Samsung’s Galaxy A23, a mid-tier phone, has some really good specs, if you're on a budget but still want something with good everyday performance.
Priced at Tk25,999, Galaxy A23 comes with a Snapdragon 680 chipset and a 50MP main camera with optical image stabilization. The only version which is available in Bangladesh comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage.
After a week of thorough usage, we will be discussing the smartphone's good and bad sides in today’s review.
Aesthetic
The smartphone looks quite simple, yet classic. The frame and back panel are made of plastic. The camera units look just like Samsung’s current flagship, the S22 Ultra. However, what’s different here is that it has a camera bump.
Weighing 195 grams, the smartphone is 8.4 mm thick. It offers a nice and comfortable grip.
The phone is available in black, blue and peach.
Display
Samsung Galaxy A23 has a 6.6 inches PLS LCD display with an 83% screen-to-body ratio. PLS is produced by Samsung, and they claim that PLS panels have better viewing angles, a 10% increase in brightness, a 15% decrease in production costs, increased image quality, and allow for flexible panels compared to IPS panels.
We felt like Samsung could have provided an AMOLED panel with this phone.
During our review, we found the display to be quite bright and vivid. The colour and viewing angle was decent. The display also offered a 90Hz refresh rate, which was a very nice touch.
The display resolution is 1080 x 2408 pixels and the ratio is 20:9.
The glass front is protected with Corning Gorilla Glass 5. So the display has protection to some extent against accidental drops or scratches. The review unit that we received was pretty scratched up, though.
Processor
Samsung Galaxy A23 is powered by a 6nm Snapdragon 680 chipset. While daily life usage like scrolling through the phone or browsing Facebook was a smooth experience, the smartphone showed weakness while playing games.
We reviewed Snapdragon 680 powered smartphones like Oppo F21 Pro, Realme 9i and Redmi Note 11 before. We played games on those smartphones.
In Galaxy A23, graphics-intensive games like Asphalt 9 were lagging a lot, especially when we changed the graphics setting to high. This looked like an optimisation issue which can be fixed via a future software update.
On the other hand, the smartphone was also heating up. The smartphone was heating up even while playing less graphics-intensive games like Clash of Clans. When we asked Samsung about this, they said that Samsung devices often warm up during the first month of usage.
Do keep in mind that, even with all these issues being fixed, Snapdragon 680 is not a gaming chipset. Chipsets like Snapdragon 695 or even MediaTek Helio G96 perform a lot better than 680 while playing games. If you play lots of smartphone games, do keep this in mind when looking for a budget or mid-tier smartphone.
Camera
The smartphone has a quad-camera setup on the back. It includes a 50MP primary shooter, a 5MP ultrawide lens, a 2MP macro lens and a 2MP depth sensor. The back camera has optical image stabilization for capturing videos, which is something unique at this price.
The photos captured using this smartphone were decent in both daylight and low light. However, while capturing videos during nighttime, the video was surprisingly lagging. When we contacted Samsung, they told us that this is due to the phone being a review unit and they fixed it up in retail units.
In front, the smartphone has an 8MP wide selfie camera and the selfies captured were good.
Battery
The smartphone has a massive 5,000 mAh battery inside. Paired with Snapdragon 680, which is a power-efficient chipset, the smartphone should easily provide at least eight hours of screen on time with light to moderate usage. This is more than enough for regular users to use a smartphone for a whole day without the need for charging mid day. The phone comes with a 25 Watts fast charging support.
Final verdict
Samsung Galaxy A23 is a device worth recommending. But you have to first understand what you want from your smartphone.
If you are looking for a phone with durability, decent performance and camera and good battery life, this is a perfect choice for you.
However, if you are looking for a gaming phone, you may consider looking at other alternatives, perhaps with a different chipset.
