The Samsung Galaxy S20 Fan Edition might come with an Exynos 990 SoC in some markets

The yet-to-be-announced Samsung Galaxy S20 Fan Edition promises to provide the quintessential flagship experience at an affordable price. Some would argue that it is better than the 'real deal' in several markets due to its Qualcomm Snapdragon 865 SoC. Things are looking a bit grim on that front, as an Exynos 990-powered variant of the phone just showed up online.

The information comes via an alleged Geekbench listing of the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition. Another Twitter user stumbled upon firmware that was tailor-made for the device. Samsung appears to be taking its tried and tested two-pronged approach with the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition. Most global versions of the phone will very likely be stuck with an Exynos 990. Given the performance differential between the Exynos 990 and Snapdragon 865, the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition powered by the latter would attract a lot of users, especially when it comes with a ~$750 price tag.

It is somewhat understandable why Samsung decided to use the Exynos 990 on the Galaxy S20 Fan Edition. For starters, it runs the risk of a $750 offering outperforming not one, but two 'flagship' devices that cost twice as much. Lastly, the Galaxy S20 series sold quite badly, so it is likely stuck with a boatload of unused Exynos chips. Samsung has to make room for the ARM/AMD-powered Exynos 1000, after all.

Buy Samsung Galaxy S20 5G now on Amazon