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Every year there is the debate of whether to upgrade or not. On the positives, you'll get a bigger screen, faster processor, 4-6 GB more RAM, more camera options, slightly bigger battery and sleeker design. However, you'd be giving up the headphone jack, have to deal with the punch hole camera, and potentially having more accidental screen presses with the all screen design.
Given the aggressive discounts, it still might be worth it for some. Will you be upgrading?
Absolutely getting it. I'll be paying for a device anyway, may as well be the latest
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absolutely freaking not. its too gimmicky for me
Yea, preordered it. 600 in trade 250 in Samsung dollars plus cashed in rewards. Looking at 260 shipped to my door. I can easily sell it for more than my note 9 unlocked.
Ordered 10+ 512 black unlocked.
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To many features of the 9 were dropped like the heart rate sensor that I use daily so for me the 10+ would be a major downgrade from my note9 512gb.
Plus the hole punch would drive me nuts.
No. It's literally a S10+ with a stylus and removed a feature. The headphone jack.
If there was a trade-in option like in the USA then I would consider, but in Sweden there are no good incentives and it's quite expensive for such a small upgrade. Maybe later if they will have some good deals for Blackfriday or christmas.
The hole in the screen is a deal breaker for me. I'm keeping my Note 9.
dugryce said:
The hole in the screen is a deal breaker for me. I'm keeping my Note 9.
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The same by me,keep the Note 9,maybe there are good customroms in the future,but not before update to Android 10.......at the moment i dont see a reason to change anything;the Note 9 is running nearly perfect....love it!
Yes! But for the first time I'll lose features, in order of personal importance: force touch button, headphone jack, hearth rate sensor.
Let's just call the Note 10 "Note10e".
Sprov said:
Yes! But for the first time I'll lose features, in order of personal importance: force touch button, headphone jack, hearth rate sensor.
Let's just call the Note 10 "Note10e".
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Most does not mention it nor care, but the iris scanner is also no more.
Not enough for me to upgrade, the freaking punch hole and the lack of a headphone jack and the heart rate sensor I used to upgrade my devices almost every year or year and a half, smartphones tech has evolved so much that I can't really see the need to upgrade so often..
Today, I had a chance to check out the Note 10 and Plus models at Best Buy. After checking it out for about 15 minutes, it felt like a purely cosmetic upgrade. Yes, it looks more sleek than the Note 9, especially in the Aura Blue color, but the reality is it ends up in a case anyways which adds bulk to the bezels. The hole punch was nearly invisible using night mode. The power button on the left is where one's index finger rests, so that change likely won't be an issue. Once the wow factor of the huge screen wore off, you realize that Samsung is basically using the same formula as the Note 9 and S10 series. Sure, it's a bit faster with the SD 855, EFS 3.0, and 12 GB RAM, but do they make a real world difference? Not really. I have a OnePlus 7 Pro as well, and the 90 Hz display combined with smoother software experience give the Note 10+ serious competition.
With 5G so sparsely available and carriers still figuring out what bands to use, I'd say the 5G model is premature. Even when 5G gains steam in 2020/2021, it's likely that the X50 modem will pale in comparison to the performance and versatility of upcoming 5G modems. As for the smaller Note 10, I can see it being popular with those coming from an S7 or S8. It is very comfortable to hold and offers good specs, though it will need to come down in price to compete with the S10/S10+.
The best summary of the situation mentioned is that the Note 9 was a phone that offered everything with no compromises. The Note 10+ offers extreme specs and gimmicky features, but gives up basics that Note 8 and Note 9 users appreciated. It is a very good looking phone with great performance, but not worth paying such a hefty price after one year with the expensive Note 9. Don't be shocked if this is deeply discounted for the holidays.
No headphone jack for a $100 more and not even a damn dongle or a 45 w charger in the box. Never paying more for less. Samsung is going the direction of apple's after mocking them for years for the same things they're doing right now. They've even removed their mocking videos from everywhere. Now, even the price is the same. Claiming that they removed the headphone jack to have space for the spen and a bigger battery. Turned out the bigger battery is only 300 mAh extra and the pen is the same size as ever. Asus managed to put a 5000 mAh battery in a phone WITH a headphone jack and two USB-C ports. Samsung is starting to cut corners to save some money on production and make more of it on sales since the phone market is basically saturated. They're freaking out because they're not selling as many phones as they used to. If they keep going on this direction, this note 9 will be the last phone I get from them even though this has been my decision even before the note 10, but now I won't even consider them.
Well for those that can afford to pay full price for a device then trade said device in I'm sure getting the 10 is a good deal. It would end up costing what a decent mid range device cost. But for most of us we are on contract..lol. For me I could care less about on screen finger print. Some will say well I don't have to pick up phone to unlock it now. Have we become so lazy that picking up your phone is that hard. For me and this is just me, I don't think the 10 is much of an upgrade. Yeah I have 2 upgrades just sitting and waiting to be used at At&t but I don't think I will waste them on the 10 when the 9 is great..sucky camera but still a power house. Don't care about the gimmicky pen gestures I'm not a blogger and most average user will not use it. I'm a simple man will never have to convert my off screen notes to word documents, what I have to say isn't that important [emoji1787]. But to each person it may be seen different. But for me it's not an upgrade. The 10 to me is a midrange device, the 10 plus is beautiful but it's just not enough to justify the price.
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Lol...I don't know maybe.
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Probably going back to a pixel phone... Tired of waiting for security updates and main updates....
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butchieboy said:
Lol...I don't know maybe.
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You WILL buy both the note 10 and the plus and that's a promise. You have every note that's ever existed, Butchie. [emoji23]
butchieboy said:
Lol...I don't know maybe.
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I will see you in the Note 10 Forums lol.
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Nop, first cuz updates....J7 pro 2017 have lastes OneUI 1.1 and we dont? Wtf sammy?
Waiting for next huawei and than i go
Ah yes, the Note 20 Ultra will be my last in a long line of Samsung phone ownership. I'm just not satisfied with this product. That's not to say it's a bad phone but there are other tempting, albeit less expensive options available nowadays. I was happier with the Note 10+. I'm not impressed with the Note 20's cameras the 108mp camera makes no noticeable difference. The large sensor is great but it tends to blur the edges of the object in focus quite frequently. I can't take a selfie without my teeth, which are white, looking like a stick of butter. Battery life is not impressive at all. Basically, there is nothing that justifies the the price I paid for this device and I wish I stuck with my Note 10+.
Fully agree.
The price tag (even if I did not pay for that phone) is insane for that device:
Camera? Lol. Quality not impressive and the 50x zoom garbage produces very nice "Pixel arts" composition. Oops sorry I think I used the word "quality" in that sentence, surely inappropriate in that context.
Battery? lol. I am barely using the phone, it hardly lasts from morning to evening, then battery almost empty
Apps? Junkware? My phone is/was full of links to paying craps from Samsung
The bulge? the weight? Recipe for disaster.
The headphones? The wireless charge? Oh wait, those are extra to be paid separately...
The fingerprint sensor on the screen? lol. Prevents me from using my phone regularly. Rubbish.
CPU oh let's remind that I don't have the same as international, I have the exynox junk.
Samsung junk to "protect" (their business) and lock your phone, so you don't remove their junkwares.
I don't see what that device has more than devices costing 25% of the asking price.
Good experience, it will save me (my own) money for future purchases.
The device is only worth it ( for me anyways ) when heavily discounted via trade in. Otherwise , there's no way in it's worth $1399 plus tax , that's for sure.
I had a brief run with a OnePlus 8 Pro, 799$ black Friday deal, and that was a better value choice over all. However, if one doesn't intend to root then it can be a rather boring device.
I heard that in another brilliant Apple like move that Sammy will not include chargers bundled with their phones.
Samsung Galaxy S21 now looks likely to come without a charger, like the iPhone 12
Samsung may follow Apple's lead
www.google.com
A Green move designed to steal more of your green... naturally.
Sammy, you've changed, but I'm not seeing rainbows... I'm seeing red.
The exynos version is a bad phone... The snapdragon is better but also doesnt worth 1400$ or €. With worldwide snapdragon for 699-799€ for the ultra would have been an amazing deal...
I'm quite happy, the IQ from the main camera is better than my Note 9 by quite a stretch, and the IQ holds up well in this camera shootout (see GSMArena's camera shootout between Mate 40 Pro, iPhone 12 pro max, Sony Xperia 1 MkII and Note 20 Ultra).
Its well built, I have the exynos version and I'm getting through 2 to 3 days between charges with 7 to 8 hrs SoT. I did debloat a bit but have all the original functionality, dont have it in 5G mode as this does eat battery (Dont have 5g here yet), use wifi 90% of time so phone data is off. I have no issues with fingerprint scanner, works well.
Jostian said:
I'm quite happy, the IQ from the main camera is better than my Note 9 by quite a stretch, and the IQ holds up well in this camera shootout (see GSMArena's camera shootout between Mate 40 Pro, iPhone 12 pro max, Sony Xperia 1 MkII and Note 20 Ultra).
Its well built, I have the exynos version and I'm getting through 2 to 3 days between charges with 7 to 8 hrs SoT. I did debloat a bit but have all the original functionality, dont have it in 5G mode as this does eat battery (Dont have 5g here yet), use wifi 90% of time so phone data is off. I have no issues with fingerprint scanner, works well.
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Which OS are you on?
Guys, did someone force you to buy it?
zazabichi said:
Guys, did someone force you to buy it?
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Samsung phones can be like punji pits, lots of concealed sharp surprises.
zazabichi said:
Guys, did someone force you to buy it?
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No, we are free to review it.
htchd2sucks said:
No, we are free to review it.
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Lol, feel the wuv
The really funny part is Samsung can't handle criticism. If you ever talked to a SK based Samsung rep you'll see what I mean. I enjoy drilling into them immensely. Some of that is cultural and the rest is poor training.
They don't interface well with irate Westerners
Tough.
blackhawk said:
Lol, feel the wuv
The really funny part is Samsung can't handle criticism. If you ever talked to a SK based Samsung rep you'll see what I mean. I enjoy drilling into them immensely. Some of that is cultural and the rest is poor training.
They don't interface well with irate Westerners
Tough.
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So in a nutshell , if one were politely show them an issue they'd get offended ?
Limeybastard said:
So in a nutshell , if one were politely show them an issue they'd get offended ?
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Well politely to them would be to beat around the bush and never get anything resolved or escalated. If you consider the same rep asking you the same questions 2 even 3 times then yes, yes it's a quit pleasant and polite conversation.
However if on the other hand you tend to be assertive like me, it's the stuff of nightmares for a mealy mouth SK rep. You can feel their bp rising; that's the most satisfaction you're likely to get.
I would rather talk to the wall...
Samsung has the worst customer support of any large corporation I have dealt with extensively.
Worse than Toshiba even Sony... Samsung is that bad, #10.
blackhawk said:
Well politely to them would be to beat around the bush and never get anything resolved or escalated. If you consider the same rep asking you the same questions 2 even 3 times then yes, yes it's a quit pleasant and polite conversation.
However if on the other hand you tend to be assertive like me, it's the stuff of nightmares for a mealy mouth SK rep. You can feel their bp rising; that's the most satisfaction you're likely to get.
I would rather talk to the wall...
Samsung has the worst customer support of any large corporation I have dealt with extensively.
Worse than Toshiba even Sony... Samsung is that bad, #10.
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For some strange reason I can believe that.
Limeybastard said:
For some strange reason I can believe that.
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Nothing like trying it yourself... drive right in, the water is great, pay no never mind to the jellyfish.
Denon on the other hand is an absolute pleasure to deal with; superb customer service.
blackhawk said:
Nothing like trying it yourself... drive right in, the water is great, pay no never mind to the jellyfish.
Denon on the other hand is an absolute pleasure to deal with; superb customer service.
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Best customer services that I ever recall was ironically an american firm called Cerwin Vega, mind you this was back in the mid 90s and in the UK. Their UK senior representative came to my home to check out an issue with my AT-100 speakers. Lol
Limeybastard said:
Best customer services that I ever recall was ironically an american firm called Cerwin Vega, mind you this was back in the mid 90s and in the UK. Their UK senior representative came to my home to check out an issue with my AT-100 speakers. Lol
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"Loud is beautiful… if it's clean"
blackhawk said:
"Loud is beautiful… if it's clean"
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Clean it wasn't
I've had the note 9, note 10+, and now the note 20 ultra. I absolutely loved the note 10+ and wish I would of never traded it in for the note 20 ultra piece of dung. What a pile of junk rolled into a barely bronze metal container. I've had many smartphones and loved my Xiaomi phones. What happened with the note 20 ultra?
Yes their customer service is wretched! I needed damage repaired on my S6 tablet. I bought the accidental damage protection plan with my tablet on Shop Samsung's website. Samsung took almost 3 weeks to fix it and kept saying I had not paid for accidental damage coverage. Needless to say after spending a stupid amount of time 2 to 3 times a week on the phone I finally got it covered and got it back only to find it now glitches and crashes and has horrible battery life now. Yay!
walkrye said:
I've had the note 9, note 10+, and now the note 20 ultra. I absolutely loved the note 10+ and wish I would of never traded it in for the note 20 ultra piece of dung. What a pile of junk rolled into a barely bronze metal container. I've had many smartphones and loved my Xiaomi phones. What happened with the note 20 ultra?
Yes their customer service is wretched! I needed damage repaired on my S6 tablet. I bought the accidental damage protection plan with my tablet on Shop Samsung's website. Samsung took almost 3 weeks to fix it and kept saying I had not paid for accidental damage coverage. Needless to say after spending a stupid amount of time 2 to 3 times a week on the phone I finally got it covered and got it back only to find it now glitches and crashes and has horrible battery life now. Yay!
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Fo you have the exynos? The snapdragon is way better... No heating, better battery, better mobile reception...
Where I live they are offering a free Galaxy Buds Pro for anyone who pre-orders the S21 Ultra during this week. I am still waiting for comprehensive reviews and comparisons between the SD 888 and Exynos 2100.
Is the Galaxy Buds Pro worth it and risking with pre-ordering right now?
Depending on where you're based, you have a return window. The pre-order deal & trade in value was really good so I've traded in my S10+.
In the UK it's 28 days, and you can let them know on the 28th day that you intend to return, doesn't have to be in their hand by that point. Just don't send your trade-in until you're sure you don't want to return the ultra. obviously you have to return the buds as well.
Whilst reviews are a good indication, its always best to use the phone and see how you feel, from what I've seen so far, there is still a gap but it's much smaller than last year. There aren't many great phones available that aren't Chinese branded ( OnePlus ) which I'm trying to avoid for ethical reasons, so my choices are limited, fingers crossed the exynos delivers!
Here it is difficult to return, I might be able to do so but not easy.
I currently have a OnePlus 6, so even if the Exynos is slower than the SD 888, it is still better than the current SD845, but I want to be sure the Exynos is good, last year it was a terrible choice with overheating and worst battery.
Seems delivery times are starting to lengthen, Sunday now in the UK so hurry up!
Batfink33 said:
Seems delivery times are starting to lengthen, Sunday now in the UK so hurry up!
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I am not in a hurry to get the smartphone itself, I can wait, but if the Galaxy Buds Pro are worth it and I can get them for free if I preorder now then I will preorder.
Where are you based? Double check the Samsung website and see what they say, but obviously only go ahead if you're comfortable. You can get comparable if not better earbuds for less than the RRP of the pros so don't risk it if you aren't comfortable! You'd be able to buy say the one plus 9 pro and headphones of your choice for less than the ultra price
Fyi I've seen a pc mark battery test that claimed around 12 hours for the sd888 and 10.25 for the Exynos, but no idea how legit it was (was in Chinese).
mtm1401 said:
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So in all fairness, I did go back and look at the speed test video he did between the two and noticed a few things
Looks like different people kicking off the tests (based on the table they are on and skin colour).
SD is in aeroplane mode and Exynos is connected to cellular but no wifi/mobile data.
Resolutions are very slightly different, but both look like they are in FHD, but the SD has a slightly lower resolution as the navigation bar is different and makes the screen slightly smaller. QHD makes a minimal difference to battery life unless you're doing something GPU intensive.
In all fairness, I've seen mixed reviews of both chips, but no idea how people are setting up their phones (always do a clean install!!!). Have to wait and see how it performs when the phone arrives.
I've hoisted a number of issues regarding Samsung recently but I've finally come to realize the S21 Ultra is overall the best device at this time, for me anyway. I dropped close to the $1,400.00 USD for the 512GB variant from Hong Kong. Cost is a factor but not my biggest issue, money is only a problem when you don't have any...
I hate the fact Samsung eliminated Micro SD's since for my usage 256GB won't cut it. I likely would have opted for a US Branded device even suffering with the bloatware but the largest storage any of the Service Providers offer is 256GB. I have well over that amount on my current device and I won't consider Cloud Storage. I'm pretty sure a number of Cloud Storage Providers have already been hacked and it's just a matter of time before news of a large data breach has occurred. FYI, for those who are looking for the Ultra 512GB the supply is drying up with only a handful of vendors stocking the device, all overseas.
The other issue is the box of a camera module. It's an improvement over the S20 Ultra but it's still there. It would seem most flagship devices are struggling with the concept due to the competitive nature of adding more cameras as feature enhancements but I'm pretty sure I'll never use all of them. I have a photographer background so my first option when I want some great snaps is a dedicated camera, not my phone.
I gave some thought to acquiring the Note 20 Ultra since this model hasn't ditched the SD Card and it's HK Variant is around $400.00 less but theres a significant drop off in performance between the Notes 865 7nm and the Ultras 888 5nm SoC, plus I'd be forced to haul around the S-Pen which I would never use. I also strongly considered the Z Fold 3 but based of functionality I can't reconcile the value, just not enough features for the price. I also considered Samsung's A72. It's got a lot going for it at a third of the price but it looks like a $500.00 smartphone. Oh well!
The other options were holding out for the iPhone 14 or the Pixel 6. Even though they each have their own individual upsides from the leaks I've seen neither have compelled me to generate real interest. I've been with Galaxy devices for a number of years so I guess I'm just not ready to throw in the towel quite yet.
That pretty much sums it up, I think I've vented enough. I understand there's no such thing as a perfect smartphone so I'm hoping all of the other wonderful features this device offers helps me overlook the aforementioned issues. At least I know my wife will be happy, she'll be the proud owner of an awesome S10 Plus!
Well, there's no one perfect phone for everyone, I guess. It's just about what compromises you're willing to live with.
Welcome to the fold brother!
I currently have and use a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. I love the phone but it feel it's time to upgrade and I'll add this S20 to my pile of phones to play with. So far I like the S21 Ultra better because of the build quality over the S20 Ultra. I like the metal around the camera lens over the glass of the S20 Ultra. I also like the bigger fingerprint scanner behind the screen. Mine bugs out occasionally and can be irritating. The screen is phenomenal on the S20 Ultra and even better on the S21 Ultra. So should I upgrade or wait for an S22 Ultra? Or should I branch away from Samsung? I was a long time HTC user and switched fully to Samsung back at the release of the Galaxy Note 5. I've used and played with many Nexus, Motorola, OnePlus, LG and other phones and I'm stuck on Samsung. Hell I even went back to an iPhone XS Max because my family all has them, and let me tell you, that didn't last long. So I'm just wanting your guys opinions, worth the upgrade now? Wait? Branch away?
Not sure I'd upgrade but my upgrade span is normally two years. But the facts are that the camera is far better, the chipset is far better (regardless of region), it has S-pen support, the screen is better and it looks better.
If you think that's worth the price then go for it.
Check the video below for a more in depth comparison.
Beefheart said:
Not sure I'd upgrade but my upgrade span is normally two years. But the facts are that the camera is far better, the chipset is far better (regardless of region), it has S-pen support, the screen is better and it looks better.
If you think that's worth the price then go for it.
Check the video below for a more in depth comparison.
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I do agree that it's a better handset all around. I love my S20, but I hate it at the same time with all of its quirks. I guess I haven't looked yet, but I'm sure they are planning the S22 very soon, and it might be worth me waiting for that. I've just had small minuscule issues with my S20 Ultra, like currently waiting on my replacement since my screen quit entirely as well as all the rear camera sensors. I'm using my spare Galaxy A20 that was brand new in the box until my new S20 Ultra gets here. This A20 is super disappointing in terms of performance so I'm trying to not use it as much as I dont have to.
KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
I currently have and use a Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra. I love the phone but it feel it's time to upgrade and I'll add this S20 to my pile of phones to play with. So far I like the S21 Ultra better because of the build quality over the S20 Ultra. I like the metal around the camera lens over the glass of the S20 Ultra. I also like the bigger fingerprint scanner behind the screen. Mine bugs out occasionally and can be irritating. The screen is phenomenal on the S20 Ultra and even better on the S21 Ultra. So should I upgrade or wait for an S22 Ultra? Or should I branch away from Samsung? I was a long time HTC user and switched fully to Samsung back at the release of the Galaxy Note 5. I've used and played with many Nexus, Motorola, OnePlus, LG and other phones and I'm stuck on Samsung. Hell I even went back to an iPhone XS Max because my family all has them, and let me tell you, that didn't last long. So I'm just wanting your guys opinions, worth the upgrade now? Wait? Branch away?
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It's not going to be a night and day differnce. Cameras are definitely better and focus issues are fixed. Screen is only a minor upgrade in terms of quality - unless you want to leverage the new processor to run it a WQHD+ at adaptive refresh rate. Even that is barely discernible against the FHD+ with VRR. At least to my eyes.
Is it worth it monetarily? No. It doesn't make any financial sense dropping that kind of money every year on a handset. THe S21U is definitely better than the S20U, but not $1000 better
Is it worth it as a shiny new toy for playing around (provided money isn't that big a concern for you)? Hell, yeah.
Depends how you define "worth" and what your yearly budget is for gadgets.
enigmaamit said:
It's not going to be a night and day differnce. Cameras are definitely better and focus issues are fixed. Screen is only a minor upgrade in terms of quality - unless you want to leverage the new processor to run it a WQHD+ at adaptive refresh rate. Even that is barely discernible against the FHD+ with VRR. At least to my eyes.
Is it worth it monetarily? No. It doesn't make any financial sense dropping that kind of money every year on a handset. THe S21U is definitely better than the S20U, but not $1000 better
Is it worth it as a shiny new toy for playing around (provided money isn't that big a concern for you)? Hell, yeah.
Depends how you define "worth" and what your yearly budget is for gadgets.
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Personally I don't feel its worth dropping $1,000 every year, maybe every 2, sometimes 3 years. I actually paid $1,500 for my S20 Ultra right when it came out. I've just only started to get bored of it or irritated with little issues. But really, I think I'll wait it through and get the next Galaxy that jumps out ahead of competition in relation to specs. They usually wait to see what Apple will do, and try and get a couple steps ahead of them, not just 1 or the same. Sadly enough, Apple is competing side by side now with their new chips and they aren't doing too bad. I'm kind of wanting to try the 12 Pro Max but that would go against my religion.
KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
Personally I don't feel its worth dropping $1,000 every year, maybe every 2, sometimes 3 years. I actually paid $1,500 for my S20 Ultra right when it came out. I've just only started to get bored of it or irritated with little issues. But really, I think I'll wait it through and get the next Galaxy that jumps out ahead of competition in relation to specs. They usually wait to see what Apple will do, and try and get a couple steps ahead of them, not just 1 or the same. Sadly enough, Apple is competing side by side now with their new chips and they aren't doing too bad. I'm kind of wanting to try the 12 Pro Max but that would go against my religion.
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I think it's a sensible decision to wait for the next galaxy, especially since you have a "relatively" recent device already. Who knows, you may fall for the Z Fold 3 ?
Don't wait for Samsung to copy Apple too much though.... next thing you know, they'll stop including the phone in the box
enigmaamit said:
I think it's a sensible decision to wait for the next galaxy, especially since you have a "relatively" recent device already. Who knows, you may fall for the Z Fold 3 ?
Don't wait for Samsung to copy Apple too much though.... next thing you know, they'll stop including the phone in the box
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I very well could fall for the Z Fold 3, but who knows, I really am not sure I like the folding or flipping phones. I tried that a few times, even sliders, and they just weren't for me. I had every generation of Motorola Droid with the slider since first introduced, actually still have them lol, but the slider I wasn't a fan of. I had a Palm Pre Plus, and I had a Kyocera Echo. Cool concept and way ahead of it's time in 2013/2014, but was glitchy and cheap. I like a solid build. Probably the only flipping or sliding I liked was the original Motorola Razr V3m/or VE20. The Palm slider was nice though.
And you're not wrong on the Apple part . Thanks for the laugh. I think in terms of new phones, Samsung has had the cat in the bag for a long time.
IMHO the decision to upgrade or not comes down to value. By the time the S22 is released the S21 will be a better value and from rumors online it doesn't look as though the S22 Ultra (or whatever it's labeled) will have enough improvements to justify the additional cost. I'm thinking Samsung released the S21 Ultra earlier than previous devices because the S20 Ultra had some issues and it didn't generate sales volume they anticipated. As far as the Fold goes I see only one advantage, it can fold for a larger display. When one compares features with the S21 Ultra it's nowhere near the value especially if the focus is on features. I kinda feel sorry for users who dropped a bundle of money for the S20 Ultra, it's a bit of a tweener who's features were eclipsed in a significant way by the S21 Ultra.
varcor said:
IMHO the decision to upgrade or not comes down to value. By the time the S22 is released the S21 will be a better value and from rumors online it doesn't look as though the S22 Ultra (or whatever it's labeled) will have enough improvements to justify the additional cost. I'm thinking Samsung released the S21 Ultra earlier than previous devices because the S20 Ultra had some issues and it didn't generate sales volume they anticipated. As far as the Fold goes I see only one advantage, it can fold. When one compares features with the S21 Ultra it's nowhere near the value especially if the focus is on features. I kinda feel sorry for users who dropped a bundle of money for the S20 Ultra, it's a bit of a tweener who's features were eclipsed in a significant way by the S21 Ultra.
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I couldn't agree more. Now the S20 Ultra is a significantly better phone than the iPhone XS Max I used shortly before it, and the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge I was using before the iPhone. I had the Galaxy S8+ before going back to the S7 Edge, but that phone the first day I got it, it was dropped not even 3 feet onto a carpeted floor and cracked the screen. I immediately sent in for a replacement and not even 6 months of using it, it died. So I dug the trusty S7 Edge out of my drawer and put it back to use.
I did overspend on the S20 Ultra sitting back and looking at it now because I wanted the newest greatest phone and I was eligible for the upgrade, so I just did it. It's little issues with the fingerprint scanner are definitely annoying and the camera was good, but not what I thought it was shook up to be. I also have issues randomly dropping service, even in full bar areas. It games nicely, and the specs are great. I hate that I spent the money I did to get the lower RAM/storage version. But they didnt have a 256 or 512gb in stock. Next one I get will definitely be a 512gb with the highest RAM option. Granted this phone has never slowed down with a bunch of apps, I just ran out of 128gb faster than I thought I would.
KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
I couldn't agree more. Now the S20 Ultra is a significantly better phone than the iPhone XS Max I used shortly before it, and the Samsung Galaxy S7 Edge I was using before the iPhone. I had the Galaxy S8+ before going back to the S7 Edge, but that phone the first day I got it, it was dropped not even 3 feet onto a carpeted floor and cracked the screen. I immediately sent in for a replacement and not even 6 months of using it, it died. So I dug the trusty S7 Edge out of my drawer and put it back to use.
I did overspend on the S20 Ultra sitting back and looking at it now because I wanted the newest greatest phone and I was eligible for the upgrade, so I just did it. It's little issues with the fingerprint scanner are definitely annoying and the camera was good, but not what I thought it was shook up to be. I also have issues randomly dropping service, even in full bar areas. It games nicely, and the specs are great. I hate that I spent the money I did to get the lower RAM/storage version. But they didnt have a 256 or 512gb in stock. Next one I get will definitely be a 512gb with the highest RAM option. Granted this phone has never slowed down with a bunch of apps, I just ran out of 128gb faster than I thought I would.
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Click to collapse
Agreed, with no MicroSD available some users like myself understand the 256GB (about 200GB after system use is deducted) isn't enough. Lots of users are comfortable with this available internal storage for their purposes and utilize external storage devices to compensate but I'm not one of them. I have zero faith in Cloud Storage for privacy and security concerns.
Since you're in the US, if you decide on acquiring a 512GB device the Branded Service Provider's have no 512GB units available, not sure if some of them ever did offer it. Then that leaves you with a couple of options, the Snapdragon or Exynos Global variants. Given a choice I prefer the Snapdragon 888 SoC.
I opted for the Hong Kong (CSC - TGY) 512GB device. In addition to the largest internal storage it offers no carrier bloatware, dual sim's, unlocked bootloader and faster OTA's. There are some downsides as well. It's more expensive since there's no trade-in promotion, so you'd need to sell the S20 Ultra private party if you don't want to add it to your other older units. There is a 1 year warranty but that requires it be shipped back to the original retailer. That didn't bother me since I've never had repair issues with any of my previous Galaxy devices. Lastly, certain Branded Carrier Call Features like 5G and Carrier Aggregation may not work. My device does enable 4G LTE, WI-FI Calling which are sufficient for my usage. My S9+, S10 Plus were Hong Kong variants as well and I had no issues other than what I've already shared.
A Carrier Branded device may be the best value for you based on overall costs but the internal storage constraints killed it for me, 200GB just doesn't cut it. With my S10 Plus it made sense to buy the 128GB variant at a lower price and drop in the MicroSD, problem solved! If the S21 Ultra had external memory I would have done the same workaround and saved about $400 USD. I like the S21 Ultra alot, it's the best device available IMHO, if it had MicroSD I'd LOVE IT!
varcor said:
Agreed, with no MicroSD available some users like myself understand the 256GB (about 200GB after system use is deducted) isn't enough. Lots of users are comfortable with this available internal storage for their purposes and utilize external storage devices to compensate but I'm not one of them. I have zero faith in Cloud Storage for privacy and security concerns.
Since you're in the US, if you decide on acquiring a 512GB device the Branded Service Provider's have no 512GB units available, not sure if some of them ever did offer it. Then that leaves you with a couple of options, the Snapdragon or Exynos Global variants. Given a choice I prefer the Snapdragon 888 SoC.
I opted for the Hong Kong (CSC - TGY) 512GB device. In addition to the largest internal storage it offers no carrier bloatware, dual sim's, unlocked bootloader and faster OTA's. There are some downsides as well. It's more expensive since there's no trade-in promotion, so you'd need to sell the S20 Ultra private party if you don't want to add it to your other older units. There is a 1 year warranty but that requires it be shipped back to the original retailer. That didn't bother me since I've never had repair issues with any of my previous Galaxy devices. Lastly, certain Branded Carrier Call Features like 5G and Carrier Aggregation may not work. My device does enable 4G LTE, WI-FI Calling which are sufficient for my usage. My S9+, S10 Plus were Hong Kong variants as well and I had no issues other than what I've already shared.
A Carrier Branded device may be the best value for you based on overall costs but the internal storage constraints killed it for me, 200GB just doesn't cut it. With my S10 Plus it made sense to buy the 128GB variant at a lower price and drop in the MicroSD, problem solved! If the S21 Ultra had external memory I would have done the same workaround and saved about $400 USD. I like the S21 Ultra alot, it's the best device available IMHO, if it had MicroSD I'd LOVE IT!
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Click to collapse
Oh my, I didn't even pay attention to them not including a MicroSD. They did that in the S8 but only the S8, and that's not okay with me. I have a 512gb SD I transfer from phone to phone for photos and file management. That's not going to cut it for me relying strictly on internal storage. Although I seen they make a type C to micro SD adapter that's inexpensive and works well, so I guess if I do upgrade I could do that. But, idk, I'm liking the Note 20 Ultra right now as well.
You should want an SD card.
Samsung's are the most customizable stock Androids on the planet... if you haven't noticed.
The only thing I would consider at this time personally is the Note 20 U or another Note 10+ 512gb Snapdragon variant. I'll wait another year to see if Samsung and Android can get recover from their high G flat spin.
Otherwise I'll default to my former choices. My preferred OS is still Pie and the 10+ is a solid, fast, stable performer. Decisions, decisions...
Samsung's offerings this year so far are weak. Android 11 is looking like another Vista.
That's 2 strikes and the 3rd strike be making the mistake of buying it
blackhawk said:
You should want an SD card.
Samsung's are the most customizable stock Androids on the planet... if you haven't noticed.
The only thing I would consider at this time personally is the Note 20 U or another Note 10+ 512gb Snapdragon variant. I'll wait another year to see if Samsung and Android can get recover from their high G flat spin.
Otherwise I'll default to my former choices. My preferred OS is still Pie and the 10+ is a solid, fast, stable performer. Decisions, decisions...
Samsung's offerings this year so far are weak. Android 11 is looking like another Vista.
That's 2 strikes and the 3rd strike be making the mistake of buying it
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Click to collapse
I haven't had any issues with Android 11 as of yet, there just wasn't much added. Having no SD Card is a downside for me. I do love how customizable Samsungs are right out of the box. I'll probably get a Note 20 Ultra because why not. I'd get the largest variant available to me.
KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
I haven't had any issues with Android 11 as of yet, there just wasn't much added. Having no SD Card is a downside for me. I do love how customizable Samsungs are right out of the box. I'll probably get a Note 20 Ultra because why not. I'd get the largest variant available to me.
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Click to collapse
The 20U is a solid platform. Get a good case before you start using it. They are beautiful slippery fish.
The Notes wuv to corner hit and face plant when dropped. The spen corner seems to be their favorite corner to land on
I use the Zizo Bolt and the Gorilla IQ Sheild screen protector. Zero damage in 1.5+ years in spite of nearly a dozen drops from 2-4 feet onto concrete.
A SD card allows you to have a data drive.
All critical data goes here including everything you need to do a full reload including installable app copies. No Playstore needed. This drive is then redundantly backed up to at least 2 hdds that are physically and electronically isolated from each other. Use a V30 rated card or higher.
Lexar's work right out of the box.
The internal memory regardless of its size is the OS drive. Loaded apps and the temporary DCIM and download* folders go here.
You now have a dual drive 1+tb computer in your hand
This is how my 10+ is set up. It runs like a bat out of hell. Current load is over a year old, still running fast and stable. A complete reload takes about 2 hours to set it back up, no internet or PC required.
*transferred to data drive once vetted
blackhawk said:
The 20U is a solid platform. Get a good case before you start using it. They are beautiful slippery fish.
The Notes wuv to corner hit and face plant when dropped. The spen corner seems to be their favorite corner to land on
I use the Zizo Bolt and the Gorilla IQ Sheild screen protector. Zero damage in 1.5+ years in spite of nearly a dozen drops from 2-4 feet onto concrete.
A SD card allows you to have a data drive.
All critical data goes here including everything you need to do a full reload including installable app copies. No Playstore needed. This drive is then redundantly backed up to at least 2 hdds that are physically and electronically isolated from each other. Use a V30 rated card or higher.
Lexar's work right out of the box.
The internal memory regardless of its size is the OS drive. Loaded apps and the temporary DCIM and download* folders go here.
You now have a dual drive 1+tb computer in your hand
This is how my 10+ is set up. It runs like a bat out of hell. Current load is over a year old, still running fast and stable. A complete reload takes about 2 hours to set it back up, no internet or PC required.
*transferred to data drive once vetted
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How big is your SD Card? I'm considering ordering a 1TB card and transferring everything over. I use my phone for editing video, photos, rendering, office, receipts etc. Which is why I haven't played with its OS and such because it just works. I have a 256gb that's nearly full. I'll get a note 20 U and buy a 1tb card and leave my 256gb in my S20 U.
KaydenMcCurdyTech said:
How big is your SD Card? I'm considering ordering a 1TB card and transferring everything over. I use my phone for editing video, photos, rendering, office, receipts etc. Which is why I haven't played with its OS and such because it just works. I have a 256gb that's nearly full. I'll get a note 20 U and buy a 1tb card and leave my 256gb in my S20 U.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a 512gb Lexar V30 card ($65) and currently using about 340gb.
Thinking about upgrading to a 1tb V30 card but they aren't cheap ($180-240).
The V30 is fast enough to stream video and wav files from with no issues. The Lexar writes around a [email protected]
The 20U has a faster bus than the 10+ so it may benefit from a faster card. Not sure as it doesn't apply to me and I haven't pursued it; V30 is fast enough for what I need.
If you have a large database you'll chew up one 1tb fast. My current database is about 1.5tb; really I like to see dual SD card slots
blackhawk said:
I have a 512gb Lexar V30 card ($65) and currently using about 340gb.
Thinking about upgrading to a 1tb V30 card but they aren't cheap ($180-240).
The V30 is fast enough to stream video and wav files from with no issues. The Lexar writes around a [email protected]
The 20U has a faster bus than the 10+ so it may benefit from a faster card. Not sure as it doesn't apply to me and I haven't pursued it; V30 is fast enough for what I need.
If you have a large database you'll chew up one 1tb fast. My current database is about 1.5tb; really I like to see dual SD card slots
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Now theres an idea I can get behind! I have a large database for sure. I sort everything in folders and label everything etc. My phone is my computer lol. I even run my GoPro through my phone to edit and upload video. I would love to see dual SD Cards someday. Maybe even faster cards as well. Phone already are coming out with 16gb of RAM, there is no reason they couldn't do dual storage cards. Actually I know it's possible because I have my SD card in my s20U and I use a USB c to micro USB to my S7 edge with another SD card in it to transfer data, and I set the S7 edge up as a storage drive on my s20U. So they just need to do it already. I think Nvidia needs to try and develop another mobile GPU that's insane and Samung needs to build a media based work usable phone. Like bring back the Galaxy Mega with some decent specs instead of garbage. Use a 120hz OLED panel, like 5.5-6 inches, with a 500+ pixel density, dual SIM, dual SD card, nvidia GPU, best 8 core Snapdragon, 16-20gb ram, s pen, amazing cameras front and rear and just have it blow away the competition. I'd spend 1500 on that all day. That phone would appeal to a fair amount of people. The galaxy Mega didnt sell well along side the note series because they limited it to a single carrier in the US, the specs were ehh at best, the screen was trash and no SPen support.
The Note held a niche until the battery drama and the S Series increased the size of the display. Samsung axed it knowing sales volume would be limited and it would directly compete with the S Series. It's a good device but shaded compared to the S21 Ultra. SoC, CPU, battery, cameras, bluetooth and display resolution. It's less expensive and still offers MicroSD but other than that it's second fiddle. At least you'll have the last of a dying breed. If I were to weight value for the Note 20 Ultra it would be against the A72 at half the price, not the S21 Ultra.
varcor said:
The Note held a niche until the battery drama and the S Series increased the size of the display. Samsung axed it knowing sales volume would be limited and it would directly compete with the S Series. It's a good device but shaded compared to the S21 Ultra. SoC, CPU, battery, cameras, bluetooth and display resolution. It's less expensive and still offers MicroSD but other than that it's second fiddle. At least you'll have the last of a dying breed.
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Click to collapse
True, I would. But it's pretty comparable with my current S20U except for camera and so forth but still a great device. I've been thinking that's what I'll do instead of the s21U. I'd like to not step away from Samsung. Who knows, if dont like the Note, then I might check out the Z fold. I just know I won't like it though.
varcor said:
The Note held a niche until the battery drama and the S Series increased the size of the display. Samsung axed it knowing sales volume would be limited and it would directly compete with the S Series. It's a good device but shaded compared to the S21 Ultra. SoC, CPU, battery, cameras, bluetooth and display resolution. It's less expensive and still offers MicroSD but other than that it's second fiddle. At least you'll have the last of a dying breed. If I were to weight value for the Note 20 Ultra it would be against the A72 at half the price, not the S21 Ultra.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The rounded display corners suck. In pictures they don't seem bad but in person they look horrible compared to the modern Notes. The colors and gamma of the 10+ are spot on. The display is one of a kind and just drop dead gorgeous. I stream vids constantly on mine.
The 12 gb ram variant of the 10+ or 16gb for the 20U are needed for a power user. The Snapdragon variant is the most desirable but difficult to root.
Battery excursions were a one shot deal although any Li can fail at any time especially when degraded.
The intergrated spen can't be replaced and even though I don't use it a lot, when I need it, I need.
As I learned battery and the C port PCB are relatively easy to replace once you know the tricks. Not near as bad as the reviews rate it.
A case is mandatory or it will get destroyed... sooner or latter.
If you can swing it and are tech savvy, get a Note.
As for being dead, doubtful. Sammy loves to play that to the hilt.
Samsung needs to rethink what their customer base wants rather than dictate what they can have. If Sammy fails to do this or fidgets like LG, they will suffer badly... if you can't rock it, somebody will.
But hey, how much can you expect from a rabid box of gerbils anyway?