Samsung has kicked off the phone release cycle with the unveiling of its Galaxy S20 range.
At a packed event at its KX experience space in King’s Cross, there were four new phones: the Galaxy S20, S20+, S20 Ultra, and new Galaxy Z Flip folding phone.
With impressive cameras and flashy folding tech, here’s the lowdown.
Flip out
The great excitement was the reveal of the Galaxy Z Flip, the world’s first smartphone with a folding glass screen. Whilst the Samsung Galaxy Fold and the Motorola Razr rely on plastic, the super-thin glass on the Z Flip should prevent the crease which affected the first gen of folding devices.
When folded the Z Flip is a mere 7.3cm wide but opens up to a 6.7in HD display. There are three cameras: two 12MP cameras on the back (or the front when folded) and a 10MP selfie camera when the phone is open. The Z Flip can be folded onto any flat surface so you can take hands-free photos or video calls, or multi-task such as watching a video and scrolling the comments at the bottom.
This is the folding phone that you actually might want to buy.
Smile for the camera
Samsung says it has created the best camera ever on a smartphone and from the specs we’d have to agree.
The largest of the S20s, the S20 Ultra with a whopping 6.9in screen, has four cameras on the back, one a cool 108MP. The tech in this lens uses nona-binning technology to combine nine pixels into one so each image contains three times the light: perfect for night images and pictures on bright, sunny days. The Ultra also boasts a 100x Space Zoom feature: Samsung’s AI ensures that quality stays high in ultra-zoomed-in images.
Across the range, there is a new Single Take feature which uses AI to capture a number of photos, videos and even gifs of a moment in time. It will then suggest the best content from this set for you to share.
It’s all about 5G
Samsung is waving goodbye to 4G with the S20s. Only the lowest-priced S20 features 4G, as well as the Z Flip, with the S20+ and S20 Ultra available with 5G. The South Korean giant already has 91 per cent market share of the next-gen mobile tech, selling 6.7million 5G phones last year, and is keen to maintain that dominance.
“With 5G is you need to get on the wave later or make the wave — we’re all about making the wave,” says Kate Beaumont, Samsung’s director of innovation. “In another year or so we will only be launching 5G phones.”
So what will you use it for? You can shoot video in 8K and upload it to YouTube, or play Xbox games on the go in future thanks to a Microsoft-Samsung cloud gaming partnership. Or download a whole box set in under five minutes.
Maybe 2020 is the year to finally commit to 5G. Samsung certainly hopes so.
The S20 range is available to pre-order priced from £799-£1,399; carphonewarehouse.com
