Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) review: Bite-sized

16 January 2017
Samsung was a prime culprit in the growth of smartphone screen sizes, but back in 2014 it tried something different with the Galaxy Alpha - a high-end phone in a small scale body. The Galaxy A3 is a spiritual successor and we’re here to look at the third iteration.

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Galaxy A3 2017 is released this week in Qatar. It is for 315$ however, z5 compact is for 274$. A fast comparison would be: same 2Gb Ram, both Octa core, both android 6, both water and dust proof, both have fingerprint sensor, however, battery endurance for A3 2017 is better. For me, i am not interested in the camera quality. I have been using Galaxy I9190 for 3 years and 3 months and it was a great experience. Also, i am more into Samsung, What do you think ? shall i got with the new phone ? any suggestions ??

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    • iLoveEeEe
    • uJ5
    • 18 Jan 2017

    Vic, 16 Jan 2017Dear GSMarena, please always provide information about batt... moreOnce I was told by sales personnel that standby time is very subjective. If your phone is situated on a poor signal location, it consume more power.

      • i
      • iLoveEeEe
      • uJ5
      • 18 Jan 2017

      consumersmartphone, 17 Jan 2017For low level phone, waterproof is advantage but AOD is use... moreCan AOD be deactivated if we see no reasons to put it on ?

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        • AnonD-599330
        • PEq
        • 18 Jan 2017

        looks like samsung will never add pro camera features like shutter speed, manual focus or 4axis ois in midrange phones! best for you guyes look for s & note series to get this *

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          • Anonymous
          • t7X
          • 18 Jan 2017

          AnonD-8779, 18 Jan 2017i think my honor 6x is a better value, the only disappointi... moreIts so buitefull

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            • AnonD-8779
            • 6vW
            • 18 Jan 2017

            i think my honor 6x is a better value, the only disappointing thing in the honor that it did not include a usb-c. .. i would have it any day instead of of a micro usb port. i feel huawei or any manufacturer should stop the micro usb ports because the cable tend to break more often and we are already in 2017 .. it wont cost the company more than a few cents difference and i would pay the premium over having to replace my cable more often

              Anonymous, 18 Jan 2017Like glance screen such a cool feature, but yeah they had i... moreIf only you could have And with power saving in. That's my only gripe when using it on the s7 edge

                consumersmartphone, 17 Jan 2017For low level phone, waterproof is advantage but AOD is use... moreHave you not seen the battery tests, bro? Phone chipsets are way more efficient than they were 2 years ago, you won't need to worry about battery drainage on this thing, unless you never put it in your pocket, while using it for more than 4 hours. While I can't say on what process the phone's chip was build on, I can say that Samsung wouldn't put it on the phone if they didn't think the phone could handle it (ie,S6 never getting the always on display)

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                  • Anonymous
                  • vMf
                  • 18 Jan 2017

                  AnonD-596087, 17 Jan 2017I don't understand how always on displays suddenly became a... moreLike glance screen such a cool feature, but yeah they had it ages ago. I didn't know Motto X has it to?........ guess its just handy to look over.

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                    • Anonymous
                    • vMf
                    • 18 Jan 2017

                    Donny, 17 Jan 2017The 240 Hz flickering on Samsung's (and others) AMOLED scre... moreok thanks i thought a fault.no Amoled still best screen.

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                      • Anonymous
                      • vMf
                      • 18 Jan 2017

                      walkman, 17 Jan 2017Does it have a better camera than Lumia 640/650?Um Yes lol

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                        • walkman
                        • 3q@
                        • 17 Jan 2017

                        Does it have a better camera than Lumia 640/650?

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                          • Donny
                          • SvX
                          • 17 Jan 2017

                          gianni, 17 Jan 2017Sadly I didn't find more detailed reviews about this phone.... moreThe 240 Hz flickering on Samsung's (and others) AMOLED screens is not noticeable to the eyes, but still can cause headaches and eye strain to more sensitive people. The flickering is caused by the way the screen brightness is controlled on some phones. This is called PWM (Pulse Width Modulation). It is known that most Samsung phones use PWM.
                          If you want a phone without PWM, look for IPS screen, not AMOLED. iPhone, Huawei, LG, Sony phones with IPS screen maybe better for you if you read a lot on the phone.

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                            • Anonymous
                            • 3SL
                            • 17 Jan 2017

                            AnonD-609312, 17 Jan 2017overall this phone is great, but not the spec. with touchwi... moreof course

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                              • Anonymous
                              • 3SL
                              • 17 Jan 2017

                              consumersmartphone, 17 Jan 2017I dont hate same-sung, I'm using S7 and like it, but for mi... moreyes

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                                • Anonymous
                                • 3SL
                                • 17 Jan 2017

                                AppleNokia, 17 Jan 2017J7 prime or A3(17) Which one is Good ¿¿None, buy OnePlus 3T. If you want lower range, buy Xiaomi Redmi 4 Prime

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                                  • AnonD-596087
                                  • YT1
                                  • 17 Jan 2017

                                  I don't understand how always on displays suddenly became a premium thing to have...
                                  My old Nokia Lumia 620 had it in 2013 with way more features than the one's on flagships now. Even the the Moto X and G series had it since a long while. Plus the whole thing had been a staple of Nokia during the good old Symbian era.

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                                    • supm
                                    • LHj
                                    • 17 Jan 2017

                                    Thanks for the review it really save me some money not to buy this crap

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                                      • gianni
                                      • ap1
                                      • 17 Jan 2017

                                      Anonymous, 17 Jan 2017Notebookcheck usually has more technical reviews (screen fl... morevery kind, thanks

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                                        • AnonD-609312
                                        • tDM
                                        • 17 Jan 2017

                                        Anonymous, 17 Jan 2017Samsung its just good at Galaxy S and Note series.i agree with you

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