The Samsung Galaxy A35 5G is the latest addition to Samsung’s popular A-series lineup, offering a blend of advanced features and budget-friendly pricing. As the demand for 5G connectivity continues to grow, the Galaxy A35 5G positions itself as an accessible gateway to faster internet speeds without compromising on essential smartphone functionalities.
This review delves into the design, performance, camera quality, battery life, and overall user experience of the Galaxy A35 5G, aiming to provide a comprehensive assessment of whether this device stands out in the competitive mid-range smartphone market.
The Galaxy A35 stands out from its predecessor, the Galaxy A34, with notable upgrades in processing power and camera quality. Additionally, it introduces Samsung Knox security, ensuring hardware-level encryption for user data. Despite these advancements, it maintains affordability with a £10 price reduction, now retailing at £339, and is also available in the US for $399 this year.
Amidst the fiercely competitive mid-range market, where consumers seek value without compromising on features, the A35 faces scrutiny for its incremental improvements. To assess its worthiness in this landscape, I immersed myself in using the device as my primary gadget for a week. The following insights reveal whether Samsung’s latest offering is a compelling choice in the ever-evolving smartphone market.
Also Read: Samsung introduces Galaxy F55 with new colors
Design & Build Of Samsung Galaxy A35 5G
- Plastic frame and rear
- Gorilla Glass Victus+
- 209g
- IP67 rated
Despite its predominantly plastic construction, the Galaxy A35 maintains a reasonable weight and size, contributing to its substantial presence. Its design showcases a squared-off frame with flat front and back panels, reminiscent of iconic models like the iPhone or Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series.
While the plastic materials used for the phone’s frame and rear impart a budget-friendly vibe, they don’t compromise its overall aesthetics. Despite initial impressions, the Galaxy A35’s appearance can easily rival more premium counterparts.
In the light, it has a lovely pearlescent finish
The Galaxy A35 showcases Samsung’s signature traffic light-inspired camera arrangement on its back, standing out as striking as the company’s premium models, if not more so. Evaluated in the captivating Awesome Lilac variant, it boasts an iridescent sheen that dynamically shifts hues with changing lighting conditions.
Featuring a glossy exterior texture, the phone offers a secure grip without attracting excessive fingerprints. The option of Awesome Lemon adds another dimension of allure, possibly surpassing other choices in appeal. For a more subdued look, the Awesome Navy and Iceblue finishes provide understated elegance.
Despite its plastic build and IP67 rating for weather resistance, the A35 proved susceptible to minor damage, as evidenced by a dent incurred from a table fall. To safeguard against such mishaps, investing in a protective phone case is advisable, as none are provided in the box.
Similar to most 2024 mid-range models, the Galaxy A35 forgoes a headphone socket, opting instead for the convenience of microSD card support. However, users must choose between a second SIM card or a microSD card, as the phone doesn’t support both simultaneously, nor does it offer eSIM functionality.
In terms of haptic feedback, the A35’s motors perform admirably, surpassing those found in the Oppo Reno 11 F, though falling slightly short of the exceptional feedback characteristic of Samsung’s Galaxy S-series. Nevertheless, they deliver accurate responses, particularly evident during typing tasks.
Screen & Speakers
- 6.6-inch AMOLED display
- 1000 nits and 120Hz
- Stereo speakers
Featuring a silky smooth refresh rate of 120Hz and a generous resolution of 1080 x 2340 pixels, the expansive OLED panel of the Galaxy A35 is truly a visual marvel.
With a peak brightness of 1000 nits, the screen is adept at handling various lighting conditions, even managing direct sunlight to a certain degree. However, the addition of an anti-reflective coating would further elevate its performance, especially in bright outdoor settings.
This device definitely has a great display
Undoubtedly, the standout feature of the Galaxy A35 is its stunning display. When indulging in HDR content from popular streaming platforms like Netflix and YouTube, the OLED panel delivers breathtaking imagery. With exceptional contrast, vibrant colors, and radiant highlights, the viewing experience is truly immersive.
One UI empowers users with customizable settings, akin to those found on Samsung’s flagship models. This includes basic control over color output and an advanced tab for fine-tuning the white balance. While options for vivid or natural profiles exist, the default settings are already finely tuned, likely satisfying most users without the need for adjustments.
However, one aspect that detracts from the overall appeal is the bezel. Its significant thickness and disproportionate chin give the phone a somewhat dated appearance, especially when compared to the sleek bezel designs of many other mid-range devices on the market.
Within its price bracket, the Galaxy A35 stands out as one of the few devices boasting stereo speakers that deliver exceptional sound quality. These speakers offer ample volume, minimal distortion, and impressive bass levels that surpass typical expectations. It’s remarkable to experience such audio performance from a device that costs significantly less than some of its higher-priced counterparts.
Specs & Performance
- Exynos 1380
- 6GB RAM
- 128GB storage
With an upgrade to the Exynos 1380 chip, previously featured in the Galaxy A54, the Samsung Galaxy A35 now boasts superior technology.
Paired with a generous 6GB of RAM, the device provides storage options of either 128GB or 256 GB. While my current testing is limited to the base model with 128GB of storage, the potential for expansion up to a massive 1TB using a microSD card is available.
Despite the notable boost in processing power, I found the phone’s performance to be underwhelming. Despite respectable scores in benchmark tests, I frequently encountered stutters and lag while navigating the operating system during testing. Consequently, the device didn’t feel as robust as its specifications had suggested.
While the occasional stutter is tolerable, the frequent and disruptive nature of these interruptions is concerning, albeit the phone never fully freezes. In comparison, phones like the Honor Magic 6 Lite, despite weaker benchmark scores, offer a notably smoother day-to-day experience.
Testing the phone’s gaming capabilities with Genshin Impact, I aimed to assess its performance. While playable on the ‘low’ graphics preset, I discovered a smoother experience using the ‘lowest’ setting, which maintained a stable 60fps. Despite the phone warming up noticeably during gameplay, it never reached uncomfortable levels of heat.
Primarily suited for games with lighter graphics demands, such as Marvel Snap or Angry Birds, the phone effortlessly handles these titles without any hiccups.
Cameras
- 50Mp main sensor
- 8Mp ultrawide
- 5Mp macro
- 13Mp selfie camera
With its triple-lens system, the rear camera setup of the Samsung Galaxy A35 promises an upgraded photography experience.
While the 8MP ultrawide and 5MP macro lenses remain unchanged from the previous model, the primary camera receives a notable upgrade. Its resolution increases from 48MP to 50MP, accompanied by a slightly larger sensor.
The portrait mode cutouts and artificial bokeh effects of this phone rival those of Samsung’s top-tier models in terms of impressive quality.
The primary camera on the Samsung Galaxy A35 stands out with its exceptional performance, particularly in daylight conditions, where it captures vivid and realistic photos with outstanding dynamic range. Even in low-light settings, its performance remains commendable, especially when utilizing the night mode feature.
Samsung’s image processing algorithms enhance the overall quality of the shots, although default sharpening can sometimes be overly aggressive. The portrait mode and artificial bokeh effects are equally impressive, comparable to those found in Samsung’s high-end models.
While the ultrawide lens offers occasional utility, its lack of detail may disappoint when viewed on larger displays, particularly in low-light scenarios. Similarly, the 5MP macro lens, common in phones within this price range, offers little practical use beyond adding to the camera count.
The absence of a dedicated telephoto lens means relying on digital cropping of the primary sensor for zoom shots, supported by AI image enhancement. Surprisingly, the 2x zoom produces satisfactory results, but quality diminishes beyond this point. While capturing images at 10x zoom is possible, optimal outcomes are achieved at levels below 5x.
On the front, the 13-megapixel punch-hole selfie camera delivers impressive results, capturing detailed and crisp photographs with natural skin tones. Its wider lens is advantageous for group shots.
In video mode, both the main and selfie cameras support up to 4K/30fps recording, while the ultrawide camera is limited to 1080p. Videos display high quality with consistent stabilization across all resolutions, although wind noise may pose a challenge for the microphones to manage.
Battery Life & Charging
- 5000mAh battery
- 25W wired charging
- No charger included
The Samsung Galaxy A35 is equipped with a 5000mAh battery, which, while not exceptional, proves sufficient to power the device for extended periods, particularly when paired with a mid-range processor.
In my testing, it was common to have around 50% battery remaining by the end of the day, suggesting the potential for two days of use with less demanding tasks. Moreover, in our standard PCMark for Android battery benchmark, the A35 exhibited an impressive battery life of 12 hours and 18 minutes.
On days with heavier screen usage, the remaining battery percentage may decrease to around 20%, but this varies based on individual usage patterns. Nevertheless, the phone reliably lasts through an entire day without any difficulty.
The Samsung Galaxy A35 supports wired charging at a maximum rate of 25W, but notably, the package does not include a charger, requiring users to obtain one separately. While not the fastest, a suitable charger can fully recharge the device in approximately 90 minutes. Additionally, achieving a half-charge can take as little as 30 minutes.
In this price range, the absence of wireless charging is not uncommon, and unfortunately, it’s the case with this particular device.
Software & Apps
- One UI 6.1
- Based on Android 14
- Some bloatware
- Long support
The Samsung Galaxy A35 runs on Samsung’s One UI 6.1, based on Android 14. Users familiar with Samsung devices will find the interface comfortable, but those transitioning from other Android devices may initially find it confusing.
Samsung includes duplicate versions of Google’s services, leading to an abundance of apps that can clutter the user experience. Furthermore, preinstalled bloatware adds to this issue, although it’s common in devices within this price range.
The One UI offers an array of impressive features, including seamless widget management and smooth integration with other Samsung products. However, it falls short compared to its flagship counterparts in certain aspects. Notably absent are the Galaxy AI capabilities and the convenient Circle to Search function powered by Google.
One of the software’s most notable features is its extensive support. Samsung commits to providing users with four major OS upgrades and an impressive five years of security patches. While it may not completely match the support standards of premium devices, it undeniably surpasses the offerings of most phones in the same price range.
Price & Availability
The Samsung Galaxy A35 5G is competitively priced at £339/$399.99/€379 and is readily available for purchase worldwide through Samsung’s official channels or third-party retailers like Amazon.
This price range puts it in direct competition with renowned models such as the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro, the Motorola Edge 40 Neo, and the Nothing Phone (2a).
In the UK, there have been instances where the handset’s price has been reduced to as low as £289/$359 for an outright purchase. Additionally, purchasing the handset on contract is an option with major networks, and we’ve curated the best deals for your convenience. If you prefer to purchase outright, we recommend exploring our guide on the best SIM-only deals.
For more choices, you can explore our list of the top mid-range phones available.
Specs
- One UI 6.1, based on Android 14
- 6.6-inch, 2340×1080, AMOLED, 120Hz
- In-display fingerprint sensor
- Exynos 1380
- 6GB RAM
- 128GB storage
- Cameras:
- 50Mp main sensor
- 8Mp ultrawide
- 5Mp macro
- 13Mp selfie camera
- Up to 4K @ 30fps rear video
- Stereo speakers
- Dual-SIM
- MicroSD card slot
- Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax
- Bluetooth 5.3
- 5000mAh battery
- 25W charging
- 161.7 x 78.0 x 8.2 mm
- IP67 certified
- 209g
- Colours: Ice Blue, Lilac, Navy
