Samsung Galaxy A52 Review: It’s A Mid-Range No More
April 3, 2021Performance: Snapdragon 720g, 8GB RAM
Display: 6.5-inch (1080 x 2400)
Weight: 189g
Storage: 256GB
Battery: 4,500mAh
Features:4K, 1080p video recording
Rear Camera:64MP Wide, 12MP ultra-wide, 5MP Marco, 5MP Depth
Front Camera:32MP
Rating: 9/10
Price: RM 1,499.00
Flagship phones like the S21+ aren’t the only ones that offer a great smartphone experience. Mid-range phones such as the A52 promise a similar experience minus the exorbitant price tag. Admittedly, it’s a segment of the market Samsung ignored for several years, choosing to focus on higher-end devices instead.
Thankfully that changed since the advent of the A50, a mid-range shocker that put Huawei and Xiaomi on notice. It came with a bright, 1080 AMOLED display, 6GB RAM, and for the time, a respectably large 4,000mAh battery. The A51 continued this trend with a punch hole display, improved camera features and a whopping 8GB RAM.
And now we have the A52, a phone devoid of glossy surfaces and rainbow effects. It features a 6.5-inch AMOLED panel that nearly stretches from end to end and an elegantly crafted frame that tightly encases the phone. The rear shell features a subtle matte finish that commands attention. It exudes an understated, yet intriguing facade, which stokes one’s curiosity.
Unlike its predecessors, the A52’s rear shell seems to engulf the camera array, which is a similar but less flamboyant design cue brought from the S21 Series. It provides the phone with a less-shouty, minimalist aesthetic that is quite impressive. It has lost quite a lot of the visual sparkle of the A51, but the understated ‘matte’ approach does offer it a unique look.
The A52 is a little taller and wider than the A51, but it never really shows it. It feels good to hold with the matte shell offering a decent amount of friction to grip. As a result, you’re able to clutch it with confidence and not worry about dropping it. Some may not be too happy about the covered camera array, but it’s an interesting approach towards minimalism.
Samsung has given the phone a 90Hz, 1080 Super AMOLED display. The colours look bright and vibrant, which is typical of a Samsung display. This fluidity is a much needed improvement. As good as the A51’s unit was, the A52 feels far superior. If anyone tells you that there isn’t a discernable difference between a 60Hz display and a 90Hz one, they deserve an earful!
That said, the experience isn’t as impressive as the A52 5G’s 120Hz panel. It feels a little slower, but not by much. It’s still quite quick to respond to touches, and makes the phone feel like it’s packing something far greater than a Snapdragon 720G. It responds to your every whim without a fuss and without a hint of hesitation.
It’s an experience that shadows that of previous generation flagship devices. It’s eerily similar to that of the Galaxy S10. Granted, it doesn’t have nearly the same computing power, but it fools you into thinking that it does. That is why I believe Samsung should offer 90Hz displays as a standard issue on all of its smartphones, even the budget ones.
The performance is good enough for just about anything south of video editing or playing demanding gaming titles. Don’t get me wrong, the Adreno 618 isn’t a slouch, but it’s not equipped to handle demanding graphical computations. It’s mid-range strength is meant for mid-range gaming, that’s it.
But ask it to do anything else like shuffling through a plethora of open web browser tabs, juggling between different messaging apps or taking photos/videos, and the A52 chews these tasks without breaking a sweat. It’s a great performer for the average Joe. However it must be said that the A52 5G’s Snapdragon 750G should prove to do a much better job.
It’s great that Samsung continues to increase the memory ceiling limit of its mid-range devices. For now, it’s pegged at 8GB RAM, which is plenty for such a phone. I had very little to complain about the previous generation’s 6GB RAM. But the extra breathing room allows for smoother multi-tasking of more demanding applications or photo editing.
The Cameras
A welcomed addition to the A52 is the 64MP (wide) camera sensor seen on the A71 and M31. However, unlike the latter two, the A52’s unit features OIS (Optical Image Stabilization), and it makes a world of a difference. We loved the picture quality of the A71 but its video quality left much to be desired. Though detail levels, contrast and exposure were good, it didn’t have OIS.
This caused footage to look shaky and a little noisy. However, Samsung seems to have addressed the problem with the A52. What’s more is the fact that some of the magic of the S21 line’s seems to have rubbed off on it. The camera software works flawlessly with the hardware to produce sharp, vibrant and well composed pictures – similar in nature to that of the A71.
Very little effort is required to take great shots. All you need is to point it in the right direction, steady yourself, and take the shot. The phone adjusts the settings as best it can to provide users with good quality pictures. It’s a noticeable improvement over the A51, which already had good camera hardware. But the A52 is a little better in every area.
Besides the 64MP sensor, the A52 also gets a 12MP ultra wide, 5MP Macro and 5MP depth sensor. Working together, they are able to pull off some great shots, with minimal effort from the user. It’s an attribute that’s often the deciding factor of younger buyers who are torn between two devices. The ability to take detailed photos takes precedence over everything else.
Unlike the A51’s setup, the A52 is still able to take good pictures in low lighting conditions. At night, pictures still look quite sharp and retain a good amount of detail. This is in stark contrast to the grainy and washed out images produced by its predecessor. Besides improved software, the OIS also plays a hand in making this a reality.
That said, the cameras aren’t perfect especially when using the 10x zoom feature. A lot of the detail gets lots in the mix. If you’ve ever wondered why the S21 Series costs significantly more than the A52, this is your answer. The A52 simply doesn’t have the same abilities to zoom and compensate for changing conditions and environments as flagship phones do so effortlessly.
The Improvements
Judging from our experience with Samsung’s recent phones, it’s becoming increasingly apparent that mid-range devices are inching closer to flagship status. With each new iteration, they seem to be progressively raising the bar, allowing for a “uncompromised” user experience. If Samsung continues on this route, the average Joe will have nothing to complain about.
The A52 still has a headphone jack, so there’s no reason to ditch your cherished pair of wired earphones because you’ve decided to change phones. Placed right next to it, are pretty powerful speakers that offer a decent blend of bass and clarity. It’s nowhere near that of a decent pair of earphones, but good enough for a casual listening or movie streaming.
The phone has a 4,500mAh battery, which Samsung claims can last about two days. Though that might be possible if used conservatively, with real world use, you should get about slightly more than a day’s worth of use out of it. That in itself is quite decent considering that the A50 struggled to get to the end of the day with a decent amount of charge left over.
However, should you find yourself needing to charge the A52 at any point, it will be comforting to know that it supports 25W fast wired charging. As such, it should be able to regain 75% of its charge within 45 minutes of being connected to the charger. My inital assumption was wrong, the A52 doesn’t support wireless charging. It would have been nice if it did.
The convenience of being able to place the phone on a charging stand and instantly have it recharged, is simply immeasurable. Though wired chargers offer superior charging times, the thought of having to untangle wires each time they are taken out, is the reason many users wait until it’s absolutely necessary to charge their phone. – which isn’t good for a battery’s lifespan.
Samsung needs to provide its users with a compelling reason to stick with the brand instead of being seduced by the likes of Xiaomi and Oppo with the promise of better “value for money”.
Should I Buy One
If you’re looking for a mid-range phone right now, then the answer is yes. The quick performance, responsive screen and wireless charging make it a compelling prospect for any consumer. There’s very little to fault it for, especially when you consider its price. It’s able to offer a ‘close-enough’ experience to a flagship device without emptying your bank account.
Performance wise, it is only slightly faster than the A51. But the 90Hz display, larger battery, wireless charging and 64MP camera with OIS, put it ‘head and shoulders’ above its predecessor. It’s far more than an incremental upgrade so if I were to put it bluntly, I’d say that this is a superior phone.
