Stylish and slim design, quality HD screen, decent quad-core processor, 13-megapixel camera with 5-megapixel camera on front, expandable memory
Not cheap
The Samsung Galaxy A5 is the big brother to the recent A3. Both phones echo the sleek, metallic design style of last year's Galaxy Alpha, although this one has a bigger screen and an improved camera -- but is that enough to justify the £100 jump in price?
It's on sale now for around £349.
Screen and chassis
The metal unibody design certainly feels better than Samsung's all-plastic models, though this version is a step down from the genuinely premium feel of the Galaxy Alpha. It's nice and slim at a little under 7mm and the weight's been kept down to 123g. On the side are slots for a nano SIM and microSD card (up to 64GB) to augment the 16GB of onboard memory. Like the A3, you can't get to the battery if it needs changing.
The 5.2-inch Super AMOLED screen offers an HD resolution of 1,280x720 pixels (294ppi) and it's noticeably superior in just about every way to the A3, with bright vibrant colours, more detail thanks to the increased ppi count and the increased size bringing a more immersive feel to whatever you're viewing, whether it's websites, games or movies.
Software and processor
The A5 comes with Android 4.4.4 KitKat, so only just behind the very latest 5.0 Lollipop, and we can expect an upgrade later in the year.
Considering its more demanding screen though, it's a surprise to see that the A5 has a similar processor to the A3 -- quad-core, clocked at 1.2GHz. However, the 1.5GB RAM has been beefed up to 2GB, and that no doubt helps to keep it operating smoothly. It's pretty slick at opening apps and we didn't notice any obvious slow-down or stuttering, even with a handful of apps running at once.
Camera and battery
The 13-megapixel camera offers a marked improvement over the 8-megapixel model on the A3. It comes with a similar suite of features, including autofocus and LED flash, plus a few Samsung modes such as HDR, Rear cam selfie and Shot & more. Picture quality is good in decent light, with realistic colours and plenty of detail. On the front is a better than average 5-megapixel snapper for better quality selfies.
Bigger phone usually means a bigger battery and that's the case here. However, it's not that much bigger at 2,300mAh and with that bigger, higher quality screen to run, you still can't expect to get much more than a day's solid use out of it.
Conclusion
For around a £100 more than the A3, the Galaxy A5 has a bigger, better quality screen a superior camera, and the processor has been beefed up a little to cope with the greater demands placed on it.
It's a sleek-looking device and a pretty good performer too, though not everyone will feel the price is justified when compared to cheaper big-screen rivals like the OnePlus One, or phone with superior camera options, like the 20-megapixel model on the Sony Xperia Z3 Compact.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
