Samsung's Galaxy S21 FE will be a pile of dust after the launch of the Galaxy S21 series A more affordable "Fun Edition" would take the best parts of the Galaxy S21 series and put them in a model that straddles the line between mid-range and flagship phones
The Galaxy S20 FE was launched in 2020 as a cheaper version of the Galaxy S20 and was a huge success
Adding fuel to the fire was a November tweet by trusted leaker Max Weinbach that the S21 FE is in development and will be released in 2021 In other words, it seems likely that the S21 Fan Edition device is in production
Currently, information is scarce But for now, here is everything we know about the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE and some of what to expect from this device
Samsung has not made a regular habit of releasing the FE as a follow-up to its flagship Galaxy phones Therefore, when speculating when the Galaxy S21 FE will be released, unfortunately we do not have years of historical data
However, SamMobile reports that the company plans to release a new one every year Therefore, it is fairly certain that Samsung plans to replicate the strategy it employed with the Galaxy S20 line
The Galaxy S20 FE was announced on September 23, 2020 and released just a week later on October 2, 2020 Assuming a roughly similar launch schedule, we can expect the S21 FE to appear in early fall
However, the Galaxy S21 was released earlier than usual Typically, Samsung's flagship models are released a few months later in the year The Galaxy S10 and S20 were both released in March, but Samsung released the S21 in mid-January This could affect the release date of the S21 FE, whose launch will also be moved back a few months to late summer
The S20 FE was positioned as a cheaper version of the Galaxy S20, but it was not a cheap device; it was released in both 4G and 5G models; the 5G Galaxy S20 FE cost $699/£699/AUD$1,149, while Samsung had priced the 4G model, which was not released in the US, at £599/$999 AUD
However, given that the S21 was launched at a lower initial price point than the S20, the S21 FE is expected to be priced relatively small to maintain continuity in the series
The specifications of the Galaxy S21 FE remain a mystery However, looking back at the S20 FE compared to the S20, it is likely that the S21 FE will be only a minor downgrade of the S21 and will be priced accordingly
Thanks to SamMobile, we now know that Samsung is currently developing a Galaxy device with the model name SM-G990B
Assuming this model number is the S21 FE, it will be 5G-enabled, run Android 11, and offer a choice of 128GB or 256GB of storage It is also said to be available in multiple color variations, including white, gray/silver, pink, and violet
Of course, the S21 could be improved in several areas: the S20 FE had a larger battery than the standard S20, despite being the entry model in this series Therefore, we expect the S21 FE to add some features that we felt were a bit lacking in the S21
No more plastic: While the plastic back of the Galaxy S20 FE was never bad, we would have rather had a glass or metal back We don't expect the S21 FE to solve this, but we can dream
Better cooling: the Galaxy S21 series gets hot - possibly too hot Some users have already complained that the device gets uncomfortably warm, especially when playing graphics-intensive games We hope the S21 FE keeps things a bit cooler
Faster charging: Samsung initially offered a 45W charger option with the Galaxy S20 Ultra, but this was reduced to a maximum of 25W for the S21 series According to recent leaks, Samsung is manufacturing a 65W charger and hopes the S21 FE will be the first device to support this accessory
More battery life: If the Galaxy S21 FE can improve on the Galaxy S21's somewhat lackluster battery, fast charging may not be necessary In battery tests, the standard S21 lasted 9 hours and 53 minutes, but with Adaptive Refresh Rate enabled, it dropped to just 6 hours and 31 minutes
No 4G-only model: In 2021, it seems time to ditch the 4G-only handsets in this category; the Galaxy S20 FE 4G model was never released in the US, and we expect the Galaxy S21 FE to perhaps go a step further and eliminate the 4G model entirely This does not seem to be a particularly outlandish request, as leaked information indicates that the phone will be 5G-enabled
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