What is the Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)?
Editor’s Note: We’re expecting to see the new Samsung Galaxy A5 (2018) launched in the near future, so while last year’s A5 remains a great value phone, you might want to wait and see what Samsung has up its sleeve at MWC 2018 before making a final purchase decision.
The Samsung Galaxy A5 is the sort of phone that has me questioning why the vast majority of people should buy a flagship device. After all, when a £369.99 device ticks almost all of the right boxes, why pay more?
For the first time, Samsung has more convincingly brought the high-quality flagship DNA down to the mid-range, which makes the A5 the first non-flagship phone from the Korean company that’s easy to recommend.
If it wasn’t for some slight build quality issues, and the OnePlus 5T representing a significant step up for not all that much more money, this could be the perfect mid-range phone.
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Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) – Design and Build
Place the Samsung Galaxy A5 next to the Galaxy S7 and you’d be hard-pushed to immediately tell the difference between the two. Considering the Galaxy S7 was one of 2016’s best-looking phones, that’s strong praise.
The A5’s proportions are perfect; and that’s still a rarity in cheaper handsets. The majority of well-specced budget phones tend to have a 5.5-inch screen or bigger, but the 5.2-inch panel here reduces the size of the phone overall. The bezel is kept to a minimum and the ever so slightly curved back makes the device easy to hold in one hand.
There are even some design quirks that give the Galaxy A5 one over on its loftier Galaxy S7 sibling. The pastel colours – pink, blue and gold – are all subtle and attractive, while my review model takes a note from the Jet Black iPhone 7 Plus and is black all over. It’s a stealthy look that I’m sure will be one of the colour options available when the Galaxy S8 is announced.
I’m a huge fan of the Galaxy A5’s look, but I’m not so keen on the corners that have been cut to hit the lower price tag.
The back panel is a scratch-magnet and picks up grease and smudges within only seconds of use. There also appear to be some quality assurance issues, especially with my review unit. Following a week of use, the back panel has come slightly loose and there’s a noticeable sound whenever you apply pressure. It’s a small issue, but something you wouldn’t find on a flagship Samsung product.
The headphone jack is on the bottom of the device, as it always should be, next to a USB Type-C port – the only on-sale Samsung phone with this reversible connection – and that’s it. In a strange move, Samsung has switched the speaker to the top side. This works surprisingly well, and although it isn’t a fantastic speaker, its position means it won’t be obstructed by your hand when you’re watching landscape video.
While the Samsung is rumoured to be ditching the physical home button and capacitive “Back” and “Overview” keys on the Galaxy S8, they’re still present on the A5.
It’s odd that the company has chosen to stick with them for so long, considering Android has very capable on-screen controls, but at least you get a fast fingerprint scanner on the front. It can’t quite match the Huawei and Honor handsets for sheer fingerprint scanning speed and accuracy, but it gets the job done.
The microSD card slot – which can handle up to 256GB cards, upping the base 32GB – combines with the nano-SIM on the top, while the clicky volume keys sit on the left. I’m a little annoyed that there’s no LED notification light on the front, but that’s something of a luxury at this price.
However, the biggest upgrade over the A5 from last year is the addition of an IP68 certification, which means your device will survive a dunk in a meter of water for around 30 minutes. While I wouldn’t advise you bathe with the phone, at least you know that your handset will recover from being caught in a rain shower.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) – Display
There’s plenty to like about the AMOLED display on the Samsung Galaxy A5 – and, to my eyes at least – it’s just as good as the panel on the OnePlus 3.
The 1080p FHD resolution is perfectly acceptable at both this size and price, while the use of AMOLED, rather than LCD, results in providing extra oomph to bright colours.
Blacks are deep and inky, while reds and greens aren’t oversaturated. Samsung’s more budget-conscious AMOLED displays used to suffer from garish hues – but thankfully, this isn’t an issue any more. Brightness is good, too, with a strong range between the lowest and highest settings.
Samsung has added a number of software tweaks to alter the display. To be honest, though, I think the default “Adaptive display” setting is best. A colour slider lets you manually manage blues, greens and reds – but again, I feel it’s best left as it is.
The “Blue Light Filter” mode, which is similar to Night Shift on iOS, will remove certain blue light the comes off the screen, giving it an orangey tinge. You’re supposed to limit the amount of blue light you look at just before bed to aid sleep, and it’s a nice to see such a feature here.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) – Performance
Keeping the Samsung Galaxy A5 chugging along is a brand-new octa-core Exynos 7880 CPU, with a slightly higher clock speed over its predecessor. However, it’s the 14nm manufacturing process that really makes it an interesting mid-range CPU.
A lower number here represents a more efficient processor, and this helps the Galaxy A5 achieve impressive stamina. General performance is good, with little to no lag, but it’s nowhere near as snappy as the only slightly more expensive OnePlus 3T.
Apps, photos and and video streams run superbly, while media-heavy websites such as TrustedReviews load without a hitch in Chrome, and apps such as Instagram only occasionally hang when working on bigger tasks.
The 3GB of RAM is a given for a mid-ranger now, and it’s a decent middle-ground. Working simultaneously on a few apps is fine, but you’ll probably want to force-close intensive games if you have a few open.
The on-board Mali-T830 MP3 graphics are perfectly adequate, too. Asphalt 8 runs fine at Medium settings, while less-intensive titles such as Alto’s Adventure and Horizon Chase are equally as fast as on higher-end phones. You might notice slightly slower load times, but only if you place the Galaxy A5 next to the Galaxy S7.
In the AnTuTu performance benchmark, the Galaxy A5 scored a little over 60,000, putting it slightly behind the Lenovo P2 – which happens to be significantly cheaper – and in the same area as the Moto Z Play and Asus ZenFone 3; it’s ahead of the iPhone 6S Plus.
If, like me, you struggle with poor Wi-Fi reception at home, you might notice slightly weak performance when you’re some distance from the router. Performance isn’t as disappointing to that of the OnePlus 3, but the A5 is nowhere near as steady as the Google Pixel or any Huawei device. Call quality is good, however, and the microphones do an impressive job of filtering out background noises.
Samsung’s weak point for many years has been a disappointing software experience, mostly because of its over complicated TouchWiz UI. Thankfully, the company has made huge improvements since the Galaxy S6, with the remnants of TouchWiz actually pretty good now. It’s still a long way from the idea of “stock” Android, but it’s no longer a burden.
As the A5 is the first phone from Samsung since the short-lived Galaxy Note 7, it inherits many of the software features from that phone.
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A cleaner, whiter UI is the most noticeable change, but a sparse Settings menu and redesigned base apps are welcome too. Also present is the ridiculously handy Secure Folder – a locked place where you can store private passwords, documents and photos.
My biggest criticism with regards to the software is that the Galaxy A5 is stuck on Android 6.0.1, rather than the Nougat build that’s rolling out to Galaxy S7 owners.
Normally I’d berate a phone for shipping with such outdated software – but, to be honest, many of the Nougat-specific features are already available here. Split-screen multitasking is included, as are DPI altering options. Plus, Nougat should be arriving in an update before the end of Q1.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) – Camera
Mid-range phones tend to fall down as a result of their disappointing cameras, usually because of mediocre software and slow image processing. Thankfully, in the main, the Galaxy A5 steers clear of these pitfalls.
The rear-facing 16-megapixel camera is reliable, capturing detailed shots with good colour accuracy and without the need to faff around with confusing modes. Focusing is fast and accurate, and the clean app makes the shooting process pain-free.
The lack of OIS is a shame – especially since it graced the 2016 model – and there’s no phase detection autofocus either, but start shooting in sunny conditions and you’ll be happy with the results. There’s good depth to shots and enabling the HDR mode makes this even more obvious.
The f/1.9 aperture is suitably wide, not only helping to capture some decent bokeh effects, but helping low-light performance too. As with any phone – bar the iPhone 7, Google Pixel and Galaxy S7 – your shots will suffer when lighting conditions are poor, but the Galaxy A5 does manage to capture a decent nightclub shot thanks to its fairly fast shutter speed and focusing.
The front-facing camera matches the rear for basic specs, with a 16-megapixel sensor and f/1.9 aperture. There’s no autofocus, and general focusing is surprisingly slow, but selfies are super-sharp.
Video tops out at 1080p 30fps – so no 4K recording – and the results are a mixed bag. Jerkiness is common due to the lack of OIS, and the sound seems particularly terrible – but it’s fine for basic needs.
Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017) – Battery Life
The 3,000mAh cell – non-removable, as is now common with Samsung phones – is capable of making it through the day with few issues, and if you’re only using the phone infrequently throughout the day, it should have some juice left over for the following day if you forget to charge it one evening.
What the Galaxy A5 does really well is conserve battery during usage, thanks to the highly efficient CPU. An hour of Netflix streaming uses about 7-8%, while the same amount of time listening to Spotify with the screen off consumes on average 3%.
It’s the same story with everything but the most intense games. Monument Valley chews through about 11% per hour, although it drains much quicker if you’re playing long sessions of Asphalt 8.
Adaptive Fast Charging is another welcome addition, taking you from 0-80% in an hour; it will get you to 100% in just under 90 minutes using the supplied USB Type-C charger and plug.
Should I buy the Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)?
Samsung has really improved its already impressive A-series with the 2017 edition of the Galaxy A5. The addition of water resistance, USB Type-C, a classier design, impressive display and highly efficient CPU combine to make a seriously well-specced mid-range device that offers up a viable alternative to the OnePlus 3T.
At £369.99/ $399.99 (or around £28 per month) it’s probably slightly overpriced; there are certainly cheaper options out there such as the Honor 6X. However, the complete package you’re getting here just about makes it worth it.
For the vast majority of people, this could well be the perfect phone.
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A real mid-range champ – it will tick almost all of the boxes for the majority of people.
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