The Galaxy Note 21 now looks dead — and that’s a good thing

The Galaxy Note 21 now looks dead — and that's a good thing

(Prototype credit: Tom'southward Guide)

Update: A newer claimed leak hammers another nail into the coffin of the Samsung Milky way Notation . Simply it's ready to live on in the Milky way S22 Ultra.

Chances are strong that we're not going to see a Galaxy Note model this year. That's not simply idle speculation, either. Samsung itself has thrown cold water on the prospects for a Milky way Annotation 21 this past week, with mobile boss Koh Dong-jin telling Bloomberg that a global chip shortage could mean no new Notation in 2021.

If that's the reason Samsung wants to give for no new Note, that's fine past me. But the company would practice just likewise to announce that nosotros've seen the last of the Galaxy Note this year and beyond.

All-time big phones: More than just the Galaxy Note
Here's a Galaxy S21 Ultra vs. Milky way Note 20 Ultra face-off

Don't dismiss me as some wild-eyed Galaxy Note hater. Information technology's been a fine telephone over the years, setting the standard for phablets that other phone makers have tried to live upwardly to. Only its time as a singled-out and recognizable product at the caput of Samsung's telephone lineup has come on gone.

Big screen standout no more

When the first Galaxy Notation debuted a decade ago this fall, it was derided as an unwieldy behemoth past rivals and a non insignificant chunk of the tech press. And people withal bought it. The Galaxy Note may take been the starting time big-screen phone, but it certainly popularized the concept. These days, it's hard to find a phone with a screen that's less than 6 inches, and a lot of that's a result of the Galaxy Note's popularity.

If the Southward Pen isn't strictly a Galaxy Notation improver going forward, then what really is the point of that phone existing?

Only that last sentence cuts both ways. Because there are a lot of large-screen phones at present, the Milky way Note is simply one of many and no longer the standout. Samsung's own smartphone lineup is packed with big screen options, with the 6.viii-inch Milky way S21 Ultra providing almost as much display real manor as the 6.9-inch Milky way Note 20 Ultra. And if you lot've got the extra cash lying effectually, you can get even bigger with Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold 2.

Put another way, every phone in Samsung's Milky way S21 lineup is half dozen.2 inches or bigger. The midrange Galaxy A72 just announced by Samsung is as big as the Galaxy Note twenty. There's goose egg particularly special about the Galaxy Note'south screen size any more than.

Southward Pen comes to other Galaxy phones

Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra S Pen — (Image credit: Futurity)

The Note can withal claim a special feature in the grade of the S Pen that ships with every model. The S Pen is no ordinary stylus, featuring Bluetooth connectivity that enables remote controls. Information technology's also handy for jotting down notes and helping with precise photo editing.

Merely every bit linked to the Milky way Note as the S Pen may be, it's no longer exclusive to Samsung's phablet. The Galaxy S21 Ultra added support this year, and while you need to purchase a dissever case to firm the stylus, I can easily see future Galaxy Due south models including a slot for the South Pen but like the Galaxy Note does. It's rumored the upcoming Galaxy Z Fold 3 is going to add Southward Pen support as well, and I wouldn't be surprised if other phones join the S Pen party further downwards the route. And if the Due south Pen isn't strictly a Milky way Annotation add-on going frontward, and so what really is the point of that phone existing?

It's certainly not to deliver breakthrough features. Recent Notes take simply adopted the camera features Samsung introduced earlier with that year's Galaxy Due south models. The processor powering the Annotation is generally the same one that debuts in the Galaxy S. Simply well-nigh the only matter unique about the Galaxy Note these days is its name.

Samsung's future is foldable

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 — (Prototype credit: Ben Geskin)

If you're looking for something innovative these days, y'all're looking at Samsung's foldable efforts, whether that's the Galaxy Z Fold three or the upcoming Galaxy Z Flip ii. Those devices accept the extra screen space productivity-minded users demand, and features like Samsung'south flex manner have advantage of the foldable screen design to split the display between a viewing area and dedicated controls. The biggest knocks against foldable phones up until at present accept been durability and price, and Samsung's rumored to be looking at boosting the old while lowering the latter (or at least, making foldable phones less ridiculously expensive).

There's an argument to be made from a business standpoint that Samsung needs a marquee phone release subsequently in the year, non simply to help with holiday sales but also and so that it doesn't cede the spotlight to Apple and its annual fall iPhone refresh. But that's piece of cake enough for Samsung to accost. A schedule showing rumored product releases for the next six months leaked this week that indicates Samsung will have a lower-cost Milky way S21 Atomic number 26 to highlight in Baronial; we could likewise see those foldable phone updates, Samsung's reportedly working on. That's a lot of potentially interesting phones, with no superfluous phablets taking up any space.

The Galaxy Note enjoyed a adept long run, but with its major features adopted and parroted by other devices, information technology's no longer a unique sight on the smartphone scene. Samsung would exist better served retiring that product proper noun in style and turning its attention to the adjacent big thing now that the last large matter is already reflected in its other phones.

Next: The best Samsung phones right now

Philip Michaels is a senior editor at Tom's Guide. He has potent opinions about Apple tree, the Oakland Athletics and erstwhile movies. Follow him at @PhilipMichaels.