Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra black screen of death reports haven't stopped - could it be a hardware defect?

The Samsung Galaxy Note 20 series of smartphones was launched in August last year (2020). This also included the most premium model: the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

Although the device is packed with specifications and features of the highest level, multiple user reports indicate that it could suffer a fatal failure after a period of use (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9).

According to reports, a percentage of the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is plagued with the ‘black screen of death’. The bug leaves the phone useless, which is quite serious considering its price.

There are very recent reports related to the black screen of death on the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra. Most point to this particular model, conveying the standard model is likely not be affected.

Note 20 Ultra Black Screen Issues.

My phone was working, as usual, watching youtube. When I moved my phone up to get a better view of my phone, my screen turned black, but the video’s audio was still playing. I did the usual look-up online to how to hard reset and the tricks and such, but nothing worked.
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phone – Note 20 ultra sprint to Tmo.

Thursday morning it was dead… everything worked, but couldn’t see screen at all. hit the googles and did the reboot / massage / freezer / bang on it routine… nothing. i let it sit (off the charger) for a little and went to my office hoping my work LAN hadn’t logged out as the authenticator is on my phone…luckily i was logged in. i tapped the screen and it turned on. well thennn…
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This problem has been around for many months, as one can see reports dating 9 months back.

It appears that the problem in question is covered by the Samsung warranty. Some report that their affected device was repaired by the technical service.

In some of the cases, the affected users were fortunate that the problem resolved itself after some days of concern.

Black screen of death – fixed itself?

So to explain – my ultra had the black screen of death even after trying for hours to try and figure out/resolve the issue myself as best as possible. Nothing happened for the next few days as I was switching to a different phone as a temporary solution. It’s been about over a week now and today (out of curiosity) I tapped the bixby button and to my surprise, the display popped up saying I need to charge it!
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However, the affected devices reportedly continue to work with DeX. So, using a compatible external display is a good way to recover the files saved on the phone.

It should be noted that Samsung has not officially ruled on this situation. Also, in all the updates that the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra has received so far, the black screen issue was never referenced.

So, taking into account the above, there is the possibility that it is a hardware problem that affects a certain percentage of the units of the Galaxy Note 20 Ultra.

However, it is quite difficult to calculate how much percentage of these devices may be affected, because the company does not offer any kind of declaration in this regard.

At the very least, Samsung is responsible for the affected devices (as long as they are within warranty). But, if your phone is no longer covered by the warranty, you could have a very hard time.

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