Samsung has various phone series. A, S, J, M, Z, etc. The Samsung A series stands out among all the phones. It’s not as pricey as the S and Z series but has higher specs. Furthermore, it’s specs are also better than the M and J series phones.
So, why the Samsung A series is cheap?
Samsung A series is cheap because these phones have a lower build quality, mediocre processor, weaker camera, inferior display, less RAM and memory, feature compromisation, and no long term software support.
Let’s elaborate.
Note: A series naming is very interesting. The higher the number after “A,” the better the specs. For example, between Galaxy A42 and Galaxy A12, A42 has better specs.
A series has cheaper build quality:
Samsung S and Z series has superior build quality. Samsung uses glass and metal to make these phones. On the contrary, A series phone’s build quality is not that great. All of the phones in this series have a plastic back and sometimes low-quality alloy frame. That’s why A-series phones are cheap.
However, this inferior build quality is intentional. The A-series is targeted to budget phone buyers; therefore, these phones’ price must be lower than the S series. The only way Samsung could achieve it by making a phone which has a plastic body.
A series has a weaker processor:
The A-series phones have weaker processors than flagship Samsung phones. They either use older generation Snapdragon processors or mediocre Mediatek processor. Depending on the market, sometimes they also make phones using Samsung’s Exynos processor. Because of these processors, the A-series is cheap.
Having a weaker processor in a phone is not a bad thing. A modern-day mobile processor is more powerful than our 2010s computer processor. But the problem arises due to the Android operating system.
Android OS is a resource-intensive mobile operating system. Though Samsung optimizes this OS, the problem arises after several years when the processor becomes weak.
Have you ever noticed that a new Samsung phone operates super fast but becomes slower after 12 to 13 months? It’s because the mediocre processor loses its computational power over time.
Android is a very heavy OS. On top of that, Samsung is not good at software optimization like Google or Apple. Thus, though the A series is cheap, a weaker processor with unoptimized OS makes this phone a bad choice for long term usage.
Inferior Display:
Galaxy S and Z series always comes with a cutting edge Super AMOLED display. Especially the Z series, where Samsung uses a foldable screen.
Whereas in the A-series, Samsung uses various types of display, from IPS LCD to AMOLED. These display units cost less than the flagship Super AMOLED or foldable screens. It’s another reason why A-series phones are cheap.
We need to remember that not all screen types are not made equal in quality. Similarly, not all Super AMOLED display has the same kind of quality.
For example, an Octacore Exynos processor and an Octacore Snapdragon processor do not have the same performance. We all know that Snapdragon processors are superior to Exynos and have a better thermal management system than Exynos.
The Super AMOLED screens that Samsung uses in the A series are different from those of the S series display units. The display drivers, thermal management unit, power consumption, etc., everything is inferior in the A-series. But because of this, Samsung can offer these phones at a lower price than their flagship lineup.
Weaker Camera:
A-series phones have weaker cameras. Though Samsung provides up to 64MP cameras in their A-series, a megapixel is not everything on mobile phones. Here’s an example, the 12MP camera on an iPhone takes better pictures and videos than 64MP A-series cameras.
On a camera, image sensor quality is crucial. Similar to our earlier example regarding the processor, not all 64MP image sensor has the same quality.
As Samsung uses weaker cameras, A-series phones are cheap.
No long term OS support:
If you buy an iPhone, Apple will provide OS updates for up to 60 months. But Samsung never provides OS support for more than 24 months. Not even in their flagship lineup.
Long term OS support for the A series is even worse. Samsung hardly provides any update for this phone series. Thus, A-series phones are cheap because they don’t spend a lot of money on the Software support team.
However, Samsung is not alone. Most mid-range phone manufacturers don’t give OS updates for more than 12 to 18 months. The software support team is expensive. Samsung is making more than 20 models in a year. Furthermore, each model has several variants such as single SIM, dual SIM, phone using Snapdragon processor or Exynos processor, etc.
Even if Samsung wants, they can’t provide updates for each of these models.
Compromised features:
A-series phones come with compromised hardware and software features.
For example, not all models in this series are waterproof and dustproof.
MHL is an excellent piece of technology. MHL stands for Mobile High Definition Link. You can use a USB to MHL cable to transport the phone’s display data to a TV or a projector. Here’s an example of MHL cable on Amazon. But many A-series phones does not have MHL support.
Many A-series phones also do not support Samsung DEX, eSIM, wireless charging, mobile link, and reverse wireless charging.
The RAM and internal memory are also compromised. For example, 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage A-series phone is typical.
Because of these compromising hardware and software features, Samsung A-series phones are cheaper.
Samsung also has pricier A-series phones:
Not all A-series phones are cheap. For example, A12 may be affordable, but A71 5G is expensive.
Bottom Line:
Not everyone can buy an iPhone because of the high price. However, Samsung makes phones for everyone. The A-series is a mid-range phone at a lower price for those who don’t want to buy premium-priced flagships.
