Samsung's exciting Galaxy S20 Fan Edition 5G gets a reasonable price and camera specs rumored
Standard Galaxy S20
We're talking something even more affordable than a "regular" Galaxy Note 20 5G variant with a flat screen limited at a 60Hz refresh rate that might as well be dubbed the Note 20 Lite. Instead of following in the footsteps of the early 2020-released Galaxy S10 Lite with a totally predictable and somewhat boring S20 Lite, this is expected to be called Galaxy S20 Fan Edition, and after a number of rumors detailing a few incredibly promising specs, a fresh report claims to reveal... more today.
Not only is the spec sheet almost complete all of a sudden, but we can also stop making (un)educated guesses about price points. That's because a reputable Korean publication (different from the one that disclosed the Galaxy Z Flip 5G and Z Fold 2 prices earlier today) has a couple of interesting new tidbits of information (translated here) to share with the public.
A fairly modest-sounding camera setup and a large screen
If the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition sounded a little too good to be true after Ice Universe's major display, processor, and design revelations last week, that could be because the imaging specifications are not quite as impressive as all the above.
Of course, the Galaxy S10 Lite is not exactly a camera powerhouse either, so there's a solid chance the value flagship sequel will provide decent improvements in terms of real-life photography and videography skills. The primary 48MP shooter will purportedly be replaced by a 12-megapixel sensor that could well end up producing sharper snapshots, while an 8-megapixel telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom capabilities is undeniably more useful than a 5MP macro cam.
Galaxy S10 Lite
A 12MP ultra-wide-angle lens is expected to reside between the two, possibly matching the group-capturing prowess of the same camera found on the back of the S20, S20+, and S20 Ultra. Like the S10 Lite and the upper mid-range Galaxy A71 5G, the S20 Fan Edition is tipped to rock a 32MP selfie shooter, although we don't yet know any of the other details, like aperture or OIS, about any of the four cameras.
Meanwhile, the S20 FE should be considerably larger than the standard S20 5G version, but at anywhere between 6.5 and 6.7 inches in screen diagonal, the budget-friendly high-ender may end up a tad smaller than the 6.7-inch S10 Lite.
Costlier than the S10 Lite, but 20 percent cheaper than the S20 5G
It's pretty obvious that the key Galaxy S20 Fan Edition selling point will be its price point, which is reportedly set at the rough equivalent of $750 in Samsung's homeland. Before drawing your conclusions, you should know that's around 20 percent lower than the S20 5G's Korean MSRP, which probably means the S20 FE will cost $800 or so stateside.
Curiously enough, there's absolutely no mention of 5G connectivity in this new report, but previous rumors (and common sense) dictate that the phone will be released with support for the latest cellular standard as, well, standard in markets like the US.
If that indeed proves to be the case, it becomes rather hard to argue with the value proposition of an $800 Samsung Galaxy S20 Fan Edition 5G. After all, the $650 S10 Lite is a 4G LTE-only device powered by an older processor. The 5G-enabled S20 Fan Edition is also expected to come with state-of-the-art 120Hz display refresh rate technology, as well as IP68 water resistance and some swanky new colors in... drumroll, please... October.
Yes, October 2020, and believe it or not, Samsung aims to sell five million of these "inexpensive" bad boys by the end of the year. That's five million units in no more than three months, which could bring 2020's Galaxy S20 family tally up to 20 million global shipments.
In other words, the company expects this watered-down flagship to be about as successful if not more so than its actual flagship models released all the way back in March. That's... certainly not ideal.
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