What Are Some Useful Features of the Samsung Galaxy S20?
Samsung has been a star player in the smartphone game since we all started carrying these little slices of technology heaven around in our pockets. The company is known for its innovation — which, depending on your preferences, may even surpass competitor Apple. Samsung’s flagship phones, the Galaxy range, are known for being affordable and reliable while maintaining the futuristic flair and tech-forward user experience many of us look for in our mobile devices. But they’re also popular because they’re packed with features that enhance our daily lives in valuable ways. Take a look at some of the Galaxy S20’s — the latest device in this lineup — most useful and unique features to learn more.
Xbox Compatibility
No, that isn’t a typo. You can play over 100 different Xbox games on the Galaxy S20. The S20 facilitates streaming of Xbox titles to a larger TV, but if you’re a gamer, you’ll be happy to know there are some related features you might like, too. Microsoft and Samsung have partnered to add a special Xbox Game Pass app to the Galaxy Store, and it allows you to redeem tokens and make in-app purchases, such as purchasing downloadable content, for your paired Xbox account.
But what’s this about playing games on the phone? You actually can do this; you’ll just need to purchase a special controller for it. Called the MOGA XP5-X, the controller looks and feels like the garden variety Xbox version, but it incorporates a pop-up clip where you can mount your phone directly to the controller and see what you’re doing on the screen. It also boasts a beastly rechargeable battery that you can use to boost the S20, so it functions similarly to a power bank. How’s that for nifty?
One-Handed Mode
Smartphones these days are pretty sleek, but they’re also big — at least when it comes to the surface area of their screens. Couple this with the fact that many of us need to use our phones with just one hand in a variety of situations, and you get a dilemma: You either need to put down what you’re holding in your other hand…or turn on one-handed mode if you have an S20 smartphone.
Like its name suggests, this option allows you to type on your phone or browse the internet easily by shrinking down the size of the display to suit a single thumb. It will make the entire picture appear smaller down in one corner of the screen, but it’s a worthwhile tradeoff if you find yourself continually challenged by typing on the normal display with one hand. You can choose the gesture, such as a diagonal swipe, that accesses this feature single-handedly, too.
The Camera
A camera is a standard feature on smartphones these days, but the S20’s deserves some special attention because of all it can do. It’s the first phone in the world that can shoot 8K video, meaning its resolution is much higher than 4K — four times the number of pixels — which many devices still haven’t started incorporating. The camera also has one of the largest sensors of any phone on the market, and the 48-megapixel, 100x zoom telephoto lens allows you to capture shots of faraway people and settings with impeccable detail.
Even when you’re taking still photos, however, the S20 delivers some interesting features. You can fully customize the camera’s settings using Pro Video Mode, and the camera also takes fun super slow-motion and high-speed shots. Its Single Take feature, which is a type of burst mode, snaps 14 photos — through a blend of the various lenses and artificial intelligence — and captures video all at once to create a fascinating series of shots. If you aren’t big into photography, this smartphone might convert you.
Smart Pop-Ups
If you’ve ever wished you didn’t have to toggle between apps when you’re in the middle of a conversation while also checking out other apps on your phone, this is the feature for you. Enabling Smart Pop-Up View in the S20 pops whatever messaging app you’re using into a smaller box that remains on the screen while you’re looking at other apps in the background. This way, you can see the latest messages in your conversation and respond to them without having to leave an app and open the messenger. One thing to keep in mind is that this feature only works if the app you want to use it with supports multi-window operation.
Smart Pop-Up View does a bit more, too. You can create an App Pair with two apps that you frequently use together or toggle between. So, instead of opening just one app, your S20 will open both at the same time and display them together on the screen at the same time, too. You might pair the internet and notes apps, for example, so you can jot down ideas as you’re reading something online. The possibilities are just about endless — and totally customizable.
Futureproof Coverage
The Galaxy S20 is prepared for the future — and for staying accessible everywhere — with 5G connectivity. Although these networks are still in the process of being built, and not too many coverage areas exist around the country yet, the S20 is ready for the day they do. 5G networks will provide extra bandwidth and facilitate faster downloads, but phones that aren’t 5G compatible aren’t equipped to access the network when it becomes more widely available. The Galaxy S20, however, will be able to, so this feature is an excellent piece of futureproofing if you plan to keep your phone until 5G networks are more widespread.
