2020 was a tough year for the mobile industry and OEMs had to quickly adapt to market changes and make the best out of a bad situation. More customers have turned their attention towards the mid-range market rather than opting for a premium device, and as far as the Android segment went, the Galaxy A51 became the world's most successful smartphones of the year.
Samsung seemingly has a winning recipe on its hands and the company is now trying to replicate the success of the Galaxy A51 with the release of a direct sequel called the Galaxy A52. It comes in 4G and 5G variants, but more importantly, it flaunts a handful of flagship-grade characteristics that might persuade even Galaxy A51 owners to upgrade.
Galaxy A52 vs Galaxy A51: Samsung has just one-upped itself
As discussed in our review last year, the success of the Galaxy A51 can be attributed to solid build quality, an excellent Infinity-O AMOLED display, decent cameras, and good-enough performance to handle demanding mobile games such as PUBG.
This year, the Galaxy A52 was improved in all these areas and then some. The Galaxy A52 takes advantage of a high refresh rate display (90Hz / 120Hz for 4G / 5G, respectively), 128GB of built-in storage at minimum, and the octa-core Snapdragon 720G / 750G chipset. Meanwhile, the Galaxy A51 4G / 5G is dedicated to the Exynos side and it ships with the Exynos 9611 / Exynos 980 SoC.
Samsung's new mid-range hero has a 4,500mAh battery with 25W fast charging capabilities, though it continues to ship with a 15W charger just like last year's model. It features Gorilla Glass 5 display protection instead of Glass 3, stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos support, and for the first time in the history of the Galaxy A5x series (post-2018), the latest model boasts an IP67 rating for dust and water resistance.
The Galaxy A52 also introduces an upgraded quad-camera setup featuring a 64MP (f/1.8) main shooter with autofocus and OIS — yes, you read that right — as well as a 12MP (f/2.2) ultra-wide sensor and two 5MP (f/2.4) depth and macro shooters with fixed autofocus.
Comparatively, the Galaxy A51 has a screen locked at 60Hz, an older, less powerful chipset combo (though not by much), less storage as standard, slower (15W) charging, poorer Gorilla Glass, no OIS for the main camera, no IP rating, and arguably a design language that's already getting stale.
Galaxy A52 vs Galaxy A51 software experience: One UI just got more interesting
The Galaxy A52 ships with Android 11-based One UI 3.1 out of the box, and even though the Galaxy A51 was updated to Android 11, the latest model offers a much more complete experience, once again thanks to the addition of a few flagship-grade features.
In terms of mobile photography, photos captured by the Galaxy A52 in low light conditions will appear brighter thanks to tetra-binning technology. The phone also boasts camera features such as Night mode, Pro Video mode, 4K video recording capabilities, and the new Fun Mode with Snapchat filters.
Audio is improved by Dolby Atmos surround sound, and mobile gaming enthusiasts can benefit from improved network connectivity and lower latency when gaming thanks to the Advanced Game Booster.
Conclusion: The Galaxy A52 is a proper sequel to a great mid-range phone
More often than not, it feels as if Galaxy smartphone fans have to give up on something first before they can take advantage of the latest and greatest mobile technologies, but that's not the feeling we're getting from the Galaxy A52. It's a proper sequel to an already-great mid-range phone, and it brings significant upgrades in many key areas without making any sacrifices that we can think of.
Some of these upgrades are unexpected but more than welcomed, and ultimately, it all boils down to the Galaxy A52 being a worthy purchase for new customers and existing Galaxy A51 owners alike.
The Galaxy A52 isn't just a yearly refresh with a few upgraded components, but rather, it feels like a true next-generation mid-range device whose market launch doesn't have to be forcefully justified by the OEM. Essentially, it seems to be the closest we've gotten to a perfect yearly upgrade in a long while.
Will you be buying the Galaxy A52? Feel free to join us in the comment section below and let us know your favorite things about Samsung's latest addition to its portfolio.
Samsung
Galaxy A51
Samsung
Galaxy A52
Samsung
Galaxy A52 5G
General Information
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Model Name
Galaxy A51
Galaxy A52
Galaxy A52 5G
-
Model type
Bar
Bar
Bar
-
Colors
Blue (Prism Crush Blue)Black (Prism Crush Black)White (Prism Crush White)Pink (Prism Crush Pink)
Black ()White ()Violet ()Blue ()
Black ()White ()Violet ()Blue ()
-
Announced
2019, December
2021, March
2021, March
-
Released
2019, December
2021, April
2021, April
Physical specifications
-
Dimensions
Bar: 158.5 x 73.6 x 7.9 mm
Bar: 159.9 x 75.1 x 8.4 mm
Bar: 159.9 x 75.1 x 8.4 mm
-
Weights
172g
189g
189g
-
IP rating
IP67
IP67
Operating system
-
Operating system
Android 11
Android 11
Android 11
-
One UI version
3.0
3.1
3.1
Networks
-
SIM
Dual SIM model
Dual SIM model
Dual SIM model
-
SIM card sizes
Nano-SIM (4FF)
Nano-SIM (4FF)
Nano-SIM (4FF)
-
Networks
2G3G4G
2G3G4G
2G3G4G5G
-
eSIM support
No
No
No
Display
-
Kind
Main Display
-
Name
Infinity-O Display
Infinity-O Display
Infinity-O Display
-
Technology
Super AMOLED Display
Super AMOLED Display
Super AMOLED Display
-
Size
6.5 inch / 165.10 mm
6.5 inch / 165.10 mm
6.5 inch / 165.10 mm
-
Resolution
FHD+ / 2400x1080 pixels
FHD+ / 2400x1080 pixels
FHD+ / 2400x1080 pixels
-
Pixel density
405 PPI
407 PPI
407 PPI
-
Screen to body ratio
~87.4%
~84.9%
~84.9%
-
Refresh rate
90Hz
120Hz
