Samsung refreshing LTE-only Galaxy S20 FE with Snapdragon 865 (Updated: Launch)

Update: May 6, 2021 (4:46 AM ET): Samsung has launched the 4G-only Samsung Galaxy S20 FE with the Snapdragon 865 chipset. It currently available in Malaysia and listed in Germany and Sweden. You can read more about the new model here.

Original article: April 21, 2021 (10:20 AM ET): When it launched, there were two versions of the “Fan Edition” of the Galaxy S20: a 4G-only version and a version with 5G capabilities. The 5G version came with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 processor while the LTE-only variant came with Samsung’s homegrown Exynos 990 chip.

Although the phones looked very much the same, the Exynos chip is definitively weaker than the Qualcomm one. This resulted in not only limited mobile networking capabilities but also performance deficiencies between the two models.

Now, though, the company is refreshing the 4G-only Samsung Galaxy S20 FE by swapping out the Exynos chip for the Snapdragon one. So far, we can confirm Samsung is doing this in Scandinavian countries, as confirmed by its own website (via WinFuture). The model number for this altered variant is SM-G780G.

Related: Samsung Galaxy S20 FE review: A fine phone for frugal fans

Unfortunately, it is not clear if other countries would also see this change. In India, for example, Samsung only just recently brought the 5G-powered model to the country. It would be strange for it to then introduce a 4G-only version with the same chipset just a few weeks later.

Do note that, other than the chipset upgrade, the Samsung Galaxy S20 FE features no other changes.

We expect Samsung to be working on a “Fan Edition” model of the Galaxy S21 right now. It’s possible we’ll see the Galaxy S21 FE land later this summer.