It's now official, Samsung has two new notable smartphones: the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. With two devices on offer and even more variants, actually picking a phone can be a little tricky. To help, we're taking a look at how the pair compare.
Before we start, here's a look at how the two new Notes stack up in terms of hardware:
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 specifications
| Galaxy Note 20 | Galaxy Note 20 Ultra | |
|---|---|---|
| Display | 6.7-inch OLED | 6.9-inch OLED |
| Resolution | 1080p at 60Hz | Quad HD at 120Hz |
| Rear Cameras | 12MP + 64MP + 12MP | 108MP+ 12MP + 12MP + Laser AF |
| Front Camera | 10MP | 10MP |
| Processor | Exynos 990 | Exynos 990 |
| RAM | 8GB | 8GB or 12GB |
| Storage | 256GB | 256GB or 512GB |
| Battery | 4,300mAh | 4,500mAh |
| Water-Resistance | IP68 | IP68 |
| 5G | Optional | Optional |
| Material | Plastic | Glass |
| Price | From $1,499 | From $1,849 |
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Price
Unsurprisingly, price is a major differentiator between the models in the Note 20 family. The 4G-only Galaxy Note 20 is your cheapest bet at $1,499, while the 512GB Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G is the priciest.
Outright pricing for the Galaxy Note 20 devices available in Australia is as follows:
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 (256GB): $1,499
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 5G (256GB): $1,649
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra (256GB): $1,849
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G (256GB): $1,999
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G (512GB): $2,199
This pricing is also reflected in phone plans. When you buy a phone on a plan, the outright price of the device is simply divided by 12, 24, or 36 (depending on how many months you'd like to pay your phone off over) and added on to the price of your base plan.
In some cases, telcos will offer a slight saving, such as a discount of $250 across the course of your contract if you pre-order, but in short, the more expensive the outright price, the more expensive your phone plan will be. There's no hack to get a Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G for the same price as Galaxy Note 20.
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Camera
Camera configuration is one of the major differences between the two devices. The Galaxy Note 20 seems have an identical camera setup the Galaxy S20, featuring a 12MP primary senor, a 64MP telephoto lens capable of 3x hybrid-optical zoom, and a 12MP ultra-wide angle lens.
The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is more inline with what we saw on the Galaxy S20 Ultra. As with the S20 Ultra, the Note 20 Ultra has a 108MP primary camera. This has however been paired with a new laser autofocus module, which should hopefully address the focusing issues that afflicted the S20 Ultra camera. The 108MP primary lens is joined by a 12MP ultra-wide lens and a 12MP 5x telephoto lens. The telephoto lens also facilitates 10x hybrid zoom, and 50x digital zoom, which is a little more restrained than the 100x zoom we saw on the S20 Ultra.
We'll need to wait and see as to how much of a difference there is between the primary camera on the Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra, but it seems a given that the longer range telephoto lens on the Ultra will get better shots than the zoom on the standard model.
The pair have identical ultra-wide angle lenses, however.
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Design
The Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra are somewhat different phones when it comes to design. To start, there's screen size: the Note 20 measures in at 6.7-inches, while the Note 20 Ultra is a massive 6.9-inches.
The differences don't end there, however. The Note 20 has a flat, 1080p+ display running at 60Hz, while the Note 20 Ultra has a curved, Quad HD+ display running at 120Hz.
This means the panel on the Note 20 can display 60 images per second, versus 120 images per second on the Note 20 Ultra device. This means motion on the Note 20 Ultra will look smoother, which will especially noticeable when it comes to animations and scrolling through apps.
In short, the Note 20 Ultra will easily have the nicer display, even if you're not into curved screens.
Oddly, the Note 20 has a plastic back, while the Note 20 Ultra is built from glass. Plastic backs are still common when it comes to more affordable smartphones, but it's a pretty unusual choice for a phone that starts at $1,499.
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Performance
There isn't any real difference in performance between the two Galaxy Note 20 models. Both are powered by Samsung's latest processor - the Exynos 990 - and are kitted out with a minimum of 8GB of RAM. The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is available with as much as 12GB of RAM, but the difference in performance won't be perceptible for.
In both cases, you'll need to pay a premium for 5G. The entry-level Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra models are 4G-only; upgrading to a 5G variant will cost extra.
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Battery
The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra has the biggest battery out of pair, with a capacity of 4,500mAh, up from the 4,300mAh cell you'll find in the standard Note 20.
While 4,500mAh sure is chonky, you can't judge battery life from a spec sheet. After all, the Note 20 Ultra also has a bigger screen running at a higher resolution and faster refresh rate. That's definitely going to need extra power.
When testing the S20 Ultra, we found that these premium features could be quite demanding on the phone's battery, so it's always possible that the standard Note 20 could last longer than its larger sibling.
Of course, we won't have a definite answer until we've had a chance to get hands on.
Alex Choros
Related Articles
