For the fans, this one! Or for students in chemistry with a penchant for iron alloys? This model phone isn’t ‘lite,’ that is for sure. This FE is the FE 5G (or Fan Edition) Galaxy S20. To hit a lower price point, the newest member of the S20 family comes with specific spec improvements, while also keeping significant parts of applying for the S-series badge.
The high-end chipset is just one of those, and it’s a good thing to explain that not all FEs are still the same – there is a 5G-capable and an LTE-capped variant. For some parts of the world having the Exynos 990, the 4G-only variant meets the familiar geographic distinction, whereas others get their FEs fitted with the Snapdragon 865.
The 5G edition, on the other hand, is Snapdragon-only this time no matter the region. It’s this edition we’re reviewing, but for the rest of this article, we could be removing the ‘5G’ when referring to the handset.
The Fan Version features a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED display, positioned here between S20 and S20+ in terms of screen size. This one is not compatible with HDR10+ and has a FullHD resolution compared to its QHD brethren, but Samsung retained the refresh rate of 120Hz.
It will retain the S20s key big-sensor 12MP shooter as part of the tri-set of cameras on the FE. The super wide-angle camera often takes 12MP images, but from a narrower imager than on non-fan editions. And the telephoto is even distinct – with an 8MP almost-3x zoom unit, fans will be aiming, as opposed to the slightly unusual 64MP non-tele tele configuration on the S20 and S20+. Meanwhile, the selfie camera is a 32MP Tetracell model on the FE, which might sound like an improvement relative to the S20 and S20+ 10MP units, but when you go further, there’s more to it. Later, of course, we’ll do all manner of camera similarities.
There are here and there some other less visible downgrades like the previously unidentified kind of Gorilla Glass 6 on the front and the back of the plastic with more Gorilla Glass6 on the non-fan S20s. The Fan edition also ranks 8GB of RAM, while the standard S20s are 8GB (or even 12GB) at the start of the version.
The Fan Version has an optical fingerprints player that is not the disputable ultrasonic readers of the other phones on the Galaxy S and note lists, whether this is an update, a downgrade, or just a side-stage.
However, the retail kit is purely downgraded.