S20 Vs. S20 Plus, which one to buy?

[hbsterling]

I am an xfinity mobile customer and I know they use the Verizon network. Xfinity mobile (and Verizon) have said they are not going to sell the s20 yet, but they will the plus model since 5g will work with the plus model on the network and not the S20. I could just buy an unlocked s20 though and use it for 4g on the network. So should I do that or buy the s20 plus from xfinity? If the S20 had the millimeter 5g for the xfinity network then this would be a no brainier, but since it does not I am at a stand still. At this point is it worth the extra $200 for a phone I will probably keep around for 3 years?

[dizmo]

Ultimately the decision really comes down to you. Do you want to pay more, and do you find the added features useful?

Personally I'd wait a bit to see how the GSMArena tests are.

[Commodus]

2 hours ago, hbsterling said:

I am an xfinity mobile customer and I know they use the Verizon network. Xfinity mobile (and Verizon) have said they are not going to sell the s20 yet, but they will the plus model since 5g will work with the plus model on the network and not the S20. I could just buy an unlocked s20 though and use it for 4g on the network. So should I do that or buy the s20 plus from xfinity? If the S20 had the millimeter 5g for the xfinity network then this would be a no brainier, but since it does not I am at a stand still. At this point is it worth the extra $200 for a phone I will probably keep around for 3 years?

There will be a version of the regular S20 that supports Verizon/Xfinity's millimeter wave 5G, it just won't be ready until sometime in the spring.

 

With that said, I'd probably get the S20+ anyway unless you prefer the smaller size.  There's a significantly larger screen and a larger battery.  And besides, $200 really isn't that much if you're going to own a phone for three years and are already willing to spend at least $1K -- that's a bit over $5.50 more per month.  Not a huge price to pay for a device that will probably play an important role in your life for the next few years.

[Lord Vile]

16 hours ago, hbsterling said:

I am an xfinity mobile customer and I know they use the Verizon network. Xfinity mobile (and Verizon) have said they are not going to sell the s20 yet, but they will the plus model since 5g will work with the plus model on the network and not the S20. I could just buy an unlocked s20 though and use it for 4g on the network. So should I do that or buy the s20 plus from xfinity? If the S20 had the millimeter 5g for the xfinity network then this would be a no brainier, but since it does not I am at a stand still. At this point is it worth the extra $200 for a phone I will probably keep around for 3 years?

What phone are you on now? Because the S20 really isn’t worth upgrading to if you’re on the S9 or later. 5G is not a great deal faster than 4G and the mm wave is extremely limited in coverage and requires line of sight (or a highly reflective surface) to work. Literally the only useful feature is the 120Hz screen and if you want to spend over a grand for something you really won’t notice if you’ve not had it then it’s up to you. 

[hbsterling]

1 hour ago, Lord Vile said:

What phone are you on now? Because the S20 really isn’t worth upgrading to if you’re on the S9 or later. 5G is not a great deal faster than 4G and the mm wave is extremely limited in coverage and requires line of sight (or a highly reflective surface) to work. Literally the only useful feature is the 120Hz screen and if you want to spend over a grand for something you really won’t notice if you’ve not had it then it’s up to you. 

I have an S8 right now and I live in one of the cities with 5G from Verizon, so I feel like that would be beneficial.

[Lord Vile]

21 minutes ago, hbsterling said:

I have an S8 right now and I live in one of the cities with 5G from Verizon, so I feel like that would be beneficial.

So you’re borderline. Honestly 5G isn’t much better than 4G. Are you really gonna notice the extra 20mb? Even when you’re in a golden mm wave spot are you really downloading something big enough to notice?Are you happy paying a lot more for that? 
 

Personally I would wait for the note. 
 

Just for transparency I’m on iPhone with a XR and when the 5G iphones come out in September I won’t be getting one if the only new thing it has is 5G, they have to improve or add at least a few things ontop of that to sway me. And a 120Hz screen and camera bump ain’t enough. 

[EL02]

I would wait for the note series.

[Commodus]

24 minutes ago, EL02 said:

I would wait for the note series.

Why?  Unless you need the pen or there are clear signs a substantial upgrade will come, it'll basically be an S20 with a slightly different screen and maybe some minor spec bumps.