Samsung S20 Series
Discussion
Interesting mobile. 
I've pre-ordered a grey S20 Ultra 512gb. Largely - and it is bloody large - for the camera.
The early reviews suggest a class-leading screen again with a fantastic refresh rate, so that's a major advantage for me.
The big number stats for the camera are of course meaningless if it can't deliver and it'll be how the software uses that hardware that makes the difference. But it does appear very promising.
I carry my phone with me when cycling and unless I'm on my MTB which had my GoPro on it, it is my go to camera.
The only negative for me personally is the sheer size of the Ultra. I'd rather it have the same specs in something the size of the standard S20. Guess it needs the volume though.
Anyway, looking forward to seeing what it can do.
I've pre-ordered a grey S20 Ultra 512gb. Largely - and it is bloody large - for the camera.
The early reviews suggest a class-leading screen again with a fantastic refresh rate, so that's a major advantage for me.
The big number stats for the camera are of course meaningless if it can't deliver and it'll be how the software uses that hardware that makes the difference. But it does appear very promising.
I carry my phone with me when cycling and unless I'm on my MTB which had my GoPro on it, it is my go to camera.
The only negative for me personally is the sheer size of the Ultra. I'd rather it have the same specs in something the size of the standard S20. Guess it needs the volume though.
Anyway, looking forward to seeing what it can do.
AJB88 said:
Coolbananas said:
Anyway, looking forward to seeing what it can do.
I would imagine and hope it can, make calls, send text, browse the web, take photos and play music. 
But, to clarify 'what it can do', I'm taking those for granted and wanting to see how good the camera is and if the alleged improvements are as significantly noticeable as touted.
If anyone only wants a basic phone with basic to average abilities, they wouldn't be interested in any brands flagship models would they?
HTP99 said:
Was holding out for this as my S9+ is coming up for contract renewal but they (S20 series) are all so bloody expensive; ordered a P30 Pro earlier.
The P30 Pro is excellent by all accounts, I envied the camera on it having seen some pictures a photographer friend has been taking. My two main reasons for buying new mobiles each year are for screen and camera upgrades.
I literally run my business from my phone as well as it being a social contact and multi-media device so I enjoy the screen being impressive. Since photography is my hobby and the camera I have on me most is my mobile, then I want that, ideally, to be the best I can get too.
But yeah, the S20's have jumped in price and I reckon that'll only continue as we want more and more sophisticated tech. I put it down as a company expense.
I did look at the Ultra which is the only one I'd consider because of the camera and it is just too expensive for too little upgrade on the S10+.
The Sammy upgrade program would allow me to give back my S10 and get an S20 over 2 years but they wanted 10% down and the last payment after 24 months would be £250 which would probably be more than the device would be worth so I noped out of that.
The Sammy upgrade program would allow me to give back my S10 and get an S20 over 2 years but they wanted 10% down and the last payment after 24 months would be £250 which would probably be more than the device would be worth so I noped out of that.
Tycho said:
I did look at the Ultra which is the only one I'd consider because of the camera and it is just too expensive for too little upgrade on the S10+.
The Sammy upgrade program would allow me to give back my S10 and get an S20 over 2 years but they wanted 10% down and the last payment after 24 months would be £250 which would probably be more than the device would be worth so I noped out of that.
Whether buying it outright now, contract or upgrade programme, you'll be paying full whack. However, wait 4-6 months and then it'll appear at a very significant saving on the Hong Kong-based sellers like eglobalcentraluk.com - I've bought loads of stuff from there, always the genuine article and pay via PayPal so protected. The Sammy upgrade program would allow me to give back my S10 and get an S20 over 2 years but they wanted 10% down and the last payment after 24 months would be £250 which would probably be more than the device would be worth so I noped out of that.
The price of the Ultra, especially, is going to deter an awful lot of people who are used to going straight for the flagship but in this case, I think Samsung have basically released a halo model not expected to sell hugely compared to the S20 and S20+ which are the more usual evolutionary upgrades we expect and is more a "look what we can cram into a mobile if we want to" kinda thing with the camera being the main course.
I've pre-ordered but the size does bother me. I really don't need a larger mobile and it becomes a bit unwieldy for everywhere carry now. Possibly. It is a similar size to the Note 10 so I'll pop down to a shop in the coming days and have a play with that, see if it fits in my cycling wallet/pouchy thing etc.
Coolbananas said:
Interesting mobile.
I've pre-ordered a grey S20 Ultra 512gb. Largely - and it is bloody large - for the camera.
The early reviews suggest a class-leading screen again with a fantastic refresh rate, so that's a major advantage for me.
The big number stats for the camera are of course meaningless if it can't deliver and it'll be how the software uses that hardware that makes the difference. But it does appear very promising.
I carry my phone with me when cycling and unless I'm on my MTB which had my GoPro on it, it is my go to camera.
The only negative for me personally is the sheer size of the Ultra. I'd rather it have the same specs in something the size of the standard S20. Guess it needs the volume though.
Anyway, looking forward to seeing what it can do.
The camera has 4x optical zoom. Which they are then extending to 100x. Huawei were pushing things taking their 3x and 5x optical zooms to 30 and 50x. But 100x from a 4x optical is going to give "mixed" results.I've pre-ordered a grey S20 Ultra 512gb. Largely - and it is bloody large - for the camera.
The early reviews suggest a class-leading screen again with a fantastic refresh rate, so that's a major advantage for me.
The big number stats for the camera are of course meaningless if it can't deliver and it'll be how the software uses that hardware that makes the difference. But it does appear very promising.
I carry my phone with me when cycling and unless I'm on my MTB which had my GoPro on it, it is my go to camera.
The only negative for me personally is the sheer size of the Ultra. I'd rather it have the same specs in something the size of the standard S20. Guess it needs the volume though.
Anyway, looking forward to seeing what it can do.
clonmult said:
The camera has 4x optical zoom. Which they are then extending to 100x. Huawei were pushing things taking their 3x and 5x optical zooms to 30 and 50x. But 100x from a 4x optical is going to give "mixed" results.
Indeed, what Samsung are doing is exactly what Huawei have already done by extending the optical with a lot of digital. No difference there, really. How they achieve it and the way the software works is what will dictate the real-World quality of the final image. 100x zoom and 108MP are big numbers that are largely ineffective in practice and just sound good for marketing. The 100x will degrade significantly, I would expect, beyond 30x. I think 10x will still be nice at a push but that would be the limit, judging by what Huawei have shown. 50x and certainly 100x will be rarely used, not for decent pictures anyway as it won't be possible.
The 108MP won't produce mega images, it is designed to produce a higher quality single 12MP image from that larger number by stitching 9 together.
I'm not interested in getting a significant zoom from a mobile camera or a large 108MP image - that's never going to happen and produce great images at the same time. No, I like the theory of how they can make a small sensor mobile camera produce better pictures at 12MP than we've been used to thus far by the use of this tech and software. Huawei did a good job for a mobile, I'm hoping Samsung have gone one better.
Naturally, it still won't be anything close to my Canon EOS R and its capabilities but the mobile is the camera that is on my person the most and the images you take are only as good as the camera you have with you - so hence my interest.
Coolbananas said:
Tycho said:
I did look at the Ultra which is the only one I'd consider because of the camera and it is just too expensive for too little upgrade on the S10+.
The Sammy upgrade program would allow me to give back my S10 and get an S20 over 2 years but they wanted 10% down and the last payment after 24 months would be £250 which would probably be more than the device would be worth so I noped out of that.
Whether buying it outright now, contract or upgrade programme, you'll be paying full whack. However, wait 4-6 months and then it'll appear at a very significant saving on the Hong Kong-based sellers like eglobalcentraluk.com - I've bought loads of stuff from there, always the genuine article and pay via PayPal so protected. The Sammy upgrade program would allow me to give back my S10 and get an S20 over 2 years but they wanted 10% down and the last payment after 24 months would be £250 which would probably be more than the device would be worth so I noped out of that.
The price of the Ultra, especially, is going to deter an awful lot of people who are used to going straight for the flagship but in this case, I think Samsung have basically released a halo model not expected to sell hugely compared to the S20 and S20+ which are the more usual evolutionary upgrades we expect and is more a "look what we can cram into a mobile if we want to" kinda thing with the camera being the main course.
I've pre-ordered but the size does bother me. I really don't need a larger mobile and it becomes a bit unwieldy for everywhere carry now. Possibly. It is a similar size to the Note 10 so I'll pop down to a shop in the coming days and have a play with that, see if it fits in my cycling wallet/pouchy thing etc.
I guess the UK will get the Exynos again rather than the Snapdragon. What would you get in an import?
Coolbananas said:
I've pre-ordered but the size does bother me. I really don't need a larger mobile and it becomes a bit unwieldy for everywhere carry now. Possibly. It is a similar size to the Note 10 so I'll pop down to a shop in the coming days and have a play with that, see if it fits in my cycling wallet/pouchy thing etc.
Looking to replace my S6 Edge+ (and only because the battery's having some issues!) and the S20 Ultra appeals but the size is a concern and the only thing stopping me from pre-ordering:| Model | Width (mm) | Height (mm) | Thickness (mm) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Note10+5G | 162.3 | 77.2 | 7.9 |
| S20+ | 161.9 | 73.7 | 7.8 |
| S20 Ultra | 166.9 | 76.0 | 8.8 |
Looks like it's only 4mm taller than a Note10+ and very slightly narrower. It's also 1mm thicker (I guess that's the extra camera hardware) so good suggestion on checking out the Note10+ for size comparison....
Wanted the black Ultra but you can't get the 512GB memory on that for some reason!
budgie smuggler said:
Exynos again. F right off. I'm not getting another Samsung until we get chips that are at least close to as good as the one the Americans get.
Can't believe I'd notice the difference personally so not too fussed. I know the Snapdragon is faster on paper, just as the iOS chips are usually faster still but doubt I'd ever be able to tell in my real World use. Coolbananas said:
Can't believe I'd notice the difference personally so not too fussed. I know the Snapdragon is faster on paper, just as the iOS chips are usually faster still but doubt I'd ever be able to tell in my real World use.
It's not about the speed for me, the Exynos battery life is in some circumstances much worse than the SD. Real world testing on the S20 remains to be seen, but the S10 is the first time I can remember since my original Galaxy S that I've been regularly ending up with under 20% battery at the end of the day.
budgie smuggler said:
Coolbananas said:
Can't believe I'd notice the difference personally so not too fussed. I know the Snapdragon is faster on paper, just as the iOS chips are usually faster still but doubt I'd ever be able to tell in my real World use.
It's not about the speed for me, the Exynos battery life is in some circumstances much worse than the SD. Real world testing on the S20 remains to be seen, but the S10 is the first time I can remember since my original Galaxy S that I've been regularly ending up with under 20% battery at the end of the day.
I'm about ready to replace my S8 (I bought unlocked and planned to keep it for 3 years), but none of the S20's really interest me. My S8 is still mint, the battery is good, and even the camera is good enough. At the moment I'm more tempted by the Z flip because I'm shallow and into gadgets
Coolbananas said:
budgie smuggler said:
Coolbananas said:
Can't believe I'd notice the difference personally so not too fussed. I know the Snapdragon is faster on paper, just as the iOS chips are usually faster still but doubt I'd ever be able to tell in my real World use.
It's not about the speed for me, the Exynos battery life is in some circumstances much worse than the SD. Real world testing on the S20 remains to be seen, but the S10 is the first time I can remember since my original Galaxy S that I've been regularly ending up with under 20% battery at the end of the day.
budgie smuggler said:
Exynos again. F right off. I'm not getting another Samsung until we get chips that are at least close to as good as the one the Americans get.
Yip - the SD865 is a big improvement over the 855 by all accounts but only the Yanks/NA get Snapdragons because of the agreement Samsung have with Qualcom. The SD Note 10+ blitzed the Exynos model on Speed Test G, and the iPhone 11 Pro Max blitzed the SD Note 10+! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQJn1shU_wY&t=...Easy to say you won't see a difference in real life, but if you're using it as a business tool it could very well be costing you money in the long term?
Also the 120hz screen only runs in 1080p, not 1440 which is 60hz only - battery life concerns no doubt, but the 240hz touch response looks really good.
I only quickly watched TechSpurt's UK model hands on and MKBHD doing the same with the US model so I might be wrong (hard to find definitive UK specs) but it appears all of the US models will have 5g and 12gb RAM minimum, the base UK S20 is 4g only, £100 more for 5g, and I believe the S20 and S20+ have 8gb RAM - that's a bit pish the American market is getting better specs, no doubt to try and counter just how powerful the iPhone 11 pro is (and iPhone ubiquity in the States)
stevoknevo said:
Yip - the SD865 is a big improvement over the 855 by all accounts but only the Yanks/NA get Snapdragons because of the agreement Samsung have with Qualcom. The SD Note 10+ blitzed the Exynos model on Speed Test G, and the iPhone 11 Pro Max blitzed the SD Note 10+! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQJn1shU_wY&t=...
Easy to say you won't see a difference in real life, but if you're using it as a business tool it could very well be costing you money in the long term?
Also the 120hz screen only runs in 1080p, not 1440 which is 60hz only - battery life concerns no doubt, but the 240hz touch response looks really good.
I only quickly watched TechSpurt's UK model hands on and MKBHD doing the same with the US model so I might be wrong (hard to find definitive UK specs) but it appears all of the US models will have 5g and 12gb RAM minimum, the base UK S20 is 4g only, £100 more for 5g, and I believe the S20 and S20+ have 8gb RAM - that's a bit pish the American market is getting better specs, no doubt to try and counter just how powerful the iPhone 11 pro is (and iPhone ubiquity in the States)
I use it as a business tool, yep. Emails, manage a few websites. Nothing more, nothing a 5 year old smartphone couldn't handle. Easy to say you won't see a difference in real life, but if you're using it as a business tool it could very well be costing you money in the long term?
Also the 120hz screen only runs in 1080p, not 1440 which is 60hz only - battery life concerns no doubt, but the 240hz touch response looks really good.
I only quickly watched TechSpurt's UK model hands on and MKBHD doing the same with the US model so I might be wrong (hard to find definitive UK specs) but it appears all of the US models will have 5g and 12gb RAM minimum, the base UK S20 is 4g only, £100 more for 5g, and I believe the S20 and S20+ have 8gb RAM - that's a bit pish the American market is getting better specs, no doubt to try and counter just how powerful the iPhone 11 pro is (and iPhone ubiquity in the States)
Real estate is of course nice, the Plus size mobiles have all been fine in this regard, the Ultra is overkill for me.
I do appreciate a good screen for Netflix on a plane - that looks amazing on my S10+ and from the early reviews, even better on the S20. We'll see. Literally.
120hz at 1080 is fine for general stuff.
I don't play games on my mobile so the 16GB is overkill again, as would the SD or iOS processors be. For my use, it is literally down to a ooh aaah wow lookit that screen quality (marginal improvement at best, granted) and the camera improvements. Not really bothered by the rest, it is all more than I need.
Different folks have different wishlists. For most all flagship mobiles are overkill already.
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