Samsung Galaxy A52 5G Review: The 5G mid-ranger to beat?

Back in March, Samsung launched the Galaxy A52 5G in the Philippines, the brand’s newest premium mid-range device. In case you’re unfamiliar, this specific model sits right below the S21 lineup, meaning it has several flagship-level features, all while having a price tag that’s more affordable.

Some of the highlight features of the phone include a high refresh rate AMOLED display, a quad camera setup, and a Snapdragon 700 series processor. While this A52 may not have the telephoto shooter of the bigger A72, it does have a key advantage – 5G connectivity.

On paper, the A52 5G looks like a good deal thanks to its premium feature set along with its overall design. But did it hold up in our real-world tests? Find out here in our full Samsung Galaxy A52 5G review!

Geek-sthetic

Previous Galaxy A series phones often had designs that look very much like the Flagship S series, and the A52 5G is no exception. Unlike last year’s A71 and A51 which had reflective glass-like backs, the A52 5G has a matte finish to it similar to the new S21. While it may not be as eye-catching as the more reflective A51 of last year, I prefer this look as someone who likes a more sleek and low-profile phone.

Even with the matte finish, the A52 5G still has a premium in-hand feel, especially when used without a case. Though we do recommend that you still use a case, so it’s a good thing that the phone comes with a clear case inside the box.

One thing to note is that the A52 5G has a noticeable camera bump, as well as a unique-looking quad camera module. Personally, I prefer the camera design on the A71 from last year.

Moving to the font, we have the A52 5G’s 6.5-inch display that has a small holepunch notch at the top for the selfie camera. As we have mentioned in our previous reviews, we prefer a notch to be on the top left side as having it on the top-center can be a bit distracting at times. Still, that’s far from a deal-breaker as the A52 5G still looks rather nice and premium from the front; this is thanks to the phone’s slim bezels that make for a more “all-screen” look.

Binge-watching Factor

As for how the screen works for binge-watching, the phone’s 6.5-inch Infinity-O display is an AMOLED, and it has a FHD+ (1080p) resolution. Since the A52 5G is a Samsung phone (a brand known for quality displays), we were not surprised to find out that it is an excellent binge-watching partner thanks to its sharp output and vibrant colors. If you love to watch movies/shows on your phone, the A52 5G will not disappoint.

Aside from screen quality, the A52 5G’s onboard speakers are also of good quality. Not only does the audio output sound nice, it also gets loud to boot; plus, the phone packs stereo speakers, meaning you can get a much better viewing/listening experience compared to phones with only one speakers. On top of this, the A52 5G still has a 3.5mm headphone jack (always a plus in my book).

Gaming Prowess

The A52 5G is powered by a Snapdragon 750G, a new processor that not only has 5G support, it also should have good gaming performance.

Our gaming test proved this as we had no issues running most of today’s popular games on the A52 5G with not issues. For instance, games such as Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and Call of Duty Mobile were able to run at the High graphics settings smoothly. Thanks to its gaming capabilities, the Galaxy A52 5G should also have enough power to run a lot of games that support up to 120FPS; this is important as the phone packs a 120Hz display.

Meanwhile, here are the synthetic benchmark scores of the Galaxy A52 5G:

Geek Photoshoot Capabilities

For its shooters, Samsung packed the Galaxy A52 5G with a 64MP main + 12MP ultra-wide + 5MP macro + 5MP depth sensor quad rear camera setup. And at the front is a 32MP selfie camera.

Firstly, the 64MP main camera is able to capture high quality images, especially in outdoors during daytime. Photos taken at day have lots of detail and good colors. Indoor photos are also of good quality, as a good amount of detail is still retained.

: Auto Mode

: Night Mode

: Auto Mode

: Night Mode

: Auto Mode

: Night Mode

At night, the A52 5G’s main camera is able to take decent photos, though they do come out rather soft when using the auto mode. But with the phone’s Night Mode, low light shots are much sharper and brighter. Because of this, you should almost always stick to Night Mode when taking low light photos.

: Auto Mode

: Night Mode

: Auto Mode

: Night Mode

The same can be said about the A52 5G’s 12MP ultra-wide camera, as daytime photos have great quality, but there is a dip in quality at night. Thankfully, Night Mode also works well with this camera. In fact, the ultra-wide camera on the A52 5G outperforms that of other mid-range phones for low light photography (with Night Mode at least).

The A52 5G’s macro shooter is able to capture decent close-up shots. Though you do have to get real close to your subject if you want a sharp image.

: Selfie

: Portrait

Finally, selfies and portraits on the A52 5G are quite nice thanks to the phone’s 32MP front camera and deidcated 5MP depth sensor, respectively.

Everyday Reliability

Given the phone’s good gaming performance, it should come as no surprise that the A52 5G also performs well for day-to-day use. In our time with the phone, the A52 5G did not slow down one bit, even when using a wide variety of apps.

Aside from performance, another highlight of the phone is its 5G connectivity. As 5G reception is rolling out to more and more areas in the Philippines, getting a 5G phone now is a great idea if you want to enjoy faster mobile data speeds.

While it’s not a flagship, the A52 5G shares similarities with high end phones in that it comes with IP67 water & dust resistance. We don’t recommend that you submerge this for long, but you at least won’t have to worry about water damage.

Finally, the phone has a good battery life. In our Samsung Galaxy A52 5G review time, we found that the phone can easily last for more than a day on a single charge. This is thanks to the phone’s 4500mAh battery. Though we would’ve preferred if the phone had faster charging speeds like other mid-range phones.

Samsung Galaxy A52 5G Review – Final Geek Lifestyle Verdict

So what do we think of the Samsung Galaxy A52 5G after our review tests? Well, we found that this new Samsung device ticks pretty much all the right boxes. Not only does it have capable cameras, it also has good gaming and day-to-day performance. On top of these, the phone packs a premium design with IP67 water/dust resistance, and an impressive 120Hz AMOLED display.

Is it worth the PHP 23,990 price tag though? Well, it is definitely on the expensive side. But if you’re looking for a premium phone and are willing to spend a bit more (but not enough for a flagship), the Galaxy A52 5G is definitely a worthy option.

Samsung Galaxy A52 5G specs: