Samsung
Samsung has officially added a new member to its premium Galaxy S20 family in the form of the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition. The device, unveiled Wednesday, costs $700 (£599, AU$999), handily stealing the crown from the $1,000 Galaxy S20 and making it the most affordable phone in Samsung’s premium S20 line. That raises an obvious question: What compromises were made to drive down the cost, and therefore the starting price, of the S20 FE?
On paper at least, there don’t seem to be many core differences between the phones. The 6.5-inch S20 FE retains many of the top-shelf features found in its flashier siblings. Along with a sharp AMOLED display coupled with ultra-fast refresh rates, it has a large battery, an IP68 rating (for water and dust resistance) and multiple cameras on its rear, including a telephoto lens.
Samsung’s Galaxy S20 FE line comes in six colors.
Samsung
Where Samsung does make compromises is in its choice of material. The S20 FE, unlike its fancier siblings, has a back made of plastic instead of glass. It has less RAM and storage than its family members, and there are some concessions on its rear camera setup, but you might not even miss them. 8K video recording and 100x space zoom are absent, but 30x zoom is available (like what’s featured in the S20 and S20 Plus) and so is 3x optical zoom.
The S20 FE is available for international preorders starting today, with in-store sales in the US starting Oct. 2 (and it’s already $100 off at Best Buy). Keep in mind that the $700 price is for the low-band 5G variant, while the Verizon model with superfast millimeter-wave 5G starts at $750 (currently discounted to $700). To learn more about the differences and similarities of Samsung’s S20 flagship line, take a look at our specs chart below.
Galaxy S20 Fan Edition vs. other Galaxy S20 phones
| Samsung Galaxy S20 FE | Samsung Galaxy S20 | Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus | Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display size, resolution | 6.5-inch super AMOLED; 2,400×1,080 pixels | 6.2-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X; (3,200 x 1440) | 6.7-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X | 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED 2X |
| Pixel density | 405ppi | 563ppi | 525ppi | 511ppi |
| Dimensions (Inches) | 6.29×2.97×0.33 inches | 2.72×5.97×0.311 inches | 2.9×6.37×0.30 inches | 2.99×6.57×0.35 inches |
| Dimensions (Millimeters) | 159.8×75.5×8.4mm | 69.1×151.7×7.9 mm | 73.7×161.9×7.8mm | 76.0×166.9×8.8mm |
| Weight (Ounces, Grams) | 6.7 oz; 190g | 5.75 oz; 163g | 6.56 oz; 186g | 7.76 oz; 220g |
| Mobile software (at launch) | Android 10 | Android 10 | Android 10 | Android 10 |
| Camera | 12-megapixel (standard), 12-megapixel (ultra-wide), 8-megapixel (3x telephoto) | 12-megapixel (wide-angle), 64-megapixel (telephoto), 12-megapixel (ultra-wide) | 12-megapixel (wide-angle), 64-megapixel (telephoto), 12-megapixel (ultra-wide), time-of-flight camera | 108-megapixel (wide-angle), 48-megapixel (telephoto), 12-megapixel (ultra-wide), time-of-flight camera |
| Front-facing camera | 32-megapixel | 10-megapixel | 10-megapixel | 40-megapixel |
| Video capture | 4K | 8K | 8K | 8K |
| Processor | Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (5G) Samsung Exynos 990 (4G) | 64-bit octa-core processor (Max 2.7GHz + 2.5 GHz + 2.0 GHz) | 64-bit octa-core processor (Max 2.7GHz + 2.5 GHz + 2.0 GHz) | 64-bit octa-core processor (Max 2.7GHz + 2.5 GHz + 2.0 GHz) |
| Storage | 128GB | 128GB | 128GB, 512GB | 128GB, 512GB |
| RAM | 6GB | 12GB | 12GB | 12GB, 16GB |
| Expandable storage | 1TB | Up to 1TB | Up to 1TB | Up to 1TB |
| Battery | 4,500 mAh | 4,000 mAh | 4,500 mAh | 5,000 mAh |
| Fingerprint sensor | In-screen | In-screen | In-screen | In-screen |
| Connector | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C | USB-C |
| Headphone jack | No | No | No | No |
| Special features | 5G enabled, IP 68 rating, 120Hz screen refresh rate, support for 30W fast charging,15W fast wireless charging | 5G enabled; 120Hz refresh rate; water resistant (IP68) | 5G enabled; 120Hz refresh rate; water resistant (IP68) | 5G enabled; 120Hz refresh rate; 100X zoom; water resistant (IP68) |
| Price off-contract (USD) *at launch | $700 for sub-6 5G; $750 for Verizon model with mmWave 5G | $999 | $1,199, $1,349 | $1,399 (128GB), $1,599 (512GB) |
| Price (GBP) | £599 (4G) £699 (5G) | £799, £899 (5G) | £999 (5G) | £1,199 (128GB), £1,399 (512GB) |
| Price (AUD) | AU$999 (4G), AU$1,149 (5G) | AU$1349 (4G), AU$1,499 (5G), | AU$1,499 (4G), AU$1,649 (128GB), AU$1,899 (512GB) | AU$1,999 (128GB), AU$2,249 (512GB) |
