Samsung’s low-cost Galaxy A-series phones aim to reverse U.S. smartphone slump
Premium features for pennies on the dollar.
While its thousand-dollarplus flagship phones might get all the attention, Samsung’s best-selling phone of 2019 ( go.pcworld.com/sl19) wasn’t the Galaxy S10 or the Note 10+, it was the $350 A50. Now, with a global smartphone slump that has hit the Galaxy S20 hard ( go. pcworld.com/smsl), Samsung is doubling down on that strategy.
Make that sextupling down. On April 8, Samsung announced six new Galaxy A phones coming to the U.S., ranging from the ultra-cheap $110 Galaxy A01 to the $600 Galaxy A71 5G. The handsets have an array of different features and specs, but they all have
three things in common, which Samsung calls “everyday essentials.”
That means you’ll get premium-grade displays, cameras, and batteries, and lots of storage at an affordable price. All six phones also have dual-, triple-, and quad-camera systems with ultra-wide, depth, and macro lenses, big screens, and larger batteries to keep them powered all day.
The rollout began Thursday, April 9, with the A01, which is exclusive to Verizon stores for a limited time, and the A51, the successor to the A50. The rest of the A-series phones will expand to “select carriers” as the launch continues throughout the summer.
Here’s what we know about how the lineup breaks down:
A01
Display: 5.7-inch HD+ Infinity-v LCD
Processor: Snapdragon 439
Camera (Dual): 13MP Wide + 2MP Depth
Battery: 3,000mah
RAM: 2GB
Storage: 16GB
Price: $110
A11
Display: 6.4-inch HD+ Infinity-o LCD
Processor: Octa Core (1.8 GHZ)
Camera (Triple): 13MP Wide + 5MP Ultrawide + 2MP Depth
Battery: 4,000mah
RAM: 2GB
Storage: 32GB
Price: $180
GALAXY A21
Display: 6.5-inch HD+ Infinity-o LCD
Camera (Quad): 16MP Wide + 8MP Ultrawide + 2MP Depth + 2MP Macro
Battery: 4,000mah
RAM: 3GB
Storage: 32GB
Price: $250
GALAXY A51 4G/5G
Display: 6.5-inch FHD+ Infinity-o Super AMOLED
Processor: Exynos 9611
Camera (Quad): 48MP wide + 12MP Ultra-wide + 5MP depth + 5MP macro
Battery: 4,000mah
RAM: 4GB
Storage: 128GB Price: $400/$500
A71 5G
Display: 6.7-inch FHD+ Infinity-o Super AMOLED Plus
Camera (Quad): 64MP wide + ultra-wide + depth + macro
Price: $600
The most intriguing of the six phones are the two 5G models, which will likely use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 765 or Samsung’s own Exynos 980 processor, both of which offer integrated 5G modems for superior power efficiency. With most 5G phones costing at least a thousand-dollars, the A51 and A71 could lead the way for speedy U.S. adoption of the next-gen network, especially as phone buyers tighten their purse strings.
The Galaxy A51 ( go. pcworld.com/ sa51) and Galaxy A01 can be ordered through Verizon. com ( go. pcworld.com/ sa01).