I have seen many of the Galaxy A devices, at either their launches, for reviews or just on the internet. I have had friends ask me my thoughts on getting one of the devices in the Galaxy A range. While devices in the Galaxy A range have specs that suit the budget of the buyer, often the overall feel of the device is a giveaway. So I was quite surprised when I unboxed the Galaxy A55 to discover that this is a Galaxy A device that I would recommend to a friend or follower. Let me explain why that is.
If you have not seen the unboxing and first look of the Galaxy A55 5G, you can watch it on YouTube below:
Right, back to this review.
Design & Build Quality:
The first reason why I would recommend the Galaxy A55, is thanks to its design and durability. The Galaxy A55 reminds me more of a premium Samsung smartphone such as an S23/S24 than what I used to find in the Galaxy A range, and this is all thanks to its build quality.
On the front of the device, you get Gorilla Glass Victus+, while on the back you will find Gorilla Glass.
The frame of the device is made of aluminium and provides a strong base for the phone. Holding the phone, you instantly feel how well it is made. The glass back is pretty reflective but it does look really good in the 2 colours that the Galaxy A55 is available in (in South Africa at least), Awesome Navy and Awesome Ice Blue.
I also like how the camera lenses sit in the top left corner of the device and are raised to make them stand out. The display has a bezel which does look a bit on the thicker size with a pinhole selfie camera mounted in the top center of the display. To keep the A55 durable when out and about, the IP67 rating ensures that the phone can withstand 1 meter of fresh water for 30 minutes and is resistant to dust and sand. Overall the A55 feels extremely well made and durable, and it looks great too!
Camera & Content Creation:
The second is the Camera and content creation capabilities. Whether you are a content creator for a living or just creating content for friends and family, having a phone that can create amazing content is important. With the Galaxy A55 in your hand, content creation is made easy! The Galaxy A55 has a triple rear camera made up of a 50MP Wide lens, 12MP Ultrawide lens and a 5MP Macro lens. The selfie camera has a 32MP Wide lens. The camera setup lets you capture vibrant and detailed images and videos, across the lenses. You can zoom in up to 10X, which is pretty decent even when zoomed all the way in. There are a range of features which one usually finds on premium devices, such as dual recording which lets you record with the front and rear lenses at the same time and portrait mode, which lets you capture photos with the bokeh blur in the background. Videos can be captured in UHD 4K, for detailed, crisp and vibrant videos. Videos also come out steadily thanks to video stabilisation built into the device. You can also capture video in HDR thanks to Super HDR Video on the Galaxy A55. HDR captures a broad spectrum of light and shadow, enhancing detail and clarity in videos. Awesome right!
You can even capture content in low light conditions thanks to the scene selector and night mode, which uses the larger pixel size of the A55 to capture bright and vibrant night shots with less noise. When shooting portraits at night, night portrait mode uses AI to filter out noise, giving sharp and clear portraits. For those looking to get something more from the content captured, the Image Clipper feature, lets you separate the subject from the background to create stickers or images from your photos and videos. Simply tap and hold on a subject in a photo or video and create a sticker. Then add this sticker to your photos or videos, or share it with a friend. You can also use Galaxy AI to remaster your images or remove objects!
Below is a video which has photos and videos that I took with the Galaxy A55:
Performance:
The third is the performance. The Galaxy A55 has a 32% increase in the GPU and a 15% increase in CPU thanks to its Exynos 1480 4 nm Octa-core processor. This ensures that the device has the performance it needs whether you are consuming content, playing games or connecting with friends. You also get either 8GB or 12 GB of RAM and 256GB of storage space, with the option to insert a MicroSD card in the second sim slot.
The Super AMOLED 6.6″ FHD+ Infiity-O display with 120Hz provides a vivid and clear viewing experience, ensuring that when you consume content, it looks awesome! Even when using the device under the sun!
The 5000 mAh battery will ensure that you can keep going without needing to recharge during the day. And when you do need to recharge, you can charge the battery to 52% in 30 minutes or 100% in 84 minutes thanks to the 25W fast-charging capabilities. The AI battery management system also helps you save battery by putting apps to sleep that you don’t use often. For those who are gaming on the A55, you will be happy to hear that your cooling needs are taken care of, thanks to the larger cooling system with vapour chambers. The A55 comes with Android 14 and One UI 6.1, which is not only optimised for performance but looks great too. The software runs smoothly on the device and has many options to customise the device to your liking.
Pricing:
The Samsung Galaxy A55 5G is for sale in South Africa for around R10499 from various networks or shops like Takealot.
Final Thoughts:
Overall the Samsung Galaxy A55 5G is a well-designed smartphone that is durable, has loads of useful features, and the performance to go with it too. The camera captures really nice photos and videos, and the battery life is pretty decent too. If you are looking for something a bit more, the Galaxy A55 may be an option for you.
