Plus-sized perfection

Gorgeous screen, Versatile flagship camera, Nippy performance

Gets a bit warm, Less zoom than the Ultra, Design is a bit vanilla

While it's a shame that picture and sound quality haven't been upgraded, the iPhone 13 was great in these regards and the iPhone 14 is, too Excellent display Admirable headphone performance Solid build quality No upgrades to picture or sound Familiar design Notch is still present

With this intermediate model, Samsung has struck the perfect balance and hit the proverbial bull's-eye as a sweet spot in its flagship range. Admittedly, my fellow colleague David considers that the basic Samsung Galaxy S20 as THE model to choose from among this last range of flagships.

Versatile and powerful cameras, Sublime display, Good performance, Slim and ergonomic design

Somewhat middling battery life, Slowdown and overheating occurs when gaming play, No major difference from the basic Galaxy S20

The Galaxy S20 Plus is the best Android phone I've used over the last year. It offers the complete package. A robust camera setup, an impressive screen, and it has the performance to match. The addition of 5G connectivity is something that some -- maybe most?

Performance, Battery live, 10x hybrid optic zoom is something every phone should have

Having all hardware buttons on one side is confusing., 30x zoom isn't terribly useful.

A universal genius? The Plus model of the Samsung Galaxy S20 series offers a bit more of everything than the Galaxy S20 does. There is a bit more screen here, more battery there, and an additional rear-facing camera too.

very bright screen, 120 Hz screen great to use, modern software, fast Wi-Fi, 8K video recording...

...but without autofocus, limitations for 60 FPS videos from 1080p upwards, poor web-browsing performance, heavy throttling under load, preinstalled bloatware

The Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus was a nearly-perfect smartphone when it launched, connecting to more 5G networks and offering better cameras than ever, though you had to pay for the privilege, as this was the priciest Plus smartphone yet.

Powerful yet sleek, Much-improved zoom, More 5G connectivity

Ever-higher price, Improvements are mostly iterative, No more 3.5mm headphone jack

Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus: The Samsung Galaxy S20 Plus is the phone to buy if you can’t afford the expensive S20 Ultra

Super fluid 120Hz display, Superb performance, Decent battery life

Average selfie camera, Plain design

Just like the S20, but with the bigger screen and that's no bad thing

Both the Samsung Galaxy S20 and Galaxy S20+ are exceptional all-rounders, the problem is that, in a sense, they’re too similar. Beyond a larger display, there’s little reason to opt for the plus model over its more compact sibling, especially when doing so adds £100 to £200 onto the price tag.

The Apple iPhone 14 is no match for the just-released iPhone 14 Pro, but if you ignore that, it’s one of the most effective phones around.

Great cameras, front and back, Fast performance, Good battery life, Innovative safety features

Design too familiar, Some average features