Samsung Galaxy M20 review: Power-packed performer disguised as budget phone

On paper, the Galaxy M20 might seem like is a new breed of smartphone. But does it have features and performance to take on competition in the same segment? Let's find out.

Business Standard : The Galaxy M20 from South Korean electronics manufacturer Samsung is one of the two smartphones that the company recently launched as part of its India-first Galaxy M-series. The series has a lot riding on it, therefore, the company has loaded the series’ premium device (M20) with features that have never been part of Samsung devices. These features include a 5,000 mAh battery, a waterdrop notch screen, a customised user interface, and more.

On paper, the Galaxy M20 might seem like a new breed of smartphone. But does it have features and performance to take on competition in the same segment? Let’s find out:

Design

The Galaxy M20 has a no-frills design. Unlike smartphones in the same segment, the M20 has a glossy plastic built with no reflective or gradient glass-like properties. The glossy nature of plastic makes the phone body susceptible to fingerprints. It gets smudged easily; not something that you want, especially if you do not prefer to use a back cover. The fingerprint sensor is also placed unusually high on the back, making it inconvenient to use.

The front side, however, has a different profile altogether. The new waterdrop notch display looks modern and complements the phone’s overall design language. The phone has a tall stature, thanks to an unconventional aspect ratio screen. While the phone fits perfectly in hand and feels comfortable to hold and use, people with small hands might find it difficult to operate the phone with one hand.

Display

The Galaxy M20 has a 6.3-inch fullHD+ resolution TFT screen, stretched in 19.5:9 aspect ratio. The screen has ample brightness to stay legible in bright outdoors. It renders vivid colours and has satisfactory viewing angles. However, it lacks deep black levels of the AMOLED display. Therefore, the overall contrast is at best satisfactory, but not class leading.

The display is protected by a dragontrail toughened glass from Asahi. The glass is resistant to accidental scratches and it can withstand exposure to coins and keys in pocket, which otherwise might cause serious damage. Although there is no mention of this glass either in the promotion material or on the phone’s box, this was confirmed by the company’s spokesperson at the time of M-series unveiling.

Not exactly a display feature, but the phone comes with Widevine L1 certification, which allows it to stream high-definition multimedia content available on over-the-top (OTT) platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Videos, etc.