What you need to know
- Samsung's new Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra have scored a 3/10 on iFixit's repairability scale.
- Even though the two phones use many modular components, you will need to battle through the tough adhesive to be able to replace anything.
- The teardown also gives us our best look yet at the differences inside the two phones.
The folks at iFixit have completed their dissection of Samsung's latest Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra flagships and awarded them a disappointing 3 out of 10 for repairability. In addition to showing us how difficult it is to replace the components inside, the side-by-side teardown also highlights all the key differences between the two phones.
While both phones support 15W wireless charging, the iFixit teardown reveals the bigger Note 20 Ultra has a double-coil configuration, similar to the Galaxy S20 Ultra. There are a few other striking differences as well. Thanks to its more impressive 108MP main camera and periscope lens, the camera modules on the Note 20 Ultra take up a lot more space than the modules on the Note 20. Despite these differences, however, iFixit found the two phones to be equally challenging to repair.
Like other recent Samsung flagship phones, the batteries inside the Galaxy Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra are glued in, which makes it quite tough to access them. In fact, nearly all major components inside have "tough adhesive." That said, there are a few modular components as well, which can be replaced independently. Samsung is also using standard Philips screws, although a few of them in the midframe are said to be extremely tight.
Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G
Samsung's new Galaxy Note 20 Ultra comes with several major upgrades over previous Note phones, including a 120Hz display, an improved S Pen, 5G connectivity, and a bigger battery. It also offers a great camera experience with its 108MP main sensor and is guaranteed to receive three years of Android OS updates.
