Samsung Galaxy A42 5G First Impressions
We take a look at the new Samsung Galaxy A42 5G that is now available from Globe Telecom and Smart Communications Inc. Postpaid subscription plans!
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| Samsung Galaxy A42 |
Samsung has finally brought the Galaxy A42 to the Philippines thru Globe Telecom and Smart Communications postpaid subscription plans. It features a 6.6-inch Super AMOLED display, 8nm Snapdragon 750G SoC, Adreno 619 GPU, 6GB LPDDR4X RAM, 128GB UFS 2.1, and 5,000mAh battery with 15W fast charging.
It is running on Android 10 with One UI 2.1 and features a quad-rear camera and a 20MP selfie camera. It retails for PHP 19,990.
Disclaimer: Samsung Philippines sent us the Samsung Galaxy A42 unit with no box and no accessories.
Let's dive in!
Build Quality/Design
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| Samsung Galaxy A42 |
The back panel has four shades of gray with a glossy glasstic panel that is slippery and is a fingerprint smudge magnet. There is no mention of water resistance.
Usual Samsung mid-range build
On the top left side is the quad-rear camera set-up with the LED flash. It is made up of a 48MP f/1.8 main camera, 8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle camera, 5MP f/2.4 macro camera, and 5MP f/2.4 depth sensor. At the bottom third of the phone is the Samsung branding.
In between the front and the back is the solid but lightweight polycarbonate frame in the gray colorway.
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| Super AMOLED Display |
In front of the Galaxy A42 is the large 6.6-inch Super AMOLED display with 2.5D curved glass and HD+ 1600 x 720 resolution.
Neat front-look, low-res screen
Around the display are thin top and side bezels while the chin bezel is noticeably thicker than the others. On the top bezel is the notch that houses the 20MP f/2.2 selfie camera. There's no mention of any type of glass protection.
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| Top and bottom |
On top is a single microphone port while at the bottom is the speaker grill, microphone ports, USB Type-C, and 3.5mm headphone jack.
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| Left and right side |
On the left side of the phone is the SIM tray that can carry two nano-SIM cards or one nano SIM and one microSD card slot. While on the right side is the volume rocker and the power button.
The phone measures at only 164.4 x 75.9 x 8.6mm and weighs only 190 grams. It is a lightweight phone that is easy to hold because of the curved back panel and curved frame.
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| Camera UI |
Running the show is Android 10-based One UI 2.1 with the camera app with Photo, Video, Pro, Night, Macro, Live Focus, and more. The rear camera can take videos at up to 4K 30fps while the front-facing camera can take up to 1080 30fps video.
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| AnTuTu score |
In AnTuTu, the Snapdragon 750G, Adreno 619, 6GB RAM, and 128GB UFS 2.1 was able to score a whopping 323,567 with less than a degree in temperature increase.
Samsung Galaxy A42 5G Specs
Display: 6.6-inch 2.5D curved Super AMOLED screen w/ HD+ 1600 x 720 resolution at 266 ppi
CPU: 2.2GHz 8nm Snapdragon 750G octa-core processor
GPU: Adreno 619
RAM: 6GB LPDDR4X
ROM: 128GB UFS 2.1 expandable via microSD card slot up to 1TB
Back Camera: 48MP f/1.8 + 8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide-angle + 5MP f/2.4 macro + 5MP f/2.4 depth + LED flash
Selfie Camera: 20MP f/2.2
Battery: 5,000mAh w/ 15W Adaptive Fast Charging
OS: Android 10 w/ One UI 2.1
Connectivity: WiFi 802.11 ac (2.4GHz/5GHz), 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, OTG, NFC, GPS (L1 + L5), A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo (E1 + E5a), dual SIM
Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic
Others: In-Display fingerprint sensor, Dolby Atmos, USB-C, Colors: Prism Dot Gray, Prism Dot Black
Dimensions: 164.4 x 75.9 x 8.6 mm
Weight: 190 g
Price: PHP 19,990
As of the moment
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| Samsung Galaxy A42's handheld |
Our first impressions of the Galaxy A42 are good. The design is unique and is made of glass, glasstic, and high-quality polycarbonate. It has decent specs with the aforementioned Super AMOLED display, Snapdragon 750G, 8GB LPDRR4X, 128GB UFS 2.1 storage, 5,000mAh battery with 15W fast charging, and the Android 10-base One UI 2.1.
5G for less!
Of course, it has 5G which is rare on a sub-PHP 20K smartphone in the Philippines and we will test that in the next few days.
The one thing that may be of concern is the 720p resolution on the great looking Super AMOLED display. Otherwise, the Galaxy A42 is looking to be a good contender.
What do you guys think?
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