Samsung has grown a lot faster than any cellular manufacturers, well, except Apple. Each time they raise their standards for their newly released flagships phones, expectations are expected to rise too. The Samsung Galaxy A series are actually created to promote the metallic body and premium feel for the users. But however, are the innards worth the wait? Or is it another typical new gen cellular phone? We got the mid-range Samsung Galaxy A5 to test out so we got you covered. Here is the review of the Samsung Galaxy A5.
DESIGN
The Samsung Galaxy A5 is, in fact, one of the best looking smartphones I have ever handled. It is light, the display is perfect for a big hand like mine and it looks very elegant. Side rails are perfectly coated with metallic strips which add up to the elegance of the A5. The back portion feels a little silky and prevents from sliding it from your hands. The sleep/wake button can be normally located at the right side of the device and can be pressed with ease, the same thing with the volume rockers at the left side. Although the home button lacks a fingerprint sensor, it looks sophisticated because of the metallic design around it. You can also see the microSD card and nano sim slot at the right side.
Of course, the 13 megapixel camera and the LED flash are located at the back portion and what’s really interesting with the A5 is that the speakers are located beside the camera because usually, the speakers can be located at the lower part of the device, right? The good thing here is that when you play a video or a game, the speakers won’t be blocked by your fingers/hands when switched to landscape orientation.
The 3.5mm headset jack is at the bottom part along with the microUSB port for charging and data transferring.
PERFORMANCE
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The Samsung Galaxy A5 dons a Qualcomm Snapdragon 410, clocked into 1.2 GHz Quad Core. It is undeniably fast because of its 2GB of RAM. A5’s UI and certain mobile games like Trials Frontier and Hearthstone can be navigated and played at ease, respectively, with no lags whatsoever. Partnered with its Super AMOLED 720p display, the gamers would love this phone. After weeks of using it, it never let me experienced any pain in waiting and opening apps.
It is currently at the Android 4.4.4 KitKat but can be updated soon to the much awaited Android Lollipop update.
But since it is a mid-range smartphone, you won’t expect a high score in benchmarks by AnTuTu or Quadrant Standard Edition. Check out the ratings for your perusal.
CAMERA
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The Samsung Galaxy A series have a great quality in terms of photos and videos. The Galaxy A5 has a 13 mp snapper at the back and a 5 megapixel fronter. The shots that I took with the A5 were pretty amazing and the colors were vibrant and vivid. The pictures that I have taken say it all. So I will let you judge whether they are good or not. But for me, they are wonderful.
BATTERY
The Samsung Galaxy A5 has a non-removable 2300 mAh Li-ion battery. Since I am a heavy user, the battery lasts for a day and can be fully charged for only 1-2 hours. Not that impressive but it will let you go over for a day and a half.
VERDICT
Samsung Galaxy A5 is undoubtedly one of the best looking smartphones today in the market. Metal body and side rails, a great 13 megapixel camera, a powerful Snapdragon 410 processor and a soon-to-be-updated Android KitKat 4.4.4. Samsung never fails to amaze me with its premium smartphones. It is no doubt that the next Galaxy series would be so powerful than the rest of the smartphones in the industry.
Gianfranco is the co-founder of gadgetpilipinas.net. He graduated from Far Eastern University. A Psychology student turned tech-savvy. He's currently the HR Supervisor of Blip Media and one of the content producers of Gadget Pilipinas. He enjoys playing competitive video games and binge-watch American TV series.
