Samsung introduced two new Galaxy smartphones ahead of the CES 2020 consumer electronics show: The Galaxy S10 Lite and the Galaxy Note 10 Lite. The new phones are built to offer flagship features at competitive prices. With these new devices, the South Korean phone maker is also stepping out of its usual launch cycle — an effort to combat competition from Apple’s iPhone 11, iPhone XR, and the rumored iPhone SE 2.
The new Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite are largely identical except for their rear cameras and processor. Both come with a 6.7-inch, 1080p, hole-punch OLED screen that has a tiny cutout at the center to house the selfie camera.
Read more: Hands-on with the Galaxy S10 Lite and Note 10 Lite
On top of that, you’ll find a 4500mAh battery coupled with fast-charging over USB Type-C, a 32-megapixel selfie camera, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, an in-display fingerprint scanner, and 128GB of internal storage. Both also offer Android 10 (overlaid with the company’s own custom skin, of course) out of the box.
The Galaxy S10 Lite (which is not to be confused with the Galaxy S10e that’s meant more for smaller hands) is powered by Qualcomm’s former flagship chipset, the Snapdragon 855, while the Galaxy Note 10 Lite runs on Samsung’s own Exynos 8895 SoC.
The defining differences between the two lie inside their rectangular three-camera bumps on the back. The Galaxy S10 Lite has a 48-megapixel primary camera, a 5-megapixel macro lens, and a 12-megapixel ultra-wide shooter. Plus, it has an exclusive software feature called Super Steady OIS, which, as its name suggests, lets you take relatively steadier videos.
The Galaxy Note 10 Lite, on the other hand, carries a 12-megapixel Dual-Pixel camera paired with 12-megapixel ultrawide and 12-megapixel telephoto sensors. Being a Note, its standout perk is the S-Pen stylus, which also doubles as a wireless clicker.
While the new phones do seem promising, Samsung hasn’t yet shared their most important trait — the pricing. Considering the company has nearly half a dozen flagship phones already and a handful more coming up in February, it’s possible that Samsung may end up discontinuing a few of its existing models to make room for the Galaxy S10 Lite and Galaxy Note 10 Lite.
Google Play is borrowing one of the Nintendo Switch’s most useful little tricks. A new Sidekick tool called Playbacks captures a short clip after something interesting has already happened, sparing players from running a screen recorder throughout an entire game.
Playbacks is part of Google Play Store v53.8 and keeps saved clips on the phone. Google first announced it earlier this month, but the new Play Store update marks its arrival for players. Anyone who has watched a perfect win vanish because the record button came too late already understands the appeal.
Samsung’s scandal over its Game Optimizing Service, or GOS, has returned with a bill attached. South Korea’s Fair Trade Commission has tentatively fined the company 20.1 billion won, or about $15.1 million, over gaming claims made for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S22, and Tab S8.
The regulator says Samsung promoted the devices as gaming powerhouses without disclosing that GOS placed preset CPU and GPU limits on certain demanding games. Samsung disputes that conclusion, calling GOS a legitimate way to manage heat.
Apple's next cheaper iPhone could get a brand-new processor while keeping its most stubborn display compromise. Digital Chat Station tips the iPhone 18e for a 2027 release with a 2nm A20 chip and a 6.12-inch OLED screen still limited to 60Hz.
The rumored camera setup includes a single 48MP rear camera and a possible 24MP selfie camera. There's new hardware to consider, but buyers hoping Apple would extend that upgrade generosity to smoother scrolling could be disappointed.