Episode Summary
Executive Summary: The Vergecast reviews Samsung’s Note20 Ultra as a giant but compelling productivity and camera phone, critiques the Note20’s downsides, and debates the utility of the new Galaxy Buds Live “Beans,” Galaxy Watch 3, and BlackBerry’s announced return. The hosts also briefly cover Epic vs. Apple, Uber/Lyft’s California fight, and other gadget/news side notes, emphasizing tradeoffs between hardware ambition and practical usability.
Main Topics: Samsung Galaxy Note20 Ultra review (Priority: 5/5): The hosts discuss the Note20 Ultra’s massive size, camera system, S Pen experience, and whether its productivity features justify the premium price. Note20 Ultra camera and video performance (Priority: 5/5): They compare ultra-wide, telephoto, 108MP main sensor, selfie camera flaws, and 8K video usefulness, weighing real-world value against gimmicks. Galaxy Buds Live (“Beans”) (Priority: 4/5): Becca and Dieter explain the unusual stemless design, limited ANC in practice, biking comfort, and whether the product is truly noise-canceling. Galaxy Watch 3 and Android smartwatch limits (Priority: 4/5): Dan reviews Samsung’s premium smartwatch, praising build and hardware controls but criticizing Bixby, weak third-party apps, and bulky sizing. BlackBerry’s announced comeback (Priority: 4/5): They analyze the planned 5G BlackBerry revival by Onward Mobility, discussing its physical keyboard appeal and the market challenge of modern smartphones. Epic vs. Apple and broader platform control (Priority: 3/5): The conversation touches on the ongoing App Store conflict, highlighting how both companies are entrenched and how the dispute affects users. Other industry updates: Uber/Lyft, newsletters, and camera tech (Priority: 2/5): The episode briefly covers Uber/Lyft’s California legal battle, new Verge newsletters, and accessory/software updates like Pixel Buds improvements.
Key Arguments: The Note20 Ultra’s huge display can replace tablets for many tasks, especially gaming, reading, and stylus-based note-taking. The phone is physically unwieldy and expensive, and the camera bump plus a case make it even bulkier. Samsung’s telephoto lens is one of the strongest arguments for the Ultra, offering usable 10x–15x shots that most phones cannot match. The 50x zoom works as a party trick, but is not a practical everyday feature. The 108MP main camera delivers detail, though it can look over-sharpened or artifact-heavy depending on subject matter. The selfie camera is heavily processed by Samsung’s skin smoothing and brightness tuning, making faces look unnatural. 8K video is valuable mainly for professional or edit-heavy workflows where cropping/punch-ins are needed; it is overkill for casual users. Samsung Notes has become genuinely good and is one of the Note20’s strongest differentiators, especially because it exports to OneNote. The regular Note20 is a downgrade in too many ways—display, materials, refresh rate, and camera specs—relative to its price. The Buds Live’s open design is comfortable for biking and awareness, but its noise cancellation is limited and not comparable to sealed ANC earbuds. Samsung’s Galaxy Watch 3 improves feel and controls, but smartwatch software and assistant support remain weak on Android. A new BlackBerry with a keyboard may appeal to a niche, but modern phones prioritize large screens, making the form factor a tough sell.
Data Points: Price of Galaxy Note20 Ultra: $1,300 - Discussed as the premium cost of Samsung’s flagship Note model. Price of Note20 family / base Note20: $1,000 - Used to argue that the non-Ultra model is still too expensive for the features lost. Display size of Note20 Ultra: 6.9-inch - Described as a massive screen that can substitute for a tablet in many situations. Display refresh rate: 120 Hz - A major reason the Ultra is preferred over the regular Note20, which is limited to 60 Hz. Display refresh rate on regular Note20: 60 Hz - Highlighted as unacceptable at a $1,000 price point. Main camera sensor resolution: 108 megapixels - Samsung’s primary rear sensor on the Note20 Ultra. Telephoto zoom on Note20 Ultra: 5x optical / up to 50x max zoom - Used to explain the phone’s strong long-range imaging and party-trick capabilities. Practical zoom range praised: 10x–15x - The hosts considered this the most useful range for real-world photography. Video resolution: 8K - Debated as useful mainly for editing workflows and cropping, not general consumer use. Base storage: 128 GB - Mentioned as insufficient given the phone’s high price and large 8K files. Galaxy Watch 3 price: $400 - Framed as a premium smartwatch that adds nicer materials and a rotating bezel. Wearable size: 45 mm / 41 mm variants - The larger 45 mm model was described as bigger than the largest Apple Watch. Galaxy Watch 3 weight/thickness claim: 11% thinner, 14% lighter - Samsung’s own positioning, though the hosts still found it chunky. Apple/Google ecosystem data point: $2 trillion - Apple’s market cap was cited in the Epic discussion. Uber/Lyft market cap context: $17 billion - Used to contrast Uber’s scale with Apple in the capitalism discussion. Newsletter launch timing: Upcoming COVID-19 newsletter - Mary Beth Griggs’s Antivirus newsletter was promoted as a science-based guide to pandemic news.
Pivotal Quotes: "This is a huge phone." — Dan Seifert: Early in the Note20 Ultra discussion, underscoring the device’s physical scale. "I do think that we have the system that's optimized. It's called capitalism." — Dara Khosrowshahi: Quoted during the Uber/Lyft discussion on labor classification and broader economic systems. "It's not active noise cancellation. It's not. It's not." — Becca Forsaci: Her blunt assessment of the Galaxy Buds Live’s noise-canceling effectiveness.
Implications: Samsung keeps pushing feature-rich hardware, but usability, price, and software quality still decide value. Android wearables and keyboard phones remain niche unless they solve everyday problems better than mainstream alternatives.
About The Vergecast
The Vergecast is the flagship podcast from The Verge about small gadgets, Big Tech, and everything in between. Every Friday, hosts Nilay Patel and David Pierce hang out and make sense of the week’s most important technology news. And every Tuesday, David leads a selection of The Verge’s expert staffers in an exploration of how gadgets and software affect our lives – and which ones you should bring into yours.