Samsung Galaxy Note 20 5G Mystic Bronze 128GB

The Note 20 5G is a productivity beast with a killer camera and the best stylus in the game, but that 60Hz display and weak gaming score hold it back. Grab a refurbished one under USD 300 and you'll be happy. Pay more and you'll regret it.

The Snapdragon 865 with 8GB of RAM still handles daily tasks fine, but our database puts it at the 64th percentile for performance, which is about average for phones in this class. The real surprise is the gaming score, a 52.6 out of 100, which is rough. That 60Hz display is the bottleneck. You're stuck at 60 frames per second while cheaper phones push 90 or 120. The 4300mAh battery lands at the 70th percentile, so it's solid but not spectacular. And that one verified buyer reporting GPS and camera failures off Wi-Fi is a red flag worth taking seriously.

Against the Google Pixel 9a, the Note 20 5G wins on camera versatility and the S Pen, but loses badly on software updates and display smoothness. The Pixel 9a gets years of updates and a 120Hz panel. The Nothing Phone (4a) Pro is the better pick if you want something that feels modern and fast. And the iPhone 16 Plus absolutely destroys this in performance and battery, but you're paying triple the price. If you need the S Pen, nothing else here competes. If you don't, the Pixel 9a is the smarter buy.

Here's where it gets interesting. Prices range from USD 174 to USD 1,000 across nine US listings, and that spread is wild. At USD 174 for a refurbished unit, you're getting a lot of phone for the money. At USD 1,000, you're getting robbed. The best deals are the refurbished listings on Newegg, especially the Mystic Bronze and Mystic Gray units with warranties. If you're paying more than USD 300 for this in 2025, you're doing it wrong.

The Galaxy Note 20 5G is a weird mix of flagship ambition and mid-range compromise. You get the S Pen, a genuinely great camera setup, and that big 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display, but Samsung also saddled it with a 60Hz panel and a plastic back while charging flagship money at launch. In 2025, buying one refurbished is the only way this makes sense, and even then you need to know what you're getting into. The one thing to know: this is a productivity phone first, a gaming phone never.

If you're a mobile gamer, this isn't your phone. The 60Hz display and 52.6 gaming score will frustrate you every single match. Go get a Nothing Phone (4a) Pro or a Pixel 9a instead, both of which have faster displays and better gaming performance for similar money. And if you need reliable GPS navigation without Wi-Fi, the reported issues here are a dealbreaker. Look elsewhere.

Buy the Note 20 5G only if you want the S Pen and you're getting a refurbished unit under USD 300. The camera is genuinely excellent, battery life is decent, and the stylus is unmatched. But the 60Hz display, weak gaming performance, and that off-Wi-Fi GPS complaint from a verified buyer keep this from being an easy recommendation. It's a good phone at the right price, not a great phone at any price.