Samsung Galaxy S21+ vs S20 FE vs Galaxy S20+: What's the rumoured difference?

Samsung announced the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition, or Galaxy S20 FE in September 2020. It's a lighter take on the Galaxy S20 family, offering many of the important specs, but making a few cuts so it's a little more affordable.

It goes head-to-head with the Samsung Galaxy S20+, which was our pick of the 2020 models, and is likely to be a big contender against the upcoming S21+, rumoured to be announced on 14 Janauary.

Let's take a look at how these three phones compare.

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Prices and availability

• Galaxy S20 FE: £599 (4G), £699 (5G)
• Galaxy S20+: £999 (5G)
• Galaxy S21+: TBC

Price comparisons are a little tricky given that there are so many different versions of the Galaxy S20+ globally, and the S21+ hasn't even been officially announced yet, but the easy version is this: the Galaxy S20 FE is and will be cheaper, no matter which you choose.

Even with discounts from the original launch price, the S20+ is still more expensive than the S20 FE, and with the S21+ being new, it will no doubt be more expensive than the S20 FE too, even if closer than we might think.

Not all regions get all models of the S20+ or all versions of the S20 FE, and the same will likely be true of the S21+ when it arrives, but whichever way you cut it, the FE will mpst likely cost less.

Build and dimensions 

• Samsung Galaxy S20 FE: 159.8 x 74.5 x 8.4mm, 190g
• Samsung Galaxy S20+: 161.9 x 73.7 x 7.8mm, 186g
• Samsung Galaxy S21+: 161.55 x 75.6 x 7.86mm, TBC

The size of the S20+ and the S20 FE are surprisingly close and with the rumoured measurements for the S21+ being very similar to the S20+, the same looks like it will apply for the 2021 device.

There's a few millimetres difference, with the FE being slightly shorter - explained by the smaller display - and slightly wider than both, though less so with the S21+. The reduction in width is likley because the display is flat, which the S21+ is also expected to offer, hence the smaller difference.

The S20 FE is also a little thicker than the S20+ and what is expected for the S21+, not that you'd notice. There are wider bezels on the S20 FE so the FE doesn't look quite as premium as the S20+ and it likely won't look as premium as the S21+ either.

The S20+ and S20 FE both offer IP68 waterproofing, both offer stereo speakers supporting Dolby Atmos and both have a similar camera arrangement on the back of the phone. The S21+ is also expected to have IP68 water and dust resistance, though its camera setup sees a slightly different design based on the leaks.

One of the major differences to note aside from the small design details, is the rear of the S20 FE is glasstic - plastic - rather than glass of the S20+ and there are talks this could be the same for the S21+ too. While less premium, the plastic finish is more durable, cheaper and less likely to gather fingerprints.

The Galaxy S20 FE comes in a range of colours - blue, red, lavender, mint, white, orange - while the Galaxy S20+ is all about the serious grey, black and light blue models. The S21+ meanwhile, is expected to come in black, silver, violet and pink.

In reality, there's very little difference between the S20+ and S20 FE and even less expected between the S21+ and S20 FE, aside from the design change on the rear.

Display 

• Samsung Galaxy S20 FE: 6.5-inch, 120Hz, AMOLED, Full HD+
• Samsung Galaxy S20+: 6.7-inch, 120Hz, AMOLED, Quad HD+
• Samsung Galaxy S21+: 6.7-inch, 120Hz, AMOLED, Full HD+

When it comes to the display, the S20+ and S20 FE use the same type of panel, AMOLED in both cases with a punch hole for the front camera, and this is expected to be the case for the S21+ too. Technically, Samsung says that the S20 FE has a Super AMOLED X2, while the Galaxy S20+ has a Dynamic AMOLED X2. The S21+ specifics haven't been detailed in leaks as yet.

The real difference is in the resolution. The Samsung Galaxy S20+ offers Quad HD+, that's 3200 x 1440 pixels (524ppi), while the Galaxy S20 FE offers 2400 x 1080 pixels (404ppi), which the S21+ is also rumuoured to be dropping down to. Technically, the S20+ can render finer detail - but Samsung's default on the S20+ is Full HD anyway and many people never use the full resolution, so it's arguably, no big loss.

The phones also offer 120Hz and that's going to be something that fans do want, so to see it in the cheaper device is welcomed. Rumours suggest the S21+ will continue to offer the 120Hz refresh rate, despite its resolution dropping.

As we mentioned above, the display on the Galaxy S20 FE is slightly smaller at 6.5-inches, a small reduction of 0.2-inch over the S20+ and what is expected for the S21+ which won't make a huge difference in reality. The S20 SE is also flat, so there's no curves to the edges, a feature the S21+ is also expected to offer. 

This might actually be a benefit: although curves look good and make it slightly easier to grip a large phone, it can lead to some reduction in touch sensitivity towards the edges. Give us a flat display for gaming any day of the week.

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Core hardware and battery

• Samsung Galaxy S20 SE: Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (5G), Exynos 990 (4G), 6GB/128GB, 4500mAh
• Samsung Galaxy S20+: Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 (4/5G), Exynos 990 (4/5G), 8/12/128GB, 4500mAh
• Samsung Galaxy S21+: Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 (5G), Exynos 2100 (5G), 4800mAh

When it comes to the core hardware, the story really reveals itself. The headline is that the Galaxy S20 FE 5G version is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 globally. The 4G version is Exynos 990, but the 4G version won't be available in all regions (like the US).

The Galaxy S20+ is much more complicated: there are 4 and 5G versions of both the Snapdragon 865 and the Exynos 990. In Europe, it's been the Exynos 990 version that been available - so the S20 FE is a chance to get a Qualcomm-powered Samsung device, but make sure you buy the 5G version.

The Galaxy S21+ meanwhile, is expected to be powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 or the unannounced Exynos 2100, depending on the region. All models are expected to be 5G, with no 4G models but that hasn't been confirmed as yet.

With the S20 FE, there's a reduction in RAM to 6GB with 128GB storage compared to the 8GB or 12GB options of the S20+. In reality, the reduction in RAM is unlikely to have a big impact on how the phone runs. MicroSD storage expansion is supported on both the S20+ and S20 FE devices, but it is not yet clear if the S21+ also supports it. RAM hasn't been mentioned in the leaks for the S21+, but we expect a similar offering to the S20+. 

The S20+ and S20 FE have the same battery capacity at 4500mAh, while the S21+ is expected to increase this to 4800mAh. The S20 FE has slightly greater endurance thanks to the slightly lower spec display, which the S21+ is also likely to benefit from, but there isn't much difference between the S20+ and S20 FE based on our experience. 

Cameras

• Galaxy S20 FE:
  • Main: 12MP, f/1.8, 1.8µm, OIS
  • Tele: 8MP, f/2.4, 1.0µm, OIS, 3x
  • Ultra-wide: 12MP, f/2.2, 1.12µm
  • Front: 32MP, f/2.2, 0.8µm, FF
• Galaxy S20+:
  • Main: 12MP, f/1.8, 1.8µm, OIS  
  • Tele: 64MP, f/2.0, 0.8µm, OIS, 3x
  • Ultra-wide: 12MP, f/2.2, 1.4µm
  • DepthVision
  • Front: 10MP, f/2.2, 1.22µm, AF
• Galaxy S21+:
  • Main: 12MP, f/1.8, 1.8µm, OIS  
  • Tele: 64MP, f/2.0, 0.8µm, OIS, 3x
  • Ultra-wide: 12MP, f/2.2, 1.4µm

There's a lot in common between the Samsung Galaxy S20+ and the Galaxy S20 FE cameras. Broadly they have the same selection, based around the same main camera, and it is thought the S21+ will stick with this sensor too. That's a 12-megapixel camera with nice large pixels to absorb lots of light without the nonsense of pixel combining that's popular elsewhere.

It's joined by ultra-wide and telephoto cameras, but here the specs are different between the S20+ and S20 FE, and it looks like the S21+ will follow in the steps of the S20+. Starting with the telephoto, the big switch is from a 64-megapixel sensor on the S20+ to an 8-megapixel sensor on the S20 FE. It's a totally different approach from the hardware, but both offer 3x optical zoom like the S21+ is also rumoured to do, which has OIS, while both then also offer 10x digital zoom for Samsung's 30X Space Zoom feature. 

Why the switch? The 64-megapixel camera on the S20+ also handles 8K video capture, so we suspect that the reason for the switch is that it doesn't offer 8K capture on the S20 FE.

The ultra-wide is also a different camera and with a switch to a smaller sensor in the S20 FE, it's not quite as good as the performance of the S20+. Based on the rumours, the S21+ will have the same ultra-wide sensor as the S20+.

The S20+ has a decent 10-megapixel camera selfie. For some reason, Samsung has moved to a 32-megapixel front camera. There doesn't seem to be any logic to this move that we can see at all and it's fixed focus rather than autofocus, so it's a little weaker.

Finally, the S20+ also has a DepthVision sensor, but we don't really think it does very much, so it won't be missed on the S20 FE. The S21+ is also not expected to offer this sensor.

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Conclusion 

Given that the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE is the cheaper phone, it has a lot going for it. So what do you actually miss out on? There are some small camera changes, although with the same main camera, the experience is going to be broadly the same to the S20+ and seemingly the S21+ too.

There are some minor spec changes like less RAM, although that doesn't have a huge impact in use, compared to the option for those in Europe to get a Qualcomm device instead of Exynos, which is likely to be popular.

There are changes in the display compared to the S20+: the flatter display may actually suit some and again the reduction in resolution is only going to bother some people and have very little difference on things like games or media consumption. Based on the leaks, the S20 FE has very similar display characteristics to the S21+. 

Finally, there's the plastic back. Sure, you won't have the most premium finish, but at the same time, you'll have more cash in your pocket still. Considering this, the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE looks like a win to us, a respectable push back against the rising power of mid-range devices and the antidote to over-specced and over-priced flagships. It's worth waiting for the S21+ to be announced though, as perhaps its price will be closer to the Galaxy S20 FE than we'd expect.

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