Guest Scott Irving Posted December 4, 2015 Report Posted December 4, 2015 Samsung have responded to and for the most part, enhanced the consumer experience of their smartphone range since the launch of the Samsung Galaxy Alpha in September 2014. The Alpha model brought a premium metal design and build, diverting away from the plastic construction favoured for previous phones such as the early 'S' range through to the Galaxy S 5 and recently with the metal and glass construction of the new S6 range of devices we have seen a lighter TouchWiz skin from Samsung, their modified version of Android. The lighter TouchWiz skin is a step in the right direction, but of course will never be pure Android OS idolised by those who own the Nexus range of smartphones. On Tuesday, Samsung's Mobile Press team released details of it's upcoming revamped 'A' range of smartphones which features 3 models with varying screen and technology options depending on your user needs and experience preferences.. The hardware profile echoes the changes introduced with the aforementioned Alpha and Galaxy S6 lines and I would expect the refresh of the TouchWiz skin has continued to these new offerings. The obvious standout from the new 'A' range is the A7, the largest and most powerful of the 3: 5.5 inch 1080p screen 3GB RAM 16GB ROM + Micro SD up to 128GB Rear : 13MP OIS (F1.9) and Front : 5MP (F1.9) camera 1.6GHz Octa Core Exynos chipset 3,300mah battery with fast charging capability Fingerprint scanner Samsung Pay 172g weight The middle of the range is the A5, which also boasts some nice specifications: 5.2 inch 1080p screen 2GB RAM 16GB ROM + Micro SD up to 128GB Rear : 13MP OIS (F1.9) and Front : 5MP (F1.9) camera 1.6GHz Octa Core Exynos chipset 2,900mah battery with fast charging capability Fingerprint scanner Samsung Pay 155g weight The less well equipped, but super pocket sized friendly option is the A3: 4.7 inch 720p screen 1.5GB RAM 16GB ROM + Micro SD up to 128GB Rear : 13MP (F1.9) and Front : 5MP (F1.9) camera 1.5GHz Octa Core Exynos chipset 2,300mah battery with fast charging capability 132g weight The A3 loses out in comparison to its siblings as it lacks OIS (Optical Image Stabilisation), Fingerprint Scanner and Samsung Pay as well as having a significantly smaller battery capacity, but it is reasonable to assume that the A3 will be launched at a cheaper price point as a result. So, is this anything to get excited about? Well, anyone familiar with the ever expanding range of Samsung devices over the last few years will be aware that there are a plethora of options available from the 'Galaxy Prime Core', 'S', 'J' 'On' ranges as well as the existing 'A' subset these new 2016 editions are replacing, but these new editions are firmly placed in the mid-range market and should offer an excellent user experience for anyone who cannot afford to purchase from the current 'S6' range or the anticipated 2016 flagship 'S7' line. It is a little disappointing to see these phones being launched with Android Lollipop OS, rather than Google's newest Marshmallow OS update, but as no official Marshmallow implementation timeline has been issued by Samsung, let's hope it doesn't take too long. Personally, I am looking forward to trying out these new devices, especially to review the A7 vs. my LG G4 (for a camera and battery comparison), but I think the retail price point is key for Samsung with these devices. There are a lot of other manufacturers offering similar specs in a competitive smartphone market and I expect that if they pitch this correctly via mobile carriers or SIM free then they could potentially regain market share from Lenovo, Huawei, Honor and Xiaomi with the new 'A' 2016 offerings. View full item
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