Samsung Galaxy A51 Review: Can It Beat The Competition?
Samsung Galaxy A51 review: everything about the display
"The Samsung Galaxy A51 offers the best display at this price."
-
Modern design
-
Excellent display
-
Good photos with enough light
-
Good battery life
-
A headphone jack
-
Poor performance
-
Slower fingerprint sensor
-
Doesn't get operating system updates quickly
Flagship phones are becoming increasingly expensive. While there was a time when you could get the best of the best for $ 600 to $ 700, today you have to pay at least $ 900. The result? Midrange phones also have to get better – and this is where the Samsung Galaxy A51 comes in.
The device is a continuation of the Samsung Galaxy A50 from last year. It offers a modern design and some high-end features, while sacrificing things like peak performance and some camera features. But at $ 400, the phone has a lot of competition. And it's serious competition – like the new iPhone SE, which many currently consider the best phone under $ 400.
Is the Samsung Galaxy A51 a good option? Let’s take a closer look.
design
The Galaxy A series has long been about offering premium features in a low-performing, low-cost package – and these premium features typically include a modern design. This also applies here, and this is one of the main ways that the phone is better than the iPhone SE, which shares an aging design with the iPhone 8.
On the front of the phone is a borderless display with a hole in the middle for the front-facing camera. The modern design trends continue to the rear, with the rectangular camera joint on the top left – similar to that of the Galaxy S20 series. The camera bump doesn't stick out much from the back of the phone at all, which ensures that it doesn't wobble too hard on the desk. It's a nice touch, and I hope manufacturers continue to rely on dishwashing cameras.
The SIM compartment is on the left, an on / off switch and a volume rocker are on the right. There is a USB-C port and a headphone jack on the bottom. This is an enticing option for audiophiles.
The edge-to-edge display ensures that the phone feels comfortable in the hand and can be easily inserted into the pocket. While there's a fairly large 6.5-inch display here – 6.24 x 2.90 x 0.31 inches – most people won't find it too big for everyday use. Sure, it's bigger than the iPhone SE, but at the same time, the iPhone SE is only equipped with a 4.7-inch display. It's also bigger than the Google Pixel 3a – but the Pixel 3a also retains an outdated design with a big forehead and a big chin.
Sure, it's not as high quality as the over $ 1,000 Galaxy S20 series, and the back of this phone is made of plastic instead of glass, but it has many of the same design elements, and despite the plastic, it doesn't really feel cheap at. There are some colors, including silver, black, and blue, and although they all look good, I particularly like the colorful blue model.
display
As already mentioned, the display of the Samsung Galaxy A51 is 6.5 inches tall and the quality is above average for a phone in this price range. There is more than enough display here for most, and only the most avid pixel keepers will have a problem with it.
The resolution of the display is 1,080 x 2,400, but what is perhaps more important is an AMOLED display that provides deep black levels and vivid colors. This puts the phone ahead of the iPhone SE when you consider that Apple only uses OLED technology in the most expensive and latest models. It also gives the device a leg against the Moto G stylus, which corresponds to the resolution, but is equipped with LCD technology.
It's nice to see better display technology moving into cheaper phones. In the coming year or two, we should also see cheaper phones with a resolution of 1,440p – but in my experience, an AMOLED display is more than a higher resolution.
There is an optical fingerprint sensor under the display. The sensor works fine and has recognized my printout most of the time. It was a little slow and it can get annoying, but it's rarely a real annoyance.
performance
While the Galaxy A51 has an overall design similar to that of more expensive phones, performance is one of the downsides. And unfortunately it is relatively important here.
Under the hood is a Samsung Exynos 9611 processor with 4 GB, 6 GB or 8 GB RAM, depending on which model you choose. I am reviewing the 4 GB model.
It's a bit of a shame that Samsung doesn't have a more powerful chipset installed. While the Exynos 9611 is being marketed as a new chip, it's actually just a recycled Exynos 9610 that enables the 48-megapixel main camera sensor. The Exynos 9610 was introduced in last year's Galaxy A50 and was already somewhat undersupplied at this point. In a world with the iPhone SE equipped with A13 and even the Google Pixel 3a equipped with Snapdragon 670, the Galaxy A51 is extremely slow.
That means daily use. The phone often skipped a beat or two while performing basic tasks, and the animations weren't as smooth as they could have been. Mobile gaming delivered similar results with regularly missing frames and slow loading times.
Benchmarks confirm the poor performance.
GeekBench 5: 315 single-core, 1,281 multi-core
For Samsung, it is unfortunate that Apple has launched the iPhone SE, which absolutely dominates the Galaxy A51 in terms of benchmarks and daily use. In fact, users are beginning to expect better performance from lower-end phones, and the Galaxy A51 doesn't perform.
software
Samsung's One user interface has gotten better and better over the years and the leagues better than in the old days of TouchWiz and Samsung Experience – but it's still quite far from standard Android. If you're looking for a stock experience, try the Pixel 3a instead.
That said, a user interface has its own aesthetic, and some like it. I personally prefer the cleaner look of standard Android, but luckily Samsung doesn't go too far in the area of bloatware like LG UX.
In this phone, you get the second iteration of One UI, One UI 2.0, created over Android 10. It looks good and is easy to get used to if you are from another manufacturer.
As with other Samsung phones, the Galaxy A51 is unlikely to receive quick software updates. The flagship of the Galaxy S series is slow enough to receive updates and is a priority for Samsung. You will likely receive one or two updates for the A51, but don't expect them to be on time. You need to deal with Bixby on the Galaxy A51 as there is no native way to map the Bixby shortcut to another wizard.
Camera quality
Flagship phones are pushing the boundaries of what we expected from a smartphone camera, mostly thanks to machine learning and the use of multiple lenses. The Samsung Galaxy A51 also jumps into the multiple lens train with a quad lens camera. You get a 48-megapixel main sensor as well as a 12-megapixel ultrawide sensor, a 5-megapixel macro sensor and a 5-megapixel depth sensor.
Of course, the number of sensors and megapixels doesn't ultimately determine the quality of the photos, but in the right situation, the photos are pretty good. The phone has some competition in the camera department. The iPhone SE uses Apple's A13 processor for better image processing and ultimately good photos, while the Google Pixel 3a has the same image quality that the Pixel series has become known for. Places the Pixel series on the front of the camera quality package.
Photos look great on the A51 with its 48-megapixel main sensor and in well-lit surroundings. You get a lot of details. Photos aren't as deep as those taken with the iPhone 11 Pro and Pixel 4, but they're still vivid. The ultra wide-angle lens is a big deal here too – it provides much better landscape shots and a generally more versatile camera experience.
However, if you get rid of the good lighting, you're out of luck. The Galaxy A51 just can't keep up with Apple and Google's machine learning skills. The Google Pixel 3a still takes excellent photos in low light conditions, although the iPhone SE is a little missing here too.
There's also a macro lens here, but it doesn't have its own autofocus. You can get some good results with some work, but it seems to be a feature that most people don't use.
Battery life
The compromise between lower-performing chipsets and lower-resolution displays is usually longer battery life. Combined with the fact that the Galaxy A51 already has a 4,000 mAh battery, you get a day on which you are put under relatively high stress. I was able to get through part of the next day without any problems, and I suspect that most people will have a similar experience.
Unlike some other phones in this price range, the Samsung Galaxy A51 does not offer wireless charging. It has a 15 watt quick charge, which is rather slow for this technology.
Price, availability and guarantee
The Samsung Galaxy A51 costs $ 400 and is, as already mentioned, in the same price range as the iPhone SE, Google Pixel 3a and the Motorola Moto G Stylus. The device is available from the Samsung website, Verizon and Sprint. Verizon actually offers the phone for $ 10 a month for 24 months, which reduces the total to just $ 240.
The warranty on the phone is a fairly normal 1 year contract for manufacturing defects. So don't expect to return the phone if you drop it and the screen is cracked.
Our opinion
The Samsung Galaxy A51 is a solid phone, but it can compete with an even more solid competition. However, this doesn't make this a bad option. With a great display, modern design and decent camera performance under the right conditions, the Galaxy A51 has a lot to offer.
It's worth noting that while the Galaxy A51 has an official MSRP of $ 399, it's available from online retailers at a cheaper price. It becomes a more attractive option if you can pick it up for less than $ 300, which is sometimes possible.
Are there alternatives?
The Galaxy A51 has a lot to offer, but others offer more. When you're ready to switch to iOS, the iPhone SE offers much better performance. This is the best option for most. If you want to stay in the Android ecosystem, I recommend opting for the Pixel 3a or better and waiting for the Pixel 4a.
How long it will take?
The Galaxy A51 should last two years, but will likely feel slow towards the end of this term. It has no official IP rating. So if you drop it in the water, you may be out of luck. Thanks to the plastic back, it should survive if you drop it at the right angle. However, if you drop them on the screen, cracks can occur, as is the case with any modern smartphone.
Should you buy one?
No. Apple's iPhone SE and Google's Pixel 3a remain better options.
Editor's recommendations