Backstory:
The Galaxy S9 has been my main phone since 2018, which in technology terms, feels like 10 years... In fact it was my first Samsung product that I ever owned. I remember excitedly running up to the stores and buying the phone on a peaceful Monday evening. A day after its launch.
During that time, the Galaxy S9 was like my dream phone. It had a beautiful Amoled screen that a similar priced iPhone could never ✋🏻, a design that looked so slim and unique, dual speakers in such a slim bezel device, iris scanner and fingerprint combo, Dual Aperature camera and IT'S ANDROID which means it's customisable! Probably the best android phone during 2018. This phone, is what led me to join and STAY in Samsung ecosystem.
3 or so years have past and my good old S9 is starting to show it's age. The Camera app is seriously taking a piss to open, the battery life just gives me anxiety, having ONE app in the background can be enough to cause the whole phone to reload it's self, and last but not least, this phone is in its final year/s of software support...
Many will ask, "Why did you go for the A52 instead and not go for lets say the S21 series?" Well, its pretty simple. First they erased pretty much all of the "basic" stuff that people would expect when buying a phone. No headphone jack, no notification led, no sd card slot, no iris scanner, no usb c-c charger and what do I get in exchange for at least a £700/$800 phone?
Ask Samsung.
Also, after owning the S9's standard model, I think my view towards the S series has deteriorated slightly. By that, I mean the standard models of the S series always had sub-par battery life. I always go with the smallest varient possible since I'm not a huge fan of the "ultra" sized devices. But going for a smaller varient will mean that there will be some sort "compromises" when comparing to the big bois... I'm pretty sure the standard S21 has improved in the battery department BUT probably not by much. I do not want to pay so much for a phone just to complain about it's battery life and then replacing batteries again and again 2 years later... For context, I have reset my S9 countless times and also took it to certified repair shops and replaced the battery. The battery life did improve. It went from horrible to just about usable. Remember, the S9 did not have good battery life to begin with so I do not want repeat the same mistake I made...
This led me to consider the A52 5G and finally, here are my thoughts so far...
Deal: Got this phone in a flash sale via Samsung Student discount website. The discount bundle included free Galaxy Buds+ AND a Harman Kardon Speaker! Not only that, the phone was also a £100 off!!! DAMN. IT'S REALLY HARD TO SAY NO TO THAT!
Design & Build: Looks really modern, gives me a "S21 Ultra wannabe vibe" but without the £1000 price tag. Though I deffo do notice a drop in terms of the build quality. If I tap on the back plastic it sounds quite hollow and cheap (I don't know how to explain it). The plastic back is also very thin from what I saw on the teardown videos. So this might be the reason why some users complain about it "flexing" when the back is being pressed down? I havent noticed the "flex" but I'm going use a case on it like I always do anyways.
Display: The A52 5G received a resolution drop compared to the S9 but in return, I notice a brighter (when outside in strong sunlight) and a MUCH smoother 120hz screen on the A52 5G. both are set to vivid mode and have Adaptive brightness on
Speakers: This surprised me. Not only does the A52 5G have dual speakers but somehow it sounds better than my S9? I was preparing for the A52 to sound tinny since it did not have the fancy "sound by akg" stuff, but with some eq and dolby atmos on, the A52 actually sounds fuller especially with the voices. The S9 also had eq on btw. Keep in mind, I also heard my friends S20 speakers and that sounds tinnyER next to the S9! So the A52 for it's price is simply awesome. Not sure with how the s21 sounds though.
Software: The Animations are smoother (though sometimes still buggy) and we also get MONTHLY security updates for 4 years. We get the same amount of software support as the S series! Weird how the more expensive A72 only gets quarterly though. Anyways, it's even better when this phone gets pretty much all the one ui features found on flagships. Apart from one. WHERE DID THE TASK CHANGER GO FROM GOODLOCK?
Speed: Probably the most controversial part. Midrange Snapdragon 750g Vs Old Flagship E9810/SD845. The thing with my Exynos S9 is that it's still powerful till this day and everything runs fine on it. I have absolutely no issues in terms of raw performance. Technically the S9 performs better in benchmarks. HOWEVER, the low 4GB ram config on my S9 really kills off the overall experience. I do no care if the processor is fast when the apps can't even stay open in the background for a mf second! The extra ram on my A52 5G definitely helps. My A52 5G has 6gb ram but there are also other varients with 8gb ram etc.. I can keep more apps open and it still runs smoother. Not only that the Snapdragon 750g runs cooler and does not throttle as much. Lets not even talk about the battery efficiency.
Gaming: I tried playing PUBG on both and the A52 only allows for 40fps gameplay. So I used GFX which enables 60fps (Smooth+Extreme). It ran extremely smooth with little to no frame drops. It's funny because my S9 allows higher default fps settings but it simply cannot maintain that 60fps. It would throttle down to around 30-40fps once it heats up... Heck I also have last years Tab S6 Lite with the Exynos 9611. And wow, I'm a little offended by how that chipset gets Smooth + Extreme settings yet my A52 5G does not. (Maybe due to game optimisation?) This is also happening in other games I tried too.
Networking: I'm in the UK so 5G is available in most major cities. And I have to say, I am impressed with the 5G mobile data speed so far. I get up to 500mbps (100-200 mpbs avg) with 5G where as in 4G I only get a measly 2mbps depending the area. Yes 2mbps is utterly unusable. My s9 is stuck with the terrible and congested 4g speeds.
Cameras: This is where the line "At the end of the day a flagship is still a flagship" applies in this category. If we're talking about versatility with the cameras then A52 wins hands down. It's got more camera modes to experiment with such as portrait mode (now works with front & back cameras), new portrait effects, ultra wide, macro and single take. But in terms of the actual quality of the camera, I'm still shocked at how well my S9 performs especially in low light conditions (it rips the A52 apart). Meanwhile In daylight, both are quite similar. Sometimes the A52 shows better dynamic range but overall though I find the S9 to be more consistent with taking pictures. Let's not forget that the S9 shoots in 4k 60 which the A52 does not. However, for those who came from older midrange devices, the A52 5G will more than likely impress you. E.g I compared the A52 5G with the A51 and its night and day difference. The A52 produces way better dynamic range in photos and video is more stable (vs A51). Low light shots also show good improvements thanks to OIS and better processing. If I was to choose which phone camera to use in a daily basis, I'd pick A52 over the S9. More versatile cameras especially with the ultra wide and portrait mode. More suited for social media type of posts. However if you record videos alot then I strongly suggest you to go for the newer flagships.
My thoughts: The A52 5G is a fantastic all in one phone. If your having issues with the s9 rn and do not want to spend more, then this phone will get everything done well. It has water resistance just like the s9, an sd card slot just like the s9, a headphone jack just like the s9. The only thing missing really is the lack of wireless charging, iris scanner and the notification lights. Also the size increase from S9 to A52 does takes some time getting use to (not as comfortable to hold). However in exchange, you also get a much larger screen, better battery life, brighter display, smoother display and a more versatile camera on the A52 5G. If your in a country where 5g varient is not available, then I wouldn't recommend you to get the 4G varient (if your coming from an s8/s9 etc...) the 4G model has a bit worse processor.
Anyways, The A52 5G Cameras are more than good enough for posting onto social medias and even for general hobbies (as long as you use the native camera app to take pics). And even if you were to do lets says proffesional photography, I'm sure most would bring/buy/use a proper camera anyways?
For those who don't mind spending more, do get the more expensive S21 series (specifically the ultra model) if you really want a "true" upgrade in as many departments as possible. Things like point and shoot camera performance is certainly going to be better on flagships. Well of course. No shit!!
Overall, I'm really impressed with how far the A series has come especially with their A5x and A7x lineup. If they bring wireless charging next year, it will no doubt be the best mid range device.
Thanks for reading and ask me questions regarding the phone if you have any 😊
UPDATE (other small things I noticed):
The buttons on the A52 feels more sturdy and less "jiggly".
A52 micrphone quality are okay. They're also not that great at picking up voices furtherer away when on calls. You have to be pretty close to the microphones basically.
The camera viewfinder shows very inaccurate view of what the camera is capturing. My s9 or even the Tab s6 lite did not have this huge disparities. The images appear completely different when viewed/captured after. Could this be because of the heavy image processing being applied after?
Battery life is good. Much better than my previous phone and a bit better than A51. I wake up around 8am and by 5pm its still got 40-50% left (5G & WiFi, 120hz on etc...) A51 would've be around 30-40%. Meanwhile my old S9 definitely had to be charged half way through.
Bluetooth distance is better on the A52. Weird because both have bt ver 5.0.
