Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra leak reveals big camera upgrade
The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra should have a powerful and more refined 50x zoom
The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra will mark a major upgrade in camera quality for Samsung's flagship phablet, according to a new set of leaks.
A new pair of tweets from regular and reliable leaker Ice Universe detail the Note 20 Ultra's potential camera specs. Ice Universe has made numerous accurate claims about Samsung phones in the past, so there's reason to believe this information is credible.
- Samsung Galaxy Note 20 release date, price, specs and more
- Check out our Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra review
- Plus: Samsung Galaxy Watch 3 leak shows Apple Watch 6 rival in action
The first tweet notes that the Note 20 Ultra will have 50x maximum zoom, rather than the 100x max on the Galaxy S20 Ultra. We've heard this before from a previous Note 20 camera leak, but it's unclear why Samsung might be going in this direction.
Note20 Ultra will cancel 100X, the maximum is 50X, Samsung will strive to optimize the zoom experience of the maximum 50X, more focus on the experience.June 22, 2020
Optimization sounds like the right move though. As impressive as the S20 Ultra's specs were, it was a difficult phone to take good pictures with due to the inherent difficulty of using high magnification on a phone combined with a slow-focusing main sensor. The Note 20 Ultra is also said to be getting a laser depth sensor though, which should hopefully help with the latter problem and make it far easier to use.
The second Ice Universe tweet shows off some cases for the standard Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra. It's hard to compare the two phones side-by-side, since they're not in the same shot. However, looking at the camera cutouts can tell us a few things.
Note20 and Note20 Ultra camera area comparison. pic.twitter.com/cA1vvo7YOLJune 20, 2020
The rear camera is obviously a lot larger in the Ultra, presumably to fit in the periscope lens and laser sensor that we've discussed before, while the more compact cut out of the standard Note 20 wouldn't fit a periscope lens module. Other rumors have claimed the standard version will use the non-periscope 3x zoom telephoto camera found on the S20 and S20 Plus, which fits with this observation.
The only other thing you can really observe from these images is the location of the volume and power buttons on the phone's right side. Unfortunately, we can't tell if these cases support the rumors of a curved display on the Note 20 Ultra; the regular Note 20 is expected to have a flat display.
Sign up now to get the best Black Friday deals!
Discover the hottest deals, best product picks and the latest tech news from our experts at Tom’s Guide.
Both the Note 20 models will have 120Hz displays, 5G compatibility, a Snapdragon 865 or Exynos 990 chipset (depending on the country you buy it in) and a redesigned S Pen stylus with some new features. There are some big differences rumored however.
The Note 20 Ultra will get a larger display at 6.87 inches compared to the Note 20's 6.42 inches. The Ultra will also receive 12GB RAM instead of 8GB, a larger battery and likely more storage space too.
Samsung's new phablet is rumored to be revealed on August 5, so we may be just weeks away from seeing it in the flesh. The Note 20 is expected be joined on stage by a number of new products, including the Galaxy Fold 2, the Galaxy Watch 2 smartwatch and the Galaxy Tab S7 tablet.
Richard is based in London, covering news, reviews and how-tos for phones, tablets, gaming, and whatever else people need advice on. Following on from his MA in Magazine Journalism at the University of Sheffield, he's also written for WIRED U.K., The Register and Creative Bloq. When not at work, he's likely thinking about how to brew the perfect cup of specialty coffee.