Should you buy the Samsung Galaxy A35 5G?

We’ve already worked our way through the rest of Samsung’s budget-friendly updates for 2024, but there’s still enough room for one more entry in the form of the Samsung Galaxy A35 5G. With no official launch for the Galaxy A55 5G in North America, the Galaxy A35 5G sits at the top of the lineup in the US. It also has the unenviable task of taking on one of the most competitive yearly slates of affordable Android phones we’ve ever seen. It’s surrounded by excellent offerings from Google, Motorola, Nothing, and even Samsung, which makes us wonder how the Galaxy A35 5G can stand out from the crowd.

Starting with the design, the Galaxy A35 5G, well, doesn’t exactly stand out. Instead, it looks a whole lot like Samsung’s Galaxy A25 5G, which looks a whole lot like the Galaxy A15 5G, which… you get the picture. The overall look is about as close to Samsung copying its own homework as you can get, with just a few tweaks to set it apart from the more affordable Galaxy A models. Some of those tweaks work in the Galaxy A35 5G’s favor, like ditching the cheaper models’ plastic backs and lower-tier Gorilla Glass for a premium sandwich of Gorilla Glass Victus Plus around the plastic frame. The Galaxy A35 5G also picks up a full IP67 rating against water and dust, giving it a clear durability advantage over Samsung’s other budget models, though as was the case with the Galaxy A34 5G, you do lose out on a headphone jack.

For the most part, though, the Galaxy A35 5G is just as easy to navigate as any other affordable Samsung phone. It still houses the power button and volume rocker on the right side, and there’s a down-firing speaker tucked next to the USB-C port on the bottom edge. This time, Samsung has moved its fingerprint reader from the power button to an in-display unit that sits low on the display — perhaps too low — and bumped the combination SIM tray and microSD slot to the top edge. I haven’t had any issues with speed or accuracy, but it’s also positioned in just a way where it’s tough to reach if you’re holding the bottom of the Galaxy A35 5G.

Besides that, most of Samsung’s tweaks to the Galaxy A35 5G help elevate it above its budget-friendly siblings. Although it looks and feels pretty much the same as the Galaxy A15 5G and A25 5G, swapping from simple plastic to Gorilla Glass Victus Plus gives it a more premium heft in hand. The swap adds enough weight and rigidity to the phone that you don’t notice the plastic frame — or at least I didn’t. Unfortunately, the Galaxy A35 5G brings back a high-gloss finish that picks up smudges and fingerprints like they’re going out of style. Our Awesome Lilac version has an almost iridescent finish to its pinkish glass, which looks great when the light hits it, provided you can keep it clean.

Around the front, Samsung hasn’t really changed the Galaxy A35 5G’s display over its predecessor — at least not beyond the upgrade in materials. It still has a 6.6-inch AMOLED panel, a 120Hz refresh rate (with an adaptive mode that can drop to 60Hz when idling), 1,000 nits of peak brightness, and even bezels on all four sides. Despite the lack of changes, the Galaxy A35 5G remains head and shoulders above its Galaxy A siblings, especially when used outdoors. I could easily see the Galaxy A35 5G’s display from odd angles while collecting camera samples on a sunny day, whereas I could only see the Galaxy A15 5G and A25 5G head-on with the display a few inches from my face.

Upgraded materials and a much better display put the Galaxy A35 5G far above its budget siblings.

While the retread design might not be enough to sell you on the Galaxy A35 5G, Samsung’s excellent software experience and long-term support might. The phone not only ships with Android 14 and One UI 6.1 right out of the box, but it’s in line for four years of Android version updates and a fifth year of security patches, carrying it almost to the end of the decade. This is only bettered by the Pixel 8a in the mid-to-budget space.

So far, Samsung has been on track with its security updates, too, already rolling out enough to bring the phone up to April 1, 2024. Unfortunately, you won’t find any Galaxy AI features tucked away on the Galaxy A35 5G, despite the phone popping up on a few AI-centric pages on Samsung’s website. There’s some of the usual bloatware when you set the phone up, too, but you can clear most of it out.

Under the hood, the Samsung Galaxy A35 5G packs an in-house Exynos 1380 chipset; the same chipset we saw on the Samsung Galaxy A54 5G in early 2023. It’s a generational upgrade over the Galaxy A25 5G’s older Exynos 1280, and it comes backed by 6GB of RAM and 128GB of expandable storage in the base configuration. Samsung’s in-house chipset feels significantly more comfortable in a slightly more affordable device, putting up CPU benchmark numbers that compare well against the more expensive Google Pixel 8a and Nothing Phone 2a and sometimes even beat the flagship-grade chipsets. Its Achilles’ heel is GPU testing, which gets points for stability, but is an obvious weakness compared to slightly pricier mid-range phones.

Thankfully, the Galaxy A35 5G often outperforms its price tag in day-to-day usage. I took it out as my primary device for a weekend of trail running with friends in rural Pennsylvania, and I was pretty impressed with how well it held up. The phone had no issues charging through two hours of GPS navigation to get me around Harrisburg at morning rush hour, and I pulled in with more than enough juice left to capture photos all day and pull up Strava for an ill-advised eight miles on the Appalachian Trail. I didn’t fall while on the trail, so I didn’t get to see how Gorilla Glass Victus Plus held up to the rocky, miserable stretch of trail through my home state, but it gave me enough peace of mind to take the trails quickly and know my phone would probably survive.

The Galaxy A35 5G kept chugging once we got off the trails, too, allowing me to hop between a little bit of social media streaming and light gaming (mostly Golf Clash and Marvel Snap) while we waited to grab dinner. I wouldn’t recommend heavier titles like Genshin Impact or Asphalt 9 unless you can live with low settings and frequent frame drops, but light titles are no issue. I also caught up on the first few episodes of Disney’s The Acolyte while I was away, with the Exynos 1380 only warming slightly because I was streaming from the comfort of an outdoor hammock.

Since we’re busy comparing the Galaxy A35 5G to the more affordable Galaxy A25 5G as an obvious alternative for those looking to save some cash, let’s move on to the cameras. All of Samsung’s budget camera setups look identical at a glance, and they’re all inspired by the flagship Galaxy S series, but they’re not quite created equal. The Galaxy A35 5G kicks off with a 50MP primary camera with a maximum aperture of ƒ/1.8, the same resolution and aperture as the Galaxy A15 5G and A25 5G offer, but its sensor is larger, offering slightly better low-light performance thanks to its larger individual pixels. The other two cutouts house an 8MP ultrawide and a 5MP dedicated macro sensor, giving the Galaxy A35 5G a slight leg up over its fellow Galaxy A devices in some cases.

However, that leg up isn’t a big one, as picking out the differences between photos from the three phones often feels like recreating the pointing Spider-Man meme — at least at 1x and 2x zoom. It’s not a problem, as Samsung’s 50MP primary sensor feels pretty well-tuned in well-lit scenarios, but it does mean you’re not getting too much extra punch by grabbing the Galaxy A35 5G over Samsung’s more affordable options.

You're not getting too much extra punch by grabbing the Galaxy A35 5G over Samsung's more affordable options.

Overall, though, I’m pretty pleased with the results it turned in during my testing, whether in well-lit or in slightly lower lighting. Samsung’s colors are surprisingly accurate in the bunch of pride balloons — no oversaturation on reds and greens this time — and the Galaxy A35 5G captured the stock cars rounding the dirt track without any motion blur. Although I’m not usually a big fan of budget ultrawide cameras, the Galaxy A35’s 8MP option is among the better I’ve used. It easily fits the entire sailboat in the image to the bottom right, and both the colors and details are better than what I’ve gotten out of the Galaxy A15 and A25. There’s a tiny bit of distortion in the planks of the dock in the corner and a bit of a bend to the horizon, but they’re worthwhile trade-offs so that I don’t have to move further back from the boat.

I’m not as thrilled with the dedicated macro shot of the purple flower, with the limitations of a 5MP sensor on full display, but somehow, that’s not the most disappointing shot in the gallery. That dubious honor goes to the 10x zoom image of lily pads on a local pond. Although the white flower and lily pads look fine, the Galaxy A35 5G struggled badly with the algae growth in the background, reducing it to a green pattern that almost looks AI-generated.

If you want to check out full-resolution versions of the samples above (especially the weird lily pad artifacting), you can do so at this Google Drive link.

Unfortunately, the underwhelming shot of the lily pads is a sign of the Galaxy A35 5G’s greater struggles with zoom. Because it has a dedicated macro sensor rather than a telephoto, you wind up relying on the primary sensor for, well, everything. It skates by at 2x zoom without too much issue, but by the time you hit 4x and even 10x zoom (the Galaxy A35 5G’s maximum), the details are in rough shape due to the lack of dedicated hardware and reliance on digital zoom. I’ll give it to Samsung that the colors are still accurate, but the shingles on top of the pagoda look like little more than horizontal stripes at longer lengths.

The Galaxy A35 5G’s selfie camera, on the other hand, surprised me. I had no expectations for the 13MP punch hole sensor, but it nailed the details through my hair and beard — something that budget selfie options from Motorola and OnePlus have repeatedly fumbled. It also accurately identified the edges of my hair in portrait mode, something else that doesn’t always happen perfectly.

On the video side, the Galaxy A35 5G matches the more affordable Galaxy A25 5G, with up to 4K recording at 30fps. You can also record in 1080p at either 30fps from the selfie camera or 60fps from the rear camera. Video stabilization is good, too — good enough to make memories with your kids or pets — but it’s not quite flagship-grade.

Although there are plenty of other differences between the Samsung Galaxy A devices, battery life and charging are the great equalizers. Like the more affordable models, the Galaxy A35 5G ships with a 5,000mAh battery and supports wired charging at up to 25W with a compatible charger (you don’t get one in the box). It takes a pretty consistent hour and a half to pick up a full charge, which is no surprise since the Galaxy A15 5G and A25 5G filled at the same rate.

The Galaxy A35 5G is the best of Samsung's budget crop for 2024.

That said, I’m impressed to see such consistency out of Samsung across its budget range, especially when rivals like Motorola offer different (and slower) charging speeds depending on which Moto G device you buy. Of course, the trade-off is that a few Moto G devices now support wireless charging for added flexibility, and several other alternatives from OnePlus and Nothing offer even faster wired charging.

As for the battery life itself, Samsung’s Galaxy A35 5G is no slouch. In our battery drain test, it nearly doubled the web browsing results of more expensive devices like the Pixel 8a and beat both the mid-range Pixel and the Nothing Phone 2a in our gaming tests. While a mixed day of usage will probably balance out some of the battery gains in one section or another, the Galaxy A35 5G easily packs enough juice to go a day and a half between charging. I’ve been using the phone throughout a heat wave here in the Mid-Atlantic, and it hasn’t knocked down the battery performance in any noticeable way.

All told, the Galaxy A35 5G is the best of Samsung’s budget crop for 2024 (at least in the US) and by far the easiest of the Galaxy A devices to recommend. Sure, it shares a lot with the Galaxy A15 5G and A25 5G in terms of the battery life, charging, software support, and primary camera, but the more durable materials, official IP67 rating, and much better display more than justify its $400 asking price. There are things that the Galaxy A35 5G could still improve, like adding wireless charging and trading its dedicated macro sensor for, well, anything else, but they’re small prices to pay when the rest of the phone is so well-rounded.

What are the best Samsung Galaxy A35 5G alternatives?

Should you decide that the Samsung Galaxy A35 5G isn’t the budget phone for you, there are plenty of other options to check out. Whether you want to spend a little more or save some money, here are some Galaxy A35 5G alternatives:

• Google Pixel 8a ( ): Google’s most affordable Pixel 8a has a few advantages over the Galaxy A35 5G, including wireless charging and even better software support, including Gemini AI features, but Samsung’s cameras are more flexible and Gorilla Glass Victus Plus beats a plastic back any day.
• Motorola Moto G Stylus 5G (2024) ( ): The Moto G Stylus 5G (2024) is a high point for what the Moto G series has become. It’s the most affordable phone you can get with a stylus, and Motorola’s vegan leather back is comfortable in the hand. However, you’ll have to live with bad bloatware and a weak update commitment.
• Samsung Galaxy A25 5G ( ): Samsung’s own Galaxy A25 5G is a good option if you’re on a tighter budget. It offers many of the same features as the Galaxy A35 but swaps to a plastic back and lower-tier Gorilla Glass display. You’ll get similar cameras, too, even if the sensors are slightly smaller.
• Nothing Phone 2a ( ): The Nothing Phone 2a might be one of the best budget phones you can buy, but it’s tricky to recommend in the US. It scores big with a powerful Dimensity 7200 Pro chipset, a massive 6.7-inch display, and a pair of sharp 50MP cameras but loses points for iffy network support across the big three. If you’re outside the US, however, it’s an easy pick.
• Apple iPhone SE (2022) ( ): If you really need an iPhone, this is the most affordable option—not that we’d recommend it. Apple’s most recent iPhone SE remains trapped in an iPhone 8’s body, complete with hefty top and bottom bezels and just one camera on the back. But hey, it’ll get plenty of software updates.

Samsung Galaxy A35 5G specs

Samsung Galaxy A35 5G review: FAQ

Samsung announced the launch of the Galaxy A35 in the US only a day ago. If you haven’t picked one up yet but are planning to, one place you may want to consider getting it from is Best Buy to take advantage of its current deal.

At the moment, the electronics retailer is offering quite a deal for the Galaxy A35. If you head over to the Best Buy website, you’ll notice a promotion offering a free $40 gift with the purchase of an unlocked Galaxy A35. In addition to that gift card, you’ll also get a one-month subscription for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

While that alone sounds like a pretty good deal, you can take it even further by choosing to activate the phone with your preferred carrier. Those who activate the device directly from the page can knock $100 off of their purchase. So, altogether, you’re getting a $400 phone for $300, a $40 gift card, and an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate membership.

Just as a refresher, the Galaxy A35 offers a 6.6-inch FHD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. Along with that comes 50MP main, 8MP ultrawide, and 5MP macro cameras. And on the inside, you’ll find an octa-core processor and 5,000mAH battery. Notably, this is one of the first of Samsung’s A series phones to get Samsung Knox Vault.

Samsung typically launches a variety of mid-range phones every year, with entries in the Galaxy A5x and Galaxy A3x usually arriving in the US. Unfortunately, Samsung revealed the recently released Galaxy A55 5G will not be coming to the US. However, its more affordable sibling, the Galaxy A35 5G, will be available in the States and is launching today.

First things first, let’s start with the exterior of the Galaxy A35 5G, which comes in Awesome Navy, Awesome Lilac, Awesome Lemon, and Awesome Ice Blue colorways. The handset features a flat display with a top center-aligned punch hole camera. At the back, you’ll see the triple camera array that looks similar to the design used for the more premium Galaxy S series.

That display uses AMOLED technology and measures 6.6 inches. You can expect full HD+ resolution with a 120Hz refresh rate. If you think this sounds familiar, it’s about the same as what we got with last year’s model. To further improve the screen’s visuals, Samsung has given the handset a Vision Booster mode, which is said to provide clear visibility regardless of the environment.

While the display is important, so too are the cameras. The rear setup features a main camera, ultrawide, and macro lens that offers 50MP, 8MP, and 5MP, respectively. Meanwhile, the front camera boasts a 13MP shooter. Overall, the main camera gets a nice bump up from its predecessor, but everything else is fairly the same. Along with these cameras, however, we’re getting some nice camera features such as optical image stabilization, Night Portrait mode, 12-bit HDR, and video digital image stabilization.

On the inside, Samsung’s latest mid-range phone runs on an unspecified Octa-Core processor with your choice of the following configurations: 6GB + 128GB, 8GB + 128GB, or 8GB + 256GB. Last year, the Galaxy A34 5G was home to a MediaTek Dimensity 1080 SoC, while the Galaxy A35 5G launched globally is powered by the octa-core Exynos 1380 SoC, though this hasn’t been specifically confirmed for the US unit.

The Samsung Galaxy A35 5G is powered by a long-lasting 5,000mAh battery and comes with “Super Fast Charging,” which supports up to 25W. This handset also offers decent protection with an IP67 rating.

Something interesting about this new phone is that it is one of the first in the A series to receive Samsung Knox Vault. You can also expect to be protected by Samsung Knox, a multi-layered security platform designed to protect hardware and software from vulnerabilities. The phone launches with One UI 6.1 based on Android 14. Samsung’s update promise covers this phone with four generations of Android OS updates and five years of security updates.

As with the Galaxy S models, the Galaxy A35 works very well with Samsung’s ecosystem. So you can connect with other Galaxy products in your collection.

If the Galaxy A35 sounds like it’s up your alley, it is available starting at $399.99 on Samsung’s website, Samsung Experience Stores, and at major carriers and retailers. You can also get 30% off the Galaxy Buds FE with your purchase, but only for a limited time. In addition, you can trade in your current phone to receive up to $150 off the handset.

Samsung announced the launch of the Galaxy A35 in the US only a day ago. If you haven’t picked one up yet but are planning to, one place you may want to consider getting it from is Best Buy to take advantage of its current deal.

At the moment, the electronics retailer is offering quite a deal for the Galaxy A35. If you head over to the Best Buy website, you’ll notice a promotion offering a free $40 gift with the purchase of an unlocked Galaxy A35. In addition to that gift card, you’ll also get a one-month subscription for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate.

Samsung typically launches a variety of mid-range phones every year, with entries in the Galaxy A5x and Galaxy A3x usually arriving in the US. Unfortunately, Samsung revealed the recently released Galaxy A55 5G will not be coming to the US. However, its more affordable sibling, the Galaxy A35 5G, will be available in the States and is launching today.

First things first, let’s start with the exterior of the Galaxy A35 5G, which comes in Awesome Navy, Awesome Lilac, Awesome Lemon, and Awesome Ice Blue colorways. The handset features a flat display with a top center-aligned punch hole camera. At the back, you’ll see the triple camera array that looks similar to the design used for the more premium Galaxy S series.

That display uses AMOLED technology and measures 6.6 inches. You can expect full HD+ resolution with a 120Hz refresh rate. If you think this sounds familiar, it’s about the same as what we got with last year’s model. To further improve the screen’s visuals, Samsung has given the handset a Vision Booster mode, which is said to provide clear visibility regardless of the environment.

While the display is important, so too are the cameras. The rear setup features a main camera, ultrawide, and macro lens that offers 50MP, 8MP, and 5MP, respectively. Meanwhile, the front camera boasts a 13MP shooter. Overall, the main camera gets a nice bump up from its predecessor, but everything else is fairly the same. Along with these cameras, however, we’re getting some nice camera features such as optical image stabilization, Night Portrait mode, 12-bit HDR, and video digital image stabilization.

On the inside, Samsung’s latest mid-range phone runs on an unspecified Octa-Core processor with your choice of the following configurations: 6GB + 128GB, 8GB + 128GB, or 8GB + 256GB. Last year, the Galaxy A34 5G was home to a MediaTek Dimensity 1080 SoC, while the Galaxy A35 5G launched globally is powered by the octa-core Exynos 1380 SoC, though this hasn’t been specifically confirmed for the US unit.

The Samsung Galaxy A35 5G is powered by a long-lasting 5,000mAh battery and comes with “Super Fast Charging,” which supports up to 25W. This handset also offers decent protection with an IP67 rating.

Something interesting about this new phone is that it is one of the first in the A series to receive Samsung Knox Vault. You can also expect to be protected by Samsung Knox, a multi-layered security platform designed to protect hardware and software from vulnerabilities. The phone launches with One UI 6.1 based on Android 14. Samsung’s update promise covers this phone with four generations of Android OS updates and five years of security updates.

As with the Galaxy S models, the Galaxy A35 works very well with Samsung’s ecosystem. So you can connect with other Galaxy products in your collection.

If the Galaxy A35 sounds like it’s up your alley, it is available starting at $399.99 on Samsung’s website, Samsung Experience Stores, and at major carriers and retailers. You can also get 30% off the Galaxy Buds FE with your purchase, but only for a limited time. In addition, you can trade in your current phone to receive up to $150 off the handset.

Update, March 6, 2024 (7:35 AM ET): We’ve updated this Samsung Galaxy A55 5G rumor hub with more leaked renders and specs via a reliable leaker.

Original article: Samsung’s flagship smartphones might grab the headlines, but it’s hard to go wrong with the brand’s more affordable Galaxy A54 5G. Sporting a high-end design, robust everyday performance, a wonderful camera, and an upgrade pledge that can’t be beaten, it’s not just a tremendous affordable Android phone but a solid all-around pick.

Samsung is gearing up for a busy March with two new A-series smartphones expected to launch soon. Following closely behind the Galaxy A55, recent leaks have now revealed a plethora of information about the Galaxy A35, giving us a comprehensive picture of what to expect from this upcoming device.

Galaxy A35: Everything we know

The fresh leaks from Android Headlines corroborate a few key specifications that were previously spotted on a Google Play Console listing as well. First and foremost, the Galaxy A35 is expected to borrow the Exynos 1380 chip from last year’s A54.

Users will likely have a choice between two memory configurations: 6GB of RAM with 128GB of storage or 8GB of RAM with 256GB of storage. Both options are expected to offer expandable storage via microSD card, and the phone is rumored to sport an IP67 rating, making it water and dust-resistant.

The design of the Galaxy A35 seems to be getting a minor refresh, adopting the flatter aesthetic that has become a signature of Samsung’s 2024 offerings. While the material used for the back panel remains unclear, the phone is expected to be 161.7 x 78 x 8.2mm in size and weigh 209 grams. Color options are rumored to include Awesome Ice Blue, Awesome Lemon, Awesome Lilac, and Awesome Navy.

The display appears to be another area of change, with leaks suggesting a shift from the waterdrop notch of the Galaxy A34 to a modern punch-hole cutout for the front-facing camera. Meanwhile, the A35 is expected to feature a 6.6-inch Super AMOLED display with a Full HD+ (2,380 x 1,080) resolution. The phone is rumored to come with a 5,000mAh battery and support 25W wired charging.

Moving on to the cameras, the primary rear camera is expected to be a new 50MP sensor with f/1.8 aperture. That main camera is followed up by an 8MP ultrawide sensor and a 5MP macro sensor, which seem to have been carried over from the Galaxy A34. The front-facing camera is rumored to be a 13MP sensor with an f/2.2 aperture.

Pricing and availability

While not officially confirmed, the Galaxy A35 will likely launch with Android 14 overlaid with Samsung’s One UI 6.1 interface. The Galaxy A35 is expected to launch alongside its sibling, the Galaxy A55.

According to the leak, European customers can expect a starting price of €379 (around $400) for the 6GB RAM model, with the 8GB RAM variant costing €449 (around $480). A US release could follow soon after, but specific pricing and availability details for the US market are yet to be revealed.