It seems Samsung may have confirmed that a Fan Edition of its Galaxy Note 20 series is coming. While the South Korean consumer electronics company hasn't made any official announcements regarding the device, if the reference on an international Samsung website turns out to be correct, it will be a boon for Samsung customers who like the larger screen but want a more economical option.
While the "Fan Edition" moniker was first used by Samsung for its refurbished, non-explosive variant of the Galaxy Note 7 in 2017, it has more recently been associated with its flagship Galaxy S20 line. Released in October, the Galaxy S20 FE incorporated many of the features found in the other S20 series phones. However, it also comes with more modest specifications, such as a lower-resolution display and less fancy cameras, allowing it to be available at a much lower price. In the U.S., the Galaxy S20 FE sells for $699.99, while the next cheapest device in the Galaxy S20 range starts at $999.
If a Galaxy Note 20 FE is released, one might expect a similar price reduction. The Note 20 also sells in the U.S. for $999.99, so perhaps a Fan Edition of that product line would also be $300 cheaper. As reported by TechRadar, Samsung's Brazilian site references a Galaxy Note 20 FE in the footnotes of the web page for the Galaxy S20 FE. Now, this reference is almost certainly a typo. The footnote, in question, is clarifying how the size of the Galaxy S20 FE's Infinity-O display is measured and it likely just says "Galaxy Note 20 FE" by mistake. Then again, this error could be more of a Freudian slip as it may indicate that such a phone is, in fact, in the works.
What Might A Galaxy Note 20 FE Look Like?
The Galaxy Note is typically Samsung's largest phone line each year and its biggest model, the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, is slightly wider than the Galaxy S20 Ultra, even though they both have 6.9-inch screens. Meanwhile, Samsung's Brazilian site lists the "Galaxy Note 20 FE" as having a 6.5-inch display, which is what the S20 Fan Edition uses. This could end up being true as 6.5 inches is a reasonably big display. However, that would end up making it the smallest device in that product line, as even the Galaxy Note 20 has a 6.7-inch screen. In contrast, the S20 FE is bigger than the S20, which has a 6.2-inch display. As for the possible resolution of a Galaxy Note 20 FE, it would probably also be similar to the S20 FE. In fact, while its lower-res than the other phones in the lineup, the Galaxy S20 FE's 120Hz HDR10+ display has the same 2400 x 1080 resolution as the Note 20. Therefore, a Galaxy Note 20 FE wouldn't lose out here, if the specs turned out to be the same.
Both the Galaxy S20 and Note 20 lines run on similar CPUs, with the S20 line using the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 and the Note 20 using the slightly faster Snapdragon 865+. So it seems reasonable to assume that a Galaxy Note 20 FE would use one of these CPUs. It would also likely ship with at least 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, as the S20 FE does. A Galaxy Note 20 FE may also include a similar camera array to that of the Galaxy S20 FE. Its main camera is a tri-lens system, consisting of 12-megapixel wide and ultra-wide-angle lenses and an 8-megapixel telephoto. This is significantly less impressive than its sibling phones, especially the Galaxy S20 Ultra with its 108-megapixel wide-angle lens, 48-megapixel periscope telephoto, and 12-megapixel ultra-wide.
As for Samsung's latest phablet line, the Galaxy Note 20 has a 64-megapixel telephoto lens, as well as 12-megapixel wide and ultra-wide, while the Note 20 Ultra has a 108-megapixel wide-angle and 12-megapixel periscope telephoto and ultra-wide-angle lenses. Therefore, to help make the phone more economical, it would make sense for a Galaxy Note 20 FE to have reduced camera specs. Ultimately, it's still unclear as to whether such a phone is actually in production, but if Samsung does ship one, it will certainly attract fans.