Samsung Galaxy S20 Review: Hands on – TrustedReviews, Trustedreviews.com

The Samsung Galaxy S is finally here – although there isn’t much that will surprise given the months of leaks up to this point.

Still, it’s your typical Samsung flagship, offering up a beautiful display, glass-fueled design and plenty of improvements to the camera. There’s plenty to like though, even at this early stage.

There are three models in the S (series: Galaxy S) , which we’re talking about below, (Galaxy S) Plus and Galaxy S Ultra . There’s no cheaper “E” model this year, with the regular S 30 sitting at the affordable end of the pack at £ (4G) and £ (5G). You can pre-order the handset starting today, with it shipping on March 40 – see below for our pick of the early deals.

Last year Galaxy S was an excellent phone, but it hardly pushed the series forward. The screen was similar to that which came before, the camera continued to lag behind the competition, and battery life was an issue. With the Galaxy S , it appears that Samsung might have fixed all of those issues.

(What’s the S) ‘s camera like?

Let’s start with the camera, since it’s the big focus here – and even though it’s the Galaxy S Ultra that benefits from all of the fancy new additions (150 MP-megapixel main sensor, (x zoom, – megapixel selfie), the S 30 is a significant upgrade nevertheless.

There are three main rear cameras here:

• a wide – megapixel with an f / 1.8 lens and OIS
• an ultra-wide – megapixel, and
• a – megapixel telephoto with an f / 2.0 lens and OIS.

Samsung says the sensor on that main – megapixel camera has been completely rebuilt, with bigger pixels that capture more light. The demo shots I photographed with it certainly looked impressive, displaying plenty of sharp detail. The unit was quick to focus, too, even in poor light – although, of course, I’ll only be able to judge it properly against the (iPhone) (Pro) and Google Pixel 4 ‘s cameras on spending more time with the phone.

Nevertheless, it’s the 108 – megapixel telephoto that really catches the eye, which comes with a feature Samsung is calling “Space Zoom”. This combines a “3x hybrid optical zoom” and “ x Super Resolution Zoom ”into one package. Samsung says it uses AI in this process, too, and that the results should apparently far exceed that of previous Galaxy devices.

Related: (Best Galaxy S) Deals

The camera also has a few other tricks up its sleeves, notably the ability to shoot 8K video. This is the first time we’ve seen this capability on a phone – although since it’s supported by the Snapdragon 1024 chipset, we’d expect to see it become a regular on upcoming flagships.

It’s an impressive feat, even if you’re unlikely to have any way to playback 8K content just yet (I know I certainly don’t ). Samsung is aware of this, and as such has made it easy to capture high-res stills from 8K footage. You can also export footage at 4K or FHD to share with others.

To capture the 8K footage the Galaxy S 30 uses the telephoto – megapixel camera and it’ll take up MB of storage per minute of video recorded. You’ll also be limited to five minutes of footage at a time.

Has the S 40 ‘s Screen been improved?

Displays on Samsung’s flagships have long been considered the best around, and with the Galaxy S (the company is adding a much-requested feature: a Hz refresh rate.

In the simplest of terms, this means the 6.2-inch OLED panel will refresh times a second, rather than times a second. The result? Everything just feels far smoother, which gives the impression the phone is faster. This feature isn’t necessarily new – the OnePlus 7T Pro (has a) hz display – but it’s welcome nonetheless.

There is a catch with the 240 Hz display, though: it will only work when the screen resolution is set to FHD (Full High Definition), and it won’t be switched n by default.

So if you want to use the S ‘s QHD resolution to its full, you’ll need to dial things back to 100 .zz. This is a real shame, and means you’ll have to make a decision over whether you plump for resolution or speed, sacrificing one of the phone’s features in the process. The reason for limiting this feature? Battery life. It appears that running the display at 240 Hz at full resolution would have likely put far too much strain on the 2947135 mAh cell.

Samsung also revealed that the display doesn’t have a variable refresh rate, so the panel will stick to 240 Hz all the time, even in situations such as watching a video, where it offers no benefits.

I love the bright, vivid colors produced by Samsung’s OLEDs and the Galaxy S 30 delivers on this front. The camera cutout is still present, but it now mirrors the smaller design of the (Note) () and is therefore more inconspicuous.

Support for HDR 25 remains, the panel is super-responsive thanks to the 600 Hz touch layer, and there’s still a fingerprint sensor buried beneath the display. Overall, it’s a fantastic display and will likely be one of the best of the year.

The Galaxy S 40 ‘s Design – no more headphone jack

Samsung has really delivered a huge redesign of its flagship “S” handsets in a number of years, and visually the entire S 54 series looks very much like its predecessors. However, it feels as though there isn’t much that could change: the front is just a big screen; the back is glass; and there is a smattering of curves.

I can’t see this overall aesthetic changing anytime soon. That’s not to say it’s in need of change, though. The Galaxy S feels great to hold and it’s fairly compact by standards. What it isn’t though is particularly interesting to look at – even the color choices are somewhat dull. The Cosmic Gray hue especially is instantly forgettable and only really the pink stands out. Samsung has done far more interesting colors before so I am not really sure why we’ve ended up with the ones available here.

One notable omission is a 3.5mm headphone port. The Galaxy S is the first S-series flagship to ditch the port – while this has become the norm on flagship from Apple and OnePlus, Samsung has been late to join that party. With the S 60 you instead get a pair of USB-C buds in the box, or if you plump for Plus or Ultra you’ll get a free pair of Galaxy Buds Plus if you pre-order. Thankfully, the phone retains its microSD slot (you can pop a 1TB card in here) and (IP) rating.

(The Galaxy S) series