The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 is probably arriving in August, and here’s what we know so far.
The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 launch date is almost certainly August 5, as the company has said it will be hosting a virtual event on that date where it’s expected to show off the entire Note 20 series. Samsung’s upcoming stylus-packing flagships are the next big phones we’re expecting in 2020. With the Samsung Galaxy S20 line behind us, we’re fully focused on what the brand’s new devices could be like. We’d expect a lot of the tech from the Galaxy S20, as well as S20 Plus and S20 Ultra, to make their way to the Note 20 phones – after all, the S20 devices were the company’s first flagships of the year. The Galaxy Note 10 Lite from January 2020 might also affect the Note 20 DNA, given it beckoned in a future of affordable stylus phones. If there’s a Galaxy Note 20 Lite, Samsung wouldn’t need to worry about other cheap phone stylus competitors, and could instead focus on creating a true top-end model that blows the socks off any device before it. Some think Samsung is angling for the Galaxy Fold 2 to actually be the top-end Note phone, but that seems like a Game-of-Thrones-style plot twist, so we’re not too sure just yet. The most consistent rumors currently suggest there will be a Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. Some have also referred to a third phone – the Galaxy Note 20 Plus – but that’s looking less certain. So you can have an idea of what’s to come with the Samsung Galaxy Note 20, we’ve collected every leak we’ve heard so far. On top of that we’ve got a wishlist of what we want to see in the Samsung Galaxy Note 20. Since the stylus is so central to the phone’s identity, we want to see the S Pen become a true extension of the device: more physical controls, more reason to pull it out of the phone. Latest story: A new leak has detailed almost every aspect of the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. Plus, a video has provided a deep dive into the possible video shooting options of the Note 20 Ultra, and we’re now almost certain the Note 20 will come in a Mystic Bronze shade. What do we know about the release date? Samsung is hosting an ‘Unpacked’ – that’s the company’s name for its big phone launches – on August 5, and it’s almost certain the company will be using this to unveil the Galaxy Note 20 range. That won’t be all though, as Samsung claims we’ll see five new devices at the event. Samsung hasn’t confirmed yet that there will be a Galaxy Note 20 announcement, but given that’s usually the time of year we hear about new Samsung products we’re almost certain it’ll be the case for the Note 20. That’s unlikely to be when you’ll actually be able to buy it though, but we also have a potential date for that, with August 21 being rumored and later corroborated by more reports. Though the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Plus might apparently hit stores a bit later. One thing we can be confident of is that it’s coming, and this year. Not only because Samsung always releases its Note handsets on a yearly cycle, but because the company has now said that a new Note is on the way in 2020. It’s also expected we’ll hear about the Samsung Galaxy Fold 2 – and maybe even the Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 – at the Note 20 launch too. As for cost, the Note 10 was released at a starting price of $949 / £869 / AU$1,499, so we’d expect a starting price around there or even higher. The larger Note 10 Plus cost $100 / £130 / AU$200 more, so we expect a similar price jump for the inevitable Note 20 Plus. This price scheme has become pretty standard for top-tier flagship phones. It’s likely that Samsung’s flagship phones will come with 5G capability across the whole range – the Snapdragon 865 chipset is expected to be at the heart of the almost all 2020 flagship Android phones, and Qualcomm’s chipset is coupled with a 5G modem. That brings up an issue for all 5G phones in 2020. The Note 10 Plus 5G was sold by Verizon in the US for $1,299 (around £974 / AU$1,888), so we’d expect a higher-than-normal price tag for any 5G-capable version of the Note 20. It’s also now thought there will also be 4G versions in certain markets, so we may find the price of the phone is cheaper in other regions. Exactly what phones you can expect as part of the Note 20 line has been up in the air throughout the rumors. Some reports suggested there might not be a Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, but the most recent leaks suggest that the device does exist. In fact, most recent leaks refer to two devices. That’s the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. That means there might not be a direct follow-up to the Galaxy Note 10 Plus from 2019, but instead the company will be focusing on the Ultra as its top-end device. In any case, leaks have referred to both devices, but the Plus and Ultra might end up being one and the same. Our clearest look yet at the possible Galaxy Note 20 design comes from leaked renders, which show a flat 6.7-inch screen with hardly any bezel, a single-lens punch-hole camera, and a large Galaxy S20-like camera block on the rear. Dimensions are apparently 161.8 x 75.3 x 8.5mm, which would make it thicker than the 7.9mm Note 10 range, and despite that massive screen this is apparently the standard Note 20, not the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Plus. The renders also show the power and volume buttons having been shifted from the left to the right edge, and the S Pen slot moving from the right to the left. We’ve now also seen leaked renders of the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Plus, which show a similar design, albeit with visible rings around the lenses on the camera, and a curved screen. The source of these renders says to expect a 6.9-inch screen and dimensions of 165 x 77.2 x 7.6mm, rising to 10.7mm thick at the camera block. It’s worth noting though that these screen sizes are at odds with an earlier leak, which listed a 6.42-inch screen with a 2345 x 1084 resolution for the Samsung Galaxy Note 20, and a 6.87-inch screen with a 3096 x 1444 resolution for the Note 20 Plus, both with 120Hz variable refresh rates. We’ve also seen what seems to be an official Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra render found on a Samsung website, no less. It’s the most evidence we’ve seen that the phone line is getting an Ultra model, and it looks close to previous renders for the other versions. This also points to a ‘Mystic Bronze’ color for the phone, which while not yet confirmed by Samsung, has now been announced for the Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5G, so it’s likely accurate. Then there’s also hands-on images of the same device that come from YouTuber Jimmy Is Promo who has claimed to have access to the top-end device. You can see some of the images below: Another source has also obtained renders of the Note 20 Ultra, claiming that it has a 6.
