Samsung Galaxy A05s review

50MP main snapper with two 2MP helpers

Not much has changed in the camera department from the Galaxy A04s. At least not on the back, where the Galaxy A05s still gets a 50MP main camera accompanied by two 2MP units - one a dedicated macro cam, while the other is for depth data.

Snooping around in the config files revealed that the main camera does not actually use a Samsung sensor, as expected, but rather a Hynix hi5022 unit. From what we have managed to dig up, the hi5022 is a pretty new sensor from 2023 with a 1/2.8" size and 0.64µm individual pixels. In the Galaxy A05s, it sits behind an f/1.8 lens and has a simple autofocus system. Nothing fancy beyond that.

Moving on, we have the two 2MP cameras. We aren't sure which sensor belongs to which camera, but one of these uses a GalaxyCore gc2375h sensor, while the other is based on a SuperPix sp2507. The configuration files also mention a SmartSens sc201 sensor, for whatever that's worth. Both of these 2MP auxiliary cameras lack autofocus and have an f/2.4 aperture.

Finally, we have the selfie cam, which is notably upgraded in terms of resolution compared to last year's Galaxy A04s. The Galaxy A05s gets a 13MP, f/2.0 selfie that is, unfortunately, but also quite expectedly, still fixed-focus. Our review unit has a total of three possible selfie sensors listed in its camera configs - the GalaxyCore gc13a0 (1/3.1", 1.12µm), the Hynix hi1336 (1/3", 1.12µm) and the SmartSens sc1320 (1/3.06", 1.12µm). The selfie cam can now take FullHD videos, which is a nice bonus.

The camera app is the same as you'd find on every Samsung phone these days. Swiping left and right will switch between all available modes, and there's an option to re-arrange or remove some of the modes from the viewfinder. Vertical swipes in either direction will switch between front and rear cameras.

The settings icon is located in the upper left corner of the screen and gives you fine control over the cameras. You don't get separate setting screens for photos and videos since there are few options. Like grid lines, location data, etc., the usual stuff can be found there. You can also turn the Scene Optimizer on and off. Once on, you still have to toggle it on a second time from the main UI, though. Keep that in mind.

Camera app UI

Only the primary and selfie cameras support Night Mode.

There's a Pro mode, too. You get granular exposure controls and manual focus, without peaking, up to 30s shutter speed control, but no live histogram or the option to operate anything but the main cam.

Camera settings

The full resolution mode on the primary is triggered from the aspect options, which is a somewhat unintuitive bit.

Daylight photo quality

The main camera on the Galaxy A05s captures binned photos in just over 12.5MP resolution by default.

These photos look surprisingly good. There is plenty of detail in the frame, and even though there are visible traces of extra sharpening, it is not excessive in any way. Foliage and grass do look a bit soft and muddy, though. Colors are mostly natural and true to life.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera samples

As far as some less favorable traits go, there is quite a bit of noise and graininess all throughout the frame. It is especially noticeable on uniform surfaces. Also, the dynamic range could be a lot better, with detail currently getting crushed in the shadows.

While you can force the main camera to shoot in 50MP mode, we question the utility of such an action. These notably larger and harder-to-work-with photos don't have more detail than the regular 12.5MP ones. They are noticeably less processed and sharpened, which makes for a more natural look but also kind of makes everything appear softer.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 50MP main camera samples

It is worth noting that, unlike the default binned camera mode, which is pretty slow to actually capture photos, the 50MP mode is much faster. This might be the sole reason to go for it.

Here's how the Samsung Galaxy A05s stacks up against the competition in our extensive photo compare database.

Samsung Galaxy A05s against the Samsung Galaxy A14 5G and the Tekno Spark 10 Pro in our Photo compare tool

50MP: Samsung Galaxy A05s against the Samsung Galaxy A14 5G and the Tekno Spark 10 Pro in our Photo compare tool

The photo capturing UI has a 2x zoom toggle. The main camera has enough resolution to accommodate digital zooming and cropping. These photos look pretty decent and very close to their 1x counterparts. The details are about the same, and so are the colors. Noise and dynamic range are still sore points.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera 2x zoom samples

The Galaxy A05s captures pretty competent portrait shots with its main camera. The quality of the background blur is a high point in particular. Subject detection and separation are decent, though far from perfect, which is a bit odd given that there is a dedicated depth sensor on the back of the phone.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera samples

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera portrait samples

The Galaxy A05s lacks an ultrawide camera, which is notably harming its overall utility. Still, at least you get a dedicated macro camera, which captures surprisingly good photos despite its limited 2MP resolution. Of course, you can't expect miracles, but the details and colors are good.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 2MP macro camera samples

The new 13MP selfie camera does a decent enough job, though its photos are far from perfect. Despite our insistence on turning off any beauty filters, these look a bit too aggressively processed. Sharpening is applied too liberally as well. Dynamic range could be better, too.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 13MP selfie camera samples

Even so, these are some perfectly usable selfies that we won't go out of our way to criticize on such a budget device.

Selfie portraits look about as good as those from the main camera, which is a testament in itself.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 13MP selfie camera portrait samples

Video capture quality

The Samsung Galaxy A05s can capture video at up to 1080p@60fps on its rear camera and 1080p@30fps on the selfie. By default, the video gets saved in standard AVC (h.264) format with a bitrate of around 17 Mbps and a stereo 48kHz AAC audio stream inside an MP4 container. There is also the option to go with HEVC (h.265) encoding and save some space.

While we can't exactly praise the quality of the 1080p video from the main camera, it's not too bad either. Detail is decent, given the resolution, and colors look nice and natural. Dynamic range is surprisingly decent, too. There is practically no noise to speak of.

Contrast is cranked a bit high for our particular taste.

Zoomed 2x videos from the main camera naturally look a bit grainier with less detail. Still, we would call these usable if you adjust your expectations appropriately.

Unfortunately, no video stabilization is available on the Galaxy A05s, not in a separate mode nor a UI or settings toggle.

Here's how the main camera compares in video capture quality to other devices in our extensive video compare database.

Samsung Galaxy A05s against the Samsung Galaxy A14 5G and the Tekno Spark 10 Pro in our Video compare tool

The selfie camera on the Galaxy A05s captures pretty decent 1080p videos. Detail is good, and so are colors.

Contrast and dynamic range could be better, but we can't complain too much. The one really annoying bit about these videos is the inconsistent and constantly changing exposure.

Low-light camera quality

The Samsung Galaxy A05s struggles quite badly in low-light conditions. The detail in these photos from the main camera isn't that bad, nor the colors. Light sources are even handled reasonably well.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera low-light samples

Noise is a major issue with these shots, especially on uniform surfaces. Dynamic range could be better, too, with most of the detail in the darker areas ending up crushed.

You can use night mode on the main camera of the Galaxy 05s. It is a bit of a mixed bag. On the one hand, night mode does clean up most of the noise. It also significantly brightens the frame and brings out more detail in the darker areas.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera night mode samples

However, on the flip side, some detail gets lost in processing and "painted over". Also, light sources aren't handled much better by night mode.

We tried shooting in 2x zoom mode in low light as well, and we ended up with expectedly softer and grainier photos than the 1x ones. We are not impressed.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 12.5MP main camera low-light 2x zoom samples

Low-light selfies are nothing to phone home about. Just merely ok.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 13MP selfie camera low-light samples

Night mode on the selfie camera unfortunately doesn't really help much.

Samsung Galaxy A05s: 13MP selfie camera night mode samples

Low-light videos from the main camera are very soft and grainy with low detail. Their biggest issue by far, however, is how dark they are.

2x Zoom videos are expected to be a bit worse still in overall quality. These are hardly usable, in our opinion.