Samsung Galaxy A34 5G Review. Even on a contract, flagship phones are pricey, but the good news is that there are less expensive options that are just as good.
The Samsung Galaxy A34 is a prime illustration of this. Even in the Awesome Lime hue reviewed here, it resembles the flagship S23 in appearance but is less expensive at £349.
Samsung Galaxy A34 5G Review:
The A34 has a brilliant screen, a long battery life, and good performance, and it produces perfectly acceptable images, so for many people, it is the only phone they will ever need.
Additionally, since it is a Samsung product, the phone will receive regular software and security updates for many years to come.
Design & build:
- Comes in lime, purple, silver, and black
- Plastic rear and frame
- Stereo speakers
The A34 is a large phone, something that seems to be the norm for most mid-range phones now. It’s a bit bigger than the Galaxy A54 measuring 161.3 x 78.1 x 8.2mm, but weighing a few grams less at a whisker under 200g.
Despite all the plastic, it feels wonderful in the hand and appears much more costly than it actually is. Since it resembles the S23 so much, most people will assume you have Samsung’s most recent and finest model when they first see it. Which is advantageous if you like that kind of thing.
The selfie camera is symmetrically positioned in the center, and the black bezel around the screen is (nearly) the same thickness on all sides.
Despite having a curved shape, the frame’s edges have a slightly sharp feel. However, the biggest issue is that the back panel might be slightly depressed and consequently seems fragile rather than sturdy.
It’s also unfortunate that you don’t receive a clear case in the box, unlike the majority of competing mid-range phones. You actually just receive a USB-C to USB-C cable and a tool to remove the SIM tray, which is almost nothing.
Therefore, it makes sense to order a case at the same time as the phone.
It’s impressive how well Samsung equipped the A34 with haptics. It feels much more like a high-end phone because of this. You could believe that system vibrations are disabled because of how weak they are by default, but you can easily change that.
Screen & speakers:
- 6.6in AMOLED display
- 120Hz refresh rate
- Stereo speakers
Although becoming more common now, a few years ago you’d have had no right to expect a screen this good on a mid-range phone.
It has a 6.6-inch AMOLED screen with a refresh rate of 120 Hz. This implies that scrolling is incredibly smooth and that colors are vivid.
But it’s not just that—it’s also incredibly brilliant. Even at this budget, Samsung boasts that it can reach 1000 nits of brightness, and it is undoubtedly easier to use outside than many other phones.
Even though Full HD+ doesn’t have the maximum resolution available, everything still appears clear and detailed.
The screen has a fingerprint sensor integrated into it. During my testing, the optical tech was unreliable and informed me that the finger I had just registered did not match. After that, it generally worked, although not always. Of course, you don’t have to utilize it, but facial recognition While a PIN, password, or pattern are more secure options, recognition is less practical.
Stereo speakers are also included on the Galaxy A34, however, the one at the top of the device is hardly audible. although, they are well-balanced, powerful at maximum volume, and excellent for watching movies or listening to podcasts; although, particularly low-bass music may not sound as good via them.
Specs & performance:
- MediaTek Dimensity 1080
- 6/8GB RAM
- Mostly smooth performance
Unusually, Samsung has opted for a MediaTek processor rather than one of its own Exynos chipsets for the Galaxy A34
However, the Dimensity 1080 has plenty of power and makes the A34 feel quick and responsive in everyday use, so this is not a negative thing. When switching between home screens or navigating menus, there is no stuttering. It also supports 5G, much like the A54.
Although it isn’t a gaming powerhouse, it has adequate horsepower for the majority of games, even if you have to down the detail settings a little to get decent frame rates.
The sensation of smooth performance when browsing through social media feeds is enhanced by the high-refresh-rate display. The A34’s base 6GB of RAM undoubtedly helps, and depending on where in the world you live, 8GB versions of the device may be available.
cameras:
- 48Mp main with OIS
- 8Mp ultra-wide
- 5Mp macro
- 13Mp selfie
Although they resemble the cameras on the Galaxy S23, the triple lenses on the A34 cover a less impressive array of sensors than Samsung’s flagship.
This is not mean that the phone cannot shoot quality pictures though; it very certainly can. And as Samsung users are accustomed to, the default settings result in beautifully vibrant photos that are suitable for sharing.
Unsurprisingly, the main camera produces the best images. Photos taken outside in bright light are sharp and detailed. Inside, such sharpness disappears, therefore if you don’t want your subjects to become a blurry mess, like toddlers or dogs, they must remain motionless.
The A34’s cameras do suffer at night or in low light compared to the greatest smartphones available, so you shouldn’t anticipate amazing results unless you lay the phone on something sturdy and, once again, nothing in the scene is moving.
Considering its low resolution, the ultra-wide camera performs admirably, and the software helps to ensure that colors are consistent with images taken with the primary camera. When you can’t otherwise fit everyone or anything into the shot, it is unquestionably helpful.
The camera app mockingly displays a 2x button next to a 1x and 0.5x one. To be fair, the shots still appear decent despite being cropped from the main camera’s images.
The third camera is a macro one rather than a telescopic one. Given that you don’t even need to switch to it to get some good close-ups from the main camera, as evidenced by the picture of the beetles in the slideshow above, it’s unlikely that you’ll use it much after toying with it when you first acquire the phone.
You can disable the selfie camera’s visible beautification function if you want a more natural appearance. Although the 13Mp camera doesn’t capture a lot of detail, it does help if you want to cover up certain wrinkles. It’s entertaining that Snapchat has included selfie mode filters as well.
The field of vision for the front camera can be changed in the software, and you can choose which view to set as the default when prompted. When using the Portrait mode, the software is also used for the pseudo-bokeh effect. However, because the software struggles to distinguish between the subject and backdrop, the effect appears false when hair strands are unintentionally blurred out.
Read more: Review about Asus Zenbook 14X OLED in 2023
Battery life & charging:
- 5000mAh battery
- 25W charging
- No adapter included
The 5000mAh battery on the Galaxy A34 is typical for most Samsung smartphones. This phone can last two days if you don’t use it heavily because the Density chipset doesn’t require a lot of battery.
Even if you do, you need to be able to go the entire day without having to recharge. The A34 will run out of energy significantly sooner if you only use GPS-heavy apps like Google Maps for extended periods of time or play demanding games.
With a battery life of 10 hours and 59 minutes, PCMark for Android reported nearly identical battery life to the Galaxy A54.
The phone will “fast charge” with the included cable if you have a 25W charger. Even then, it doesn’t charge a phone any faster than the slowest ones. Expect a charge of approximately 15-20% in 15 minutes, a third in 30 minutes, and a complete charge in two hours.
When you plug it in, it will helpfully display an estimate of how long it will take for a full charge, so at least you’ll know. At this price, wireless charging should not even be an option.
All of this is not a problem if you regularly charge your phone overnight, and the trade-offs are more than acceptable given the cost.
Software & apps:
- Android 13
- One UI 5.1
- Four years of OS upgrades
The Galaxy A34 comes pre-installed with Android 13 and Samsung’s One UI 5.1. It is simple to use and easy on the eyes.
The notifications are well-designed, and the fast settings tray includes shortcuts for Samsung SmartThings as well as Media Output (which determines which devices receive sound and video).
The fact that you are informed during setup that TikTok, Disney+, and Nextdoor are “essential” apps and will be downloaded when you connect to Wi-Fi is annoying, but there isn’t a lot of bloatware.
You cannot stop this from happening, but you can uninstall them at a later time.
You may enable and adjust the always-on display on the A34 because it features an AMOLED screen. When you tap the screen, it simply displays the time and alerts by default. You can select to have this actually always on or to merely turn it off at night during the hours you choose if you don’t mind the power drain.
The good news is that this phone receives the same software updates as Samsung’s flagship models. The business guarantees five years of security updates in addition to four years of OS updates (which should get you to Android 16).
Compared to many other phones, whose manufacturers often offer two or three Android apps, this is a significant advantage.
Price & availability:
The Galaxy A34 is available directly from Samsung for £349, as well as via Amazon, Argos, and Currys. Although only Samsung appears to provide the larger-capacity variant in all colors, you may pay an additional £50 to acquire the model with 256GB in its place.
The Galaxy A54, the A34’s larger sibling, is already on sale in the US. Samsung or carriers like AT&T, Verizon, T Mobile, and US Cellular, costs $449.99.
You might also take into account the Redmi Note 12 Pro, Poco X5, and OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite 5G at this pricing.
Read more: Review about Moto G73 5G
Specs:
- Android 13 with One UI 5.1
- 6.6in AMOLED, 2340 x 1080, 120Hz, 19.5:9 aspect ratio
- Mediatek MT6877V Dimensity 1080 chipset
- 6/8GB RAM
- 128/256GB of storage (expandable via microSDXC)
- 48Mp f/1.8 OIS main camera
- 8Mp f/2.2 ultrawide
- 5Mp f/2.4 macro
- 13Mp f/2.2 selfie camera
- Dual-SIM (microSDXC shares second slot)
- Stereo speakers
- NFC
- GPS
- Bluetooth 5.3
- Wi-Fi 6
- Under-display fingerprint sensor
- 5000mAh battery
- 25W wired charging
- USB-C charging port
- 161.3 x 78.1 x 8.2mm
- 199g