in our experience a fast PIN code entry can sometimes be quicker than using the scanner.
Camera
Samsung has made some important development with the camera setup on the Galaxy S20 after you compare it to the Galaxy S10, but not all of the improvements are reflected within the stats you see in the spec list.
We think it’s best if you're taking the plethora of number-heavy camera specs with a pinch of salt, and instead, consider what they mean in terms of the photos you'll capture. Otherwise, the S20 cameras could appear as if a downgrade compared to previous Samsung devices, and that’s far away from the case.
The main camera, which remains 12MP, has an f/1.8 aperture. That’s theoretically inferior to the S10’s f/1.5 + f/2.4 dual aperture, which changes to suit the lighting conditions with the ‘wider’ f/1.5 setting pulling in additional light for improved low-light shots.
However, Samsung has increased the dimensions of individual pixels here, from 1.4 microns to 1.8 microns. Combined with the larger sensor, you must be ready to capture more detail and more light with the Galaxy S20’s main snapper, and that we found that to be the case when shooting in darker scenarios.
There’s also a brand new 64MP telephoto camera, which can sound like a huge upgrade over last year’s 12MP telephoto camera. Here the individual pixels are smaller than last year’s camera, but the megapixel count is way higher and also the aperture is wider (f/2.0 rather than f/2.4 – smaller numbers are better).
It’s a positive result overall, allowing 3x lossless zoom that’s the best we’ve seen on a smartphone up to now. There’s also 30x digital zoom if you would like it, and while this isn’t lossless we found it to be useful in some scenarios.
If you would like the final word in zoom capability the Galaxy S20 Ultra comes with a game-changing 100x zoom, but it’s unlikely that you’ll find much use for that in everyday shooting, and that we found 30x to be quite enough.
The Galaxy S20’s 12MP ultra-wide camera has changed the least compared to the S10 – the f/2.2 aperture is that the same, but it's a smaller sensor with larger pixels (1.4 microns over last year’s 1 micron). that creates your ultra-wide photos a touch better, although the S10 had a 16MP ultra-wide camera.
The Galaxy S20 Plus and Ultra both have a time of flight sensor that's missing from this phone. Even without it, the S20 is well capable of taking some fantastic-looking photos.
The S20 range also breaks new ground with the introduction of 8K video recording, and anti-roll correction (up to 60 degrees) as a part of Samsung’s Super Steady stabilization feature.
You can’t, however, use both this higher resolution and Samsung’s advanced stabilization tech at the same time – Super Steady remains strictly a 1080p affair (it doesn’t even work in 4K).
While 8K recording is restricted to 24fps, it's one big benefit: you’re able to crop and edit videos without sacrificing quality if you’re exporting to 4K or 1080p.
8K may be a feature that’s still in its infancy on smartphones, and that we imagine that the majority people are going to be happy shooting at 4K or below, where you get more control over frames per second, 20x video zoom (8K is stuck at 6x zoom), and smaller files (8K footage will eat about 600MBs per minute within the HEVC format).
If you are doing a plan to shoot in 8K, you'll hit the camera button when you're recording to require a 33MP still image. this could be useful if you would like a high-quality snap while you're already filming a video.
Samsung’s robust-yet-easy-to-use camera app continues to be the simplest among smartphones, because of new and returning features. We still like the incontrovertible fact that you'll be able to swipe anywhere on the screen to flip between the front and back cameras, make a hand gesture to trigger the selfie camera timer, and double-press the physical lock button to blindly launch the camera app.
New here is Single Take mode, which cycles through all three rear cameras over the course of 10 seconds to capture a variety of photos and videos. It answers the ‘Should I take photos or a video?’ dilemma with ‘Why not take both?’
You end up with photos, ultra-wides, portraits, hyper-lapse video, regular video, and so on, and we’re big fans of this feature – not every shot or clip is ideal, but it kept us out of the settings menus and more engaged with what we were trying to snap, and it changed the way we shot photos.
5G
The S20 is largely 5G by default – as mentioned, in some markets you'll be able to buy a 4G version of the phone, but 5G is that the norm and download speeds will hover at around 200Mbps on the average, 6x greater than 4G speeds in some parts of the globe.
This does, of course, depend upon 5G being available in your area from your provider, but although it isn’t yet, Samsung is baking within the future-proofed connectivity.
There’s a very important distinction between the 5G capabilities of the Galaxy S20 on one hand, and therefore the S20 Plus and Ultra on the opposite. While all three support the low-to-mid-band sub-6 technology, only the Plus and Ultra have mmWave antennas, which pull down even faster speeds.
The range of mmWave is restricted – so you’ll get to be relatively near to a transmitter so as to urge a sign –, but we were already getting 1.4Gbps in Oct 2019 once we tested mmWave 5G in Chicago on Verizon’s newly rolled-out 5G network, employing a different device.
So while the S20 is fast (although we’ve not yet been ready to attach to a 5G connection while testing the phone, so we’ve not been ready to run our own speed tests), its bigger siblings are going to be faster if your carrier supports mmWave.
Sub-6 speeds should be good enough for many people – although Verizon customers in the US should note that it’s a mmWave-exclusive carrier, so the S20 won’t be sold at Verizon stores.
Performance and software
The Galaxy S20 is powered by one of two different chipsets, and where you reside will decide which version you’re getting. If you’re in the US you’ll get Qualcomm’s top-end Snapdragon 865 chipset, while those around the rest of the globe get Samsung’s similarly high-end Exynos 990.
This review relies on our time with the Exynos 990 version of the phone. We’ve yet to totally test the Snapdragon 865 version of the S20, but we found the Galaxy S20 Plus running that chip.
As to the Exynos 990-powered S20, you'll experience outstanding performance throughout our review. It’s powerful enough to try to everything we'd like it to, whether that’s playing games or loading apps quickly.
On Geekbench 5, the Exynos 990 version of the phone averaged a multi-core score of 2701. That’s quite a bit below the Exynos 990 Galaxy S20 Plus, which scored 3034, and also the Snapdragon 865-powered S20 Ultra, which scored 3296.
The S20 is scoring far on top of the S10 5G from Oct 2019, which returned mean results of 2198, and therefore the OnePlus 7T Pro, which scored 2584. These scores won’t mean tons for the common user, but it’s a positive result for the Galaxy S20, and that we found that it absolutely was reflected in day to day use.
The 5G variant of the phone we tested comes with 12GB of RAM. it's going to be that some tasks will run a touch slower on the 4G version, as that only has 8GB of RAM, but many flagships ‘only’ offer 8GB, and we’d still expect a powerful performance from that phone.
We haven’t encountered any issues with the facility on tap within the Galaxy S20, but when we’re ready to properly test the Snapdragon 865 version of the device we’ll make certain to update this review with our findings.
The Galaxy S20 is running Android 10, the newest and greatest version of Google’s software system. Samsung’s own One UI is overlaid, so it’ll look different to the software you'll have used on other Android phones that aren’t made by Samsung, but the design is attractive and it’s easy to use.
Samsung includes tons of its own apps on the device, but if you don’t want these on your phone you'll delete most of them and stick to Google’s own pre-loaded options.
You’re limited to just 128GB of storage on the Galaxy S20 – there isn’t a more capacious option. this could be over enough space for the typical user, but if you’re progressing to shoot a lot of 4K videos you’ll likely want to make use of the microSD card slot.
Battery life
If there’s one thing we all know about 5G it’s that the super-fast internet technology may be a battery hog, and thereupon in mind, Samsung has equipped the Galaxy S20 with a 4,000mAh electrical converter , a notable increase over the three ,400mAh capacity on the S10.
That’s certainly paid off, as we’ve found the Galaxy S20 to possess solid battery life which will easily see you thru a full day of typical use.
There was the odd occasion where we noticed the battery life was being drained quickly, but that was with particularly intensive use – for instance, once we were using the phone with high brightness and therefore the 120Hz refresh rate turned on, so if you’re taking full advantage of the screen tech on offer here you would possibly not want to stray too faraway from your charger.
Samsung’s fast-charging feature works well – if you've got the proper charger setup you'll get from zero to 100% in under an hour. There’s also 15W wireless charging on offer, and while it’s not as fast because the wired variety it’s always a useful choice to have.
Like last year’s S10 handsets, the S20 range features Samsung’s reverse wireless charging feature, which enables you to use your S20 to charge other gadgets that support Qi charging.
For example, if you've got a pair of Samsung’s Galaxy Buds Plus wireless buds you’ll be ready to charge these on the rear of your phone, and you'll also lend your juice to a friend’s compatible phone, although note that this may drain your own battery particularly quickly.
Buy it if…
- You want your first 5G phone
- The 5G version of the Samsung Galaxy S20 is that the perfect jumping-on point for anyone who wants to be future-proofed in terms of connectivity. It’s not something that’s essential for many users straight away, but it’s something you’re likely to understand as 5G networks become more ubiquitous.
- You want a flagship that’s easy to carry
- You’ll often find that more power in a very smartphone means a bigger device, but that isn’t the case with the Galaxy S20, which we found comfortable to handle. Not everyone will be capable of using this phone with one hand, but it’s the closest you’ll get on a flagship Samsung phone.
- You want a top-end camera, but you don’t need 100X zoom
- The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra features a number of show-stopping features within the shape of its 108MP main camera and 100x zoom, but you shouldn’t turn your nose up at the rear cameras on the Galaxy S20. The auto mode works fantastically, and that we got some truly impressive shots from the phone.
Don’t buy it if…
- You’re on a budget
- The 4G variant aside, you’ll be paying more for the Samsung Galaxy S20 than for last year’s Galaxy S10. If you wish to be future-proofed with a 5G version of the handset (and that’s your only choice in markets just like the US) then this is often a rich device.
- You want a giant upgrade from the S10
- While there are some impressive upgrades here from Samsung, it should not be enough to influence you to change your Galaxy S10. If you own last year’s phone it’s unlikely you’ll be blown away by the improvements; this is often a handset that’s more likely to tempt those new Samsung devices, or those upgrading from the Galaxy S8 or S9.
- You want a 3.5mm headphone jack
- It finally happened: this is often the first Samsung Galaxy S handset that doesn’t go with a 3.5mm headphone jack. If you’re desperate for a connector which will play nice together with your wired headphones, this won’t be the device for you, although there are enough alternative options that this shouldn’t be a deal-breaker for many people.