Samsung unveiled its next generation of Note devices - the Note 20 and Note 20 Ultra at its Galaxy Unpacked event on 5 August, but how does the top-end model compare to its predecessor?

We've put the specifications of the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra up against the Galaxy Note 10+ to see what the differences are, which to buy or whether it's worth upgrading.

Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra 5G - 128GB (Black)

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Design

  • Note 10+: 162.3 x 77.2 x 7.9mm, 196g
  • Note 20 Ultra: 164.8 x 77.2 x 8.1mm, 208g

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ has a metal frame with a glass rear. Its corners are squarer than the likes of the Galaxy S20 series and it has a less prominent camera housing on the back.

The S Pen is built into the bottom right of the device, there is a punch hole camera in the centre at the top of the display and the Note 10+ is IP68 water and dust resistant. Colours options include Aura Glow, Aura Black, Aura White and Aura Blue.

The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra has a similar design to the Note 10+, also featuring square corners, though the camera housing on the rear is more pronounced, like the Galaxy S20 Ultra.

It too has an IP68 rating and a built-in S Pen, but it features Corning Gorilla Glass 7 and comes in White, Black and Mystic Bronze colour options.

Display

  • Note 10+: 6.8-inch, 3040 x 1440 (498ppi), 60Hz
  • Note 20 Ultra: 6.9-inch, 3088 x 1440 pixel (496ppi), 120Hz

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ has a 6.8-inch Dynamic AMOLED display, featuring a 3040 x 1440 pixel resolution that offers a 498ppi pixel density. It offers curved edges and a standard 60Hz refresh rate.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra meanwhile, comes with a slightly larger 6.9-inch display with a 3088 x 1440 pixel resolution that results in a pixel density of 496ppi. 

The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra also has a 120Hz refresh rate, like the Galaxy S20 series. Both the Note 10+ and the Note 20 Ultra are HDR10+ certified.

Camera

  • Note 10+: 16-megapixel ultra wide, 12-megapixel wide angle, 12-megapixel telephoto, DepthVision
  • Note 20 Ultra: 108-megapixel main sensor, 12-megapixel telephoto, 12-megapixel ultra-wide

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ has a quad rear camera made up of a 16-megapixel ultra-wide sensor, 12-megapixel wide-angle sensor, 12-megapixel telephoto sensor and a VGA DepthVision sensor. 

It has dual optical image stabilisation on the rear, up to 10x digital zoom and there is 4K video recording on board. On the front, there is a 10-megapixel camera.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra comes with a triple rear camera, featuring a 108-megapixel sensor and two additional 12-megapixel sensors - one telephoto and one ultra-wide.

There's 50X Space Zoom feature, 5x optical zoom and 8K video recording. On the front of the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra, there is a 10-megapixel camera.

Hardware and specs

  • Note 10+: Qualcomm SD855 or Exynos 990, 12GB RAM, 256/512GB storage, 4300mAh
  • Note 20 Ultra: Qualcomm SD865 Plus or Exynos 990, 12GB RAM, 512GB storage, 4500mAh

The Samsung Galaxy Note 10+ runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 processor or the Exynos 990, depending on the region. Both chipsets are supported by 12GB of RAM and a choice of 256GB or 512GB of internal storage, both of which have microSD support for up to 1TB. 

There's a 4300mAh battery on board, and wireless charging, reverse wireless charging and fast charging are all supported. There is a 4G and 5G model of the Samsung Galaxy Note 10+.

The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra runs on either the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 Plus or the Exynos 990 chipset, again region dependant.

Like the Note 10+, the Note 20 Ultra has 12GB of RAM in the 5G variant, with storage options of 128GB, 256GB and 512GB, region dependant also. The LTE model has 8GB of RAM and comes in a choice of 256GB or 512GB storage options, region dependant.  It too has microSD support for storage expansion.

The battery is 4500mAh and wireless charging, reverse wireless charging and fast charging are all supported with fast charging offering 50 per cent of battery in 30 minutes.

Additionally on the hardware front, the Note 20 Ultra's S Pen is said to have 80 per cent latency improvement, DeX is now possible wirelessly and there is Ultra-wideband technology on board comapred to the Note 10+.

Samsung Galaxy Note 10 Plus

Conclusion

The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra offers a similar design to the Note 10+ but in different colour variations and with a more pronounced camera housing on the rear.

It also offers a larger and faster display, an improved camera setup and a larger battery capacity. The processor also sees an upgrade, storage is doubled for the Note 20 Ultra in the base model, and there are a number of software improvements too.

Ultimately, there are several great reasons to buy the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra over the Note 10+ but you will pay more for the new device, so consider whether the upgrades are worth the extra. If not, the Note 10+ is still an excellent device.