Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) review: potential bestseller, but expensive. Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) review: potential bestseller, but expensive Samsung A3 is there a fingerprint

All 2017 Galaxy A series smartphones have become much more rounded. So rounded that some reviewers even refer to the design as "remnant". In my opinion, everything is far from so terrible. On the contrary: the gadgets look extremely neat, no pretentiousness. Around the perimeter there is a metal panel, at the front - 2.5D glass with a volume effect, at the back there is a curved glass "back".

Galaxy A3 (2016)

Galaxy A3 (2017)

If you find fault with anything, then only the rear panel, which looks empty due to the small camera lens. By the way, now it does not come out at all.

The glass case with brushed metal on the ends slides in the hands. If it's frosty outside and your hand is in a knitted glove, then you really need to be extremely careful. Drops are unacceptable - this is an almost 100% crack or scratch on either the front or rear window.

The main plus of the A3 (2017) is its very compact size. It is convenient to hold the device, you can work with it with one hand even on the go, even on the run. Still, it's a pity that there are fewer and fewer models with 4.7-inch screens on the market every year.

Not without a wow factor: like the flagships S7 and S7 edge, all Samsung A-series 2017 smartphones are also protected by the IP68 standard. This means that dust will not get inside the case, plus the phones can be kept for 30 minutes at a depth of up to 1.5 meters.

Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) is protected from water: the gadget can be kept for half an hour at a depth of up to 1.5 meters.

Another important nuance: in A3 (2017) appeared Samsung support Pay. In the 2016 model, it was not, although A5 (2016) and A7 (2016) work with a payment service.

The speaker is located cleverly - on the top of the right side. And, you know, it's convenient! It does not overlap with your fingers either vertically or horizontally. The sound, however, is far from ideal. The volume is slightly above average, the audio turns out to be a little muffled due to the protective membrane, the low frequencies are frustrating.

The fingerprint scanner, as in other Samsung smartphones, is built into the mechanical Home button under the screen. The papillary pattern is recognized quickly, and it is not necessary to press the key to unlock.

Sometimes the sensor is buggy: it completely refuses to recognize the fingerprint, and that's it. Only entering a PIN, password or pattern helps. I got sick of this on the second day of testing, and I simply turned off the scanner.

Good picture, low resolution

For IPS, this would be enough, but the AMOLED features are such that, due to the PenTile effect, individual pixels are easily distinguishable with the naked eye. This is especially frustrating when reading. e-books or texts from web pages. And the graininess makes it difficult to adequately assess the quality of the resulting photos after shooting - they look better on a smartphone screen than on a computer monitor.

Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) Super AMOLED screen with a resolution of 1280x720 pixels. Not enough.

The Always On function migrated from the flagships to the A3 and other A-series models of 2017. This is when, in sleep mode, the display shows a clock or a calendar plus notifications about missed calls and messages.

According to various estimates, this feature eats away from 1.5 to 3% of the smartphone's charge per hour. For a day we get from minus 20 to minus 35 percent of the battery. So it's better not to turn on Always On at all.

There is a night mode. By the name "Blue color filter" it is easy to guess that it turns off the shades of the blue spectrum, and in the dark the eyes are less tired. There are also four color profiles to choose from and the ability to manually adjust the color balance of the screen.

One of the options for displaying information on the screen of a locked smartphone in Always On mode

Games at low or medium settings

Under mobile games Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) is not sharpened. Octa-core Exynos 7870 with a frequency of 1.6 GHz and 2 GB random access memory(of which more than half is consumed by the system) is not enough for serious mobile entertainment. For example, when playing at high (and sometimes even medium) graphics settings in demanding games like World of Tanks Blitz and Unkilled, frame drops often occur - the image jerks. So for serious projects it is better to choose the minimum. Of course, there will be no problems with simple arcades or puzzles. But the case practically does not heat up and the performance does not drop after a long load.

Much more serious is the constant lack of memory. The built-in 16 GB, of which the user only has less than 6 GB, is very small. Required applications, one episode of the series plus a couple of decent games and that's it - it's time to put the memory card in the slot instead of the second SIM. In general, there is no point in harboring illusions about the dual-simplicity of the Galaxy A3 (2017). The maximum allowable microSD size is 256 GB.

Comparison of A3 (2017) performance with other smartphones in benchmarks. The bigger the result, the better.

Excellent front camera and good main camera

The 13-megapixel camera of the Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) pleased us with a quick launch by double-clicking the Home button and a user-friendly interface. Everything you need is always at hand, there is a manual mode and a convenient slider with which you can quickly make the frame lighter or darker. This is called exposure compensation.

During the day, at dusk and in rooms with artificial light, the automation works great. The smartphone focuses quickly (although A5 and A7 are steeper in this regard due to phase AF), there are no errors with white balance, frames are saved to memory quickly. In short, taking pictures is comfortable. There is only one problem - in some places the pictures look a little blurry. When viewed on a computer, I just want to go into Photoshop and turn on the sharpening macro.

No HDR

With HDR

When it comes to shooting at night, things get sad. Autofocus scans and misses, detail drops, a lot of noise appears. It is best to switch to manual mode and compensate for the automatic errors with your knowledge of the shooting parameters.

Video can only be recorded in Full HD, but something more would hardly have been pulled by a modest processor. You shouldn't play the operator at night, but during the day you can. The main thing is to hold the smartphone firmly, drive smoothly and do not remove on the go. There is no optical stabilization.

To summarize the main camera, the impressions are as follows. Galaxy A3 (2017) photographs better than budget Meizu and Xiaomi, but worse than some competitors' smartphones with larger diagonal. Of the more budgetary alternatives, the most interesting in this regard is the Honor 6X. You can also look at Sony Xperia XA - the image quality is higher there, but the automation is worse. A comparable in price Huawei nova may well compete with the A3 (2017) also in terms of selfies.

By the way, about self-portraits. They are good: the 8-megapixel front camera works wonders under normal lighting conditions. Sharpness, detail, color rendition - everything is in perfect order. The correction only needs to be made for the lack of autofocus. Examples of shooting with comments, see our gallery:

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Lasts a long time, charges quickly

There is a 2350 mAh battery inside the smartphone, but you should not be afraid of such a modest capacity. The Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) does its fair share of above average load or 1.5 days in economy mode.

Affected by the combination of an economical processor and a low-resolution AMOLED screen. This is especially evident in mono tests. Full HD video at maximum brightness can be played for 19.5 hours. Our favorite unpretentious arcade game Subway Surfers at maximum brightness drains the battery in about 7 hours.

Time Samsung work Galaxy A3 (2017) versus competitors and record holders, reported in minutes

All three new smartphones of the A-series, including the A3, the Koreans equipped with a connector USB Type-C, and rightly so. The road to unification! In A5 and A7 declared fast charging, in A3 there is no support for such technology, which, however, does not prevent the gadget from fully charging from 0 to 100% in 1.5 hours.

Comparison with competitors

Finding a decent smartphone with a screen diagonal of less than 5 inches is still a quest. There are actually only two competitors in this field for the Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) - Sony Xperia X Compact and iPhone SE... Both are much more expensive in official retail. However, compact smartphone Apple from the "gray" shipments can be considered as an alternative - get a stable OS, powerful hardware and a bundle of a good main and disgusting front camera.

Starting from five inches, very good options appear. Of course, there is no IP68 protection anywhere (this is cool, but do you really need it?) And Samsung Pay support (not everyone also needs it), but many of the main characteristics of competitors are better, and prices are lower.

The most interesting alternative is Huawei nova... You will gain a little in price (from 1 to 4 thousand), get a better screen, an all-metal case, 32 GB of memory instead of 16 GB and slightly higher performance with approximately the same cameras. You will lose in autonomy.

Nomination " budget model with a guarantee "is a metal Meizu M3S mini c 32 GB of internal memory. The camera and battery are worse here, and the overall performance is slightly lower, but this is compensated by 3 GB of "RAM" versus 2 GB of Samsung. The screen is also HD, but IPS, so there is no grain. The most important thing is the price. In official retail, the gadget costs 9,000 rubles cheaper.

About the same, but without a guarantee - this is Xiaomi Redmi 3S with 32 GB of memory, starting at 10,000 rubles. You can, of course, and officially from one of the retailers for 15,500, but since there is Meizu, there is little sense in this. For almost 2.5 times less money, we get comparable performance, good autonomy and more memory. Plus glitches of the shell, compatibility with applications and the ability to run into a model without support for Russian LTE bands as a bonus.

If you don't care about the screen diagonal, then among the 5.2 and 5.5-inch models, the choice is even wider, but we will not dwell on them. After all, A3 (2017) is a device specifically for lovers of small smartphones, competitors should be appropriate.

Opinion site

Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) is an interesting smartphone. Nobody has yet offered mass models from the mid-price segment with water and dust protection. Ugly rubberized bricks from obscure brands don't count. These are niche products.

However, at a price of 23,000 rubles, this phone should be an almost ideal compact "mid-range". The situation is different: there is a weak filling, lack of memory (only 16 GB, of which only 6 are free) and a hybrid slot, a grainy screen and a buggy fingerprint scanner.

Does it make sense to change A3 (2016) to new model? In my opinion, only if you really want to start using the Samsung Pay service. His support appeared in A3 (2017). It can also be justified if you love taking self-portraits - the selfie camera is good here. Protection from water does not pull for a serious reason for updating, but here everyone probably has their own opinion.

Pros:

• Water and dust resistant (IP68)
• Compact and convenient body
• Excellent build quality
• Bright AMOLED screen
• Good main camera automation
• Cool selfie camera
• Connector USB Type-C
• Charges fast
• Upgrade to Android 7.0
• Supports Samsung Pay

Minuses:

• High price
• Low performance
• Slippery body
• Low screen resolution
• 16 GB storage and hybrid slot
• Glitchy fingerprint scanner

For Samsung, 2017 was a year of leadership. The Koreans have not only produced one of the most technologically advanced this moment flagships Galaxy S8, setting the bar for the famous IPhone, but also updated many younger and simpler models. Among those who were noticeably upgraded was the middle-class line of Samsung Galaxy A. And not only the older models of the series, but also its youngest representative - Samsung Galaxy A3.

Specifications Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017)

The South Korean developer is quite cunning - while most manufacturers are still chasing the screen size of their smartphones, Samsung is chasing the quality of technology. The guys from this company know their customer. And they know that a small but productive gadget is valued much more among ordinary people than a large smartphone with a weak processor.

As a result, we see annual updates to the South Korean mid-range lineup.

In technical terms, the Samsung Galaxy A has undergone significant changes. However, the models of the series do not differ so much among themselves.

Frame

Like its older counterparts, the A3 is smoother and rounder. The corners of the body no longer protrude so clearly, and the edges smoothly flow from one to another. Many people do not like this decision regarding the redesign, they say, the phone looks like a soap dish. However, these are the current trends - angular cases now seem to be the trend of the last century.

The perimeter of the phone is framed by a metal frame, the front panel is covered with Corning Gorilla Glass 4 with 2.5D effect. At the back, the same glass covers the slightly curved rear panel. By the way, the panel is now smooth, there are no protrusions on it, the camera lens is perfectly retracted deeper into the body, which is quite convenient. The glass surface can sometimes play a cruel joke with its owner - glass and metal in the body materials make the phone uncomfortably slippery. If you intend to carry it without a case, be careful and hold the device tighter. Any fall in this case guarantees cracks and scratches on the phone case.

The front panel is not much different from the 2016 version - the screen occupies about 70% of the entire front part of the device, above it is the speaker, the company logo, the front camera and the proximity sensor. Below is the Home button on the mechanics with a built-in fingerprint scanner. Here is the "Return" and "List of applications" on the sensor. The touch buttons do not remain visible on the panel in the inactive mode, although this is one of the signs of budget - the more luxurious models do not have this anymore.

Photo gallery: features of the appearance of a smartphone

Many users noted that after the redesign, the phone looked like a soap dish
The camera now practically does not protrude beyond the surface of the body

At the bottom there are a mechanical button to return to the main screen and touch "Context menu" and "Back"
The speaker was originally placed on the side, next to it is the lock key

On the bottom there are two connectors - for headphones and for a charger
Above the display you can find a speaker, a front camera lens, a motion sensor and the usual logo of the developer company.

On the top edge of the phone, the developers justified the SIM card slot and microphone
Traditionally, the left side houses the volume up and down buttons.

The dimensions of the device remained practically unchanged. The length and width of the phone were respectively 135.4 x 66.2 mm, and its thickness was 7.9 mm. The weight of the model is 138 g. Compared to the version of the previous year, the length of the case, its thickness and weight have increased, but the width has decreased. Apparently, the developer tried to bring the phone as close as possible to the FullHD parameters with 16: 9 aspect ratios.

There are only three color solutions: black (Black), blue (Blue), gold (Gold), pink (Pink). In general, we tried to please everyone.

The small size of the phone makes it extremely ergonomic and convenient. It is pleasant to hold the phone in your hand, and an attempt to reach the opposite corner, if necessary, will be crowned with undoubted success even among girls.

Technachinka

The Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 is powered by a fairly powerful eight-core Exynos 7 Octa 7870 processor, which is manufactured using 14 nanometer technology. Four ARM Cortex-A53 cores were placed here, whose clock frequency equals 1.6 GHz, and the same number of cores GPU Mali-T830. By the way, this chipset was previously in the oldest representative of the budget J line - the Samsung Galaxy J7 last year. You shouldn't expect high results from the filling developed for medium-class phones. However, for its price and niche, the phone demonstrates good performance and stable performance. Local technology is quite enough for everyday work. More resource-intensive tasks, although they noticeably load the processor, are still too tough for it. But it is useless to test the power of the hardware on heavy 3D games.

Photo gallery: Galaxy A3 2017 benchmarks

Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 runs on a fairly efficient eight-core processor Exynos 7 Octa 7870 Four ARM Cortex-A53 cores were placed here, whose clock speed is 1.6 GHz. Also, the smartphone has four GPU cores Mali-T830
For its price and niche, the phone demonstrates good performance and stable operation. In single tests, the cores show low results. The joint core test will give a completely different picture - the result is "above average"
Despite the fact that the smartphone is significantly inferior to the leading flagships of the company, its performance is absolutely enough for most daily tasks Difficulties in work are caused only by heavy and resource-intensive 3d games.If you buy a smartphone for work and everyday tasks, and not for games and entertainment, the device will not cause any complaints

Android version 6.0.1 Marshmallow is installed here with Grace UX shell, which is among lineup Samsung was only used in Note7. It has a custom notification panel and settings menu, and also provides the phone owner with an additional screen that displays the latest news. In addition, Grace UX allows you to change the appearance of standard icons and a theme (they, however, have to be bought), can respond to the owner's eyes (activating the display when you look at it), and offers to optimize the phone's energy consumption with your own hands. In general, Grace UX has a wagon and a small cart for useful gadgets. Despite their abundance, the shell works smartly, and noticeable slowdowns are observed only when loading news into the panel.

It is worth noting that the Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 has the ability to update to the latest Android 7.0 Nougat.

Photo gallery: operating system features

The phone is equipped with 2 GB of RAM

Almost half of all phone memory will be occupied system files and folders, which are not possible to get rid of. Fortunately, the developers thought about their customers and placed a slot for a fash-card here, the maximum volume of which can reach 256 GB. Considering that the A3 is the junior model of the middle price segment of Samsung, the gift from the creators seems impressive. Although, do not forget that the additional memory slot will simply be unavailable if the owner of the gadget uses two SIM cards. You will have to sacrifice either contacts or documents.

Of the available 16 GB of internal memory, the owner of the smartphone will have access to about half

Battery

The battery on the Galaxy A3 is non-removable and non-removable. Its capacity is only 2350 mAh, but a low-consumption screen and an integrated processor that intelligently distributes the load to the battery more than compensate for the small capacity.

The battery in the Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 is not very large, but the results and the duration of the work are pleasantly surprising

The time of continuous work on the Internet reaches 12-17 hours, the phone can play video for up to 17 hours in a row, play audio - up to 41 hours with the screen turned on periodically and up to 55 hours when it is off. At the same time, the talk time without interruption is about 17 hours. In general, with an average load level, the smartphone will calmly withstand almost two days of work.

There is no fast or wireless charging in the Galaxy A3 2017. However, even without them, the device is fully charged quite quickly - in 1.5 - 2 hours the battery replenishes its supply to the maximum level.

The battery is undoubtedly strong point smartphone even with low figures of its capacity

Other amenities

Besides good technical characteristics Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 has added some special features that will pleasantly surprise the owners of the gadget.

IP68

The IP68 standard guarantees your smartphone reliable protection against dust and moisture penetration into the phone case. Now you don't have to be afraid that the gadget will suddenly stop working after a meeting with water or a sandstorm. It can be safely placed at a depth of 1.5 meters for as much as 30 minutes. If during this time even water cannot get inside, to say nothing of the dust.

Despite the fact that the smartphone occupies the lowest place in the line, it has also been equipped with dust and moisture-proof properties since 2017.

Samsung Pay

One of the undoubted advantages of the updated version of A3 is the ability to pay without a physical card. In the 2017 version, there was NFC support and MST technologies, which allows you to bind the card to the phone, and then easily pay with it, even without having this card in your pocket. The data is reliably protected and you do not need to worry about losing it - every transaction of funds is confirmed by your own fingerprint.

They did not forget to put Samsung Pay in the smartphone

Always-On-Display

This feature, previously unique to luxury models, only appeared in the Samsung Galaxy A line this year. Moreover, as you can see, not only among its senior representatives, but also among the youngest A3. The function itself is as follows: the screen of your phone, even in inactive mode, displays all relevant notifications, event, calendar, clock and other important and useful information.

Like its older brothers in the lineup, the Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 is not devoid of the function of an always active screen.

Blue color filter

This mode changes the current color scheme of the phone to a softer, warmer and more autumnal one. Such a change has a very beneficial effect on the eyes of the owner of the device, relieves tension from them, and allows you to relax the eye muscles. As a result, the time spent on the phone is increased, and the discomfort and fatigue are reduced.

USB Type C (1.0)

Among other things, the phone has got a new usb-connector. It is now USB Type C version 1.0. What is the difference between the new connector and the old one? Yes, because it is symmetrical, which means that it doesn't matter which side you try to insert it into the phone. Any one will do.

The fingerprint scanner

The fingerprint scanner is built into the mechanical Home button on the front of the phone. About his work, users have a very ambiguous response. Some are satisfied with the device, they note a quick response (less than 1.5 seconds for unlocking), smooth operation. Others categorically state that the scanner is mediocre and works every other time. Considering that we are talking about a junior phone in a budget line, then such flaws seem excusable.

The fingerprint scanner in the Samsung Galaxy A3 2017, although weak, is still present

Camera

The smartphone is equipped with a camera with a main camera resolution of 13 megapixels. The focal power of the lens is f / 1.9. Like the older models, the Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 has both built-in standard modes and Pro mode, which involves manually adjusting most of the parameters. So, in this mode, you can easily adjust the ISO, that is, the light sensitivity of the lens, select the white level, assign exposure and much more. The camera interface is also quite standard and is unlikely to cause bewilderment for those who have had to use smartphones. Samsung latest years.

In addition to the standard ones, the camera is equipped with an HDR mode. If some time ago this mode quite justifiably seemed to many users to be useless and inactive, but now HDR often “pulls out” many images. On Samsung Galaxy A3 2017, this mode works very smoothly. Dark dips after applying HDR do not take on unnatural tints, and highlights do not gray out.

Left - non-HDR shot, right - with HDR mode

Daytime shooting

During the day, the camera focuses the image very accurately and quickly. The shots are detailed, bright, rich and enjoyable. The color gamut of the images is close to natural, the range of shades is high and varied. As for the white balance, the camera determines it quite close to the original, i.e., real, picture.

However, the fact that the smartphone is the younger version of the line is also noticeable. The Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 lacks optical stabilization, due to which, even during the day, pictures can sometimes come out insufficiently clear and blurry in places. In this situation, the quality of the photo directly depends on the firmness and reliability of the hand that holds it. Considering the product's light weight as well as its size, trying to get a good, clear picture becomes a serious task. And in the conditions night shooting or shooting indoors, it becomes even more difficult.

Photo gallery: daytime shooting

The front camera of the phone has a resolution of 8 megapixels and an aperture equal to the main camera at f / 1.9

The Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 has the same convenience in handling the front-facing camera that its older S-series counterparts had. You can switch from camera to camera with a simple swipe across the display, take pictures with a quick touch of the screen, shoot with voice command or gesture.

With the updated front camera you don't have to worry about the quality of your pictures - they will be beautiful

Video

Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 shoots videos in FullHD quality, with a frame rate of 30 fps. Panorama mode is available to the user, as well as Pro-mode with the same settings as the camera.

Video: Samsung Galaxy A3 2017 camera review

Price

The price range for the Galaxy A3 2017 is very large - from 14,700 to 22,990 rubles. The cost of the model in the official Samsung store for July 2017 is 19,990 rubles.

Video: review of the smartphone Samsung Galaxy A3 2017

The year kicks off with three mid-priced Galaxy A lineups. 2017 is the most impressive of them all. Samsung has managed to create all three models with an exceptional look and feel, in many ways they resemble its high-end smartphones. Among the three new products, the Galaxy A3 is the most compact and affordable model.

The device received a 4.7-inch Super AMOLED screen and outwardly strongly resembles the Galaxy S7, possessing the same stylish glass and metal construction, the same high rating of water and dust resistance, for the first time for smartphones of this value.

Naturally, compromises had to be made in order to lower the price. It doesn't have the fastest processor, less flash memory, and a few other weaknesses, but what about value for money?

Design

In terms of looks, the Galaxy A3 2017 is as attractive as it gets. In this review, we examined a beautiful glossy black version of the device, the body made of glass and metal feels very solid, the build quality is high level... As a result, you might think that you are holding a flagship smartphone, thanks to the slight bend in the back of the case and the compact size, the device is especially comfortable in the hand. The thickness of the case is less than one might think, the smartphone is well balanced, its weight eliminates the feeling of excessive lightness or emptiness. The smartphone feels monolithic. Every aspect of this handset feels well thought out, even the side buttons are made of metal and have good travel and feel.

One of the disadvantages of this beauty of the glass case is the presence of many fingerprints on it. They accumulate very quickly and turn the device into a rather dirty one, you need to constantly wipe it down or put it in a case. On the black version of the smartphone under consideration, this problem is especially striking, but with other colors it is not so noticeable. Samsung offers gold, blue and peach versions of the device.

Another distinguishing feature of the smartphone is its compact size: the screen is 4.7 inches, along the edges there are thin bezels, so the smartphone is even smaller than the compact iPhone 7. As a result, it is very comfortable to hold with one hand.

Another good thing is that Samsung has abandoned the outdated microUSB connector and even the affordable Galaxy A3 now uses a modern USB type C interface. There is also a traditional 3.5 mm headphone jack, to which you can also connect speakers and AUX cables.

The main superpower of this smartphone is to protect the case from water. The Galaxy A3 2017 is IP68 compliant and is one of the cheapest smartphones with this protection. It can be immersed in fresh water for half an hour to a depth of one and a half meters. As a result, you don't have to worry about splashes and rain, and you don't have to worry about dropping your smartphone into a sink or a puddle.

Screen

It uses a Super AMOLED panel with a resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels of the PenTile type, which means there are fewer colors in each pixel compared to RGB, so the sharpness is lower here. If you look closely, you can see the jagged edges of some icons and text, but no one will notice it in normal use.

It is not the resolution or sharpness that makes a good screen, but the color rendition. Here, in this regard, everything is in order. The screen itself is extremely smooth, the finger glides smoothly over it, the colors are adjusted to the sRGB range, which is used for photos and videos. White gives off a little blue, all colors are a little brighter than they should be, but overall this is a great screen for its price range.

Samsung allows users to customize the color reproduction. To do this, open Settings> Display> Screen Mode and select one of four color modes. Adaptive mode produces the most accurate colors, but they are not realistic. The basic mode is close to the generally accepted standard and it is recommended to use it.

The maximum brightness of the screen is 440 nits, which makes it comfortable to work with it outdoors in sunlight. The minimum brightness is only 1 nits, which reduces eye strain in the dark. Samsung also keeps up with the competition and includes a blue filter here for use in the evenings. It can be configured to automatic activation and turning off in the morning, as blue is believed to be responsible for the production of a certain hormone that interferes with sleep.

The new Galaxy A3 also has an Always-On Display feature that shows the time, date and types of missed notifications on the lock screen (but not the notifications themselves). This screen produces text with good contrast, but noticeably increases the rate of battery consumption.

Interface and functionality

Developers Samsung and Google are not wasting their time and are constantly improving their products, as a result, Android and the South Korean manufacturer's own software shell are getting better and better. The Galaxy A3 2017 has a Samsung Grace user interface that is noticeably cleaner, more logical and more thoughtful compared to previous versions. It not only looks good on the outside, but is also easy to use. Samsung also worked on its applications: mail, weather, calendar offer a modern appearance, informativeness and simplicity.

The redesigned notification panel has gotten rid of the useless toggles, but there are still needed ones. The new settings menu offers important options and no longer looks chaotic, instead we see a well-organized list with search. Applications can be searched in the list of applications, you can also search here in the store Google play that doesn't need a separate icon. The new device manager helps you find and get rid of harmful and energy-consuming apps.

Experienced users will be able to appreciate features like secure folders that Samsung has introduced in the device. Galaxy Note 7. Here you can store the most confidential data and documents. You can even put a separate account Google.

Despite its small size, the Galaxy A3 has a great keyboard. True, we could not find a setting for turning on vibration when pressing keys, which works great on most Samsung devices, but still the keyboard is one of the most accurate and fast on Android.

Despite all the virtues, new Galaxy The A3 suffers from the disadvantage of almost all Android smartphones that are not in the flagship category. The smartphone runs on outdated software and receives updates very late or does not receive them at all. What has changed for the better lately is the situation with receiving security updates, which began to appear on a monthly basis. However, with large Android updates Google and Samsung need to do something to get them out more quickly.

Processor, performance and memory

Galaxy A3 2017 uses a processor Samsung Exynos 7870 and 2 GB of RAM. This is a step back from the Galaxy A5 with an Exynos 7880 processor. Both chips are 8-core with Cortex-A53 cores, but the Galaxy A3 has a frequency of 1.6 GHz versus 1.9 GHz in the Galaxy A5.

As a result, the smartphone can hardly be called powerful, but the processor is based on the modern 14 nm technological process. This means higher energy efficiency compared to smartphones of previous generations, which increases the duration autonomous work.

The speed of everyday work is at a normal level. Samsung has optimized its interface, which is fast and fluid, but you can notice quite a long startup time for applications.

The small screen resolution means the smartphone is capable of gaming performance as well as the more expensive Galaxy A5, but the smartphone is clearly not made for regular gaming. For him, they are too much of a load and comfort in them may be far from desired.

Benchmarks show that the performance of the device is on par with the MediaTek Helio P10 processors, the processor does not reach the capabilities of the Snapdragon 625. Meanwhile, the latter is used in devices of the same price category, such as the Huawei Nova.

Galaxy A3 received 16 GB of flash memory, of which about 10 GB is available to the user. Supports microSD memory cards up to 256 GB.

Internet and communication

The smartphone supports 4G LTE frequency bands in European and global markets. For Europe, bands 1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20 are available here. There are two slots for SIM cards, one of them is hybrid and instead of a SIM card you can install a microSD memory card.

Dual band Wi-Fi a / b / g / n / ac is supported, and payment system Samsung Pay, Bluetooth 4.2, GPS, Glonass and USB Type C.

Camera

The main camera of the Galaxy A3 2017 has a resolution of 13 megapixels and an aperture of f / 1.9, while the front is an 8 megapixel camera. There is an LED flash on the back, but there is no image stabilization and 4K format is not supported.

First off, let's praise the excellent camera app. It can be launched by double clicking on the Home button, quickly and conveniently. Here, a new application from Samsung is used: the developers have removed everything unnecessary from the main screen, rarely used settings are hidden from the eyes, only the shutter buttons and the start of video recording, a shortcut to the gallery, flash control, settings and a switch between the rear and front cameras remain. If you want to manually adjust the white balance or ISO, swipe to the left and select Pro mode, which has manual adjustments. A gesture to the right opens modes, Panorama and others. Various filters and styles for photos are also available here.

Image quality

The quality of photos on this smartphone is above average for a device in this price category. They offer vivid colors and a good level of sharpness. The camera takes a long time to focus, so it is advisable not to use it when photographing moving objects, but for everything else it is very good. In dynamic scenes, the brightest parts of the image are usually too bright, HDR does not turn on automatically, it is recommended to turn it on yourself. HDR improves the quality of photos, but not as noticeably as on some other smartphones. Panoramic mode produces excellent images that seamlessly merge into a larger picture.

In low light, the photo quality is not as good. Details become blurred and image sharpness is lost. The single flash is quite strong, but completely ruins the correct color rendition, adding a cool green tint.

As for the front camera, it produces wide-angle photos suitable for group shots. The quality of the photos is not good, there is not enough detail and the skin tone is washed out.

Video quality

The camera supports 1080p video recording at 30 fps. The lack of 4K recording is expected for this price, but it is in the smartphone Huawei Nova so Samsung is lagging behind. Fortunately, even at 1080p, the video quality is good, with vibrant colors, sharpness and dynamics right. Unfortunately, video stabilization is completely absent, so the result is often shaky. Even the slightest movement of the hands during shooting leads to twitching of the image. It is the lack of stabilization that can be called the main drawback of this smartphone.

Sound quality

The speaker is located here on the side of the case. This is an unusual position, and he himself is quite small. The new Galaxy A series smartphones were the first to place speakers on the side so that they could not be covered by hand.

The sound quality in this speaker turned out to be surprisingly good. The volume is also high.

Call quality

At telephone conversations thanks to this smartphone, you can hear your interlocutor well and clearly through the auricle, voices sound natural, the same applies to the other side of the line. The interlocutors have no complaints about the clarity and loudness of your voice.

Autonomous work

The smartphone has a relatively small 2350mAh battery, but it works alongside an economical processor and a 720p screen. As a result, the smartphone has excellent battery life, just like other members of this year's Galaxy A line.

With the screen on, it showed a runtime of 11 hours, while the flagships Galaxy S7, Google Pixel and iPhone 7 lasted about 7 hours. In real life, a smartphone lasts about two days on a single charge, but you need to disable the Always-On Display function, which consumes about 1% of the charge every hour.

Samsung did not include the fast Charger Adaptive Fast Charge, but the small capacity of the battery allows it to charge relatively quickly. It takes 112 minutes to recharge, which is worse than the OnePlus 3T and Galaxy S7, but better than the Google Pixel with its fast charging standard. There is also no support for wireless charging.

Conclusion

The Galaxy A3 2017 is a fascinating smartphone. It carries a level of sophistication in design and interface never seen before in a device of this price category. The same can be said for the protection of the case against water.

The developers are aware of their successes and this year the smartphone has become more expensive: 330 euros instead of last year's 300 euros. Of course, there are also disadvantages here, one of which can be called slow work compared to the flagship models. There is a noticeable delay between clicking on an icon and launching applications. The video has no stabilization, so it comes out shaky. 16GB of flash memory is too small by modern standards, and the 720p screen leaves much to be desired in terms of sharpness.

These disadvantages pale in comparison to the merits. The excellent design of the device you will enjoy every day with it, the bright saturated display produces vivid images, the user interface of Samsung Grace has many settings and their convenient organization, the battery life is excellent, as is the quality of the photos.

Among the alternatives to this smartphone is Honor 8 with a 5.2-inch screen, which is also beautiful and stylish, on a faster processor and with the same high-quality photos and videos, battery life. The interface is not that good here, although the smartphone runs on Android Nougat.

Another option is the 4-inch iPhone SE, which is noticeably more powerful and regularly updated with better photos and 4K video recording support. Moreover, it costs 400 euros.

Two more new alternatives are the Moto G5 and Moto G5 Plus on the latter Android version... Which of these devices to choose is up to each user to decide independently.

Pros:

• Chic design, use of glass and metal, slim and comfortable body;
• Water resistant;
• Battery life;
• High-quality photos in daylight;
• Great keyboard
• Support for microSD memory cards;
• USB type C.

• Price;
• 16 GB flash memory;
• Lack of video stabilization;
• Android Marshmallow.

Detailed Galaxy overview A3 2017 with an analysis of advantages and disadvantages. What makes it worthy of attention? What characteristics reduce the A3 2017 rating?

In this Galaxy A3 2017 review, we won't be quoting specs and specs. Instead, let's translate technical data into a practical plane and see what to expect from a phone for a potential buyer of not the cheapest representative of the “middle” segment of the market.

4 reasons not to buy the Galaxy A3 2017

Let's start with the shortcomings, and try to judge as objectively as possible. Every smartphone has drawbacks. Galaxy A3 2017 is no exception, and therefore you can't find fault too much - so any model can be driven out of the gate. Nevertheless, we cannot close our eyes to some shortcomings - we will talk about them.

1. Low RAM

In 2017, 2 gigabytes of RAM is somehow quite modest. We published material in which we examined the "gluttony" of the Android OS and popular applications and calculated,. Approximately 3 gigabytes.

But! V Samsung phones a large chunk of RAM is eaten by the proprietary shell - TouchWiz, and therefore for Galaxy buyer A3 2017 two gigabytes of RAM can be a problem. Departures from applications are possible, even if you run just a couple, and even then not the most demanding ones.

2. The price of the Galaxy A3 2017 is comparatively high

The Galaxy A3 2017 price is slightly higher than we would like. Buyers from different countries, so the policy of our retailers has nothing to do with it. Samsung has raised the price tag for its mid-range phone, and you and I have to either put up with it, or look towards other brands.

3. Lack of internal memory

The storage capacity of the Galaxy A3 2017 is only 16GB. Keep in mind that only 10 GB is available to the user, so you can forget about some collection of photos or a rich music library.

The problem is not so critical due to the presence of a microSD slot that supports microSDXC memory cards (up to 256 GB), but the disadvantage still needs to be taken into account. A memory card takes up a slot for a second SIM card, and for many, this is an argument against buying.

4. Android 6.0.1 out of the box

Of course, this is not such a problem, but it's 2017, so why not put the seventh version of Android on the Galaxy A3 2017? Many state employees are now running 7.0 Nougat, and Samsung's stubborn reluctance to keep up with software updates should be written as a minus. Even if not as critical as 2 GB of RAM.

5 reasons to buy Galaxy A3 2017

Now let's move on to those characteristics of the Galaxy A3 2017 that make it stand out from its competitors. The A3 has enough merits. In many ways, this is a cool smartphone that deserves our attention. We talked about the shortcomings not in order to criticize Samsung, but to provide the readers of Five-Inches with the most objective picture.

1. Compact

In the age of 5+ inch smartphones, compact devices with good characteristics are rare, although there are still a lot of fans of comfortable small phones.

The Galaxy A3 2017 measures 4.7 inches, making it the perfect size for everyday use. For those who disagree with this, there is A5 or A7. Matrix type Super amoled, resolution - 1280 x 720. A small resolution by today's standards can also be considered an advantage, because due to this it is possible to increase the autonomy of the smartphone.

2. Excellent indicators of autonomy

Don't look that the Galaxy A3 2017 battery is only 2350 mAh. With autonomy, he is in complete order. GSMArena tests showed that the smartphone lasts 15 hours 35 minutes in web-surfing mode, and 16:35 in video playback mode. It is clear that with normal use, the charge will easily last for several days - according to the results of tests in moderate use mode, the Galaxy A3 2017 lasts 93 hours.

The high autonomy is explained by two factors. First, the Exynos 7870 Octa chipset is manufactured using a 16nm process technology and, due to this, consumes much less power. Secondly, the 4.7-inch screen combined with 720p resolution adds a lot to the battery life rating.

3. Good camera

Let's face it - a 13 megapixel camera is not the ultimate dream, but we're not talking about a flagship. For its "weight category" characteristics Galaxy cameras A3 2017 is quite up to par, and thanks to the f / 1.9 aperture, it looks good even against the background of some flagships.

4. IP68 protection

If the camera and the quality of the images are a very subjective criterion, then there can be no two opinions about the protection against dust and moisture. IP68 in a mid-range phone is cool! It is not so often that manufacturers put maximum protection on the "junior" series of their portfolio.

5. Design, fast charging additional functions

Let's finish the review of the Galaxy A3 2017 with additional advantages that do not make an independent argument in favor of buying, but in the aggregate, they can tip the scales in favor of the “compact” from Samsung.

• Screen brightness 408 nits at manual setting and 518 in automatic mode. It's almost on par with the Galaxy S7.
• Always on Display (AOD) function.
• The ability to install a 256 GB memory card, albeit at the expense of the second SIM card. Today, not every flagship has a dedicated slot.
• Fast Charge: From zero to 37%, Galaxy A3 2017 charges in 30 minutes.
• Samsung Pay contactless payments.
• Energy saving modes are provided.
• Striking design borrowed from flagship Galaxy S7.

That's all. We will not draw conclusions and summarize the results - the information is provided, and only you decide how much Galaxy specifications A3 2017 match its price and your requirements mobile phone... In conclusion, we invite you to take part in our mini-survey. Thank you in advance!

Do you think Galaxy price A3 2017 match its specifications?