Galaxy A12 ticks the right boxes in budget segment

Two quick reminders. First, not everyone wants to spend money on smartphones. Second, analysts and reviewers almost always use flagship phones, so when they have to slip into the shoes of an entry-level user, things can get messy. Lately, there has been a slew of budget phone launches — we will soon present a comparison — and each of them have something different to offer, like the Samsung Galaxy A12. Not that the POCO M3 or Nokia 5.4 are any better or worse but each of the brands attracts customers for a few reasons.

It brings us to the question of what the Galaxy A12 is special for. Personally, it’s the One UI experience. It’s the software overlay built on Android to give you a very different feel while using the phone. There is a twist here. What you get is One UI Core, which is different from the experience on most Samsung phones. More like having coffee with sweetener. Out of the box, it feels just like any Samsung phone but while using it there are differences.

If you have been using a Samsung phone for some time now, you may have become used to how options show up and the way the camera functions. It’s so unique that the user may not think of switching to, say, OnePlus or Xiaomi or Realme, all perfectly respectable brands operating in the Android zone but at the same time appear different. Having One UI Core means there are some features that are missing. So fewer apps from Samsung but the menus are just the same.

It would have been interesting had a budget offering like this would have come with Android 11 from the word go but then in the Android world, a lot of tightening of nuts and bolts is required. Yup, Android 12 is on the way but hey, who’s looking?!

The other feature which keeps the Galaxy A12 in the running is the camera experience. Not that the macro and depth shooter make much sense but the primary 48MP shooter is respectable, capturing just about enough details to put it ahead of Nokia 5.4 and also POCO M3. The pop of colours make it interesting for Instagram. The 5MP ultra-wide angle is capable but in wide-angle photos, slight distortion around the edges is visible. Night time shots are just as good as most phones in this category while video quality is acceptable (those shot in ultra-wide angle look better).

Instead of complaining about the MediaTek Helio P35 processor inside, let’s look at it this way: Not many would like to take on the role of a sharpshooter in a game running on a lower-end smartphone. The target audience doesn’t really care about gaming beyond the tap-tap kind. So the processor is all right for basic tasks. In the display department, there is a 6.5-inch PLS TFT LCD. Uh? Let’s just say that PLS screens have a better viewing angle over IPS, is brighter and the colours are livelier.

The final advantage of the phone maybe the deciding factor for many — 5,000mAh battery, which is large enough to last at least two days, especially if you consider the lightweight processor. The phone supports 15W fast-charging, which is better than what you get on Nokia 5.4.

Offering a clean design language combined with a powerful battery and good user experience, the Samsung Galaxy A12 (4GB+64GB for Rs 12,999) won’t let you down, offering an uncluttered experience.