The A80 looks cool and comes with great specs, it’s one of the best phones Samsung’s released in 2019. It gives flagships a run for their money, but is it worth the purchase? Let’s talk about this below.
Quick Navigation
If you don’t want to spend an arm and a leg on it, don’t fret. The warranty and memory variant you get affects a phone’s final price. Choose a store warranty instead of a company one, it’ll be cheaper.
The Samsung A80 is a well-built device. It feels expensive, which isn’t a surprise considering it’s as costly as a flagship.
Unlike many Samsung devices, it doesn’t come with a gradient on its back. Although we’re disappointed, we think the plain back makes it look more sophisticated.
It’s super glossy, which we love. No surprise, there’s gorilla glass on its rear. You’re getting gorilla glass 6, making it extremely tough. This doesn’t mean that you can’t shatter it though, It’s still glass.
We weren’t shocked about the A80 being so heavy. It’s a 220-gram device, which is a heft associated with more premium devices.
Not only is it heavy, but it’s also slim. It’s one of the largest phones we’ve dealt with, coming with 165.2 x 76.5 x 9.3 mm dimensions.
Buttons are not the easiest to reach considering the phone’s so huge. The A80 isn’t the easiest to hold either, especially if you have smaller hands. It’s not impossible, however.
If you look around its sides, you’ll see no headphone jack. What’s worse is the fact that you’re not getting a microSD slot as well. You’re probably wondering how you’ll be listening to music. Well, through its USB C port.
Did we mention the colours you can get the A80 in? They are gold, white, and black.
You’ll notice that its camera is placed awkwardly. There’s a reason for this, which we’ll discuss below.
The A80’s display is breathtaking. It’s 6.7 inches, giving you an insanely immersive viewing experience. The fact that you’re getting a Super AMOLED display helps as well. Colours are vivid and blacks are especially deep. We’re fans, but we would’ve loved it more if the A80 came with a Dynamic AMOLED display – colours would be more stunning.
With one look at its display, you’ll realize that there are barely any bezels in place. There isn’t even a notch. Its selfie camera is its rear camera. It flips around, which is why its set up looks so strange.
As there are barely any bezels, you’re getting an 85.8% screen to body ratio. Your viewing experience will be amazing, but the screen’s incredibly sensitive. This is bitter-sweet as you can imagine.
It’s pretty detailed too. You’re getting a 1080 x 2400 pixel screen resolution. This makes it almost impossible to notice any blurriness.
Sadly, its display is not as bright as it should be. You’re getting a 577 maximum nit display. It can easily combat glare, but cheaper phones like the A8 come with 600 maximum nit displays.
As there’s gorilla glass 6 on its rear, it’s not surprising that the glass is on its front too. Unfortunately, its younger brother is in place, gorilla glass 3. It’s not as tough, but tempered glass exists for a reason.
If you’ve been following our reviews, you’d know that Samsung’s not a fan of large batteries. The A80 isn’t any different, they placed a 3700 mAh unit in it. Considering that its display is huge, it gets drained pretty fast. You’ll barely last a day with it.
In terms of charging, you’re getting a 25 W fast charger. It charges from 0-100% in a little over an hour.
You’d expect a device its price to come with wireless charging. Unfortunately, it disappoints.
The A80 has a great chipset. It isn’t a beast, but the Snapdragon 730 performs well. The phone’s a breeze to use and can handle more extensive tasks. If you’re wondering, no, it does not come with an Exynos variant.
It’s pretty snappy too. This is due to its memory capacity. It has 128 gigs of space and 8 GB of RAM. 128 gigs should be more than enough, but if it isn’t, you, unfortunately, can’t expand it.
Remember how we mentioned that it doesn’t come with a MicroSD slot? We have to say, 8 gigs of RAM is really good. Flagships like the S10 come with as much RAM too.
You’re getting Android 9 out of the box. The A80 can be upgraded to Android 10, thankfully.
Its rear camera is motorized. When you want to take selfies, it rotates forward. Unfortunately, it does this pretty slowly.
As you use its main camera to take selfies, you’re always Instagram ready. You’re not relying on an inferior front set up after all.
Now, how great is its rear camera? There’s a dual camera set up for you to use. The primary sensor is 48 MPs, while the second one is 8 MPs. It takes fabulous shots. They’re detailed and colourful. No surprise, the phone’s pretty expensive after all.
In low light, shots aren’t too bad. Our only complaint is that things don’t look that detailed when the lights go out. But this isn’t a huge concern.
You probably noticed that we’re fans of the Samsung A80. If you’re thinking of making the purchase, the section below is a must-read. We compared the device with a couple of alternatives.
As its name suggests, the A90 is superior to the A80. We certainly think it is.
For starters, it’s equally as big but not as heavy. Don’t get us wrong, we love a hefty phone. But being 6.7 inches and weighing so much makes the A80 feel like a brick. Now, how heavy is the A90? It’s a 206-gram device.
Its back is not plain. It comes with an effect that looks the best in its white variant, it’s almost pearl-like.
With one look at its rear, you’ll notice that the A90 doesn’t look like the A80. This is as its camera is not motorized.
While speaking about its back, you’re getting a device made from gorilla glass 6. It’s on the front too.
With your purchase, you’re getting a device that rocks the flagship Snapdragon 855 processor. It runs laps around the A80’s chip, making the A90 a beast of a device. What’s even better is the fact that the handset is 5G!
The A90 doesn’t come with that many memory variants, unfortunately. You only get 128 GBs of space, and you can choose from 6 or 8 gigs of RAM. Fortunately for you, you get a microSD slot. However, it’s only in the 6 gig RAM variant.
Let’s talk about its display:
We’ve already established that it’s massive at 6.7 inches. You probably didn’t know that it comes with a better screen to body ratio. It’s 86.1% after all. We have to say, the better screen to body ratio is impressive considering that there’s a notch on the A90 while there wasn’t one on the A80.
Once again, you’re met with a Super AMOLED display. We love Super AMOLEDs, so we have no complaints. We see no reason why a Dynamic AMOLED display couldn’t have been used, though.
The Samsung device comes with a 1080 x 2400 pixel display. It’s as sharp as the one on its counterpart.
It’s a brighter phone too. The A90 comes with a 581 maximum nit display.
Battery-wise, you’re getting a large 4500 mAh unit. Although bigger, the A90 comes with a large screen and powerful processor. Its battery will only last you a day.
A 25 W fast charger is at your disposal as well. The phone takes a little over an hour to fully charge.
What about its camera? One of the best we’ve worked with. There’s a triple camera set up, with a 48 MP primary sensor, an 8 MP secondary ultrawide sensor, and a 5 MP tertiary depth sensor. In terms of its front camera, a massive 32 MP unit is by your side.
The A71 is much lighter than the A80. It’s a 171-gram device, which makes it a feather in comparison.
Not only is it lighter, but it’s also not as well built. Fortunately for us, it comes with a plastic body that looks glass-like. It also has a cool effect that we’re fans of.
We’re also fans of its size. Like the other 2, the A71 is 6.7 inches. But it’s difficult to hold if you have smaller hands.
Being so big, it’s no surprise that it comes with a great display. You’re getting a Super AMOLED panel. Expecting the A71 to come with a Dynamic AMOLED display would be out of the question as it’s not flagship level expensive, unlike the A80.
Surprisingly, the cheaper A71 has a better screen to body ratio. It’s 87.2%, even outdoing the very expensive Galaxy A90.
Like the A80, it comes with a 1080 x 2400 pixel screen resolution. Considering that it has a better screen to body ratio, this means it provides the best viewing experience so far.
However, it doesn’t perform as well outdoors. The A71 has a 515 maximum nit display, so good luck.
Unfortunately, you’re not getting gorilla glass 6 on its display. You’re met with gorilla glass 3. It’s durable, but tempered glass exists for a reason.
We love the fact that you’re getting Android 10 out of the box.
We also love the A71’s memory variants. You can choose from 128 gigs of space along with 6 or 8 GBs of RAM. Thankfully, there’s a microSD slot in the device.
Its battery is much bigger. It’s 4500 mAh, eating the A80’s battery up. You can last two days with it by your side. The 25 W fast charger we met in our A80 review is present once again. It takes the A71 a little over an hour to fully charge.
The A90 and A80 didn’t come with wireless charging, and they were more expensive. Expecting the A71 to do so would be crazy.
You’re probably wondering about its processor. You’re met with the Snapdragon 730 chip again.
Did we mention how great the A71’s cameras are? You’re getting a quad lens set up. The primary sensor is an impressive 64 MPs. We have to say, it’s really good, especially in low light.
What about its front camera? Well, there’s a large 32 MP sensor for you to play with.
The Mi Note 10 is big. However, it’s easily overshadowed by the Samsung A80. You’re getting a 6.47-inch device, so your viewing experience is still pretty great.
Super AMOLEDs are Samsung’s, so you won’t be seeing the panel in the Xiaomi device. Instead, you’re met with a regular AMOLED screen. It’s an OLED, so colours pop.
The Mi Note 10 has a 1080P display as well. That being said, its resolution is not as sharp as the A80’s. It’s 1080 x 2340 pixels. Is this difference noticeable, though? Not really.
You’re getting the best screen-to-body ratio so far. The Mi Note 10 outdoes the other 3, coming in at 87.8%.
It's bright too, coming with a 600 maximum nit display.
Did we mention that it’s also a good-looking phone? There’s a metallic effect on its rear, really making it pop. It feels sturdy as there’s gorilla glass 5 on its front and back too.
Enough about its exterior, let’s talk about what’s inside. You’re met with the Snapdragon 730 chipset. It’s the Snapdragon 730 G chip, which is more powerful.
Out of the box, you’re getting Android 9. The Mi Note 10 can be upgraded to Android 10, as expected.
In terms of the memory variants at your disposal, there’s only one. The phone comes with 128 gigs of space and 6 GBs of RAM. Like the A80, you’re not getting a MicroSD slot, sadly.
We have to say, its battery is jaw-dropping. A 5260 mAh unit is by your side, easily lasting 2 days. The best fast charger we’ve seen so far is present as well. It’s a 30 W fast charger, taking the phone around an hour to fully charge.
Camera-wise, there’s an incredible quad set up. The primary set up in 108 MPs and takes incredibly low light shots. And in the front camera? There’s a 32 MP lens at your disposal.
Its display is huge and extremely immersive. Let’s not forget that its processor is great as well. Its battery power is good, but certainly not the best. This is true for its camera as well.
We’re fond of the phone, but we can’t get past its motorized camera. It moves too slow and sticks out like a sore thumb. It’s the opposite of good-looking.
It’s not a flagship killer, at least in 2020.
At the end of the day, the phone costs as much as a flagship, so spending on one instead seems like a good move. You could even spend on the cheaper Xiaomi Mi Note 10. We think it’s far better.
Liked what you saw? We have content as great as our Samsung A80 review on our Facebook page. We regularly update it with information on your favourite phones, so why don’t you give it a look?
