Unless you are willing to splurge on a premium handset, phones have largely become boring. Most come with the same set of problems — slow user interface, comme ci, comme ca display, battery life that goes into a downward spiral after one year, few software upgrades and no headphone jack. Unless it’s the annual Samsung and Apple offerings, the hoopla around smartphones is fizzing out. The question on the buyer’s mind: Can my phone last me two or three years without having to worry about security patches, camera chops and battery life? There is an answer: Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, the “awesomeness” factor of which is its universal appeal. It is thus far the year’s best mid-range smartphone, which has almost nothing amiss.
Rocking audio and display
The follow up to the very successful Galaxy A52 has many things going for it, starting with the user interface, which is One UI 3.1. The experience is something you get on premium Galaxy devices, complete with Samsung Pay, which sways the buying decision for many users. The animation is silky smooth and everything you need for day-to-day usage is here. Secure folder, nearby share, 120Hz display refresh rate… the works.
This is as much a media-consumption device as it is a point-and-shoot option. The large 6.5-inch FHD+ super AMOLED display is an excellent quality panel, among the very best from the company, with excellent colour reproduction and viewing angles. The blacks come across inky while colours pop. Animation on this screen is fluid and there are zero stutters.
What I like most is audio quality. For convenience, the 3.5mm headphone jack has been retained and it makes me wonder why this option is being dropped on most Android brands. Sure, Apple is dropping the feature across its devices but there is consistency in the policy but that’s not the case on Android phones. Anyway, visit ‘sound quality and effects’ in the settings menu and turn on Dolby Atmos to take full advantage of the stereo speakers. The equaliser offers a range of options that are good enough for most music needs.
The touch sampling rate on this phone is 240Hz and though 360Hz would have been better but I am not complaining because I see this phone more for general use than by gamers. Speaking of gaming, we can also talk about the chipset — Snapdragon 778G, which is a 6nm processor and has excellent CPU and GPU. All this means, very good performance with apps and you don’t have to close many of them in the background to get work done. Playing games on high graphic settings too is not an issue. Asphalt 9: Legends is one of my favourite games and I spent long hours doing just that without killing the device or seeing it overheat. The processing is sustained and games don’t slow down.
Interesting in these uninteresting times
Giving the phone an all-round feel is the camera, the set up of which is 64MP with OIS, 12MP ultra-wide and 5MP each of macro and depth sensor. A few things about the main camera. The processing is spot on, giving contrast-y, sharp photos that outdo the likes of OnePlus Nord 2, Realme, Redmi or Poco. Fast shutter speed and rarely did I miss a shot. With the ultra-wide, it’s really wide and the colour profile remains more or less true to the main sensor, which is a great thing. And the depth sensor makes portrait shots far better than on rival phones. The phone understands human subjects better than on at least Nord 2 or Realme, so skin tones are accurate.Videos are quite good, recording 4K@30fps, even with the selfie camera.
Coming to a feature, which I have lately been indulging in, perhaps the pandemic has got the better of me by dipping me in this “fun” filter batter. In the camera segment is a “fun” option, which can be used with the rear and front cameras. Even a year ago I would have said flapdoodle or fiddle on a broomstick while addressing these filters. No longer. It’s fun. It’s what makes smartphones interesting in these uninteresting times.
Should you buy it?
What more can this one offer? Though I am not going recommend you buy a phone for 5G when there is no 5G in sight but hear me out: It should arrive in the next one year or so and if you must buy a phone now, you might as well get a 5G option and one that has enough support for different bands. What you get are 12 bands, which should hold you good anywhere in the world while most phones offer a handful of them.
It’s good to see Samsung offering a consistent design and making mid-range phones appear compact and premium — there is Gorilla Glass 5 protection on the front and IP67 dust and water resistance. Best part of the deal: There is a 25W fast-charger in the box. Quibble? I don’t know why the company has packed some unnecessary apps, even though all of them can be deleted.
There you have it, Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, which has ‘bestseller’ written all over it. It’s fun, focused and full of tech freshness.
The phone’s camera can pick up intricate details without having to play around with the camera too much
At a glance
Device: Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
Price: Upwards of Rs 35,999 (6GB+ 128GB)
Even after zooming in 6x, there is sharpness in photographs and enough in way of HDR
High notes
l Outstanding display with 120Hz refresh rate
l Headphone jack has been retained
l Has one of the best camera set up in the mid-range category
l Software upgrades guaranteed
l Fluid One UI 3.1
Muffled notes
l Bloatware
Milestone reached
Besides doing good business in its phone segment, Samsung has consolidated its tablets leadership in India, with a massive 220 per cent year-on-year growth in the June quarter. The company ended the quarter with 45 per cent volume market share, according to latest data released by IDC Worldwide Quarterly Personal Computing Devices Tracker. The tablets category has seen renewed interest in this era of virtual learning and work. Samsung's tablets have done very well across mass (less than Rs 20,000), mid (Rs 20K-40K) as well as premium (over Rs 40K) segments.
