Samsung Galaxy S20 FE Mobile Phone; Sim Free Smartphone - 128 GB - Cloud Lavender (UK Version)

I've owned Samsung phones in the past Galaxy Note 2, Galaxy S7 Edge and they have always ran well past their contracts end. Currently I have a OnePlus 7 Pro. This time I'm down sizing and just want a phone for calls and messages. I'm not on social media aside from Instagram and really use the camera and music features more than anything.With that in mind I started to research and came up on this price range £500 (as there was a great offer on).I saw Xiaomi & Poco and Sony or OnePlus again. But I've never heard of the first 2 and worry they may go the same way as Huawei, Sony are good for sound, but their cameras whilst having good spec are always clumsy on the UI. Then OnePlus seem to be too much of the same thing once again in just another handset....nothing new.Then I find the Galaxy S20 FE with 256GB base memory (good enough for a few thousand songs as I have a few) and 5G as future proof too. I can easily add another 256GB SD card as well to boost the capacity for music and I'm set.Then I need to check the camera and processor speed and battery....may as well.Processor is 8GB RAM, battery 4500 which is a good ratio as anything of a bigger RAM and it'll drain your battery faster.Screen options of 60 or 120 fps, no real difference only with games that have fast motion etc. Doesn't really affect battery too much. (Not that I noticed anyway).Camera, brilliant. You can get 30 X zoom out if this. Perfect for night time astronomy photos or wildlife etc. Slightly blurry and fuzzy, not crystal clear.....it's a phone. But great to have. Motion stabiliser which is handy as I have the shakes from my epilepsy medications so all my photos are steady as normal. There are many options to customise the camera that I'm still learning what to do with it.Samsung is very intuitive with its UI and continues to improve. I got this phone about 3 weeks ago and it's updated the software twice already with improved options and minor details. So much so that the fingerprint reader wasn't so good when I first got it and my OnePlus was sharp as a diamond, but now the Samsung is on par.Really please I got this phone....eventually.****The first phone I ordered was stolen before it was even delivered to me. All I received was an empty Samsung Box and no phone. But customer service were superb and a new phone was arranged very quickly****

Extremely impressive ability to find and hang on to a mobile signal. Quite remarkable.microSD card means cheap to upgrade into the future, although it's a pity it can't do eSIM because that does mean sacrificing the dual SIM capability.The fingerprint reader can only register 3 prints, is sometimes a bit hit and miss, and isn't the fastest. But basically works fine.The camera system itself can be really very good, but doesn't consistently deliver great point-and-shoot results via Samsung's software without skilled intervention.An app from the Play Store called Open Camera is a must in addition to Samsung's, depending on the subject/conditions (DRO mode on that is much better than Samsung's Auto HDR, for example, when it comes to landscapes, and the Samsung app's video can be very mushy in comparison).For some reason Samsung's Portrait Mode works astonishingly well in low light indoors whilst a straight shot outdoors towards dusk will end up with poorly resolved, over-smoothed detail in grass and leaves. Selfie results are much better in Portrait Mode too. Otherwise they are soft and somehow low-res even at 32MP. Similarly, Night Mode works really well for a kind of impressive-though-unnatural slide film result, but if you want a sharp and grainy snap in low light, Samsung doesn't want to give it to you.The standard lens also isn't sharp to the edges, which can be annoying, especially for documents; where the cropping interface adds to the faff by being overly sensitive.The Gallery app is very good. Supremely easy to get along with and do everything you want, and very fluid.The sound optimisation feature for headphones is amazing in terms of delivering call clarity. And the phone's speakers and noise cancellation are excellent too.There's no physical proximity sensor (it's "virtual") so if you want to use headphones to make a call, however, and put the phone back in your pocket, you have to press home and then lock the screen with the side button first, otherwise the screen wakes up and all the buttons get pressed!The "View all.." button in the Samsung SMS app is irritating at first, but actually a great improvement once you get used to it. On the other hand, not being able to customise the look/colour of the bubbles and background without applying an overall OneUI theme isn't an improvement at all. (Incidentally, you pinch to zoom to change the text size: there's no setting for it.)It's possible to lock the processor power to high, which is handy, and the auto screen brightness works pretty well.The screen is Gorilla Glass 3, which is a bonus for longevity because it's more scratch resistant than version 5 (which is optimised for drop damage).Much of the above is just for information. Overall, it's a brilliant device with a well-judged balance of features which should mean it lasts very well rather than adding to the world's techno junk pile after a few years (including update support guaranteed into Android 12). Very happy with it.UPDATE: Just to correct another review I saw, this phone, in the 5G Qualcomm variant, *does* support the aptx HD Bluetooth codec, as can be confirmed by activating Developer Options in settings and checking what is selected when compatible headphones are connected.

What an awesome phone, has my ideal specifications, a snapdragon processor, a large battery, awesome cameras, and a gorgeous, vivid 120HZ screen. Screen is flat, which I prefer as you can apply screen protectors easily, although no need to rush for one as one comes pre applied. Oh, and 5g(which is a bonus).Two very minor issues, there isn't a headphone jack, headphones OR adapter. Although if you live in 2020 you would likely already have some bluetooth headphones. I ordered a 3.5mm adapter dongle just for the sake of not having one. Lastly, the included charger is 15w and not the fastest this phone can support being 25w. Not a huge bother as at least you can charge your new phone out of the box.No regrets so far, the 120hz screen can only be described like butter and going back to any older 60hz phone makes them feel slower. Performance is great, cameras are heaps better than the single one on my galaxy s8, and the back panel made of 'glasstic' in my opinion is better. Not only does it feel solid, but because I won't have to worry about shattering it!Good stuff Samsung, if it wasn't for this model I would've got a oneplus.