The Samsung Galaxy Note 21 has been in the news for quite a while with reports questioning whether it even exists, and now an unofficial render gives us a glimpse of what the phone could look like if it's real.
Soon after the launch of the Note 20, Korean media reported that there would be no further smartphones in the Note series in 2021, and the series will be replaced by the flagship Z Fold range of foldables.
Following a fair bit of back and forth and a barrage of speculations, a new development suggested the series will continue, but it might not be the only stylus-toting flagship from Samsung anymore. With the launch at least six months away, we don't expect to hear of the exact fate of the Samsung Galaxy Note 21 until later in 2021.
- Samsung Galaxy S21 is coming on February 14
- Our Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 2 review
- What we know about the Galaxy Note 21
If the phone is real though, it may look something like this. Dutch tech site LetsGoDigital has published some renders of the Note 21 Ultra 5G based on the available information and their understanding of the design from information provided by their sources.
Since these are unofficial and early designs, take the renders with a grain of salt. They were also unable to confirm if there will be a second smartphone in the series this year, or if it'd just be one Galaxy Note 21.
The design shown in the renders doesn’t seem too far-fetched combining the boxy frame from the Note 20 Ultra with the camera layout shown in leaks of the Galaxy S21 family. It looks like the raised camera bump is here to stay, housing four cameras and a laser for autofocus.
This is likely to consist of a high-resolution primary sensor, an ultra-wide lens and a pair of telephoto cameras at different optical zoom levels. By the looks of it, the Note 21 will be gunning for the title of the smartphone with the most prominent camera bump.
Other design aspects don’t seem much different either. The front will be predominantly occupied by the display that curves on the sides and has pretty slim bezels around. Even the punch-hole selfie camera seems to be a little smaller. As always, there will be a dedicated silo to stow the S-Pen stylus when not being used.
Overall, it seems unlikely that we will see any major hardware changes or design upgrades on the Samsung Galaxy Note 21. The high price combined with a slower pace of innovation is what sparked the discontinuation speculations in the first place, passing the baton to the next high-end foldable from Samsung.
With the S21 and the Z Fold 3 rumored to support the S-Pen too, it looks like Samsung might be planning a reshuffling of its flagships this year. Come next week, we will see the first piece of Samsung’s 2021 smartphone lineup with the launch of the Galaxy S21 trio on January 14.
