There's only one more week separating us from Galaxy Unpacked 2020. It will be Samsung's first virtual event of this magnitude, and the company is set to reveal a wide variety of devices, from new wearables to S Pen flagship phones and tablets. You probably know all these devices by now, if not by leaked specs then at least by name, and one of the biggest reveals will be the new Galaxy Note 20 series.
Oddly enough though, even as a Galaxy Note 10 user, I'm not as excited for the Galaxy Note 20 series as I thought I would be, and this goes double for the base Galaxy Note 20 model, seeing how it turned out to be a Galaxy Note 20 Lite in disguise.
The Galaxy Note 20 series is the least-interesting item on the Galaxy Unpacked roster to me, although I will admit I'm very curious to see how strong the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra's Gorilla Glass Victus actually is.
So far, Samsung's new wearables seem to be the stars of Galaxy Unpacked 2020
This is subjective, of course, but so far, the teasers and leaks surrounding the Galaxy Buds Live and especially the Galaxy Watch 3 got me more excited than all the leaked material exposing the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Tab S7 lineups. The new Galaxy Z Fold 2 may be able to turn some heads, however, the new foldable is the only upcoming product that has yet to be extensively-leaked, so only time will tell whether or not it will steal the spotlight.
Perhaps this is a result of Samsung wanting to keep it a secret more so than other devices, or perhaps it's easier to keep the Galaxy Z Fold 2 under wraps because it remains a niche product. But I digress and I'm not looking to dive into conspiracy theories about Samsung leaking some of its products on purpose, at least not at this particular point in time. So, getting back to the matter at hand:
Why are Samsung's new wearables so appealing?
In simple terms, both the Galaxy Buds Live and the Galaxy Watch 3 feel like major evolutionary steps in their respective segments. While smartphones may have gotten stale with the exception of foldables, the Galaxy Buds Live and the Galaxy Watch 3 don't seem – or at least look – like mere incremental updates. Of course, these devices haven't been officially launched yet, so we'll have to wait until we get our hands on them before we can truly determine their worth. But the leaks and teasers are very promising.
This is because the Galaxy Buds Live earbuds have a completely new design, marking the end of the Galaxy Buds / Galaxy Buds+ formula. All the recent leaks depict a futuristic, bold design and also confirm a major addition in the form of Active Noise Cancelling technology.
Meanwhile, the Galaxy Watch 3 seems to be more of a successor to the original Galaxy Watch rather than the newer Galaxy Watch Active 2, and that's exactly what makes it so exciting. It reintroduces the physical rotating bezel, and this is something we wrote about before, arguing for the benefits of this design. We've been waiting for the physical bezel to make a return, and it's finally going to happen. Besides, both the 41mm and 45mm variants look absolutely stunning in leaked renders and real life.
Samsung's new wearables remind us of a time when new product reveals were truly special because design innovations were still in full effect. And once again, the Galaxy Z Fold 2 might be able to fill that spot in the smartphone department, but until it gets exposed or officially unveiled, the Galaxy Buds Live and the Galaxy Watch 3 remain my two most-anticipated items on the list of devices scheduled to be launched at Galaxy Unpacked 2020.
What Galaxy devices are you looking forward to at this year's event? Do you plan on buying the Galaxy Buds Live and/or the Galaxy Watch 3? Or perhaps you have your own reasons why the Galaxy Note 20 series gets you excited for the near future. Feel free to share your thoughts below.
