Galaxy A55 review: A week with Samsung’s premium mid-range smartphone

The recently released Samsung Galaxy A55 has the appearance and feel of a premium smartphone, but how does it do in terms of battery life and camera quality? After using the phone for almost a week, this is how it compares to the other phones in the competition.

Samsung's Galaxy A series smartphones are renowned for providing excellent performance at a price point that is less than half that of flagship models. With the recently released Galaxy A55, the business appears to be adhering to the maxim "Don't fix it if it ain't broke" even if it has made certain modifications, such as including a metal frame and actual Knox chip. After more than a week of using the Galaxy A55 as my main phone, I've come to some conclusions about what I like and dislike about the brand-new high-end mid-range smartphone from Samsung.

Galaxy A55 price in India: Rs 42,999

Solid design

Although the Galaxy A55 may initially appear to be similar to its predecessor, it is not. Samsung chose a metal frame over a plastic one, giving you the impression that you are holding a Galaxy S series gadget.

I purchased the "Amazing Iceblue" model, which resembles the blue iPhone 15. I haven't seen Samsung use Gorilla Glass Victus+ on a mid-range tablet before, but it appears that they did so for the front and rear of the device.

The power and volume buttons are located on a raised edge on the right side of the phone that Samsung has dubbed "Key island." I thought it was a novelty at first, but if you're like me and prefer to ride a bike or just stroll while listening to music, the raised edges are useful since they make it easier to feel the buttons while the phone is in your pocket.

Although the phone has a high-end appearance and feel, its weight is increased by its glass back and metal frame. Without the cover, the Galaxy A55 weights an incredible 213 grammes, making it a heavy brick. As with previous Samsung phones, the Galaxy A55 has a great grip, even when used without a cover.

However, I found that the weight of the phone made it difficult to carry in one hand for longer than five minutes of conversation. Although Samsung seemed to have done a decent job of spreading the weight, I frequently had to swap hands since holding the tablet in one hand for a few minutes would hurt my wrists. The Galaxy A55 is most definitely not the phone for you if you want thin phones.

The Galaxy A55 has IP67 water and dust protection, much like its predecessor, so you can swim with it without worrying.

Big display

The Galaxy A55's 6.6-inch 120Hz AMOLED screen is somewhat smaller than the majority of other gadgets in its price range. But for the time being at least, the phone is fully functional both indoors and outdoors, whether it is being used for casual scrolling, reading articles, or watching movies.

The colours and contrast of Vinland, which I watched the first season of, are comparable to those of other devices in the same price range. Although the phone provides an immersive experience for viewing movies, the large bezels annoyed me, and I couldn't help but wonder why Samsung can't get rid of them.

Clean UI

Performance is one area where the competition outperforms the Galaxy A series, but surprisingly, this phone feels much better thanks to software optimisation and support.

The Galaxy A55, equipped with the AMD RDNA2 graphics architecture-based Xclipse 530 GPU and the in-house Exynos 1480 processor, may not be the quickest phone in its class, but it does the job.

Software-wise, One UI 6.1—which runs on Android 14—is the best available. The phone has several helpful functions, such as text call, which attempts to comprehend what the caller is saying and translates their voice from speech to text. The animations are fluid.

The Galaxy A55 is by no means intended for hardcore gamers, much like its predecessor. Even while it can run the newest games without any problems, you'll frequently be forced to play games like Call of Duty: Warzone or Genshin Impact at medium or low settings. In the second case, the phone can indeed achieve maximum graphics settings; but, the game will soon start to lose frames, and the phone will eventually overheat. The phone did heat up during benchmark runs and extended gaming sessions, but not to an uncomfortable degree.

Bloatware is pre-installed on the Galaxy A55, although it is readily uninstallable. Nevertheless, I felt somewhat pressured to install several apps that I didn't want to when configuring the device.

I attempted to bypass it, but the only option to do so was to close the phone setup. Once I done so, the applications started to install on their own. Another issue I saw was that, after pairing my Samsung phone with my Galaxy Watch 4, I started receiving annoying alerts on my wrist that were advertisements. Ads and pre-installed applications are OK with me, however I did not anticipate this from a phone that costs Rs 40,000.

With the Galaxy A55, the ecosystem does resemble Apple's. I also possess a few other Samsung devices, such as the Galaxy Tab S9 FE+ and the Galaxy Buds. I had no trouble making and taking calls from my tablet, copying text from my tablet and pasting it on my phone, or transferring my headphones between devices with ease.

Average cameras

It appears that Samsung kept the triple camera arrangement from its previous model for the Galaxy A55. Its 50MP main camera is complemented with a 5MP macro and a 12MP ultrawide lens.
During the day, the main camera captures clear, detailed images while controlling the saturation levels. In well-lit conditions, the 12MP ultrawide lens maintains minimal colour shift while keeping up with the primary camera.

I did think the phone had exposure problems, though. Sometimes the Galaxy A55 takes a picture of the same area in less than a minute, but the subsequent picture appears to have been shot on a sunny day, giving the impression that the scene is darker.

In terms of taking pictures in low light or at night, I thought the camera accomplished a bare minimum. Though they sometimes lack details, the photographs are nice enough to distribute on social media. I would not have expected a gadget this expensive to handle light sources poorly, if for no other reason than that the camera did not.

As with other Samsung phones, the 12MP ultrawide catches superb details, although the saturation and contrast are a little bit on the upper side. Although I don't take selfies, the 32MP selfie camera on the Galaxy A55 does a good job at capturing natural skin tones and taking good daylight pictures.

Long battery life

With its 5,000mAh battery, the Galaxy A55 can be charged at 25W. I usually use it for making calls, reading the internet, playing a few games at night, and listening to music for hours on end.

With moderate use, the Galaxy A55 comfortably lasted two days; but, if you are a frequent checker and heavily dependent on mobile connectivity, it will only last a day with 6-7 hours of screen time. In addition, it takes around an hour and a half to charge the phone, which seems outdated by today's standards. I sincerely hope Samsung will at least provide 45W wired charging, like it does with S-series devices.

One stereo speaker is located at the top of the Galaxy A55, while the other is situated in the bottom grill. The phone is more than audible outside, with clear and sharp audio. The mixer was running at full speed in the background while I was lying down on the bed, but I had no trouble hearing the music since the speakers were so loud.