Samsung has announced three new 5G handsets to refresh its Galaxy A set of phones for 2022. Say hello, in price descending order, to the Samsung Galaxy A73, A53 and A33.
The Galaxy A series, for those unaware, is the grade down from the flagship Galaxy S. While there the ‘S’ stands for “Super Smart” (no, really), here the ‘A’ stands for ‘Alpha’ apparently. But it’s probably easier to think of it as “Average” given these are mid-range offerings to their core.
The Samsung Galaxy A73 is the most expensive of the lot, though it’s not clear exactly how expensive it’ll be when it launches in “select markets” from April 22. It’s a 6.7in device powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G processor, 6- or 8GB RAM and a 5,000mAh battery.
Most impressively, its quad-camera array is spearheaded by a 108MP sensor — which matches the Galaxy S22 Ultra, even if quality of photography is based on more than a pure megapixel count. In other words: wait for the reviews before diving in, especially as the other specs put it some way behind Samsung’s flagship phone even if the big camera number matches on paper.
Then there are Samsung’s Galaxy A53 and A33 handsets. Despite the numerical gap, there aren’t that many differences between the two phones, with both packing the new 5nm Exynos 1280 SoC paired with either 6- or 8GB RAM and 5,000mAh batteries. The A33 is slightly smaller at 6.4in to the A53’s 6.5in, and comes with a 90Hz AMOLED screen, rather than the full 120Hz panel included on the larger model.
The main differences between the two can be found in three of the five cameras. While both handsets have (fairly pointless) 5MP f/2.4 sensors for depth and macro photography, it’s all change for the other three. The more expensive handset has a 64MP main camera, a 12MP ultrawide lens and a 32MP selfie camera, while the A33 makes do with ‘just’ 48MP, 12MP and 13MP sensors in those three positions.
Once again, Samsung hasn’t been super clear about availability, but we do know that at least one is available in New Zealand, as it’s already up for pre-order. It’s the Samsung Galaxy A53, which is priced at NZ$749. It’ll be available on April 1, and if you order before then, Samsung will throw in a free pair of Galaxy Buds Live to sweeten the deal.