Now that Samsung’s latest ‘flagship with a stylus’ – the Galaxy Note20 – is out, you must surely be thinking whether it hits the right notes for you. And let’s be honest here – traits such as a plastic build, merely 25W wired fast charging, and a flat 60Hz panel shouldn’t cost a thousand dollars. Yes, you still get powerful cameras and a tonne of productivity features courtesy of the S Pen, but let’s just put it here – if you feel that the Galaxy Note20 does not offer what you expect a $999 smartphone to provide, then you should definitely look elsewhere.

But the question is, where should you really look at? Well, there are a few smartphones out there that offer great value for your money for nearly the same amount as the Galaxy Note20. Have a look below at some of the best alternatives to the Galaxy Note20: 

Samsung Galaxy S20

The Galaxy S20 also costs the same as the Galaxy Note20, but it rocks a more premium glass and metal build with curved edges that look and feel great. It also offers a more pixel-dense Quad HD+ Dynamic AMOLED 2X HDR10+ certified display with a 120Hz refresh rate. Plus, you can choose from a wider array of color options which include a stunning Aura Red and Cloud White shades. Notably, the camera setup (and its capabilities) on the Galaxy S20 is nearly identical to that on the Galaxy Note20. 

Apple iPhone 11 Pro

The closest competitor for the Galaxy Note20 from Apple’s ecosystem is the iPhone 11 Pro, even though the iPhone 12 series is just around the corner. It packs a beautiful 5.8-inch Super Retina XDR OLED display with Apple’s True Tone tech and a peak brightness of 1200 nits. The A13 Bionic chip inside it still gives the fastest Qualcomm platforms a run for their money, while the triple 12MP cameras at the back have received widespread acclaim for their photography prowess. The notch is ugly, but the build is as premium as it gets, and you also get the fluidic iOS experience at your disposal. 

Motorola Edge Plus+

The Motorola Edge+ is a stunning phone to look at. The curved OLED display is an eye-candy, thanks to the slim bezels and the 90Hz refresh rate. You get a huge 108MP camera at the back, assisted by a 16MP ultra-wide angle snapper and an 8MP telephoto lens with OIS. The phone draws power from the Snapdragon 865 SoC, packs a huge 5,000mAh battery, and offers a clean and bloatware-free Android experience. Plus, it retains the 3.5mm headphone jack and also features dual stereo speakers tuned by Waves. 

OnePlus 8 Pro

OnePlus 8 Pro – a phone you can safely call a complete package. It costs the same as the Galaxy Note20, but offers a better 6.78-inch QHD+ curved AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a motion graphics smoothing tech. The Snapdragon 865 SoC is at its heart, and it also supports blazing 30W wireless charging as well. There are a pair of 48MP (primary + ultra-wide) cameras at the back, an 8MP telephoto lens with OIS, and a 5MP color filter camera for artistic effects. And oh, this one is also made out of glass and metal, unlike the Galaxy Note20’s plastic build.

HUAWEI P40 Pro

Now, this might be a controversial choice, because the phone misses out on essential google services such as Play Store, Google Maps, Gmail, and more. But if you live in China or you think you can live without the Google ecosystem, the HUAWEI P40 Pro is a great piece of hardware. The build quality is as good as it gets, and the waterfall display is something you can’t take your eyes away from. Plus, the panel is more pixel-dense and offers a 90Hz refresh rate. The camera setup, on the other hand, is vastly more powerful. The optically stabilized main camera uses a 50MP sensor, and it is assisted by a 40MP ultra-wide-angle camera, a 3D depth-sensing camera and a 12MP telephoto camera with OIS that provides 5X optical zoom and 50X digital zoom.