SEOUL: The Galaxy A3 isn’t too shabby for a budget device, boasting a mid-range but capable 64-bit Snapdragon 410 processor, 4.5-inch 960×540 displays, 1GB of RAM and 16GBs of expandable storage.
With a R5000 recommended price tag, it’s a bit difficult to justify 1GB of RAM and the relatively low-res screen, it has to be said. But the processor and 16GBs of storage are pretty much on par for a device in this price range.
Still, the screen to be decent, being bright and sharp enough for everyday usage those wanting to watch HD material on their phones will need a sharper display though.
The A-series experience
As you can tell, Samsung’s cheapest A-series handset isn’t the most powerful phone around, but it should be enough for a brisk experience, right?
General usage was pretty smooth, with home screen transitions and apps launching quickly for the most part. But it is noticed on a few occasions that some apps took a second or two to load up.
As for the Galaxy A3 and its TouchWiz interface, it’s pretty much the same experience as the Galaxy S5, S5 Mini and other recent Samsung handsets. So that means a camera shortcut on the lock screen, a customised dropdown menu, a new settings menu and several preinstalled apps (including S Planner, voice recorder, memo, the Collective app for vouchers etc and media apps).
In all fairness, there aren’t many preinstalled apps on the Galaxy A3 at all, with users simply downloading their favourite Samsung apps from the Galaxy Apps store instead. A wise move from the firm how many people use S-Voice after all?
Hardware
But the first thing you’ll notice when holding the device is how thin it is it’s not going to set any records but it makes for a very comfortable grip.
Looking at I/O, you have a power button, microSD bay and SIM bay on the right, and microUSB port and earphone jack at the bottom and volume rocker on the right.
Of course, being a budget handset, the A3 doesn’t have the heart-rate monitor or fingerprint scanner of its bigger brothers.
Camera experience
The Galaxy A3’s eight-megapixel camera isn’t near the level of the Galaxy Note 4 or Xperia Z3 obviously, but it isn’t quite on the level of the two-year-old Galaxy S4 or Lumia 920 either.
The true comparison comes when you pit it against budget rivals, such as the BlackBerry Z3, Lumia 730 and HiSense Pure 1, and it trades shots with the Lumia 730 for the number one spot.
Snaps are bright and feature a good level of detail, but it’s a decent performer in low-light too. Expect a fair amount of noise when taking snaps at the bar, but the end-result should be perfectly fine.
In terms of camera features, the A3 drops some functions compared to its bigger brothers, with no real-time HDR like the S5/Note 4 (but normal HDR is here), no slow-motion video and no 60 frames per second video. Still, there is full HD recording, a built-in panorama feature and a GIF creation function.
One area that does stand out compared to rival devices is the 5MP front-facing camera, capable of some sharp (for a front-facing shooter) snaps. They’ll certainly be better than the front-facing cameras on many top-flight smartphones today.
Battery
The Galaxy A3 only has a 1900mAh battery, but you might be surprised by its stamina.
You should be able to get a full day of everyday usage (i.e. some WhatsApp, an hour or two of music playback) when using the phone, with some juice left over for the early morning commute.
But if your situation is dire, you can always turn on Samsung’s vaunted Ultra Battery Saving Mode, which kills non-essential connectivity and turns down loads of settings. The result is that you should last for several hours longer than normal.
Again, don’t expect the phone to last as long as the Galaxy S5, but you’ll get a working day out of it with a bit of juice to spare when you wake up.
