Samsung Galaxy S20

[What Hi-Fi?]

Samsung’s trio of Galaxy S20 flagship phones if finally official, and we’ve been hands on with the entry-level model.

Samsung Galaxy S20 : Read more

 

[Mikeyevs]

Exercise caution with this device as there is currently a software problem which causes a popping and crackling noise when using an external DAC, making it unlistenable.
The only solution is to use a third-party app such as USB Audio Pro, but this is restrictive due to the limited streaming music source support.
Also, there is no Bluetooth APtx HD codec, so the Bluetooth output sounds poor at best.
Having changed from an S9 where my Chord Mojo had no playback glitches, I am an extremely disappointed S20 Ultra owner.
It is unforgivable that Samsung should launch a flagship product with such issues. Avoid until rectified.

 

[JeremyG]

This review is a joke. "The S20 is almost certainly now the best Android phone for sound quality." if you actually enjoy sound quality, dont bother with this phone, the speakers are extremely tinny and the snares, dont even get me started, extremely forward, like the music is all backround noise compared to that completely overpowering snare drum blasting in your face. these speakers were not tuned in the slightest, they do not sound "the best" let alone even good. like its a solid phone and all sure, but it does not sound good. and dont just trust me, check other forums, even the samsung community forums, theres plently of people complaining about how god awful the speakers are, theyre litterally a downgrade from every single other samsung phone. sure they get loud, but if youre here cause youre an audiophile, then you know that loudness is not the same as audio quality. and dont go hitting me with "sound preference is subjective," if you enjoy listening to youre favourite music while someone hammers on a tin can on front of your face, then I guess thats what you like, and thats what these speakers sound like. WhatHihi has fallen from grace if they actually believe that these speakers sound good.

 

[Eric76]

Why have you specifically spent the equivalent of a thesis on this author's intepretation of the sound quality of this handset? Smartphones or flat screen OLED, QLED or LCD TV's have never had particularly strong clear or deep sound reproduction quality for the past 10-20 years since their inception, so for you to only spend an unecessary amount of time slagging this author's review off on this one subject matter beggars belief.
It is clear that you and other journo's have decided that this years Samsung S series model is not THE best phone on the block, often going for the Apple iphone 11, or in some other cases. the other Chinese manufacturers offerings. However the clue is in this line on the 3rd para of this article and reads: the untrained eye might struggle to pick it out of a 2020 phone line-up. Are you one of these types that this line from this author is referring to?

 

[JeremyG]

Why have you specifically spent the equivalent of a thesis on this author's intepretation of the sound quality of this handset? Smartphones or flat screen OLED, QLED or LCD TV's have never had particularly strong clear or deep sound reproduction quality for the past 10-20 years since their inception, so for you to only spend an unecessary amount of time slagging this author's review off on this one subject matter beggars belief.
It is clear that you and other journo's have decided that this years Samsung S series model is not THE best phone on the block, often going for the Apple iphone 11, or in some other cases. the other Chinese manufacturers offerings. However the clue is in this line on the 3rd para of this article and reads: the untrained eye might struggle to pick it out of a 2020 phone line-up. Are you one of these types that this line from this author is referring to?

I'm "slagging" this review because I own the phone. Went from a Galaxy s9+ to the s20. While yes the s9+ did not have amazing sound quality, it was still good enough. This year, the sound quality completely and utterly nose dived. The phone is actually painful to listen to without an eq because of how appalling tinny the sound is, and even with after adjusting the the 10 band eq, you can tell how completely erratic and seemingly random the tuning of the speakers was. I'm "slagging" this authors review because we are in a Hi-fi community where I assume we are all looking for good sound, and this author apparently claims that this phone has "the best sound" when it very much objectively does not.

The phone is great in other aspects, but I do not appreciate reviews that are straight up lies.