Samsung Galaxy Note 20 could have a new chipset but a disappointing screen

Samsung Galaxy Note 10
The Galaxy Note 20 could have some key upgrades over the Note 10 (above) (Image credit: Future)

One of the big question marks hanging over the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 range is whether the phones will use the Snapdragon 865 chipset (like the Samsung Galaxy S20 range), or a newer Snapdragon 865 Plus one. But the latest leak suggests they will indeed get an upgrade.

That latter chipset hasn’t actually been announced yet, and there’s disagreement on whether or not it even exists, but according to @UniverseIce (a leaker with a good track record) the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 range will indeed use the Snapdragon 865 Plus. As, apparently, will the Samsung Galaxy Fold 2, Samsung Galaxy Tab S7 range, and Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 5G.

It’s worth noting however that even if this claim is right, Samsung doesn’t usually equip its flagships with Snapdragon chipsets in all regions. Rather, the US will probably get the Snapdragon 865 Plus, while most other regions get either an Exynos 990 (like the Galaxy S20 range) or an upgraded Exynos 992.

Still, the potential move to a Snapdragon 865 Plus in some regions is positive news, but it’s paired with some less positive news, as @UniverseIce claimed in a separate tweet that they’re “not optimistic” about the Galaxy Note 20 range offering a 120Hz refresh rate paired with a QHD+ resolution.

With the Samsung Galaxy S20 range you could have one or other of those things, but not both at the same time, and it sounds like the same may be true of the Galaxy Note 20 range, which would be all the more disappointing when phones like the OnePlus 8 Pro do offer both at once.

However, this is just a rumor for now, so we’d take it with a pinch of salt, and in one final piece of good news the same source claims that Samsung has “completely solved the camera focusing problem” in the Galaxy Note 20 range.

This presumably refers to an issue where users found the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra’s 108MP camera would focus slower and generally worse than the 12MP main snappers offered by the rest of the S20 range. @UniverseIce doesn’t say how this has been fixed on the Note 20, but if true then it should be good news in any case.

We should find out how true any of this is in August, as that’s when we’re expecting the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 range to launch.

Via GSMArena

James Rogerson

James is a freelance phones, tablets and wearables writer and sub-editor at TechRadar. He has a love for everything ‘smart’, from watches to lights, and can often be found arguing with AI assistants or drowning in the latest apps. James also contributes to 3G.co.uk, 4G.co.uk and 5G.co.uk and has written for T3, Digital Camera World, Clarity Media and others, with work on the web, in print and on TV.

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