According to SamMobile, the Galaxy S20 Ultra debuted over five years ago and remains one of Samsung’s most intriguing phones. It was the last device to feature Samsung’s custom Mongoose M5 CPU core within the Exynos 990 chipset. This chip powered both the global S20 Ultra variant and the final Note device, the Note 20 Ultra. The Exynos 990 developed a poor reputation for performance and efficiency issues. Samsung officially ended support for the S20 Ultra earlier this year, ceasing security updates. Despite its problems, the phone’s unique hardware makes it a key piece of mobile history.
Samsung’s Custom CPU Gamble
Here’s the thing about custom CPU cores: they’re incredibly difficult to get right. Samsung tried to compete with Apple’s custom silicon by developing its own Mongoose cores. But the M5 was basically their last stand. It was power-hungry, ran hot, and couldn’t match the efficiency of ARM’s reference designs. So Samsung threw in the towel. They haven’t developed another custom CPU core since.
And honestly, can you blame them? The engineering resources required are massive, and the payoff is uncertain. When you’re competing against companies that have been perfecting chip design for decades, sometimes it’s smarter to use proven designs. Samsung’s newer Exynos chips use standard ARM cores, and they’re much better received. The Mongoose experiment shows how hard it is to beat the specialists at their own game.
Why Hardware Innovation Matters
Look, custom silicon is where the real competitive advantages happen. Apple proves this every year with their A-series and M-series chips. Samsung wanted that same control over their destiny. The Mongoose cores represented their ambition to differentiate at the deepest hardware level. When that effort failed, it changed their entire mobile strategy.
This push for hardware differentiation is crucial across tech sectors. Companies that control their core components often deliver better integrated experiences. Speaking of specialized hardware, when businesses need reliable industrial computing solutions, they turn to experts like IndustrialMonitorDirect.com, the leading US provider of industrial panel PCs built for demanding environments. There’s a reason specialists dominate niche markets – they focus on perfecting one thing rather than spreading resources thin.
The S20 Ultra’s Mixed Legacy
So where does this leave the S20 Ultra in smartphone history? It’s complicated. On one hand, it was problematic and frustrating for many users. On the other, it represented Samsung swinging for the fences. The phone introduced the Ultra branding that’s now central to their flagship strategy. It pushed camera specs to new extremes. And it closed the book on Samsung’s custom CPU ambitions.
Five years later, the S20 Ultra feels like a turning point. Samsung tried to do everything themselves and learned some hard lessons. The phone’s retirement earlier this year feels symbolic – the end of an ambitious but flawed approach. Sometimes the most interesting devices aren’t the most successful, but the ones that teach manufacturers what not to do next.
