Exclusive: Is Samsung working on more affordable Galaxy Note smartphone?

Rather than combining the Galaxy S and Galaxy Note flagship lineups and replacing the Galaxy Note series with the Galaxy Fold lineups, could Samsung instead be working on a more affordable Galaxy Note smartphone that falls somewhere in the higher mid-range category? That's perhaps the only possibility we can think of based on the latest information that we have uncovered: Samsung is developing a device with model number SM-N770F, one that doesn't fit into any existing smartphone lineup in the Korean giant's stable.

Right now, the Galaxy Note series is the only one to use model numbers starting with the letter N, and all Note devices sport model numbers in the SM-N9xx range. What makes us think that the SM-N770F is a non-flagship Note is the fact that Samsung's working on a more affordable foldable phone for next year with model number SM-F700F. The Galaxy Fold, which is Samsung's flagship foldable phone, is SM-F900F, and if the SM-F700F is indeed a more affordable foldable Galaxy, then we see no reason why Samsung couldn't be doing something similar for the Galaxy Note lineup.

Making the S Pen accessible would certainly be a good move – the regular Galaxy Note 10 already is an excellent way for Samsung to court new customers who currently use a non-Galaxy smartphone, and bringing the Note experience to a lower price point would further help the strategy. And with the cost of a top-end Galaxy Note flagship—the Note 10+—now touching $1100, a non-flagship Note would be just as good of an option for Galaxy Note fans who want the S Pen experience but don't want to spend a thousand dollars (or even $950 for something like the Galaxy Note 10).

All of this is just speculation, however, and we will need more details to get a clearer picture of what Samsung is up to. For now, we only know that the SM-N770F will come in a 128GB storage configuration. We'll keep digging further, and in the meantime, you can tell us what you think about the idea of an affordable, possibly mid-range Galaxy Note smartphone down in the comments.

Update: There is a precedent for the SM-N770F, as noted by one of our readers. The Galaxy Note 3 Neo, launched all the way back in 2014, had model number SM-N750F, so a cheaper Note certainly existed at a time and could be making a comeback, even if it won't really be a successor to the Note 3 Neo.