Samsung has launched a new 64 MP Camera Smartphone and this time it’s the A70s. The device is a successor to the Samsung Galaxy A70 but when it comes to the specs there are no major changes to be seen. You still get the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 chipset with a 4500 mAh battery packed inside the smartphone. Is the Samsung Galaxy A70s worth buying? Read our review to find out.
Samsung Galaxy A70s Specifications
- Display: 6.7-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED Infinity U display with 2400 x 1080 pixels screen resolution and 20:9 aspect ratio
- CPU: 2 GHz Octa-Core Snapdragon 675 Mobile Platform
- GPU: Adreno 612 GPU
- RAM: 6/8 GB
- Storage: 128 GB internal; expandable up to 512 GB
- OS: Android 9.0 (Pie) with Samsung One UI
- Rear Camera: 64 MP rear camera with LED flash with f/1.8 aperture + 5 MP depth sensor with f/2.2 aperture + 8 MP 123° ultra-wide-angle camera with f/2.2 aperture
- Front Camera: 32 MP front camera with f/2.0 aperture
- Others: In-display Fingerprint sensor
- Connectivity: Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5, GPS + GLONASS, and USB Type-C port
- Colors: Prism Crush Red, Prism Crush White and Prism Crush Black
- Battery: 4500 mAh with 25W super-fast charging
Design, Display, & Ergonomics
The Samsung Galaxy A70s comes with a diamond-cut finish on the back and it looks quite similar to what we have previously seen on the Galaxy A50s and A30s. The triple camera setup is placed on the top left corner and the phone doesn’t attract fingerprints as it comes in a glossy polycarbonate body. The device weighs 187 grams and feels a bit heavy when you hold it in your hands.
The SIM Tray is placed on the left and you get the Volume Buttons on the right. The phone does come with a headphone jack which is placed in the bottom along with a Type-C port. The phone is available in three colors and we got the Prism Crush Red variant to play around with. The sound output from the speakers which are placed at the bottom of the device is decent but sometimes the volume gets too low when you adjust it. The phone comes with support for Dolby ATMOS that enhances the sound based on the content you are streaming. It is to be noted that it only works when you have your headphones on.
Moving on to the display, the Samsung Galaxy A70s comes with a 6.7-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED Infinity U display with a resolution of 2400 x 1080 pixels. It has an aspect ratio of 20:9 with a screen to body ratio of 86%. Samsung is known for its AMOLED display’s and hence when it comes to the display quality you won’t be disappointed. The display is super bright and produces punchy and vivid colors which makes it really good for video streaming. Using your smartphone outside won’t be a tough job as everything on the screen is easily visible even in the direct sunlight. You get a small notch on the front that houses your 32 MP selfie snapper.
The face unlock on the device works fine but the in-display fingerprint scanner is not the best in the range. The device comes with support for always-on display and you can customize it as per your needs.
User Interface and Software
Samsung Galaxy A70s runs on Android 9 Pie which is based on the Samsung One UI that brings us a lot of additional features. You get features such as Galaxy Themes that allows you to change your themes and updates your icons, lock screen wallpapers and stuff. The device comes with Minimal Bloatware and mostly every pre-installed app can be uninstalled.
While everyone is waiting to get the Dark Mode in Android’s next big update, you can experience it right now on the A70s thanks to its One UI. Features like One-Handed Mode, Dual Messenger, and some additional gesture-based shortcuts also come with the OneUI. It’s been a few weeks since the device came out in the market but it has already started to receive an update which changes the Security patch level to September 1, 2019.
We’ve already covered One UI in the past so if you want to know more you can have a look at it. Meanwhile, have a look at the screenshots below to see how the OneUI looks on the Samsung Galaxy A70s.
Hardware Performance, Benchmarks, and Gaming
The Samsung Galaxy A70s is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 Processor which is further paired with 6/8 GB of RAM. Now for those who don’t know, Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 is the same chipset that we have seen on mid-range devices. Most of the devices that use this chipset are priced between Rs.12,000 to Rs.18,000. The Samsung Galaxy A70 also came with the Snapdragon 675 chipset and it is sad to see that Samsung didn’t give an upgrade with the A70s.
Moving on to the performance, the device is capable to handle day to day tasks easily. You won’t face any issues or app crashes when you are multitasking on the device. However, when it comes to Gaming that’s the area where you’ll be disappointed. Games like Mario Kart, Temple Run 2 and Real Racing 3 run easily but when it comes to heavy games like PUBG Mobile and Call of Duty Mobile the device starts facing problems.
HD Graphics with High Frame Rate is the maximum supported settings for PUBG Mobile on the device. However, with the maximum settings applied the game gets major frame drops and you can’t play it. Hence, if you want to play PUBG Mobile on this device you’ll have to set your Graphics to Smooth or Balanced with the frame rate set to Ultra or High for a good experience.
When it comes to COD Mobile the gameplay experience is better than PUBG as the game runs on High graphics with a Very High frame rate with minimal frame drops. Overall, if you want a smartphone for gaming there are better options like the Xiaomi Redmi K20 Pro and OnePlus 7 which are available in the market.
When it comes to Benchmarks, the device gets a score of 165634 on AnTuTu Benchmark. On Geekbench 5 the Samsung Galaxy A70s manages to get a Single-core score of 358 and a Multi-core score of 1548. In addition to this, we also ran the Androbench Benchmark for testing the storage. The Sequential Read speed was up to 485MB/s whereas the Sequential Write speed was up to 193MB/s. You can have a look at the Benchmark results below.
Moving on to the battery life, the Samsung Galaxy A70s packs a powerful 4500mAh battery and it comes with support for 25W super-fast charging. The battery easily lasts up to a day and gamers can get up to 9-10 hours of power for gaming depending on the Usage.
When it comes to Connectivity the device supports Dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz + 5GHz), Bluetooth 5, GPS + GLONASS, and comes with a USB Type-C port.
Camera
The camera is the main highlight of this smartphone as it comes with a triple camera setup that features a 64 MP Samsung GW1 primary sensor with f/1.8 aperture. It also features a 5 MP depth sensor with f/2.2 aperture + 8 MP 123° ultra-wide-angle camera with f/2.2 aperture. On the front, you get a 32 MP front camera with an f/2.0 aperture.
The triple camera setup on the back does its job right and the pictures you get are really good. The pictures which are clicked Indoors have good amount of details and thanks to the scene optimizer the camera adjusts its settings to the conditions you are shooting in and the colors pop out well. The same is the case when you shoot outdoors. The pictures that were taken in outdoor lightning conditions look better than the shots you take indoors as the outdoor shots bring out more punchy and vibrant colors.
Samsung didn’t compromise with the Ultra-wide lens too as the ultra-wide shots come out really well with a high amount of details. The front camera also does an impressive job and the skin tones in your selfies turn out to be really good. Bokeh and the Background Blur you get in your pictures is amazing as the live focus mode works really well.
One thing which is disappointing is the Pro mode on the as it is just limited to White Balance, ISO, and Exposure. The people who love shooting their pictures making the full use of manual mode will be disappointed here. Other than that, the device comes with Food, Nightscape, Panorama, and a Live Focus Mode that help you to get better pictures out from your device. We captured a few shots with the Samsung Galaxy A70s and you can have a look at the camera samples below.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy A70s looks beautiful but the device disappoints when it comes to performance. At this price, you can get the Redmi K20 Pro, Asus Zenfone 6z or the OnePlus 7 which offer you flagship-grade performance. The A70s handle the day to day tasks with ease but when you pay 30K for a smartphone you can’t settle with less. At this price range mostly every smartphone offers the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset but the Galaxy A70 uses Snapdragon 675 which is the same chipset that we’ve seen in mid-range devices like the Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro. Hence, if you aren’t a heavy user or you are specifically looking to buy a Samsung smartphone then, yes, the Samsung Galaxy A70s is the ideal choice for you.
Pros
- Beautiful Design
- Camera
- Dolby Atmos Support
Cons
- Performance
- Overpriced
