Samsung Galaxy S21 may steal the Note 20’s best feature — but there’s a catch

Samsung Milky way S21 may steal the Note twenty's best feature — but there's a catch

(Image credit: Miror pro/YouTube)

Samsung'southward flagship selection of phones has been getting muddled for some time. Information technology was confusing enough when the Galaxy Due south and Galaxy Note series were duking it out for prominence, but now the Galaxy Z folding range is the truly premium product — with a price tag to match.

With that in listen, nosotros've heard rumors that Samsung eventually intends to kill off the Galaxy Annotation range. But co-ordinate to a new written report from Korea's Herald Corp, the axing volition be a more gradual winding downward than some might have expected – something the text describes every bit a "sequential go out".

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The study states that the Milky way Note 21 will indeed see a release next year, merely that the line betwixt it and the S21 volition be blurred. It explains that the Milky way S21 volition inherit S Pen support — a rumor nosotros've heard before — but that the clever stylus won't actually be bundled with the handset.

Hither's the translation of the relevant part: "It'due south the showtime fourth dimension that a Galnote S Pen has been recognized in the Galaxy S model. The South-pen is considered to be the identity of Galnote, providing a writing feeling similar to writing on paper with a real pen. However, the Galaxy S21 does not have an South-Pen."

Nosotros're hoping that something has been lost in translation here, because that would exist baffling if truthful. While other handsets have had optional styli to be bought separately (Huawei's Chiliad-Pen for the Mate twenty, for instance), the feature falls flat if there's nowhere to dock it when not in use. Mayhap the S21 will take a magnetic back to clip an optional S Pen besides, like the Galaxy Tab S7? The culling would be a massive gap for where someone might one twenty-four hours purchase a stylus, which doesn't sound very Samsung.

Otherwise, we're very much on board with the S21 getting S Pen support. The well-nigh recent iteration of the stylus, combined with the Note 20 Ultra's 120Hz screen, provided an feel that felt well-nigh like writing on paper, and featured Bluetooth, allowing it to work as an optional remote command.

So far, leaks of the Galaxy S21 have been a mixed bag. Early benchmarks point to relatively weak performance from the Exynos 1000 chipset, though it'southward hopeful that the US volition get a Snapdragon-powered handset instead. Meanwhile, the battery appears to exist standing still equally compared to previous years', but at that place's talk of 65W charging being introduced to slash downtime.

One thing that's objectively positive, though, is the camera: not only will it reportedly pack a 108-megapixel main sensor, but it might too come with two telephoto lenses which could be truly revolutionary.

We're notwithstanding a long way off from finding out how many of these rumors turn out to be confirmed. Samsung typically unveils a new Milky way Southward handset in February, and that engagement could well be pushed back further if coronavirus continues to bear on supply bondage effectually the world in 2021.

Freelance contributor Alan has been writing virtually tech for over a decade, covering phones, drones and everything in between. Previously Deputy Editor of tech site Alphr, his words are found all over the web and in the occasional magazine too. When not weighing upward the pros and cons of the latest smartwatch, yous'll probably notice him tackling his ever-growing games backlog. Or, more likely, playing Spelunky for the millionth fourth dimension.