RIP: Samsung reportedly killing off Galaxy Note line

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Rumors already suggest Galaxy S21 will have S Pen support

Galaxy Note 20
Image Credit: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg (Image credit: Image Credit: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg)

According to sources close to Reuters, the Samsung Galaxy Note line is on its way out due to poor high-end smartphone sales, a symptom of the coronavirus pandemic.

The reports says that the top model of the Galaxy S21 line will have a stylus, which will presumably be the Galaxy S21 Ultra. But it's not clear whether the phone will ship with the S Pen. 

Reuters also reports that the "next version of Samsung’s foldable phone will be compatible with a stylus, which will be sold separately." This will likely be the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3.

The Note line has always set itself apart as being among the best of Samsung's yearly offerings. The large-screen phone boasts the latest chips and camera modules as well as stylus support. 

Per three sources, Reuters reports that there are no plans at Samsung to develop a Note phone for 2021. The sources asked not to be named as the plans are not yet public. 

So what's with this Note 21 rumor?

Strangely, according to Twitter user @CozyPlanes -- who has a track record of verifiable leaks from the Korean tech industry -- Galaxy Note 21 development has started. 

However, that doesn't mean that Samsung will be continuing that development.

CozyPlanes tweeted last month that the 2021 iteration of the Galaxy Note would be its last. It would see a September release, alongside the Z Fold 3. From 2022 onward, the Z Fold series will be Samsung's new premium flagship line. According to a source to Reuters, the Galaxy Note development team has been shifted to the Z Fold line.

Already, Galaxy Z Fold 3 rumors suggest that it will have S Pen support. If true, it means Samsung has made great advancements in materials science to allow a hard enough folding display that can handle pen pressure. 

Imad Khan
Imad Khan

Imad is currently Senior Google and Internet Culture reporter for CNET, but until recently was News Editor at Tom's Guide. Hailing from Texas, Imad started his journalism career in 2013 and has amassed bylines with the New York Times, the Washington Post, ESPN, Wired and Men's Health Magazine, among others. Outside of work, you can find him sitting blankly in front of a Word document trying desperately to write the first pages of a new book.