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First of all, the new Samsung A52 5G looks and feels like a smartphone that cost a lot more than $499. That assessment is my first and lasting impression of this device.
A year ago, the South Korean IT giant’s Galaxy A51 was one of the best-selling phones in the world; don’t lose sight of the fact that Android phones outnumber iOS and others by a large margin globally (Android is expected to command 87 percent of the world market by 2022). It’s estimated that there are nearly 3 billion Android phones now in use around the world, and there are good reasons for this; they’re generally top-notch, last for more than a couple of years and mostly not super-expensive.
So this puts some legitimate pressure on this, the newest Samsung middle-class flagship, to live up to and surpass the performance and feature set of its legacy relative.
The A52 5G feels comfortable and solid in your hand with its polycarbonate shell, has a bright display and a battery that will last from dawn to midnight. It has three quite capable cameras on the back and another good one staring back at you. If you’re in the market for a midrange-cost phone with 5G connectivity, the Galaxy A52 5G ranks right up there with the best ones available.
Features and specifications
Now for the details:
- The Galaxy A52 comes with a 6.3-inch touchscreen display with a resolution of 1080×2400 pixels and an aspect ratio of 20:9.
- It has no buttons on the left side. It does have ports on the bottom for both standard headphones and those with a USB-C connector.
- The phone measures 6.5 inches in length by 2.75 inches wide and weighs less than half a pound.
- The touch display is responsive; this attribute appears to get better on each new phone we test. For comparison, check back on an iPhone 5 or 6 or Samsung Note or Edge 5 or 6 from seven or eight years ago and see the difference; it’s remarkable.
- The screen features Samsung’s signature AMOLED panels, with FHD resolution and a refresh rate of 90Hz. Colors are vivid.
- You can decide whether or not to use 5G connectivity by going into Network Mode and selecting 5G/LTE/3G/2G. To turn off 5G, you select LTE/3G/2G. But why would anybody want to do that?
- Samsung claims the A52 is waterproof, although somehow I never trust that contention. It has an IP67 rating, which verifies that the phone can withstand submersion in water is up to 1 meter deep for up to 30 minutes. An IP68 rating is the highest given by the industry, so this phone is apparently pretty liquid-resistant.
- Color options are called Awesome Blue, Awesome Violet, Awesome Black and Awesome White. These marketers must be Millennials.
- Cameras: The A52 5G has three rear cameras to go with a 5-megapixel depth sensor. It sports a 64-megapixel standard wide with OIS, 12-megapixel ultrawide and the standard 5-megapixel macro camera.
- The A52’s camera app is the same as previously outfitted on most Samsung phones. It features the usual modes, including a dedicated one for nighttime shooting; it also has an AR Zone add-on that a growing list of users will like. The software also includes Single Take, which fills the image gallery with different stills and short videos that were all captured with one take. Finally, a new addition is Fun mode, which enables you to make use of Snapchat filters directly within the camera app.
- The A52 comes with a 15W charger, which isn’t as fast as a 25W charger but will still do the job.
- It does not come with a protective travel case or headphones, but you’re not paying a premium price, either.
In Summary …
Samsung’s Galaxy A52 is a capable addition to the company’s lineup that will undoubtedly sell at least as well as its predecessors, which translates to millions. It’s a fair-priced, allegedly waterproof device that is reliable and should perform well for its users. Samsung’s been doing this a long time and hasn’t had many clunkers, and the A52 5G certainly doesn’t fit that description.