Samsung Galaxy S20 Review: A Practical Flagship Phone
July 27, 2020Samsung’s compact flagship isn’t an ultra, but it comes close enough
Performance: Exynos 990, 8GB RAM
Display: 6.2-inch AMOLED (1440 x 3200)
Storage: 128GB
Battery: 4000mAh
Rear Camera: 64MP telephoto, 12MP wide, 12MP ultawide
Front Camera: 10MP
Rating: 9/10
Flagships with smaller screens cater to a small subset of the smartphone consumer market. It’s a niche that continues to struggle to garner attention. In fact, there are only a few manufacturers that produce such devices, most notable of the lot being Sony and Samsung. But unlike its predecessor, the S20 feels less like an after thought, and more like a purpose-built phone.
Barring the rear camera arrangement, the S20 has an identical look to the bigger S20 Plus. And unless both are placed side by side, it’s easy to mistake one for the other. And that is the S20’s main appeal. Despite being the the smaller and cheaper phone of the trio, it never shows it. The metal frame, chambered edges and curved glass provide it with an aesthetically pleasing look.
The phone comes in four different colours but our test unit adorned with a Cloud Blue finish, feels like the most unique of the lot. It lends a cleaner and more elegant look to the phone’s rear. And unlike the S10 models, this generation feature single hole-punch front camera, surrounded by almost bezeless screens.
What’s It Like?
It’s a brilliant AMOLED panel, as it provides a wide colour gamut. Pictures and videos look simply stunning on the 1440×3200 screen. However, the 20:9 aspect ratio isn’t perfect for media consumption, because the entire width of the screen can’t be fully utilized. But, its more of an annoyance than an deal breaker.
The Exynos 990 chipset makes the S20 a real trooper. There’s very little that it can’t do – from video editing to mimicking a desktop PC when in DeX mode. Apps and games load almost instantly, and perform just as well. But due to an underwhelming cooling solution, the phone heats up quickly and becomes mildly uncomfortable to hold.
Unlike the Ultra, the S20 has to make do with a 64MP telephoto, 12MP wide and 12 MP ultrawide angle lenses. But the quality of photos that they can capture, proves that megapixel count don’t define a camera’s worth. The S20 captures detailed pictures with a slightly warmer colour temperature. Admittedly, the camera fares better during the day than at night, as is the case for the Ultra.
The Camera
And due to its relatively minuscule size, the camera controls are well within reach. One can easily make a handful of adjustments almost instantly, negating the need for your eyes to stray from the intended focus point. The zoom capabilities is on point too. Evidently, the level of convenience that this phone offers in terms of one’s dexterity, is only rivaled by the Sony Xperia 5.
Surprisingly, the S20’s screen doesn’t feel particularly small. The edge to edge display does a good job of making full use of the entire screen real estate. And unless you’re accustomed to using much bigger phones like the A71 or S20 Ultra, the S20 doesn’t feel impractical in any way.
There’s only one major gripe that I have with this phone, and that has to do with its battery life. It can barely make it to the end of each day with decent residual charge. This is especially true when your day is filled with picture taking sessions, media consumption and lengthy voice calls. Expect nothing more than a full day’s worth of use on a single charge.
All said and done, I’m a big fan of smaller flagship devices, and the S20 is no exception. It offers almost unrivaled practicality and blisteringly quick performance. But best of all, and unlike the S10e, it doesn’t feel like the lesser phone. It may be less equipped than the other two phones, but never really shows it.
Should I buy one?
If you’re like me and are a fan of small form factor phones, then, yes. It’s a really good device with minimal drawbacks. Its size never feels bothersome, regardless of the situation. The S20 is basically a pocket computer that fits comfortably, into the palm of your hand.
