Samsung Galaxy M31 Review: Best Budget Phone
May 7, 2020The best compromise of the old and new, Samsung’s budget device aims to please
Performance: Exynos 9611, 6GB RAM
Display: 6.4-inch AMOLED (1080 x 2340)
Storage: 128GB
Battery: 6000mAh
Rear Camera: 64MP wide, 8MP ultra-wide, 5MP Macro, 5MP depth sensor
Front Camera: 32MP
Special Features: 4k Video Recording
Rating: 8/10
Budget phones used to signal, poor display resolutions, underwhelming amounts of RAM and anorexic storage options. This meant that the average Joe, had to put up with woefully slow performance if they chose to buy a budget device. Smoothness, long battery life and decent picture quality, were only reserved to flagship devices.
That’s why the Samsung Galaxy M31 could be the savior of the budget segment. It promises a lot, yet asks for so little. Depending on the country, the phone is being sold at incredibly low marked down prices, sometimes its about 15-25% cheaper than the MSRP. This effectively, puts it in a segment dominated by Chinese smartphones.
And it’s unfamiliar territory for Samsung, because Xiaomi, Oppo and Huawei, own this segment. But the M31, with its Exynos 9611 (same chip in A51), 6GB RAM, 64MP main camera, 4K video recording and 6000mAh battery, effectively changes the status quo. The closest rival, the Xiaomi Redmi 9s, falls short of the mark in all but one area, a hole-punch display.
The Performance
Having used Samsung’s budget device for the better part of a month, we can conclude that the M31 is an absolute joy to own. The hardware used in combination with the Samsung One UI 2.0, provides an almost flawless user experience. Apps cooperate almost effortlessly, and instances where screen freezes or app crashes happen, are few and far between.
If you’ve owned a device like the Samsung Galaxy A50 or Huawei Nova 2i, the experience is comparatively similar, albeit the M31 provides a more refined feel. The AMOLED 1080p display is very bright and able to produce decent colours, but offers a warmer than expected screen temperature. This might not be a big deal to some, but its important that you are kept aware of this.
Admittedly, the teardrop shaped display is long in the tooth. Most smartphone makers have migrated to hole punch layouts, for all but their most budget of devices. And this fact, puts the M31 in an awkward position. Despite touting flagship-like features, the dated display may be off-putting to some. But cost cutting had to be done somewhere, right?
In addition to this, it doesn’t have an in-screen fingerprint sensor either. It relies on a rear mounted physical sensor to authenticate user access. This might not be a bad thing, considering how unreliable and woefully slow in-screen fingerprint sensors are on budget phones. The M31’s physical sensor, trounces them on speed and accuracy.
The m31 basically blends the old with the new – a marriage of sorts, between tech you want, and the tech you wish you didn’t have to part with. Another example of this, is the colossal 6000mAh battery. Even with heavy usage, it delivers at least 2-days worth of battery life. It’s a commendable feat, considering that the Exynos 9611 isn’t as efficient as the newer Snapdragon chips.
The Camera
Unfortunately, the 64MP camera fails to receive the same level of commendation. Despite it being the same size as that in the Galaxy A71, it is nowhere near as competent. In low light conditions, pictures look a little dull and devoid of contrast. When shot with good lighting, the opposite is true. Selecting a lower/Pro setting, does improve results, but only by a smidgen.
Video quality is decent, but the lack of proper image stabilization provides for shaky and amateurish videos, a quality unbecoming of a 64MP sensor that boasts 4K capability. There ways of getting around this issue, enlisting the help of a tripod or gimbal, are examples of this.
We were hoping for a similar camera experience to Samsung’s A71, which we thoroughly enjoyed. The picture quality, regardless of lighting, was commendable. But the M31, falls well short of the mark. That said, the result is unsurprising, considering the price difference between the A71 and M31.
Let’s face it, if Samsung were to address these little niggles overnight, it would inadvertently cannibalize the sales of the A51, A71 and to an extent S20. Product fragmentation may have been responsible for the M31’s restraints, hindering it from reaching its true potential. However, all things considered, for the asking price, its difficult to fault it too much.
Should I Buy One?
Yes, period. It offers fantastic value for money, is surprisingly competent at being a 2020 smartphone, takes decent photos and videos (within reason), and offers an enviously long ‘untethered’ experience. The phone’s rivals simply lack the gusto to match its capabilities, a fact that should stand for the foreseeable future.
