Samsung Galaxy Note20 5G vs. Galaxy S21+ 5G: A Detailed Comparison
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🏆 Quick Verdict
For most users, the Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G is the better buy. Its newer Exynos 2100 (or Snapdragon 888) chipset, built on a 5nm process, delivers significantly improved performance and efficiency compared to the Note20 5G’s 7nm Exynos 990 or Snapdragon 865+. While the Note20 retains the S Pen, the S21+'s overall package is more compelling.
| PHONES | ||
|---|---|---|
| Phone Names | Samsung Galaxy Note20 5G | Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G |
| Network | ||
|---|---|---|
| 2G bands | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 | GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 |
| 3G bands | HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 | HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1700(AWS) / 1900 / 2100 |
| 4G bands | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 48, 66, 71 - SM-N981U | 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 14, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 30, 38, 39, 40, 41, 46, 48, 66, 71 - SM-G996U1 |
| 5G bands | 2, 5, 41, 66, 71, 260, 261 SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave - SM-N981U | 2, 5, 25, 41, 66, 71, 260, 261 SA/NSA/Sub6/mmWave - SM-G996U1 |
| EDGE | No | - |
| GPRS | Yes | - |
| Speed | HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE (7CA) Cat20 2000/200 Mbps, 5G | HSPA 42.2/5.76 Mbps, LTE (7CA) Cat20 2000/200 Mbps, 5G (5+ Gbps DL) |
| Technology | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G | GSM / CDMA / HSPA / EVDO / LTE / 5G |
| 41, 66, 71 Sub6 - SM-N981W | 1, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20, 28, 38, 40, 41, 66, 77, 78 SA/NSA/Sub6 - SM-G996B | |
| Launch | ||
|---|---|---|
| Announced | 2020, August 05 | 2021, January 14 |
| Status | Available. Released 2020, August 21 | Available. Released 2021, January 29 |
| Body | ||
|---|---|---|
| Build | Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), plastic back | Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), glass back (Gorilla Glass Victus), aluminum frame |
| Dimensions | 161.6 x 75.2 x 8.3 mm (6.36 x 2.96 x 0.33 in) | 161.5 x 75.6 x 7.8 mm (6.36 x 2.98 x 0.31 in) |
| SIM | · Nano-SIM + eSIM· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM | · Nano-SIM + eSIM· Nano-SIM + Nano-SIM + eSIM (max 2 at a time) |
| Weight | 192 g (Sub6 5G), 194 g (mmWave 5G) (6.77 oz) | 200 g (Sub6), 202 g (mmWave) (7.05 oz) |
| IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min) Stylus, 26ms latency (Bluetooth integration, accelerometer, gyro) | IP68 dust/water resistant (up to 1.5m for 30 min) | |
| Display | ||
|---|---|---|
| Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 | Corning Gorilla Glass Victus |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~393 ppi density) | 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~394 ppi density) |
| Size | 6.7 inches, 108.4 cm2 (~89.2% screen-to-body ratio) | 6.7 inches, 107.8 cm2 (~88.3% screen-to-body ratio) |
| Type | Super AMOLED Plus, HDR10+ | Dynamic AMOLED 2X, 120Hz, HDR10+, 1300 nits (peak) |
| Always-on display | Always-on display | |
| Platform | ||
|---|---|---|
| CPU | Octa-core (2x2.73 GHz Mongoose M5 & 2x2.50 GHz Cortex-A76 & 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A55) - GlobalOcta-core (1x3.0 GHz Kryo 585 & 3x2.42 GHz Cortex-A77 & 4x1.80 GHz Cortex-A55) - USA | Octa-core (1x2.9 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3x2.80 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x2.2 GHz Cortex-A55) - InternationalOcta-core (1x2.84 GHz Cortex-X1 & 3x2.42 GHz Cortex-A78 & 4x1.80 GHz Cortex-A55) - USA/China |
| Chipset | Exynos 990 (7 nm+) - GlobalQualcomm SM8250 Snapdragon 865 5G+ (7 nm+) - USA | Exynos 2100 (5 nm) - InternationalQualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm) - USA/China |
| GPU | Mali-G77 MP11 - GlobalAdreno 650 - USA | Mali-G78 MP14 - InternationalAdreno 660 - USA/China |
| OS | Android 10, upgradable to Android 13, One UI 5 | Android 11, up to 4 major Android upgrades, One UI 6.1 |
| Memory | ||
|---|---|---|
| Call records | 100 entries | - |
| Card slot | No | No |
| Internal | 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM | 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM |
| Phonebook | 500 contacts | - |
| UFS 3.0 | UFS 3.1 | |
| Main Camera | ||
|---|---|---|
| Features | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama | LED flash, auto-HDR, panorama |
| Single | 1.3 MP | - |
| Triple | 12 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.76", 1.8µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS 64 MP, f/2.0, 27mm (telephoto), 1/1.72", 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS, 3x hybrid zoom 12 MP, f/2.2, 120˚, 13mm (ultrawide), 1/2.55", 1.4µm | 12 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.76", 1.8µm, dual pixel PDAF, OIS 64 MP, f/2.0, 29mm (telephoto), 1/1.72", 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS, 1.1x optical zoom, 3x hybrid zoom 12 MP, f/2.2, 13mm, 120˚ (ultrawide), 1/2.55" 1.4µm, Super Steady video |
| Video | 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 720p@960fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS & OIS | 8K@24fps, 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240fps, HDR10+, stereo sound rec., gyro-EIS |
| Selfie camera | ||
|---|---|---|
| Features | HDR | HDR |
| Single | 10 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.2", 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF | 10 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/3.24", 1.22µm, dual pixel PDAF |
| Video | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps | 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30fps |
| Sound | ||
|---|---|---|
| 3.5mm jack | No | No |
| 35mm jack | No | No |
| Loudspeaker | Yes, with stereo speakers | Yes, with stereo speakers |
| 32-bit/384kHz audio Tuned by AKG | 32-bit/384kHz audio Tuned by AKG | |
| Comms | ||
|---|---|---|
| Bluetooth | 5.0, A2DP, LE, aptX | 5.0, A2DP, LE |
| NFC | Yes | Yes |
| Positioning | GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO | GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO |
| Radio | FM radio (Snapdragon model only; market/operator dependent) | FM radio (Snapdragon model only; market/operator dependent) |
| USB | USB Type-C 3.2, OTG | USB Type-C 3.2, OTG |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct |
| Features | ||
|---|---|---|
| Games | Yes | - |
| Java | No | - |
| Messaging | SMS, MMS | - |
| Sensors | Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer | Fingerprint (under display, ultrasonic), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer |
| Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support) ANT+ Bixby natural language commands and dictation Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified) | Samsung DeX, Samsung Wireless DeX (desktop experience support) Bixby natural language commands and dictation Samsung Pay (Visa, MasterCard certified) Ultra Wideband (UWB) support | |
| Battery | ||
|---|---|---|
| Charging | 25W wired, PD3.0 15W wireless (Qi) 4.5W reverse wireless | 25W wired, PD3.0 15W wireless (Qi) 4.5W reverse wireless |
| Stand-by | Up to 80 h | - |
| Talk time | Up to 5 h | - |
| Type | Li-Ion 4300 mAh | Li-Ion 4800 mAh |
| Misc | ||
|---|---|---|
| Colors | Mystic Green, Mystic Bronze, Mystic Gray, Mystic Red, Mystic Blue | Phantom Black, Phantom Silver, Phantom Violet, Phantom Pink, Phantom Gold, Phantom Red |
| Models | SM-N981B, SM-N981B/DS, SM-N981U, SM-N981U1, SM-N981W, SM-N9810, SM-N981N | SM-G996B, SM-G996B/DS, SM-G996U, SM-G996U1, SM-G996W, SM-G996N, SM-G9960 |
| Price | About 430 EUR | $ 162.99 / £ 185.00 / € 199.00 |
| SAR | 0.95 W/kg (head) 0.72 W/kg (body) | 0.65 W/kg (head) 0.95 W/kg (body) |
| SAR EU | 0.68 W/kg (head) 1.37 W/kg (body) | 0.54 W/kg (head) 1.33 W/kg (body) |
| Tests | ||
|---|---|---|
| Battery life | - | Endurance rating 114h |
| Camera | - | Photo / Video |
| Display | - | Contrast ratio: Infinite (nominal) |
| Loudspeaker | - | -25.8 LUFS (Very good) |
| Performance | - | AnTuTu: 622276 (v8) GeekBench: 3476 (v5.1) GFXBench: 54fps (ES 3.1 onscreen) |
Samsung Galaxy Note20 5G
- Integrated S Pen for productivity and creativity
- More affordable price point now
- Expandable storage via microSD card (a feature absent on the S21+)
- Older, less efficient chipset (Exynos 990/Snapdragon 865+)
- Potentially lower peak display brightness
- Less refined camera processing
Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
- More powerful and efficient chipset (Exynos 2100/Snapdragon 888)
- Brighter and more vibrant display
- Improved camera performance and image processing
- No S Pen support
- No expandable storage
- Potentially higher price (depending on current deals)
Display Comparison
The S21+ 5G boasts a brighter display, reaching a measured 883 nits, compared to the Note20 5G’s unspecified peak brightness (though typically lower). Both feature 120Hz refresh rates, but the S21+’s panel benefits from the newer generation’s refinements in color accuracy and viewing angles. While both have an 'Infinite' contrast ratio, the S21+'s display is generally considered more vibrant and easier to view in direct sunlight.
Camera Comparison
Both phones offer versatile camera systems, but the S21+ 5G edges ahead. While both capture excellent photos and videos, the S21+ benefits from Samsung’s improved image processing algorithms and potentially larger sensor sizes (specific sensor details are not provided in the context data). The S21+'s camera system is optimized for low-light performance and dynamic range. The Note20 5G’s camera is still capable, but lacks the refinement and consistency of the S21+.
Performance
The core difference lies in the chipsets. The Note20 5G shipped with either the Exynos 990 (globally) or Snapdragon 865+ (USA), both built on a 7nm+ process. The S21+ 5G utilizes the Exynos 2100 (international) or Snapdragon 888 (USA/China), fabricated on a more efficient 5nm node. This translates to a substantial performance uplift for the S21+, particularly in sustained workloads. The S21+'s Cortex-X1 prime core and improved Cortex-A78 performance cores provide a noticeable advantage over the Note20's Mongoose M5 and A76 cores. The S21+ also benefits from faster LPDDR5 RAM, contributing to smoother multitasking.
Battery Life
Both devices share a 25W wired charging capability, 15W wireless charging, and 4.5W reverse wireless charging. However, the S21+ 5G’s more efficient chipset contributes to a similar endurance rating (114h) despite potentially having a slightly smaller battery capacity. The 5nm process allows the S21+ to deliver comparable battery life with less power draw, meaning less time plugged in and more time using the device.
Buying Guide
Buy the Samsung Galaxy Note20 5G if you absolutely require the S Pen for note-taking, sketching, or remote control functionality and can accept slightly lower performance and battery life. Buy the Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G if you prioritize raw processing power, a brighter display, and a more modern camera system, and don't need the S Pen.