10 reasons to buy Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) instead of a flagship model

Today we will look at a smartphone from Samsung Electronics that surprised us. And it’s not about new features or unprecedented performance, which, in general, is rarely needed today. The company decided to shake up the mid-price segment of smartphones. For this purpose, their A-series was updated, and the Galaxy A5 looks very interesting among devices in the region of 10,000 UAH. In terms of certain parameters, there are other good devices in this segment, but at the same time they lose in some ways. Therefore, in combination with purely proprietary features, the 2017 Galaxy A5 may even encroach on its leadership position. Of course, there are costs and controversial issues, but the cost is designed to cover all of them. And well-developed customer support slightly lowers your heart rate if your smartphone suddenly needs service.

Cute

Traditionally, starting with design, we will not find any compromises based on price.

Visually, the Galaxy A5 is very similar to last year’s flagship Galaxy S7. From a distance, the only things that give it away are the absence of a light indicator above the screen and the smaller size of the main camera, which does not protrude beyond the body. Therefore, ergonomics are still good, although the glass panels may cause accidental slipping from the hand. The buttons and connectors are located in a standard manner, but the speaker has been moved from the bottom to the right side.

The front and back parts of the case are covered with Gorilla Glass 4, and the frame around the perimeter is made of metal. Therefore, there are strips of antennas at the top and bottom.

The edges of the case are slightly curved and create a pleasant airy effect. Available colors include black, blue, pink and gold. The fingerprint scanner is built into the Home button.

Visual

The Galaxy A5 smartphone has a traditionally good display for Samsung smartphones. It is built using Super AMOLED technology and has Full HD resolution. It does not fade in the sun, the picture at angles is practically not distorted. Color rendition is good, and the colors are rich.

Moreover, in our case, with a 5.2” diagonal, this is a more optimal combination than the older model in the line – A7, which has a 5.7-inch screen. Note that on Samsung screens with a larger diagonal, as in the Galaxy A7, with the same resolution, the dots are still almost indistinguishable. Therefore, content in higher resolution looks good.

Photographer

The 2017 Galaxy A5 also has pretty good camera modules. What’s interesting is that the front one has the same characteristics as the main one. Both are 16 megapixels in size. and with a photosensitivity of f/1.9. In practice, this means that the photo capabilities of the A-series are very good among their classmates.

Both cameras can record Full HD video at 30 fps. There is also a set of the most necessary modes available out of the box, including professional, panorama, hyperlapse, HDR, night and for photographing food. There is also a set of color filters that are applied immediately during the shooting process.

Fearless

Continuing the theme of the case, it is important to say that few mid-price smartphone models can boast of protection from water and dust. The entire Samsung Galaxy A line is not afraid of falling under water and into dusty areas. The restrictions are standard: you can swim with your smartphone for no more than half an hour and at a depth of up to one and a half meters.

Long-liver

Special thanks to the company for good autonomy. A 3000 mAh battery lasts for almost 10 hours of active work with the screen always on. Videos in HD quality can be watched for almost 18 hours – that is, you can calmly survive a transatlantic flight while watching movies.

In practice, you will finally be able to charge your smartphone once every three to four days with moderate use only for calls, SMS and instant messengers.

The large battery capacity is quickly replenished by supporting the fast charging function. This is a definite plus given such battery performance and, again, the price of the device.

Sociable

It was nice to find things like support for Wi-Fi networks in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands in the Galaxy A5. Traditionally, it is possible to work as an access point.

In terms of connecting devices, we note the presence of NFC and support for ANT+ (data transmission for sports equipment). This will appeal to those who use sports sensors.

Fashionable

It was nice to find things like support for Wi-Fi networks in the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands in the Galaxy A5. Traditionally, it is possible to work as an access point.

In terms of connecting devices, we note the presence of NFC and support for ANT+ (data transmission for sports equipment). This will appeal to those who use sports sensors.

Fashionable

In general, the interface is standard, and, again, we add the Always On Display software shell function to the “flagship” collection. A constantly displayed clock on the screen will completely mislead you as to what rank the model in front of you is. In addition, with this feature, you can still see your calendar and missed calls with messages when the screen is turned off.

Performance

The Galaxy A5 smartphone is equipped with a self-produced Exynos 7880 processor, which has eight Cortex-A53 cores with an operating frequency of 1.9 GHz. Graphics accelerator – Mali-T830MP3. There is 32 GB of space for storing system and user data and the ability to use MicroSD memory cards up to 256 GB.

Note that branded Samsung MicroSD UHS-I Speed Class 3 (U3) memory cards are protected from water, extreme temperatures, magnetic and X-ray radiation. 128 GB will be able to store approximately 10 thousand photos, 30 thousand songs and 16 hours of Full HD video.

In terms of performance, the device performed well in synthetic tests. With daily use, there are no particular complaints either, although we still have a feeling of the heaviness of the software shell. Most likely, this is a feature of the test sample and with the update to the new OS version everything will fall into place.

Price

The icing on the cake of all of the above is the price. For a device with all the modern, sometimes flagship features, the company asks much less. Last year’s flagship, for example, has become one of the most successful smartphones in the mobile industry due to its high performance, screen and camera. These points are Samsung’s biggest trump cards – as it turns out, not only for top-end, but also for mid-budget devices.

Rating:

+ design

+ screen

+ cameras

+ waterproof

+ autonomy

+ price

– not the most fresh version of the OS out of the box

– weak camera

– slow interface