Samsung Galaxy A32 5G assessment: A is for superior

Samsung’s Galaxy A lineup usually contains among the hottest budget and mid-range phones of the yr. Whereas a lot of the reward lands on the Galaxy A50 sequence and A70 sequence, there are a lot of extra units to contemplate. One such choice is the Galaxy A32 5G with its giant show, easy refresh price, and versatile digital camera setup. Let’s see if the cellphone is value your cash in our Samsung Galaxy A32 5G assessment.

• Samsung Galaxy A32 5G (4GB RAM 64GB): $279 / €279 / £249
• Samsung Galaxy A32 5G (4GB RAM 128GB): $299 / €299
• Samsung Galaxy A32 5G (6GB RAM 128GB): £299

The Samsung Galaxy A32 5G landed as a successor to the Galaxy A31 in January 2021. It slots in just under the Galaxy A42 5G and Galaxy A52 5G in Samsung’s line-up, and forward of extra funds fare just like the Galaxy A12. It launched in early 2021 and is offered from Samsung, Amazon, big-box retailers, and plenty of carriers globally, together with T-Cellular, US Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon within the US.

It is available in 4 handy configurations, beginning with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage (expandable by way of microSD within the second SIM slot). There’s a spec’d-out model with 8GB of RAM, however the extra generally obtainable variations within the west follow 4GB or 6GB RAM as commonplace. No matter what’s inside, you’ll be able to select between 4 colours to grace the surface of your Galaxy A32 5G — Superior Black, Superior White, Superior Blue, and Superior Violet. Sadly, these colourful finishes don’t deliver an IP score with them, so that you’ll need to avoid water and dirt.

Fairly confusingly, Samsung additionally sells a non-5G model of the cellphone — the Galaxy A32 — that has a weaker processor however has greater decision principal and selfie cameras, and a extra pixel-dense, AMOLED show. Due to Samsung’s massive push for 5G, nevertheless, that mannequin is far more durable to seek out in most markets.

Our Samsung Galaxy A32 5G confirmed up with Android 11 onboard and Samsung’s One UI 3.1 pores and skin proper out of the field. Samsung has promised three full Android model updates for the Galaxy A32 5G and 4 years of safety patches. That ought to hold the cellphone afloat by early 2025 with as much as Android 14. Even when it’s not on the entrance of the road for many updates in Samsung’s portfolio, that is the very best replace help promise you will get on this worth vary by fairly some margin.

See additionally: The best Samsung phones

Hiding behind Samsung’s adequately protected Gorilla Glass 5 show, you’ll discover MediaTek’s Dimensity 720 chip exhausting at work. Samsung made the a lot of the area behind its 6.5-inch HD+ show, including a hefty 5,000mAh battery to the combo. You’ll discover a 13MP selfie lens tucked away in an Infinity-V notch to finish your budget-friendly setup.

The Samsung Galaxy A32 5G is available in at just below $300, but it surely faces some stiff competitors in its worth vary. Motorola’s Moto G Energy is an in depth rival for $249 that sacrifices 5G speeds within the identify of financial savings. You too can have a look at the OnePlus Nord N200, which comes 5G prepared for $240 however doesn’t come near matching Samsung’s replace prowess.

There’s one thing minimalist and stylish in regards to the Galaxy A32 5G’s virtually LG Velvet-esque design, and it’s greatest exemplified within the digital camera array. Samsung has had no hassle slapping hefty digital camera bumps onto units, but the Galaxy A32 5G is slimmed right down to easy rings round every lens. It provides the machine a streamlined look, and Samsung’s brand itself virtually blends proper into the Superior Black end on the unit we examined.

Mentioning the cameras, the Galaxy A32 5G delivered fairly spectacular outcomes from prime to backside. The 48MP major digital camera is very crisp in good lighting, although the photographs bin right down to 12MP by default. It’s straightforward to regulate for the complete decision, although you’re restricted to the 4:3 ratio. You may take a look at among the variations between the 2 pictures within the slider picture within the digital camera samples part later on this Galaxy A32 5G assessment.

Samsung’s ultra-wide digital camera affords some spectacular angles, even when there’s some distortion across the edges. Whereas nonetheless not probably the most helpful digital camera to have on a cellphone, the 5MP macro shooter additionally beats quite a lot of the funds competitors’s 2MP shooters by a mile. The pink flower seen within the gallery later on this assessment could be the very best macro shot I’ve captured by all of my budget-friendly camera experiences.

I additionally discovered the cellphone’s 5G connectivity as much as the duty on Verizon’s community. There’s ample entry to the 5G community in my space, and the Galaxy A32 5G had no downside sustaining its connection. It did come up quick on a weekend journey to observe a soccer sport, but it surely’s by no means been straightforward to get reception surrounded by fairly so many individuals. In any other case, I had no issues with name readability, and the mono speaker labored properly for my occasional speakerphone wants. There’s no mmWave help right here for the very quickest 5G speeds, however that is sometimes reserved for flagships and mmWave protection continues to be scarce (and virtually non-existent outdoors the US).

Associated: The best 5G phones you can buy

A few of Samsung’s One UI options additionally shine on a tool this massive. The Galaxy A32 5G packs a 6.5-inch show that’s practically unattainable to achieve throughout with one hand, so I discovered myself scrolling most apps into one-handed mode for simple entry. The show is vivid sufficient for many situations, although it may be just a little dim in daylight. It’s additionally saved up-to-date due to the aforementioned glorious software program help promise that’ll hold it protected till a minimum of 2025.

Samsung moved from an in-display fingerprint reader within the Galaxy A31 again to a side-mounted choice for the Galaxy A32 5G, and it’s a choice that pays off, even when it looks like a downgrade on paper. It unlocked rapidly once I pulled the cellphone from my pocket, even when the positioning on the aspect is just appropriate for a number of fingers. In any other case, you’ll be able to check out the software-based facial recognition for a straightforward unlock, although it’s far much less safe.

Samsung’s selection to make use of a Gorilla Glass 5 display on the Galaxy A32 5G has been a lifesaver up to now for me. This cellphone is extraordinarily slippery (extra on that in a minute) however the robust glass has absorbed the tumbles and falls with out a lot as a crack. Contemplating some telephones at this worth go for Gorilla Glass 3, it’s good to see Samsung go an additional step.

The hefty 5,000mAh battery has been glorious, too. I’ve repeatedly pushed it properly past a day of utilization, and infrequently near a second day.

What’s not so good?

For each design selection that Samsung obtained proper on the Galaxy A32 5G, it obtained one vital selection incorrect. That is a particularly slippery cellphone. The again panel could look nice with its “Superior” finishes and minimalist model, but it surely’s virtually working away from you as quickly as you set the cellphone down. A case can solve this issue, however with out one, holding the Galaxy A32 5G is like attempting to maintain a agency grip on a child seal.

You’ll have guessed as a lot based mostly on the shiny plastic end, but it surely’s nigh-impossible to maintain the Galaxy A32 5G squeaky clear, too. Something so simple as choosing up the cellphone will depart behind smudgy fingerprints.

Whereas Samsung’s 5,000mAh battery is superb, its 15W wired charging isn’t the quickest. That’s very true in Europe the place rival telephones from OnePlus, Realme, and Redmi supply greater than double peak speeds. As soon as I lastly drained the battery, it took half-hour to achieve a 27% cost with the in-box charger, and a complete of simply over two hours to get again to full power.

Take a look at: Here are the best Samsung Galaxy chargers

Samsung’s One UI is likely one of the greatest Android skins on the market, however Samsung units nonetheless arrive with a great deal of duplicate apps on account of model partnerships. Notably, the Galaxy A32 5G comes with an entire set of Microsoft apps to go along with the Google and Samsung choices. You’re each OneDrive and Google Drive proper out of the field, in addition to each Gmail and Outlook. On the brilliant aspect, you’ll be able to uninstall a lot of the extras straight away, however there’s quite a lot of app redundancy out of the field.

I usually noticed good efficiency from my Galaxy A32 5G in day-to-day utilization, although there have been a number of hiccups. The cellphone tended to warmth up if I had it linked to my automotive by way of Bluetooth for GPS instructions. It cooled again down comparatively rapidly, but it surely might not be nice for lengthy navigation journeys.

The Galaxy A32 5G’s mono speaker can be positive for the worth, but in addition suffers from some distortion while you crank the quantity, although that’s not unusual for cheaper units.

Samsung Galaxy A32 5G digital camera samples

In the event you’re out there for a 5G-ready machine with a strict $300 funds, the Galaxy A32 5G is properly value your consideration. It affords an awesome funds digital camera setup, glorious battery life, an aesthetic design, and Samsung’s easy, well-supported One UI software program. So long as you’re able to do battle with a slippery cellphone that simply will get lined in fingerprints, there’s not a lot lacking at $279. These issues which might be lacking — largely an IP score and quick charging — aren’t essentially dealbreakers contemplating this price ticket.

The Samsung Galaxy A32 5G is way from the one identify within the sub-$300 sport. OnePlus’s Nord N200 ($239) is one other budget-friendly gateway to 5G, although it doesn’t supply the identical replace longevity. You can provide the Motorola Moto G Power ($249) a glance, however know that you simply received’t get the identical software program help, 5G speeds, or NFC.

For these blissful to spend just a little additional, the Galaxy A42 5G ($399) affords an influence increase and an AMOLED show, whereas the Galaxy A52 5G ($499) is a fair larger improve that ups the ante with its superior digital camera suite and is able to sooner charging. There’s additionally the Google Pixel 5a ($449) which is once more fairly a bit pricier, however you get loads of bang on your buck with the top-class digital camera efficiency.