The Samsung A20 is a mid-ranger on the lower end of the price spectrum. Purchasing it before doing your homework isn’t a smart move, however. Let’s do something about this – read ahead as we run through everything you need to know.
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Depending on where you look, the A20’s price would differ. It has such a price range as the warranty you get with the device affects its final price. Usually, the memory variant you get plays a major role too, but the A20 only has 1 variant.
What do you feel about plastic backs? The Samsung A20 comes with a plastic case that will turn heads. It’s super glossy, giving it a glass-like look. If you’re a fan of standing out, the phone comes in a multitude of colours. The glossy effect is seriously eye-catching in the red variant.
Although attractive, one look at the A20 will tell you that it’s not an expensive phone. This shouldn’t matter as it certainly isn’t. When in your palm, its weight gives this away as well. It’s not light, but it’s only 169 g. If it were a couple of grams heavier, we’d be happy.
It’s 2020 and big phones are here to stay. The A20 boasts of the following dimensions, 158.4 x 74.7 x 7.8 mms. If you have smaller hands, you may be panicking. Don’t fear, the Samsung device comes with a 3d curved back, making it easier to grip. Let’s not forget that it makes the phone more comfortable to hold as well.
You get a microSD card slot which we’re fans of. We’re also fans of its headphone jack. So far so good, but we do have a complaint. We found its fingerprint sensor too high to reach.
Samsung kills it when it comes to displays. The A20 is no different. It rocks a 6.4-inch screen that has a Super AMOLED display. Whether you’re watching your favourite teledramas or some Netflix, colours will pop. But what about its screen resolution? Well, you get 720 x 1560 pixels. This is enough sharpness for its price. However, if you look closely, you’ll probably notice some fuzziness.
The higher a phone’s screen to body ratio is, the more immersive of an experience you’ll get. It’s your lucky day as the A20 comes with a ratio of 85.5%. Considering that it has a better ratio than the iPhone X, we’re more than pleased.
What about its notch? You get a small v-notch.
We have to talk about the glass on its screen. You don’t get regular strengthened glass but Gorilla Glass 3. It’s hardy but as you can imagine, not as great Gorilla glass 5 or 6. Then again, you’re not spending on a flagship device.
We both know how sunny it can get in Sri Lanka. That’s why you’ll need a phone that has a bright display. The A20’s screen has a 465 nit max screen brightness which is great as anything between 400-500 is seen as very bright.
For a phone of this price, having a 4000 mAh battery is great. As you’re wondering, you can squeeze 2 days out of it.
In our day and age, even the most budget phones come with fast chargers. The A20 doesn’t disappoint with 15 W fast charging. We do have something to say, however. It takes about 2 hours to go from 0-100% which I don’t think is that fast. Then again, this is the norm for most budget fast chargers.
Being wallet-friendly and having a plastic back, you’re probably wondering if the battery is removable. The answer is no.
Out of the box, you get Android 9. In terms of its Android 10 upgrade, it’s been rolling out recently.
While Samsung hasn't officially announced that the device would be receiving the new 3UI update, we and the rest of the tech community remain hopeful.
So far so good, but what about its processor? You get the Exynos 7884 chip in the device. Unfortunately, the chipset can only handle day-to-day tasks. Stay away from Call Of Duty. The phone’s GPU can’t handle anything extensive.
Remember how we mentioned it only has 1 memory variant in the beginning of the article? You only get 32 GBs of space along with 3 gigs of RAM. Depending on what type of user you are, the 32 gigs may be a nightmare. That’s why the availability of a microSD card is so great. The microSD can expand the A20’s storage to 512 gigs. How cool is that?
If you’re wondering about its fingerprint sensor, it’s not that fast. Then again, the A20 isn’t the most expensive phone on the market. It comes with face unlock too. It’s much faster, but what’s better is that phone its price even came with such a thing. Mid rangers are killing it, huh?
You get a pretty sweet set up from the A20. In terms of its rear cameras, you get a 13 MP primary sensor along with a 5 MP (ultra-wide) secondary one. Colours are quite vibrant. They certainly pack a punch and carry some detail.
Let’s talk about its focusing. Indoors, there’s too much clutter for it to do a good job. It also has trouble optimizing the exposure if there are light sources in the background.
As you can imagine, it doesn’t do that well in low light. Noise is its major issue. This is especially true for its 8 MP selfie camera.
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Having run through everything you need to know, let’s dive into some of the A20’s best alternatives.
Loved the A20? Great because the A20s is a better version. For starters, it comes with a metallic-like back. Don’t be fooled though, it’s plastic with a cool effect. It’s super glossy too.
The A20s feels more premium. This is primarily due to its weight. It comes with an impressive 183 g heft. What’s also better are its dimensions. The A20s is larger by 0.1 inches. We think this means a lot, but I don’t know about you.
The 6.5-inch screen does not rock a Super AMOLED display. Surprisingly, you get an IPS LCD screen. Colours are vibrant, but not as much as in a Super AMOLED. If you’re wondering what its screen resolution is, it’s identical to the A20’s.
We’re kind of disappointed by its screen to body ratio, however. You don’t get as much screen as it only comes with an 81.9% ratio. To some of you, this is barely a difference, so you might not be disappointed. But if you are, remember that its display is larger, so things equal out.
Out of the box, you also get Android 9. Yes, the Samsung device can be upgraded to Android 10. Speaking of its insides, let’s talk about its memory variants. You can either choose from 32 or 64 gigs of space. Along with this, 3 or 4 GBs of RAM is at your disposal.
No, you don’t get an Exynos chip. Instead, you get the Snapdragon 430 CPU. Surprisingly, the Exynos chip out performs it.
Battery wise, the A20s is identical to its counterpart. But they differ when it comes to the camera. The A20 doesn’t stand a chance as the A20s comes with a triple camera set up. Meanwhile, its front camera is the same.
The A10 is 0.2 inches shorter than its counterpart. Its 6.2-inch display rocks a Super AMOLED panel. As you know, we’re fans. However, its vividness is not as immersive as in the A20. It only comes with an 81.5% screen to body ratio. Like the A20s, this might not matter.
If you’re a fan of the Exynos 7884 chip, you’d be glad to see it on the A10 as well. It even comes with Android 9 out of the box. But what about the Android 10 update? It’s been rolling out recently.
You’re probably wondering about its memory variants. Well, you have 2 to choose from. You get 32 gigs of space along with 3 or 4 GBs of RAM. Similar to the A20, you can expand its storage to 512 gigs with a microSD card.
The A10’s battery is not as good, unfortunately. It’s only 3400 mAh, and things get worse when you realize that it doesn’t come with a fast charger. There’s no USB-C port either. The phone takes around 3 hours to fully charge.
Design-wise, both phones have curved, ‘glasstic’ backs. You won’t find its fingerprint sensor hard to reach as it doesn’t have one.
In terms of its camera, their camera specs are about the same. However, there’s only 1 camera on the A10’s back. It’s the same 13 MP sensor as in the A20, similar to the 8 MP camera in the front.
The Samsung A20e is seriously light. You probably won’t feel it in your hand as it’s only 141 grams. Being a budget device, it’s no surprise that it comes with a plastic back. Of course, it’s super glossy too.
The phone’s not that big. It’s only 5.8 inches. If you have smaller hands, you may still find it difficult to hold.
Its 5.8 screen rocks as you get an LPS TFT display. TFTs are better than IPS LCDs but are no match to Super AMOLEDs. That being said, you get the same screen resolution as in the A20. So, how do you feel?
You also get the same memory variants. Expecting anything more would’ve been crazy as the phone is a cheaper alternative to the Samsung device. Thankfully, a microSD is accepted, expanding the 32 gigs to 512 GBs of storage.
You’re already familiar with the Exynos 7884 chip. No surprise, the A20e comes with the CPU. Similarly, it comes with Android 9 out of the box, getting the Android 10 upgrade.
What about its battery life? Well, things don’t look that good. You only get a 3000 mAh. If you want to, you can squeeze a day out of the device. You get a 15 W fast charger which is a staple even for cheap devices.
We just have to talk about its camera before we move onto our next review. What do you get? A dual camera set up that is identical to the A20’s. This is true for its front camera as well.
No, you don’t get a Super AMOLED screen. The Redmi device boasts an IPS LCD. Colours aren’t as vibrant as in a Super AMOLED device. That being said, you’re getting a big phone. The Redmi device stands 6.3 inches tall. It’s still shorter than the A20, but does this matter?
If you’re wondering about its screen to body ratio, it doesn’t outdo the A20. You’re getting a phone with an 81.7% ratio.
Unlike its counterpart and the other alternatives, the Redmi Note 8 comes with a glass body.
There’s Gorilla Glass 5 on its front and back. This makes it extremely durable, but then again, phone cases exist for a reason.
In terms of memory variants, eat your heart out as there’s a range. You can choose from 32, 64 or 128 GBs of space, along with 3, 4 or 6 gigs of RAM. We feel spoilt!
Now:
What about its processor? You’re getting a Snapdragon chipset. The Redmi Note 8 comes with Snapdragon 665. It’s a beast when compared to the 660, annihilating it.
Did we mention that the Redmi Note 8 has a 4000 mAh battery too? It can easily last a day or more. But what about fast charging? You get an 18 W fast charger, taking the phone from 0-100% in a little over 2 hours.
Let’s talk about its camera before we wrap things up:
A quadruple-camera set up is by your side. The primary sensor is 48 MPs while the rest are 8 (ultra wide), 2 (macro), 2 (depth) MP sensors. We’re total fans of its macro lens as it allows for some great bokeh shots. Meanwhile, its front camera hosts a 13 MP selfie cam.
If you were thinking about buying the A20 before, having run through our points you would’ve helped you make a decision. After all, you get a budget device that comes with a great camera, battery and display. However, is it amazing? Not exactly, but you’re not paying that much.
Its alternatives are just as good. At the end of the day, the majority of Samsung’s mid-rangers are similar. So, the A20 is not something to write home about.
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