In a nutshell: While the Galaxy S20 might be a handset packed with tech, it's not exactly rugged, and you certainly wouldn't want to use it in a military combat scenario. But Samsung has developed a version of the phone just for that purpose: the Galaxy S20 Tactical Edition.
Following on from the Galaxy S9 Tactical Edition, the S20 TE is designed for field operatives from the federal government and Department of Defense.
The handset has undergone a series of changes to make it a piece of military-grade tech. In addition to being packed into a case that looks like it could withstand a nuke, the S20 TE features DualDAR architecture that secures data with two layers of encryption and is based on NSA standards.
With communications being a vital element of a field operative's work, Samsung says the S20 TE comes with pre-configured software to support tactical radios and mission-critical devices through the use of Private SIM, 5G, Wi-Fi 6 and CBRS (Citizens Broadband Radio Service)---a band of radio-frequency spectrum from 3.5GHz to 3.7GHz that's reserved for the US Navy, satellite-to-earth communications, and some public use. Additionally, the phone's drivers support drone feeds, laser range finders, external GPS, and more. It even works when wearing thick gloves.
Other upgrades include a night vision mode that allows users to operate the display while wearing night-vision goggles, and a stealth mode that disables LTE and mutes all RF broadcasting. Samsung also pushed its DeX feature as being ideal for linking to monitors/keyboards when planning or training for missions.
Samsung says the Galaxy S20 TE will be available in the third quarter through its government programs.