Samsung Galaxy A54 review: Why shouldn’t you buy it?

Samsung, which made its name in the mid-range segment with flagship killer smartphones, introduced the Samsung Galaxy A54, one of the new A-series devices, last March. The Samsung Galaxy A54 was released as a model that Samsung launched to continue the competition in the mid-range segment. Continuing Samsung’s general design line, the Galaxy A54 is one of the latest devices in Samsung’s Galaxy A series. Samsung Galaxy A54, which has been on the agenda since its release, aims to offer users a powerful experience at the mid-level. Samsung Galaxy A54, which is presented to users as a flagship killer in terms of design, display, camera, performance, battery performance, connectivity features and price, can it deliver what it promises? Can it offer value for money? What makes it different from the competition? This review will answer those questions.

Design

The Samsung Galaxy A54 has a minimalist and very stylish design. Samsung has used Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protected glass in the case of the Galaxy A54. Unfortunately, the bezels are made of plastic. However, the plastic frame can be ignored in this price segment. The fact that the case is made of glass can be considered a plus. If the bezels were made of aluminum or metal, the design of the device would have been more upscale. Nevertheless, the feel is not bad. 

With a length of 158.2 mm, a width of 76.7 mm and a thickness of 8.2 mm, we can say that the Samsung Galaxy A54 is a very large device. This means that users will have difficulty using it with one hand. However, the large screen offers a lot of space when consuming content or playing games. Its thickness of 8.2 mm is acceptable for its price. The weight of 202 grams can feel a bit heavy in the hand. With white, black, purple and green color options, the Samsung Galaxy A54 allows users to make a choice according to their personal preferences.

We can say that the Samsung Galaxy A54 is elegant and stylish for its price. However, there are thinner and lighter devices at this price. Those whose hands hurt from a heavy device or who are looking for something more minimalist and easier to use with one hand can turn to other devices in this price range. On the other hand, you should consider that its competitor, the POCO X5 Pro 5G, is a larger but 0.3mm thinner and 21g lighter option. If you are not satisfied with the design of the Samsung Galaxy A54, you can turn to other devices.

Display

The Samsung Galaxy A54 offers a very good screen experience for its price. The 6.4-inch screen is quite large and comes with Super AMOLED panel technology. Super AMOLED technology offers very vivid, saturated and bright colors. With a resolution of 1080×2340 pixels FHD+, this screen has a pixel density of 403 PPI. Thanks to this, the screen looks very sharp and clear. In addition, this screen has a 120Hz refresh rate for a smooth viewing experience. As a result, you will find that the image is quite smooth while playing games or watching moving content. The 1,000 nits screen brightness means you can easily see the screen under the sun.

The Samsung Galaxy A54’s display features are quite satisfactory for everyday use. However, this device lacks features that maximize the visual experience, such as Dolby Vision and 10bit color support. The POCO X5 Pro 5G, which is in the same price range, has outstanding features such as 10bit (+2bit RC) color support and Dolby Vision. As for the screen, the Samsung Galaxy A54’s screen is quite sufficient for everyday use, but there are models with better screens in this price range. If screen quality is important to you, you can look at other brands and models if you think the Samsung Galaxy A54 will not satisfy you.

Camera

The Samsung Galaxy A54 offers users a very ambitious camera for its price. It is quite difficult to find a device that offers a similar camera experience in this price segment. The Samsung Galaxy A54 has a main camera with a resolution of 50 MP. This sensor has a f/1.8 aperture. Thus, it can offer good performance for its price in night shots. Notable features of the main camera include HDR support, macro shooting support up to 4 cm and shutter speed control support. 

This sensor also supports Optical Image Stabilizer (OIS). This means that the recorded videos are more stable and less shaky than the competition. This is an important feature for users who like to shoot videos. However, you can only use OIS with 1080p video resolution. Still, it is quite difficult to find a device with OIS support in this price range. The main camera’s video resolutions are 4K@30, 1080p@60, 1080p@30 and 720p@30. It lags behind its competitors in slow motion. It can only shoot slow motion at 720p@240 resolution.

The Samsung Galaxy A54 has a second rear camera of 12 MP. This camera is used for an extra wide angle of 123 degrees. This camera with f/2.2 aperture allows you to take wider angle photos. However, it is worth mentioning that the wide-angle camera is not as good as the main camera.

The third camera is a 5 MP sensor. The task of this sensor is to offer better performance in macro shots. This sensor, which can take macro shots up to 4 cm, has an aperture of f/2.4. You should keep in mind that the macro camera of the Samsung Galaxy A54 5G is sufficient for everyday needs, but you should not expect good results, as it does not perform as well as the main camera.

The front camera of the Samsung Galaxy A54 is a 32 MP sensor. This sensor has an aperture of f/2.2. Therefore, it may not give good results in night conditions. This device, which can record videos in 4K@30 resolution, surpasses its competitors when it comes to recording videos with the front camera. Various software features such as HDR and portrait mode are also supported on the front camera.

The camera performance of the Samsung Galaxy A54 beats the competition in its price range. Although there are models with a main camera resolution of 108 MP, the Galaxy A54’s OIS support, night performance and the ability to record 4K resolution video on the front camera allow it to outperform its competitors in terms of camera. Although the POCO X5 Pro 5G model, which is in a similar price range, has a 108 MP main camera, it does not have OIS support, its front camera can record videos with a maximum resolution of 1080p and its night performance lags behind the Samsung Galaxy A54. Therefore, we can say that the Samsung Galaxy A54 has a pretty good camera for its price. Also, considering that the DxOMark score of the Samsung Galaxy A54 is 107, we can easily say that the Galaxy A54 is the smartphone with the best camera in this price range.

Performance

Samsung has used the Samsung Exynos 1380 processor in the Galaxy A54. This processor has 4 performance-oriented 2.4GHz ARM Cortex-A78 cores and 4 efficiency-oriented 2.0GHz ARM Cortex-A55 cores. The chip is also built on a 5nm architecture. This helps to balance the power and heat of the device.

Samsung’s Exynos processors are often criticized for overheating and consuming too much power. However, according to the company, this chipset does not have these problems. The GPU used is the Mali-G68 MP5. This GPU is clocked at 950MHz. If we look at the benchmark tests, the AnTuTu V10 score is 623,500, GeekBench 6 single-core score is 1,010, multi-core score is 2,775. The AnTuTu V10 score of the POCO X5 Pro, a similarly priced competitor, is 618,200 points. GeekBench 6 single-core score is 788 and multi-core score is 2698.

This 8GB Ram device also has memory card support. This way, you can increase the memory of your device up to 1TB. In addition, the device only has 128 and 256GB memory support. Furthermore, the device comes with Samsung OneUI 5.1 based on Android 13. This interface offers a smooth and customizable experience. It is also stated by Samsung that it will receive 3 years of updates.

The Samsung Galaxy A54 offers a satisfactory performance for everyday use. However, the Samsung Exynos 1380 chip gets hot. It also offers a smooth gaming experience. However, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G used in the POCO X5 Pro 5G offers better performance in this price range. Although the performance difference between the two is not that big, if performance is important to you, you may prefer other devices instead of the Samsung Galaxy A54. You should evaluate your performance needs and choose the best device for you.

 

Battery Performance

The Samsung Galaxy A54 comes with a 5,000 mAh battery. This battery is sufficient even for intensive use. Produced with lithium-ion technology, this battery supports 25W fast charging. Unfortunately, this device, which charges via USB Type-C 2.0, does not support wireless charging. Claiming 48 hours of 4G talk time, 19 hours of Wi-Fi internet use, 20 hours of 4G internet use, 21 hours of video playback and 68 hours of music listening, this device offers a very sufficient battery performance for everyday use. Compared to its competitors, we can say that it can keep up with the competition.

Audio Features

The Samsung Galaxy A54 offers a powerful and loud sound experience with 2 speakers. These two speakers also have stereo sound support and Dolby Atmos support. This way, you will have both a high level and high quality sound experience and surround sound support while listening to music, watching movies, or playing games with your device. On the other hand, the device does not have a 3.5 mm headphone jack.

Therefore, if you want to use headphones with your device, you will have to use either wired headphones with a Type-C connector or Bluetooth headphones. The Samsung Galaxy A54 offers a satisfying experience in terms of sound features. Since there is not much difference between it and its competitors, there are no pluses or minuses that set it apart from its rivals.

Other Features

The Samsung Galaxy A54 offers a number of features beyond the basics. This device, which has IP67 dust and water resistance certification, offers water resistance for less than 30 minutes. The fingerprint scanner speed of this device, which has an in-screen fingerprint sensor, is quite fast. The Samsung Galaxy A54 also supports Dolby Atmos. So you can experience surround sound, listen to music, play games or watch movies with high quality sound.

Price

The Samsung Galaxy A54 aims to offer an alternative option to users looking for a mid-range device by launching at a budget-friendly price. The 8GB Ram, 128GB storage option is on sale for $460. If 128GB is not enough for you, the 256GB option is available for $520. The price of this flagship killer is quite good considering the features it offers. However, if the $460 price tag is too much for you, you can take a look at the lower budget Samsung Galaxy A04s review.

Samsung Galaxy A54 is offered to users as a powerful option in the mid-range segment. Its features are on a level to satisfy users. However, those who care about screen and performance should consider that there are competitors in this price segment that offer stronger and better features, such as POCO X5 Pro 5G instead of Samsung Galaxy A54. On the other hand, it is possible to say that the device offers features above its price in terms of camera and is on a level that will satisfy the general user. In general, the Samsung Galaxy A54 is among the logical options to be preferred in the middle segment. It will not disappoint most of its users and will meet their expectations.

Related Articles

[ajax_load_more single_post="true" single_post_id="2872" single_post_target="#post-wrapper" post_type="post" pause_override="true" scroll_distance="-800" single_post_progress_bar="true"]