Samsung Galaxy A51 Review: A Good Start For Samsung In Mid-Range Segment

When 2019 was about to end, Samsung released two new mid-range smartphones, Galaxy A51 and Galaxy A71. When this is the first Galaxy phone to be equipped with a dedicated macro camera next to the same thin bezel "screen". The competition in the mid-range segment has never shown signs of cooling down. This move shows that Samsung is completely serious about getting back its market share in the mid-range segment. 

Samsung Galaxy A51: Design

The first highlight of the Galaxy A51 is the Infinity-O punch-hole design, similar to the Galaxy Note 10 and Note 10+ flagships. Since 2019, Samsung has changed its strategy with the Galaxy A series, bringing new features to the mid-range segment first and then use them on its high-end lineup. However, it seems like punch-hole design is Samsung’s favorite style for its smartphone as it is in most of the brand’s new offerings. 

Samsung Galaxy A51: Display

Galaxy A51 equipped with a 6.5 inch Super AMOLED panel with FHD + resolution (1,080 x 2,400 pixels). With the 20:9 aspect ratio, the Galaxy A51 should be a bit slimmer than its predecessor Galaxy A50s with a 19.5:9 ratio. By default, the screen will display in Natural mode, reproducing natural colors, but you can switch to the Vivid mode with a richer color gamut.

With thin bezels, the experience of using Galaxy A51 is very good, although the hole is pretty small. As usual, the Super AMOLED panel still has the advantages of delivering deep black, wide viewing angle, high contrast and good brightness, easy to use outdoors. But obviously, there is still a difference in quality between panels on a mid-range device like the Galaxy A51 and higher-end Galaxy Note, S devices.

Samsung Galaxy A51: Performance

While the Galaxy A51 features significant changes in design, the hardware configuration of the device is still sub-par with the Exynos 9611 chip, along with 6GB of RAM and 128GB internal memory. Of course, it's impossible to expect Samsung to immediately launch a new chip in just a few months, especially when the Exynos 9611 chip itself was a slight upgrade of the Exynos 9610 on the Galaxy A50. However, the mid-range segment is having a lot more powerful processors from both Qualcomm and Mediatek.

When testing with several games, we were surprised that the game automatically set at a high-graphics setting and the game was locked at 40 fps. However, when we actually played the game and measured by the GameBench tool (gamebench.net), the device seldom achieved that fps, but only an average of 29-30 fps with 84% stability. 

Samsung Galaxy A51: Battery

With the same 4,000 mAh battery and display size as the Galaxy A50s, it is not surprising that the Galaxy A51 battery life is the same as that of its predecessor. Bundled with the device is still a 15W Adaptive Fast Charge from Samsung. With this charger, the 4,000 mAh battery of the Galaxy A51 can be fully charged in 2 hours, slightly longer than the current average of 1.5 hours. Perhaps, Samsung should increase the fast charge to 25W like it did on the A70 or A80.

Samsung Galaxy A51: Camera

Compared to the Galaxy A50s, the camera of the Galaxy A51 has been significantly upgraded, at least in terms of specifications. In addition to the dedicated macro camera, Galaxy A51 also has improvements such as the Sony IMX586 from the IMX582 on the A50s. The difference between these two sensors is that IMX586 supports 4K 60FPS video recording. The wide-angle camera resolution is also raised to 12MP.

The photography interface of the Galaxy A51 has also changed a bit compared to the previous versions, with photo modes such as panorama, close-up, Night Mode, Slow Motion, ... placed separately on a menu, next to the three main modes, photography, video, portrait.

Overall, the Galaxy A51's cameras, like its predecessors, has offered most of the shooting modes with fresh, clear, detailed images that can be shared to social networks without any further modifications. In low-light conditions, Galaxy A51 still has good shutter speed, less blurry images. However, photos still have a high amount of noise if there is too little light, but that will be significantly improved with Night Mode. 

Samsung Galaxy A51: Verdict

Overall, the Galaxy A51 is a great all-around phone with good AMOLED display, beefy battery, and high-quality cameras. However, its performance is not as powerful as its rivals due to the Exynos 9611 chipset. Maybe Samsung needs to consider using a Qualcomm or MediaTek chipset in its next mid-range smartphones.

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Samsung Galaxy A51 price: around Rs. 23,000

Samsung Galaxy A51 price in India: Rs. 25,000

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