6 min read
September 9, 2020
*not a paid sponsor or review*
Every couple of years, two to three years, I look to upgrade my phone. Every time I do I always say I am going to leave Samsung, but every time they draw me back in with their features. I recently just got the Samsung Note 20 Ultra. This will be a basic review. I will include some links to more detailed reviews.
I have been using the phone since it was released, yes I preordered it along with a case and received both on the day the phone was released. Like a child at Christmas, I quickly open both and put the phone in its new home. The cause I got was the rugged case with the stand, Note 20 Ultra Rugged Case.
With the phone in its new home, I quickly switched and activated it. I will start with this the Samsung sync app is quick and easy. With everything switched over, I put my old S9+ up incase something didn't transfer. For the most part, there have only been a couple of things, and most of them once I log in everything syncs and we are good to go.
The phone itself is great, and with the price tag, it better be. There are some features I miss, but from a business, I understand why they made the change. However, Samsung if you read this please bring back the IR-blaster. I also do miss the health sensors (HRM) that I did have on my S9+. I did not use it a lot but it was nice to use when I did. I understand I could get a watch, again Samsung I would enjoy reviewing the new Watch3, which has those features built-in.
General using the phone I would say I do not feel a large update from going from my S9+ to the Note 20 Ultra. There are differences, you can tell things do just run smoother, and the screen itself is sharper. The main feature changes I am really torn on. So the fingerprint reader is under the screen, it is great to see that technology in use. The problem I would say is not its function, I would say it works well 90% of the time. The time it doesn't work is probably more on me than the phone. So in previous generations, you knew all the time exactly where the reader was. If the screen is off there is no indication of where the reader is. So then if you tap the screen to turn it on there is a delay that just feels on the long side, granted it's not that long just feels long when compared to other features, and long when you can press the button on the side and get almost instant gratification. Once the screen is on you can easily see where to put your finger. Sometimes I do have issues and have to do it 2 or 3 times but mostly it works the first time.
I did just use the pen today. I have to say I am overall impressed. The writing was smoother than I remember on my last note phone, and once I go into meetings really see how I will enjoy taking notes on my phone again. The air gestures, I can see how could be useful but don't feel natural. It would be really nice if you could hold the button down and then the movements of the pen would appear on the phone. So you could almost use it as a smart whiteboard.
The main reason I keep going back to Samsung is the camera. They have a good camera. I keep wanting to get a mirrorless DSLR from Sony, but the improvements in the phone camera I find that most things the camera is more than enough. The camera on the ultra is great. I will share some pictures below, some close-ups of a coke can, Jeffery Star makeup, and some pictures of the moon. If Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Company, sees this or Jeffery Star, , if there is a way to be sponsored by you my wife would love that. I will also add there has been some talk around the camera bump. It is a significate bump, but do you use a phone without a case? As soon as you put it in a case it creates a flush surface and no longer is an issue.
The images below are full res mostly taken at the full 108mp, they are all larger than 5 mb each.
The images below are full res mostly taken at the full 108mp, they are all larger than 5 mb each.
The last big change is the front-facing camera not having a notch, just being a punch hole in the screen, which on the ultra really isn't that bad. When the screen is on its noticeable, but in an area typically dead space. When in portrait mode that top section is the notification section. Then when you rotate the phone because of the display ratio that section becomes dark, and you do not really notice it. There is a setting that is designed to try to hide the camera. It doesn't hide it, it just puts a black bar at the top of the screen so the camera blends in. It works, personally I do not like the black bar, I prefer the edge to edge display.
Overall, the phone is a great phone. I cannot compare it to the plan Note 20. For me, the main reason I got the ultra was I wanted the upgraded camera. The main reason I got the note was for the pen. If the rumors that are flying around are true the next-gen fold will be interesting.