Why it matters to you
The Samsung Galaxy A series shows Samsung is dedicated to continuing to build midrange phones.
The Galaxy Note 7 recall isn’t stopping South Korean tech giant Samsung from continuing to make and release devices. Following months of rumors and speculation, Samsung has taken the wraps off of the 2017 Galaxy A series.
Samsung first launched the A3, A5, and A7 in 2015, and has updated the device each year since then. The 2017 versions of the devices are the latest and greatest, and boast some very decent specs for a midrange products. Here’s everything you need to know about the Samsung Galaxy A3, A5, and A7.
More: Samsung launches the Galaxy C7 Pro in China, but there’s no C5 Pro in sight
Battery
The battery life is one of the main differences between the three phones, but Samsung says that they should last for quite some time on a single charge. In terms of raw specs, the A7’s battery sits at 3,600mAh, the A5’s at 3,000mAh, and the A3’s at 2,350mAh.
The A5 in particular is touted as having quite a long battery life, providing 13 hours of web-browsing time. That’s long enough to where they needed to be tested — and Phone Arena has done just that, confirming that the battery does indeed last as long as Samsung claims. Safe to say, if you’re looking for a device that lasts a while, the A series may offer the phone for you.
Specs
All three devices feature almost the same specs, but those specs aren’t actually all that bad. Both the A5 and A7 offer a 1,080 x 1,920 resolution display, with the A5’s display sitting at 5.2-inches and the A7’s display at 5.7-inches. The A3, on the other hand, has a 720 x 1,280 resolution display that sits at 4.7-inches.
Apart from the display, the A5 and A7 are almost identical in specs. They both feature a 1.9GHz processor, 3GB of RAM, and 32GB of storage, which can be updated to 256GB through the included microSD card slot. The cameras on the phone sit at 16MP on both the front and back.
The A3 is a little different than the other two — it offers a 1.6GHz processor and 2GB of RAM, along with 16GB of storage, though it also has a microSD card slot. Unlike the other devices, the A3 offers a 13MP rear-facing camera and an 8MP front-facing camera.
Design
The design of the phones has also been completely revamped, and all three of the phones feature an almost identical design apart from their size. They offer a distinctly “Samsung” look, with a fingerprint sensor/home button combo, along with rounded corners and a simplistic and flat back.
The phones actually look quite nice — especially as the midrange devices that they are.
Pricing and availability
The phones are currently only available in Russia, but it’s likely that they’ll eventually come to other markets. But how much do they cost? Well, the A7 comes in at RUB 32,990 ($567), the A5 at RUB 27,990 ($481), and the A3 RUB 22,990 ($395), which actually isn’t all that bad for a phone like this — though you can probably get a better phone for less, like the OnePlus 3T.
Updated on 02-10-2017 by Christian de Looper: Updated article to reflect that phones have been released and added news of battery test.