It’s been anticipated, leaked, and updated for months. But today, Samsung finally executed the big Galaxy Unpacked 2020 reveal at San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts. Here’s everything Samsung announced — three variations of the Galaxy S20, the Samsung Z Flip smartphone, and the Galaxy Buds+.
Samsung Galaxy S20 range
Samsung has unleashed an impressive three-of-a-kind: The 6.2-inch Galaxy S20, the 6.7-inch Galaxy S20 Plus, and the 6.9-inch Galaxy S20 Ultra. All three have several features in common, the most attention-grabbing of which is the Snapdragon 865 CPU. All three are dust- and water-resistant at IP68. While they all have 12GB of RAM, the S20 Ultra also offers a 16GB variant. Storage is 128GB for all three, while the higher-end Plus and Ultra models also offer a 512GB variant. All phones feature 5G, as well as a fast refresh rate of 120Hz for their Dynamic AMOLED 2X displays and the largest batteries — 4,000mAh, 4,500mAh, and 5,000mAh respectively — so far crammed into any Galaxy S-series phones. All run Android 10 and all can capture 8K video.
Samsung’s S20 magic may reside in the camera. The Galaxy S20, S20 Plus, and S20 Ultra all feature new camera hardware. The S20 and S20 Plus share 12MP main lenses, along with 64MP telephoto lenses featuring 3x optical zoom and 12MP wide angle cameras. The S20 Plus adds a fourth sensor for depth sensing to assist with Live Focus portrait shots and 3D scanning. All three models include Space Zoom, a combination of optical stabilization and A.I. stabilization that facilitates smooth, non-blurry image capture at 30x zoom in the S20 and S20 Plus models.
The S20 Ultra is where camera features really shine. Its quad camera features a whopping 108MP wide angle lens, 48MP telephoto, and 12MP ultra wide lens that can capture 4x optical zoom, 10x lossless hybrid zoom, and up to 100x digital Space Zoom.
The Galaxy S20 costs $999, the Galaxy S20 Plus is priced at $1,199, and the Galaxy S20 Ultra costs $1,399. Pre-orders start on Feb. 21, with a ship date of March 6. You can buy the S20 Plus and S20 Ultra via AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon. The Galaxy S20 will not be carried by Verizon because it’s the one model that does not support both mmWave and Sub-6 frequencies, but only the latter.
Read our Samsung Galaxy S20 & S20 Plus and Galaxy S20 Ultra hands-on reviews
Samsung Galaxy Z Flip
The Samsung Galaxy Z Flip, the second of its foldable phones, will debut on Valentine’s Day. The new Z Flip folds on a horizontal axis and features a 6.7-inch screen. The cover sports a smaller second display for viewing notifications. It features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855+ processor, along with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. It has a 10MP front-facing camera accompanied by two 12MP rear cameras that you can use to capture both ultrawide and wide-angle shots. The Infinity Flex Display screen is a plastic and glass combo — the same tech Samsung used on the earlier Fold model. With a 64-bit octa-core processor and a 3,300mAh battery, the phone will come in Mirror Purple and Mirror Black.
The best part for some will be its size — it conveniently fits in the palm of your hand and easily slides into a shirt or pants pocket. The Z Flip will be available unlocked from Samsung and Best Buy, as well as from Sprint and AT&T. The price tag is $1,380.
Read our Samsung Galaxy Z Flip hands-on review
Samsung Galaxy Buds+
Alongside some very high-end smartphones, Samsung also announced its second-generation wireless earbuds. The new Galaxy Buds+ feature improvements to the original earbuds’ specs in a similar design. In addition to the AKG sound, the new buds offer a two-way speaker system, added tweeter, in addition to the woofer. Battery life lasts up to 11 hours on a single charge, while the 270mAh wireless charging case can double that to 22 hours, Samsung says. Charging them for three minutes over USB-C from dead yields an hour of play. The Galaxy Buds+ cost $149 and come in black, white, and blue — and are iOS-friendly.
Read more about the Samsung Galaxy Buds+
