Samsung Galaxy Note 20's titular feature will come to Galaxy S30 Ultra, leak says

Samsung Galaxy Note 20
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 (Image credit: TechRadar)

You can easily tell Samsung's top-end phones apart by checking if they have the firm's S Pen stylus - if one is present, it's a Galaxy Note device, if not, it's a Galaxy S handset (or one of its myriad mid-rangers). However the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S30 could have a stylus, at least in its top-end model.

This comes from Twitter user @hwangmh01 - we don't know that leaker, and they don't have much of a track record, so we wouldn't usually report on this. 

However Ishan Agarwal, a reliable leaker, also put their credibility behind the leak, potentially making it more likely - but they stopped short of formally agreeing with the tweet.

The leak itself states there are three Samsung Galaxy S30 phones coming - well, the information actually says Galaxy S21 - which we're starting to hear the phone might be called - and apparently one of them, presumably the 'Ultra' or top-end model, will have an S Pen stylus.

One other piece of information the leak gives us is that the phones will be code-named 'Unbound' - Samsung's code-names often hint towards features in the phones, like the Note 10's art focus which was reflected in the 'Da Vinci' codename, while the Galaxy S20 Ultra's Space Zoom mode was tipped in its 'Hubble' name.

Could Unbound mean the phone is unbound from the rules which dictate whether a handset fits in the Galaxy S or Galxay Note lines? Perhaps, but it seems a stretch.

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Note place to go

If this turns out to be true, it's not exactly clear what will differentiate this Galaxy S30 Ultra from the recent Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, which has all the top specs of the Galaxy S20 Ultra but with an S Pen. Sure, there may be some specs differences, but they'll also occupy exactly the same space in Samsung's phone line-up.

The leak coincides with a report suggesting the Samsung Galaxy Note line is getting discontinued though, so perhaps Samsung is merging its Galaxy S and Galaxy Note lines to create one super line-up of devices.

We've heard this before, but regarding the S20 and Note 20 lines. That didn't come true (obviously), so we assumed it was just a fake leak, but it's starting to seem like the information was actually correct - just a year early.

There's no way of knowing for sure right now, until the Galaxy S30 / S21 phones are launched. We're expecting that to happen in February 2021, so stay tuned as that gets closer for even more news and leaks.

Tom Bedford
Contributor

Tom Bedford was deputy phones editor on TechRadar until late 2022, having worked his way up from staff writer. Though he specialized in phones and tablets, he also took on other tech like electric scooters, smartwatches, fitness, mobile gaming and more. He is based in London, UK and now works for the entertainment site What To Watch.


He graduated in American Literature and Creative Writing from the University of East Anglia. Prior to working on TechRadar, he freelanced in tech, gaming and entertainment, and also spent many years working as a mixologist. He also currently works in film as a screenwriter, director and producer.