The biggest smartphone fails of 2020

The smartphone world suffered a year-long roller coaster when the transition to 5G collided with the pandemic COVID-19. The first meant that we had 5G phones in almost every price segment, as well as some major price increases at the top. Meanwhile, the pandemic hit businesses hard in the first half of the year, as the blockages resulted in the collapse of offline retailing.

However, even without these two factors, we still saw several major smartphone failures that are really difficult to justify. From Microsoft to OnePlus and beyond, here are the most notable smartphone failures in 2020.

The curious case of Nokia delayed

HMD first unveiled Nokia 8.3 in March. It is a mid-range phone with a sleek design, respectable specifications and a ton of supported 5G bands. A month passed after the disclosure and we did not receive the phone, after two months and three months. Approximately six months passed before the phone was actually available for purchase.

The HMD has not revealed the reason for the delay as far as we know. However, the postponement coincided with the delay of the last James Bond film (No Time To Die). And yes, HMD was the “official phone partner” for the film, strongly suggesting that the film’s delay forced HMD’s hand.

It didn’t help that when Nokia 8.3 was finally available for purchase, consumers had better and / or cheaper 5G options on the market, like the Pixel 4a 5G, Poco F2 Pro and OnePlus Nord. It also didn’t help that HMD went through the year without a suitable flagship phone. If this continues to be the case in the first half of 2021, it means that we haven’t seen a flagship launch from Nokia for two years.

Microsoft Surface Duo

Microsoft made waves in 2019 when it unveiled the Surface Duo for the first time, marking its first major entry into the Android phone space. It was a very intriguing concept, too. Microsoft displayed a foldable dual screen and promised to reinvent the way you interact with applications.

Unfortunately, analysis showed that the Surface Duo was an unpolished mess at launch. Microsoft’s software contained many bugs, while the list of applications that supported the dual-screen design was disappointingly short.

Related: All the improvements we’d like to see on the Surface Duo 2

The lack of polish was not the only blow to Microsoft’s phone, however. It was very expensive. For $ 1,400, you have the main silicone of 2019, without 5G, without NFC, without fast charging and without wireless charging. You’d better spend a little more to get the Galaxy Z Fold 2, unless you really wants that book-like experience on Kindle.

Escobar Fold 2

The brother of the late drug kingpin Pablo Escobar launched a $ 350 foldable smartphone in 2019, but it was a scam. The so-called Escobar Fold was literally just a Royole Flexpai in disguise. Royole’s CEO had no idea this was happening, while many customers complained that they (unsurprisingly) did not receive their orders.

This outlined company stepped up its game in 2020, when it decided to launch Escobar Fold 2. Of course, this was not an original design, but the Samsung Galaxy Fold with some gold ribbon hiding the Samsung brand. A Galaxy Fold in disguise for $ 400? Yes, don’t expect to receive your order here either.

Motorola razr

Motorola managed to attract public attention in late 2019, when it announced that the Razr flip phone was returning as a modern foldable. Featuring a shell design, a foldable main screen and a large external screen, it certainly combined retro and modern in theory.

When the phone was launched in 2020, however, it yielded everything but a return on its investment. Spending $ 1,500 gave you a small battery, a camera setup similar to basic phones, a mid-range chipset from 2018 and Android 9 many months after the launch of Android 10. It didn’t help that some users complained about quality problems with construction too.

Related: The best foldable phones you can buy

The Razr was also heavily defeated by Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip. It offered ultra-thin glass, better build quality, a more impressive specification sheet and a cheaper price. It is not for nothing that Motorola was making offers of the type buy one and take another soon after the launch. The company launched a 5G variant in late 2020, offering a more modern mid-range silicon and a dual rear camera configuration. However, it apparently failed to gain traction compared to Samsung’s products.

Samsung Galaxy Note 20

The Galaxy Note 20 Ultra may have launched for $ 1,300, but it was a truly high-end phone. This made it one of the best premium flagships on the market. The Galaxy Note 20 vanilla, on the other hand, was a rare failure for Samsung. It wasn’t a bad phone in itself, but it was definitely a bad phone by Samsung standards.

For $ 1,000, you purchased a phone that was actually inferior to the Galaxy S20 FE in several ways. Samsung’s cheapest S20 series phone comes with a 120 Hz refresh rate, microSD card support, a slightly larger battery and a 3x optical zoom camera. The Note 20 had to settle for a 60 Hz screen, fixed storage and a 3x hybrid zoom camera.

Samsung’s Vanilla Note model had some advantages over the S20 FE. These included more RAM (8 GB vs 6 GB), 8K recording and the S-Pen. Are these additions really worth paying the extra $ 300? And don’t let us start with plastic design. It is understandable to see this material on cheaper phones (for example, Galaxy S20 FE), but the fact that plastic was used on a $ 1,000 phone without a corresponding increase in features elsewhere was bizarre.

Motorola Edge Plus Flip-Flops

Lenovo-owned Motorola launched its first flagship in some time this year, and it was not the worst phone launched in 2020. However, the company drew the ire of many enthusiasts when it initially stated that it could only guarantee one version. Android update for the Motorola Edge Plus for $ 1,000.

The company then changed course after the negative press and said it would in fact be offering two Android version updates. It still left an incredibly sour taste, as it looked like Motorola was trying to pull a fast one. An update is disappointing for a budget phone, but for a $ 1,000 device? Get out of here.

More coverage: Exclusive to carriers are killing great smartphones

This was not the only smartphone to fail by Motorola in 2020. The company made Edge Plus a Verizon exclusive in the United States. This was a silly move, considering it was the brand’s first flagship in a while. You would think the company wanted to show the best of Motorola to the widest possible audience.

OnePlus in 2020

The BBK-affiliated brand had a solid 2020 in the lead, with the OnePlus 8 Pro in particular standing out. This marked the company’s first premium flagship and was delivered. Between photo quality, water resistance, wireless charging and that QHD + 120 Hz screen, this definitely felt like a cutting-edge experience to challenge top players. Even the OnePlus Nord was also a great phone, making it an exceptional mid-range experience.

However, OnePlus made a number of mistakes this year as well, starting with its decision to launch the OnePlus Nord N series. The more expensive Nord N10 was only slightly cheaper than the Nord, but lost several notable features (for example, OLED screen, better processor, extra selfie camera). Meanwhile, the Nord N100 was simply a renamed Oppo A53 and offered little in terms of performance, not to mention the most disappointing type of triple camera configuration (main / macro / depth).

Other notable errors include an extremely divisive Oxygen OS redesign that drew unfavorable comparisons to One UI, the promise of just an Android version update for the Nord N series, and a smartphone marketing campaign that has become very tiring very fast.

What was the biggest smartphone failure of 2020? Vote for your best choice in the poll.