Thoughts on Samsung S20 FE......

 

The Samsung Galaxy S20 FE was just recently announced and will be released Oct 2, this phone is poised to bring the best of the S20 at a lower price, but does it make sense?  

 
 

Yes, it does make sense especially depending on where you live but I'll get to that later. I'll start with the specs; the FE is packing a regular Snapdragon 865, 6GB of RAM, and 128GB of local storage with options up to 1TB. The screen is also a 6.5-inch FHD screen with the classic hole-punch to cut off bezels; it also is a flat display unlike the curved edges of the regular S20 series and Note 20. It even keeps the 120Hz refresh found on all of Samsung's high-end phones. There's also IP68 water and dust resistance along with complete wireless charging; complete meaning you can wireless charge your phone and charge your earbuds on the back of the phone. 

 
 

The cameras are the next part of the phone, the FE keeps the triple camera setup on the back that have been consistent across the Samsung lineup along with an infinity-O hole-punch camera. There is a 12MP main camera, 12MP Ultra-wide, 8MP Telephoto, and a 32MP front camera. Although the front camera is up from 10MP on the regular S20 and according to Android Authority it loses the dual-phase Auto-Focus from the S20.  

 

Credit: David Imel / Android Authority

The back cameras keep Samsung's image processing technology and night photography modes along with most of their camera features. We don't know how good the photos are because reviews have not been published but I can infer that the photos will be ok in typical Samsung fashion. Videos are also a mystery, but Samsung placed a priority of good the cameras are for content creators touting high quality and OIS image stabilization.  

 
 

The best part about this phone is the price, at 699$ the FE is an excellent value that is set to take on the midrange phones. I honestly can't help the feeling that Samsung is losing money on this product because in the US you can get an S20 for about 680$ so depending on what screen size you want the S20 is a better value but in international markets the S20 still commands a near 1,000$ price tag.  That means that the FE will be much more popular in international markets. Even in the US, carriers and other wireless providers will offer financing and deals that will make the FE an even greater value.  

 
 

It seems that whenever you want something to be mainstream you include a wide array of colors. Apple employed this strategy with the iPhone 11 and the iPhone XR, Samsung themselves did this with the S10E. I love these colors and I think spending time on them really does make them special. I love the Navy Blue and Aqua colors that just really pop. 

 

The FE brings a hammer to all the phones in 500$-700$ price range, it brings the best of Samsung to a more reasonable price. Its biggest competitor is really the Oneplus 8 which offers similar performance, cameras, and screen. Although the screen is bigger and higher quality than the FE it really depends on what you value, it's more like a S20E than anything else. The FE brings the most premium features with few compromises, while Oneplus and other companies focus on nailing the essentials while leaving some premium features behind.  

 
 

The FE is shaping up to be a huge win for Samsung and a threat to everyone else.