Galaxy S20 and Z Flip, Samsung’s flagship devices
Samsung launches three models in its new flagship ‘Galaxy S20’ smartphone range, all of which will be 5G-compatible. The top-end Galaxy S20 also introduces a 100x zoom camera.
They have also confirmed a new foldable; the Galaxy Z Flip. It uses “folding glass” in its display and small fibres in its hinge to protect itself from damage and Samsung have assured potential buys that it will not make the same mistake it did when it launched its last foldable, the Galaxy Fold. However, the Z Flip will only be available with 4G.
There are three Galaxy S20 variants:
- S20 Base with a 6.2in (15.7cm) display. It has three rear cameras: a 64-megapixel telephoto lens, a 12MP wide and a 12MP ultra-wide. It starts at £799
- S20 Plus with a 6.7in (17cm) display. It adds a depth sensor to the basic model’s array. It starts at £999
- S20 Ultra has a 6.9in (17.5cm) display. Its telephoto lens is only 48MP, but the wide-angle lens is bumped up to 108MP. It starts at £1,199
More information can be found on Samsung’s S20 website.
The S20 Ultra’s camera module is thicker than that of the others to incorporate a periscope. This uses a prism to reflect light into the device’s interior, allowing the wide-angle option to feature a longer lens and bigger sensor.
Although it is possible to take 108MP shots, owners are expected to let the phone automatically merge groups of nine pixels into one most of the time. This aids low-light photography.
The 100x “super-resolution zoom” facility uses the lower-resolution 48MP camera. Machine-learning techniques stitch together pixels from up to 20 different frames to achieve a better result than would be possible via a simple digital zoom.
The Galaxy S20’s OS will be Android and we look forward to designing and developing bespoke mobile apps that can utilise Samsung’s new flagship hardware.
The Z Flip
Several of its features – including a clamshell design with a small display on the outside and a 6.7in foldable screen on the inside.
It represents the firm’s second attempt at a foldable after the troubled launch of the Galaxy Fold tablet-phone hybrid.
This time round, the concept is a tall-screened phone that can be used one-handed when opened, and made wallet-sized when closed.
The hinge mechanism has also evolved. It now incorporates tiny brushes to sweep away dirt and dust particles. In addition, it can hold the device partially open, which Samsung is pitching as being helpful for taking selfies or recording vlogs.
The firm says it can be opened and closed more than 200,000 times. and the other big change is to the display, which now features a substance Samsung calls “folding glass”.
The Z Flip will cost £1,300 in the UK and becomes available on 14 February.
More information can be found on Samsung’s Z Flip website.
