Galaxy Be aware followers internationally have been clearly disillusioned by the flip of occasions. The truth is, even now, there is no such thing as a indication as as to if Samsung has canned the Be aware lineup for good or if that is only a short-term delay. Possibly there’ll truly be a Samsung Galaxy Be aware 22 subsequent 12 months?
There are a number of questions that desperately want solutions. However that’s the topic for a distinct article. Right now, on this article, we check out the illustrious (and sometimes controversial) historical past of the Samsung Galaxy Be aware Collection from 2011 till 2020.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware: The Genesis
Introduced: October 2011
The smartphone house in 2011 was nothing like it’s as we speak. In 2011, it had been 4 years for the reason that first iPhone had launched and Steve Jobs had (in)famously proclaimed a number of months in the past {that a} 3.5-inch show is the “proper” measurement for smartphone shows. The truth is, he went on to say that nobody would purchase telephones with bigger shows.
Nearly as a mark of defiance, simply months after Steve Jobs made this remark, Samsung got here up with the first-gen Samsung Galaxy Be aware with a gargantuan 5.3-inch show. The Galaxy Be aware did the whole lot towards Steve Jobs’ concept of a smartphone on the time. When the Samsung Galaxy Be aware did launch, it sported among the many largest shows on any smartphone.
To make issues much more attention-grabbing, Samsung additionally shipped the cellphone with a stylus - one thing that Steve Jobs himself had famously pooh-poohed and discarded again in 2007. If going towards custom was an artwork, the Galaxy Be aware collection was the artist spearheading an a complete motion.

To Samsung’s delight, and far to the chagrin of Apple, the Samsung Galaxy Be aware was a grand success. Barely a month since its launch, Samsung managed to promote greater than 1 million models of the Galaxy Be aware. By August 2012, the corporate managed to promote greater than 10 million models! The writing was on the wall. Individuals cherished telephones with enormous shows. Steve Jobs - and Apple - have been proved flawed. The ‘Phablet’ was born.
Galaxy Be aware: Key Specs
The spotlight characteristic of the primary era Galaxy Be aware was its giant 5.3-inch AMOLED show with a decision of 1280 x 800 pixels - and help for the primary era S-Pen. The latter ultimately went on to turn out to be an USP of the Be aware collection.
Relying on which a part of the world you lived, you had to select from the Samsung Exynos 4210 variant of the cellphone or go along with the opposite choice primarily based on the Qualcomm Snapdragon S3 chip. The cellphone got here with 1GB of RAM and provided 16/32GB storage choices - with help for reminiscence enlargement.
- Digital camera: 8MP rear, 1080p video, 2MP entrance, VGA video
- Networks: 3G, LTE (2012 fashions)
- Software program: Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) upgradeable to Android 4.1 (JellyBean) with Samsung TouchWiz UI.
- Battery: 2,500 mAh
Remembered for
Opening up a wholly new class of large-screened smartphones. The stylus was introduced again from the lifeless. It was additionally a true-blue flagship of its time.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 2: Doubling it down
Introduced: August 2012
Using excessive on the arrogance from the unprecedented success of the first-gen Galaxy Be aware, Samsung adopted it up with the Galaxy Be aware 2 the very subsequent 12 months. The product featured a number of enhancements over the unique Be aware - together with a fair bigger 5.5-inch show, and an improved stylus. The end result? Customers lapped up the Be aware 2 in hordes and Samsung managed to promote 5 million models inside the first two months since its launch. The Be aware went on to promote greater than 30 million models over its lifetime.

Key Specs
- Show: 5.5-inch Tremendous AMOLED show, 1280 x 720 pixels
- SoC Choices: Samsung Exynos 4412, Qualcomm Snapdragon 600
- RAM/ Storage: 2GB (LPDDR2) with 16/32/64GB choices and help for microSD playing cards
- Digital camera: 8MP rear, 1080p video 1.9MP entrance, 720p, Sluggish movement at 120 fps
- Software program: Android 4.1.1 ‘Jelly Bean’, upgradeable to Android 4.4.2 ‘KitKat, Samsung TouchWiz UI
- Battery: 3,100 mAh
Remembered for
Bettering the S Pen efficiency over the unique Galaxy Be aware. The Be aware 2 was additionally extensively praised for its show which on the time was thought of to be the perfect smartphone show ever made till then. In 2016, in India, a Samsung Galaxy Be aware 2 sparked and smoked whereas inside an plane. Following this, the Indian aviation regulator despatched out an advisory asking folks to show all Samsung smartphones off whereas inside an plane.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 3: Lighter, extra premium than ever earlier than
Introduced: September 2013
By 2013, the Samsung Galaxy Be aware collection had established itself as a premium product line. The truth is, Samsung wished the buyer to be aware of this as effectively. The end result? Samsung tried to make the Galaxy Be aware 3 look premium with a plastic leather-based and fake stitching. It was additionally fairly a bit thinner than its predecessor whereas additionally that includes a bigger, 5.7-inch show.
And this time round, Samsung additionally upped the show decision to FHD. Oh, and it was additionally the primary smartphone to characteristic help for USB 3.0 requirements. The Be aware 3 additionally featured help for air hand gestures for the primary time and had a devoted sensor for a similar. The

Key Specs
- Show: 5.7-inch FHD Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC Choices: Samsung Exynos 5420, Qualcomm Snapdragon 800
- RAM/ Storage: 3GB (LPDDR3) with 16/32/64GB choices and help for microSD playing cards
- Digital camera: 8MP rear, 1080p video 1.9MP entrance, 720p, Sluggish movement at 120 fps
- Software program: Android 4.3 ‘Jelly Bean’, upgradeable to Android 5.0 Lollipop, Samsung TouchWiz NatureUX 2.5
- Battery: 3,200 mAh
Remembered for
Broadly praised for its enhancements over the Be aware 2. Confronted high quality management points with the house button which loosened and shifted over time. The Be aware 3 was additionally effectively obtained with 10 million models bought inside the first two months.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 3 Neo
Introduced: February 2014
In February 2014, Samsung, for the primary time, introduced a ‘watered down’, decrease priced model of a Galaxy Be aware collection system. Generally known as the Samsung Galaxy Be aware 3 Neo, it was intently associated to the unique Galaxy Be aware 3 when it comes to design however featured a smaller show with decrease decision. Whereas not as profitable as its bigger, dearer sibling, the Be aware 3 Neo made for a sexy proposition for individuals who didn’t need to spend an excessive amount of cash on the flagship grade Be aware 3.

Key Specs
- Show: 5.5-inch HD Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC choices: Exynos 5260, Qualcomm Snapdragon 400 (Twin SIM), Qualcomm Snapdragon 800 (South Korea)
- RAM/Storage: 2GB LPDDR3, 16/32GB, microSD card supported
- Digital camera: 8MP Rear, 1080p movies, 2MP entrance
- Software program: Android 4.3 ‘Jellybean, upgradable to Android 5.1.1 ‘Lollipop’
- Battery: 3100 mAh
Remembered for
Bringing down the entry barrier to the Galaxy Be aware collection. The cellphone was not bought in a number of developed markets just like the UK and the US.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 4: QHD Movies turn out to be a actuality
Introduced: September 2014
The Samsung Galaxy Be aware 4 was extensively considered an incremental replace over the Be aware 3 from 2013. The show measurement and the design language, for instance, remained fairly comparable. Whereas the Be aware 4 went on to turn out to be a preferred smartphone, promoting over 5 million models within the first month alone, the eventual gross sales figures have been barely decrease than that of the Be aware 3. The Be aware 4 was additionally the primary handset within the collection to deliver help for 4K video recording and to additionally sport a 2K show.
Sure, the Be aware 3 did help 4K a 12 months in the past - however this characteristic was restricted to the Qualcomm variant of the cellphone.

Key Specs
- Show: 5.7-inch QHD, Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC Choices: Exynos 7 5433, Qualcomm Snapdragon 805
- RAM/Storage: 3GB LPDDR3, 16/32GB, microSD help
- Rear digicam: 16MP with AF and OIS, 4K video recording, 1080p at 30fps
- Entrance digicam: 3.7 MP, 1440p video recording
- Software program: Android 4.4.4 Kitkat - upgradable to Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
- Battery: 3220 mAh, 15W charging
Remembered for
The Be aware 4 introduced main upgrades when it comes to video recording capabilities and was among the many first handsets to natively help 4K video recording. The Chinese language model of the cellphone was attention-grabbing in itself because it got here with a non-user replaceable battery not like the opposite fashions.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware Edge
Introduced: September 2014
The Galaxy Be aware Edge was introduced alongside the usual Be aware 4, and is extensively thought of to be a courageous transfer on a part of Samsung to experiment. Whereas it retained a lot of the {hardware} specs of the Be aware 4, the USP of the Be aware Edge was its show which was curved in the direction of one aspect. This curve was vital sufficient for Samsung to make use of the aspect strip as an extra edge show.

Key specs
- Show: 5.6-inch QHD, Tremendous AMOLED, Curved
- SoC Choices: Exynos 7 5433, Qualcomm Snapdragon 805
- RAM/Storage: 3GB LPDDR3, 32/64GB, microSD help
- Rear digicam: 16MP with AF and OIS, 4K video recording, 1080p at 30fps
- Entrance digicam: 3.7 MP, 1440p video recording
- Software program: Android 4.4.4 Kitkat - upgradable to Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
- Battery: 3000 mAh, 15W charging
Remembered for
The outrageous curved display that solely curved on one aspect!
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 5: Controversial adjustments, Skipped Europe
Introduced: August 2015
The Samsung Galaxy Be aware 5 was the harbinger of a number of adjustments to the Be aware lineup. A few of the selections made by Samsung - together with the removing of expandable storage and non consumer detachable battery obtained widespread criticism from devoted Be aware fanboys. Samsung additionally made a shock transfer and selected to not launch this cellphone in European markets and positioned the Galaxy S6 Edge+ as a viable various there.
On the identical time, the cellphone did obtain optimistic opinions from throughout the board particularly with respect to its upgraded construct high quality, digicam, and enchancment in efficiency throughout the board. The Be aware 5 additionally ran the upgraded TouchWiz UI which was renamed to Samsung Expertise 8.0.

Key specs
- Show: 5.7-inch QHD Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 7 7420
- RAM/Storage: 4GB LPDDR4, 32/64GB UFS 2.0
- Rear digicam: 16MP with OIS, 4K video seize
- Entrance digicam: 5MP
- Software program: Android 5.1.1 Lollipop, upgradable to Android 7, Nougat, Samsung Expertise UX
- Battery: 3000 mAh
Remembered for
Being the primary Galaxy Be aware collection system to not characteristic reminiscence enlargement and detachable battery. Nonetheless, this didn’t stop the Be aware 5 from promoting fairly effectively. It was among the many hottest Android smartphones of 2016.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 7: The unmitigated catastrophe
Introduced: August 2016
Samsung skipped the Galaxy Be aware 6 moniker in 2016 to let it deliver the Be aware lineup in parity with the numbering of the Galaxy S collection. Due to this fact, the Samsung Galaxy Be aware 7 was launched the identical 12 months because the Samsung Galaxy S7. The Be aware 7 was designed from the bottom as much as be an enormous enchancment over the Be aware 5.
Most significantly, Samsung listened to suggestions from its customers and introduced again expandable storage on the cellphone. The Be aware 7 was additionally IP68 water-resistant which greater than made up for the shortage of a detachable battery. The cellphone was additionally among the many first to sport an iris scanner for biometric authentication.
The Samsung Galaxy Be aware 7 had the whole lot going for it. Nice design, wonderful options, good software program and renewed client curiosity. Nonetheless, the whole lot went for a toss after a collection of battery associated fires resulted in a whole product recall. It was discovered that there was an inherent challenge with the battery used on the Be aware 7.
Samsung was pressured to recall all Galaxy Be aware 7 models and suspended gross sales utterly. The corporate did go on to launch a tool referred to as the Galaxy Be aware 7 FE - with a smaller, non faulty battery- in choose markets. However the harm was already finished.

Key Specs
- Show: 5.7-inch QHD Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 8890, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820
- RAM/Storage: 4GB LPDDR4, 64GB UFS 2.0, SD card help
- Rear digicam: 12MP with OIS, 4K video seize
- Entrance digicam: 5MP, with extensive angle lens
- Software program: Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow, Android 7 Nougat, Samsung Expertise 8.1
- Battery: 3500 mAh, 3000 mAh (Fan Version)
Remembered for
Whereas it will likely be remembered for all of the flawed causes, the Be aware 7 did include its share of firsts. It was the primary Be aware collection system to characteristic a USB-C port, and the final one to characteristic a bodily residence button.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 8: The Phoenix rises
Introduced: August 2017
The Samsung Galaxy Be aware 8 had lots using on it because it was the successor to the notorious Galaxy Be aware 7. Samsung had lots to show to its detractors and actually, the Be aware 8 did ship on most counts. It was the primary smartphone from Samsung to characteristic twin cameras and its S-Pen featured a bunch of recent improvements. The Be aware 8 additionally featured help for Samsung DeX.
Total, the Samsung Galaxy Be aware 8 was well-received throughout the board and managed to sail previous all of the dangerous press attributable to the Galaxy Be aware 7 fiasco. Oh, and lest we overlook, this was the primary Galaxy Be aware collection system to breach the 6-inch mark when it comes to show measurement and to additionally get a tall side ratio.

Key Specs
- Show: 6.3 inches, QHD+ Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 8895, Qualcomm Snapdragon 835
- RAM/Storage: 6GB LPDDR4X, 64/128/256GB UFS 2.0, SD card help
- Rear digicam: 12MP with OIS, 4K video seize, 12MP telephoto with OIS, 4K video seize
- Entrance digicam: 8MP, with extensive angle lens
- Software program: Android 7.1.1 Nougat upgradable to Android 9 Pie, Samsung Expertise 8.5, One UI 1.0
- Battery: 3300 mAh, 15W charging
Remembered for
For the primary twin digicam smartphone from Samsung. The design was additionally extensively praised and so was help for iP68 water resistance. It did obtain criticism for the position of the rear mounted fingerprint scanner.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 9: A refined Be aware 8
Introduced: August 2018
By 2018, folks had lengthy forgotten the Galaxy Be aware 7 catastrophe and the recognition of the Be aware collection had picked up once more. The Be aware 8 from 2017 did nice and Samsung didn’t really feel essential to tinker an excessive amount of with the options of that cellphone. Successfully, the Samsung Galaxy Be aware 9 ended up being an incremental improve over the Be aware 8 with slight enhancements to pick options. The cellphone did a glance fairly a bit totally different from the Galaxy Be aware 8.

Key Specs
- Show: 6.4 inches, QHD+ Tremendous AMOLED
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 9810, Qualcomm Snapdragon 845
- RAM/Storage: 6/8GB LPDDR4X, 128/256GB UFS 2.1, SD card help
- Rear digicam: 12MP with OIS, 4K video seize, 12MP telephoto with OIS, 4K video seize
- Entrance digicam: 8MP, with extensive angle lens
- Software program: Android 8.1 Oreo, upgradable to Android 10, Samsung Expertise 9.5 and One UI 2.5
- Battery: 4000 mAh, 15W charging
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 10, 10+: Two is best than one!
Introduced: August 2019
2019 noticed Samsung announce not one - however two Samsung Galaxy Be aware units. This was the primary time the corporate launched two Galaxy Be aware variants on the identical day. Customers had the choice to select from the usual Samsung Galaxy Be aware 10 and the dearer and bigger Galaxy Be aware 10+.
Each the handsets additionally turned the primary Galaxy Be aware units to omit the three.5mm audio jack. The digicam setup additionally noticed a major replace with the Be aware 10 collection with the units leaping from a twin digicam setup on the Be aware 9 to a quad digicam array on the Be aware 10 collection.

Key specs (Be aware 10)
- Show: 6.3-inch, Dynamic AMOLED, Infinity O, 2400×1080 pixels, HDR10+
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 9 Collection 9825, Qualcomm Snapdragon 855
- RAM/Storage: 8/12GB, 256GB UFS 3.0, SD card help
- Rear digicam:
- 12MP Telephoto Digital camera OIS
- 12MP Huge-angle Digital camera OIS
- 16MP Extremely Huge Digital camera
- Entrance digicam: 10MP
- Software program: Android 9 Pie, upgradable to Android 11, One UI 3.0
- Battery: 3500 mAh, 25W charging
Key specs (Be aware 10+)
- Show: 6.3-inch, Dynamic AMOLED, Infinity O, 3040×1440 pixels, HDR10+
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 9 Collection 9825, Qualcomm Snapdragon 855
- RAM/Storage: 12GB, 256/512GB UFS 3.0, SD card help
- Rear digicam: 12MP Telephoto Digital camera OIS
- 12MP Huge-angle Digital camera OIS
- 16MP Extremely Huge Digital camera
- VGA DepthVision
- Entrance digicam: 10MP
- Software program: Android 9 Pie, upgradable to Android 11, One UI 3.0
- Battery: 4500 mAh, 45W charging
Remembered for
The Be aware 10 collection shall be remembered for bettering the charging speeds on the Be aware collection after a number of years. The Be aware 10+ supported 45W quick charging which was a welcome change from the 15W charging speeds from the yesteryears.
Samsung Galaxy Be aware 10 Lite
The Samsung Galaxy Be aware 10 Lite was introduced a number of months after the ‘authentic’ Be aware 10 handsets. This was the primary ‘mid-range’ Galaxy Be aware collection handset for the reason that Be aware 3 Neo from 2013 and primarily focused rising markets in Asia. The cellphone was additionally launched in a number of different markets. The cellphone additionally got here with a headphone jack which was lacking on the opposite two Be aware 10 collection units.

Key specs
- Show: 6.7-inch, Dynamic AMOLED, Infinity O, 2400×1080 pixels, HDR10+
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 9 Collection 9810
- RAM/Storage: 6/8GB, 128GB UFS 2.1, SD card help
- Rear digicam:
- 12MP principal digicam
- 12MP ultra-wide-angle digicam
- 12MP telephoto digicam
- Entrance digicam: 32MP
- Software program: Android 10, upgradable to Android 11, One UI 3.1
- Battery: 4500 mAh, 25W charging
Galaxy Be aware 20/Be aware 20 Extremely
Introduced: August 2020
The Galaxy Be aware 20 collection stay the final Be aware collection handsets to be ever introduced. The units characteristic a number of incremental upgrades over the Be aware 10 line-up from 2019. As was the case with the Be aware 10 lineup, the decrease priced of the 2 units got here with lesser options and didn’t get a 120Hz show and the microSC card slot that the Be aware 20 Extremely got here with.
There are a number of variations within the digicam setup as effectively. Each variations of the cellphone additionally got here in separate LTE and 5G variants relying on the place they have been bought.

Key specs (Samsung Galaxy Be aware 20)
- Show: 6.7-inch, Dynamic AMOLED, 2400×1080 pixels, 120Hz
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 9 Collection 990, Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+
- RAM/Storage: 8/12GB LPDDR5, 128/256/512GB UFS 3.0,
- Rear digicam:
- 12MP principal digicam
- 64MP telephoto digicam
- 12MP ultrawide digicam
- Entrance digicam: 10MP
- Software program: Android 10, upgradable to Android 11, One UI 3.0
- Battery: 4300 mAh, 25W charging
Key specs (Samsung Galaxy Be aware 20 Extremely)
- Show: 6.9-inch, Dynamic AMOLED, 3088×1080 pixels, 120Hz
- SoC choices: Samsung Exynos 9 Collection 990, Qualcomm Snapdragon 865+
- RAM/Storage: 8/12GB LPDDR5, 128/256/512GB UFS 3.0, SD card help
- Rear digicam:
- 108MP principal digicam
- 12MP telephoto digicam
- 12MP ultrawide digicam
- Entrance digicam: 10MP
- Software program: Android 10, upgradable to Android 11, One UI 3.0
- Battery: 4500 mAh, 25W charging
Remembered for
The final Samsung Galaxy Be aware units ever? Let’s hope not!
Effectively that sums up our transient tackle the last decade lengthy journey of the Samsung Galaxy Nite collection. We all know this was a quite lengthy learn - however then we tried up summing an eventful 10 12 months historical past in a single article. At this juncture, we actually have no idea if the Galaxy Be aware collection will ever make a comeback.
However no matter route Samsung takes with the observe collection, there is no such thing as a denying the impression this lineup from the corporate had on the evolution of the trendy smartphone. And this legacy alone is worthy sufficient for Samsung to contemplate reviving the lineup subsequent 12 months.
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