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Introduction
The best way to describe the Galaxy A series in recent years is sprawling. Its lineup is so diverse, spanning all the way from budget to nearly flagship-grade offers that Samsung could have easily spun it off into a sub-brand of its own. Not that we are suggesting they should.
The Korean giant is clearly banking hard on the Galaxy A family. In fact, it now represents the largest portion of the company's sales. There is only one way to pull off that level of success - and it's by offering competitive features under high-profile branding for a reasonable amount. A daunting task that Samsung has been tackling like a true smartphone champ in nifty incremental steps throughout the last few Galaxy A generations.
This year the Galaxy A32, as well as the recently-announced A72 and A52 duo all deliver strong on the value scale. But it's arguably the vanilla Galaxy A52 model that shines the brightest and goes above and beyond this year.
The device we are looking into in this review is the LTE version of the Galaxy A52. It is the one that starts at €349 (MSRP) for a 4GB/128GB unit, while the 5G variant retails from €430. The latter swaps in a faster Snapdragon 750G chipset and a faster 120Hz panel and bumps the minimum RAM size to 6GB. Nothing spectacular in terms of added value, if you ask us.
Samsung Galaxy A52 specs at a glance:
- Body: 159.9x75.1x8.4mm, 189g; plastic frame, plastic back, Gorilla Glass 5 front; IP67 dust/water resistant (up to 1m for 30 mins).
- Display: 6.50" Super AMOLED, 90Hz, 800 nits (peak), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 405ppi.
- Chipset: Qualcomm SM7125 Snapdragon 720G (8 nm): Octa-core (2x2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6x1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver); Adreno 618.
- Memory: 128GB 4GB RAM, 128GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 8GB RAM; microSDXC (uses shared SIM slot).
- OS/Software: Android 11, One UI 3.1.
- Rear camera: Wide (main): 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm, 1/1.7X", 0.8µm, PDAF, OIS; Ultra wide angle: 12 MP, f/2.2, 123-degree, 1.12µm; Macro: 5 MP, f/2.4; Depth: 5 MP, f/2.4.
- Front camera: 32 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/2.8", 0.8µm.
- Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/120fps; gyro-EIS; Front camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps.
- Battery: 4500mAh; Fast charging 25W, 50% in 30 min (advertised).
- Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); 3.5mm jack; ANT+.
Things get a lot more impressive in the value department when we compare the A52 with last year's Galaxy A51, though. Sure, the price has gone up a bit, but, in no particular order, you now get a 90Hz refresh rate, IP67 rating, stereo speakers, a bigger 4,500 mAh battery, with 25W charging and a higher-res 64MP main camera, with OIS.
That inches the Galaxy A52 pretty close to a flagship feature set in our mind, for lack of a better term. The value proposition is great, and there is very little not to like here. At least on paper, that is. Join us as we dive into the review for the ins and outs.
Unboxing
The Galaxy A52 comes in a simple two-piece package. Nothing too fancy, no plastic, just paper. Thick and rigid, it gets the job done. As far as accessories, you only get a charger, of the regular Type-A variety and a matching Type-A to Type-C cable. A few leaflets and that's about it.
It is worth noting that the Galaxy A52 supports up to 25W charging. However, it does not ship with one. Instead, you get a basic 15W unit in the box. This might still vary from market to market, though, so it is worth checking with your retailer of choice. Plus, it's not that big of a deal to get one separately if you need faster charging, but still, it's enough to raise a few eyebrows.
Design
Samsung is really working hard to make the Galaxy A series desirable, not just as a better value proposition but also visually. Hence, the trendy new re-styling, spearheaded by the Galaxy A72 and A52. These devices' marketing is clearly targeted to the young Gen-Z crowd, mainly with a creative and social angle.
The new design mainly focuses on the rear panel, which now features a soft and silky finish, almost like a vinyl skin. It is available in Awesome Black, Awesome White, Awesome Violet and Awesome Blue.
"Awesome" is sort of a marketing cornerstone for the A32, A52 and A72 with Samsung really hammering-in the models' "awesome battery, display and camera" and the "Awesome is for everyone" slogan. But, we digress. The Violet unit we have is both quite eye-catching and manages to leave a lasting impression when held in hand. The actual feel is sort of smooth and rubbery but also slightly silky. It is very particular, and we recommend trying it out for yourself before committing since the reactions around the office to it were varied.
The shape of the rear panel is also a bit particular. It sort of tucks into the phone's middle frame at a slightly more-aggressive angle, leaving behind a bit of a lip. It's neither better nor worse than the gradual slope found on most other glass or plastic back handsets. Just a bit different.
Despite its particular outline, the main camera island on the Galaxy A52 is clearly inspired by the original design language of the Galaxy A51, with clear inspiration for accents also being drawn from the Galaxy Note 20 family.
In terms of construction and materials, the Galaxy A52 feels well-made and solidly put together. It's not a particularly hefty device, but it is still a bit thicker than its predecessor, measuring 159.9 x 75.1 x 8.4 mm and a bit heavier at 189 grams. The middle frame is plastic and that's our best guess for the rear panel, as well. The display gets Gorilla Glass 5, which is upgraded from the Gorilla Glass 3 on the Galaxy A51. Another major upgrade in this department is the IP67 ingress protection rating. This is a first for the Galaxy A family and very much appreciated.
Controls
There is nothing particularly special or unorthodox about the control layout on the Galaxy A52, which we can't complain about. It's great to see that the 3.5mm audio jack is still present and accounted for on the bottom of the phone. Next to it - a Type-C port, with a USB 2.0 controller behind it, with OTG functionality. And next to that - a single bottom-firing speaker.
The newfound stereo loudspeaker setup on the Galaxy A52 is a hybrid one, with the earpiece pulling double-duty as the second channel. That leaves to top side of the device mostly empty, only housing a secondary noise-cancelling mic and a Dual Nano-SIM card tray. It is also a hybrid affair, with the second slot doubling as a microSD cradle, so you have to pick and choose.
The left side of the Galaxy A52 is absolutely uninterrupted. This is one area where you can most-easily feel the plastic material of the frame itself. If you don't specifically focus on it, though, we have to say that the finish feels good and doesn't come off as cheap in any way. It is not trying to imitate metal, though, either.
The right frame houses the power button and volume rockers. Both ergonomically positioned, "clicky" and responsive. No complaints there.
The bezels surrounding the 6.5-inch display on the front are nice and thin. They are not quite as thin as those on the Galaxy A51, but the difference is marginal, at best, in person. Plus, the amplified earpiece might have required some extra room. And also, the tight selfie punch hole makes for a modern look.
The under-display fingerprint reader on the A52 is pretty consistent, though a bit sluggish by today's standards. Still reliable enough, though.
The only complaint we can think of here is the lack of a notification LED.
Brighter and faster 90Hz, 6.5-inch AMOLED display
The Galaxy A52, as well as this year's A32 and A72, for that matter, all offer solid display upgrades over their predecessors. Samsung has brought out all of the stops this time around for its budget lineup. High refresh rate is making a debut in the Galaxy A family, and it's not just limited to one device either. All of the above models have new, smooth 90Hz panels. That includes the 6.5-inch one on the Galaxy A52.
Not only is the panel faster, but it is significantly brighter, as well. Samsung advertises a sunlight brightness of 800 nits on the A52. While we didn't quite match that, we came very close with our standardized tests, which utilize 75% of the display area.
The A52 is thus comfortably usable outdoors, even in sunny weather.
| Display test | 100% brightness | ||
| Black, |
White, |
||
| 0 | 814 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 794 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 756 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 677 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 642 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 596 | ∞ | |
| 0.455 | 596 | 1310:1 | |
| 0 | 585 | ∞ | |
| 0.667 | 571 | 856:1 | |
| 0 | 570 | ∞ | |
| 0.325 | 521 | 1603:1 | |
| 0.376 | 484 | 1287:1 | |
| 0.348 | 476 | 1368:1 | |
| 0 | 459 | ∞ | |
| 0.259 | 435 | 1680:1 | |
| 0 | 424 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 410 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 395 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 393 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 386 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 373 | ∞ | |
| 0 | 323 | ∞ | |
In terms of colors, there are two profiles available on the Galaxy A52 - Vivid (default) and Natural. The former comes with a color tone slider, as well as custom white point adjustment.
Display color settings
Natural, as is typically the case on Samsung devices, targets sRGB accuracy and does so very well on the A52. It can be considered perfectly color-accurate.
As great as the new generation of a fast and bright panel on the Galaxy A52 is, it does lack HDR capabilities, or at the very-last HDR certification. Still, on the plus side, the phone has Widevine L1 support, which means that services like Netflix offer up FullHD resolution to properly make use of the FullHD panel.
Netflix resolution screen
Samsung has also included blue light protection, called Eye comfort shield. It has an adaptive setting that gradually adjusts colors throughout the day, if you are into that, as well as a simpler schedule option. You can also have Dark mode on a schedule.
Eye comfort shield
High refresh rate handling
90Hz is pretty-much the "entry-level" high refresh rate option on a modern smartphone. Even so, the extra smoothness and responsiveness it offers, particularly with scrolling, is tangible and much appreciated. And even if it is on the low end of the refresh rate scale, you still want it handled properly, both so you can get the most out of the experience and not waste any unnecessary battery life in the process.
Samsung hasn't promised any advanced refresh rate behavior on the A52 like the one it has on its flagships and, indeed, the 90Hz refresh rate mode mostly sticks the panel to 90Hz and leaves it there.
We tried apps such as the default Gallery app and video player, Google Photos, Gmail, Drive, and Play Store - they all run at 90Hz. YouTube, Netflix, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok and Snapchat as well.
Apps that specifically mandate 60Hz operation for one reason or another would of course run at the lower refresh rate, but they are the exceptions to the rule. Notable examples include Google Maps and the Camera app, as well as other apps that use a Maps UI component or call up a camera viewfinder.
This cements our conclusion further that what Samsung is calling "High" Motion smoothness mode on the A52 just means 90Hz mode. In all fairness, there isn't any mention of the word "adaptive" or anything to suggest that throughout the UI, so we can't complain too much.
As far as wasting battery through high refresh rate goes, 90Hz is a mild offender over 60Hz, as you will see in the battery test section. We just remain hopeful that Samsung will eventually inject some extra "smarts" into the system via software updates.
Finally, we naturally tried some games on the Galaxy A52 that are known to support higher refresh rate panels. However, the thing is that often anything past the 60fps mark is a big ask for the Adreno 618 GPU inside the phone. Even with the help of the performance optimizations and resolution scaler offered by the Samsung Game Launcher.
Samsung Game Launcher
Still, it is at least encouraging to see that the Galaxy A52 runs these titles with 90Hz enabled on its panel, instead of dropping down to 60Hz. Of course, that is not to say that it always manages 90fps to saturate said refresh rate. Still, if you keep the games fairly simple and light, there are plenty of titles that can run at a smoother-than-60 refresh rate on the Galaxy A52 and provide a superior experience.
Games running at 90Hz
Battery life
Samsung managed to pack a respectable 4,500 mAh battery inside the 8.4mm, 189-gram body of the Galaxy A52. That's less than the 5,000 mAh housed within the similarly sized Galaxy A32, but also a nice bump up from the 4,000 mAh in the last-gen Galaxy A51.
As per our typical practice on devices with high refresh rate displays, we made sure to do our on-screen video and web browsing testing at different refresh rates. In the case of the Galaxy A52 - at 90Hz and then at 60Hz.
Starting at default 90Hz "High smoothness" mode, the Galaxy A52 managed a respectable 105 hours of endurance in our battery testing. That's about what we have come to expect out of a battery this size in a phone with the Snapdragon 720G chipset and an OLED panel.
You can check the Realme 7 Pro for reference. It has similar hardware though, it is worth noting that it only has a 60Hz display instead of a 90Hz one.
While on the topic of consistent chipset performance, the Snapdragon 720G managed respectable and consistent, as per our database, numbers for both call testing and standby. Naturally, if you go for the Galaxy A52 5G model, with its Snapdragon 750G chipset, instead of the LTE variant we are testing today, you can expect lower numbers in both tests.
With the newfound 90Hz panel on the Galaxy A52, one thing worth exploring is just how much more power the display uses at its maximum refresh rate compared to 60Hz. As we have proven repeatedly, the jump in power draw from 60Hz to 90Hz on a modern OLED panel isn't all that much and makes the extra smoothness well worth the compromise.
We specifically went out of our way to playback our offline video in 90Hz mode for the 90Hz testing, which is an outright waste. About an hour and a half of waste, to put it in numbers, which you can and should save yourself by just switching to 60Hz for video consumption.
The web browser delta is a lot smaller, which makes sense since adjusting the refresh rate does nothing for the Wi-Fi modem power consumption, which is a substantial chunk of the equation. Whereas video decoding on a modern smartphone is a low-effort task for an ARM hardware video decoder, leaving the display and speakers as the main power consumers in this scenario.
Our battery tests were automated thanks to SmartViser, using its viSer App. The endurance rating above denotes how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the Samsung Galaxy A52 for an hour each of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. We've established this usage pattern so that our battery results are comparable across devices in the most common day-to-day tasks. The battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you're interested in the nitty-gritty. You can check out our complete battery test table, where you can see how all of the smartphones we've tested will compare under your own typical use.
Charging speed
Like we mentioned in the unboxing section, the Samsung Galaxy A52 ships with a tried-and-true 15W (9V@1.67A) Adaptive Fast Charging adaptor (Quick Charge based), that even uses an older-style USB Type-A to Type-C cable. This is all in the name of cutting costs. But, a new addition for this generation of Galaxy A devices is 25W PD charging support. To get that to work, you do have to buy a 25W PD charger separately, though.
We did have one so the test charts below will show you the results with both chargers, clearly outlining the benefits of the more powerful charger. We are a bit sour that Samsung didn't include the 25W charger outright, but we guess the company is eager to pump up its charger sale volumes this year, so we are left with no choice but to go with the flow. Who said you need to buy your more powerful charger from Samsung anyway?
30min charging test (from 0%)
- Realme 7 Pro
94% - Realme 7 5G
57% - Realme 7 5G
57% - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
54% - Samsung Galaxy A52 (25W)
52% - Samsung Galaxy A71
51% - Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro
50% - Samsung Galaxy A51 5G
39% - Samsung Galaxy A51
35% - Samsung Galaxy A52
34% - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
27% - Poco M3
25% - Xiaomi Redmi 9T
25%
Time to full charge (from 0%)
- Realme 7 Pro
0:37h - Realme 7 5G
1:06h - Realme 7 5G
1:06h - Samsung Galaxy S21+ 5G
1:12h - Samsung Galaxy A71
1:21h - Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro
1:21h - Samsung Galaxy A52 (25W)
1:30h - Samsung Galaxy A51 5G
1:30h - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
2:01h - Samsung Galaxy A52
2:03h - Samsung Galaxy A51
2:14h - Poco M3
2:30h - Xiaomi Redmi 9T
2:30h
Even so, the potential bump in charging speed is there, tangible and very much appreciated as a small, but nifty generational upgrade.
Speaker test
Speaking of small, but nifty generational updates that pile up nicely on the Galaxy A52, it now gets the benefit of a stereo speaker setup. It is not a "proper" one per say, since the phone only one bottom-firing proper speaker, with an amplified earpiece acting as the other channel. Even so, it makes a noticeable difference in multimedia consumption, which is greatly appreciated.
Overall, it's not the loudest nor the cleanest speaker setup around, by any stretch of the imagination. Even so, it manages to outpace a lot of competitors in the mid-range space, managing a "good" loudness score for its -27 LUFS of loudness in its default mode. That is to say, with Dolby Atmos turned off and the Equalizer set to normal. Turning Dolby Atmos On expectedly lowers maximum volume a bit, down to -29.3 LUFS.
That's actually worth pointing out, as well - not only does the Galaxy A52 have a stereo speaker setup, but it also has a Dolby Atmos implementation. One that includes presets for movies, music and voice, as well as an automatic option. As a nifty bonus on top of that - Dolby Atmos for gaming specifically picks-up and optimizes certain sounds, like footsteps in-game, for a slight competitive advantage.
Dolby Atmos, equalizers and Adapt sound on the Galaxy A52
In our testing, Dolby Atmos managed to offer slight improvements in frequency response in the extreme lows without really altering the rest of the curve in any substantial way. If you elect to leave it off, you will get more loudness overall, though that is hardly vital for multimedia consumption when the phone is typically going to be quite close to your ears. In any case, it is better to have the option and potentially elect not to use it than not have it at all.
Rounding off the audio section, the Galaxy A52 also has an advanced equalizer, as well as Samsung's Adapt sound system, which can tune the audio profile to your specific personal needs and preferences.
Use the Playback controls to listen to the phone sample recordings (best use headphones). We measure the average loudness of the speakers in LUFS. A lower absolute value means a louder sound. A look at the frequency response chart will tell you how far off the ideal "0db" flat line is the reproduction of the bass, treble, and mid frequencies. You can add more phones to compare how they differ. The scores and ratings are not comparable with our older loudspeaker test. Learn more about how we test here.
Android 11 and One UI 3.1 on top
Samsung clearly understands that in order for great hardware to shine, it needs proper software backing it up. In keeping with its new "Awesome is for everyone", the Korean giant is stepping-up its software game significantly with this new Galaxy A family of devices.
For starters, the Galaxy A52 is launching with the latest One UI 3.1 and Android 11 combo out-of-the-box. Sweetening the deal further, the A52, along with its A72 sibling have been promised 3 major OS updates, as well as 4 years of security patches. Theoretically, your Galaxy A52 should get Android 14 in 2023. That's a great commitment to support if we've ever seen one.
This is a relatively new move from Samsung, as well, with many recent models that have passed through the office for a review, like the Galaxy A02s launching on One UI 2.5 and Android 10, without any major long-term support promises. To be fair, visually, One UI 3.1 hardly represents a major leap forward compared to 3.0 and even 2.5. Still, there are some subtle differences worth going over.
For example, the default lock screen shortcuts - dialer and camera, are now monochrome - they used to match the respective apps' colors. Oddly enough, if you pick different apps, they will keep their colors - it's not a first-party vs. third-party type of differentiation either.
Among the functional changes on the lock screen is the added wellbeing widget - you can now keep track of how much time you've spent on your phone without even unlocking it. Meanwhile, the always-on display settings have been simplified.
Lock screen
Unlocking the phone is best done using the fingerprint reader embedded in the display. The option is there if you want to use face unlock. It can be more convenient in certain situations, but it generally is less secure since it's just based on the selfie camera. Iris scanners are sadly a thing of the past now.
Biometrics and security
Another notable change is that pulling the notification shade covers the entire screen underneath, even if there's just one notification card or none at all. Previously, the portion of the screen below the last notification would remain visible but darkened.
While we're here, the quick toggles can now be edited directly from the plus button at the end of the list instead of going into the menu.
Coming courtesy of Android 11, there is now Notification history, too. It's accessed from the Settings menu, so it's not within immediate reach, but it's there for those occasions when you dismissed a notification too quickly, and you can't seem to find what it was about. Just make sure to enable it because it's Off by default.
Notifications and quick toggles
All of the standard layout adjustments and toggles for the quick panel and taskbar are accounted for. Android 11 has a new way of handling notifications for instant messenger apps called Bubbles, and One UI 3 adopts it, too. That's in addition to a previously available similar feature offered by Samsung by the name of Smart pop-up view. You'll find these settings under the 'Floating notifications' submenu, where you can alternatively turn both of them off and opt for the old-school cards only interface.
Bubbles is an extension of the Conversations feature, another new development. You tap on an icon in the initial incoming message notification. It turns into a conversation that you can then minimize to a bubble, or what was known as a 'chat head' - originally Facebook Messenger's default way of dealing with chats.
Smart pop-up view is one of One UI's lesser-known proprietary features. In the pre-Bubbles days, it used to add the chat head functionality to any application of your choosing. Tapping the hovering 'head' icon opens the app in a floating window, which you can further maximize to fullscreen or minimize it again to an icon. Sort of like Bubbles, only slightly different.
Floating notifications
Introduced with Google's latest OS version, the new media controls have been implemented in One UI as well. You get a stack of the active audio playback apps right below the quick toggles and swiping to the side switches between the apps.
The Media screen was already available on One UI 2.5 pre-Android 11, and it offers similar functionality for picking the output device or using Samsung's Music share feature. The volume control panel has gotten a makeover too, and now the four sliders are vertical instead of the horizontal ones of One UIs past.
Media controls
Samsung's Music Share is just one example of a fairly-advanced software feature that originally launched as a flagship one and is now bringing a lot of added value to the mid-range. Understandably, Samsung PR has picked up on the "trendy" nature of Music Share, in particular, and the way it allows you to play music through Bluetooth accessories connected to a friend's Samsung phone. Hence, the feature is being prominently marketed on the Galaxy A52. We have to say it's pretty nifty.
Samsung Music Share
Yet another of the native Android 11 improvements that Samsung also includes in One UI 3 is the ability to pin apps to the top of the sheet with Share options. It's one of those things that make you wonder how come it had to wait until v11 for us to get there. Things are much better now, but still, we'd like to be able to remove some of the options, too, because that list could sure use some decluttering.
One more thing that Google tweaked in this year's release is the permission handling, and Samsung's implemented it in One UI 3. With this version, you will now see a new prompt for permissions every time an app requests it, letting you deny permission, allow it only while using the app, or just for this one time. If an app requires constant access to permission, you also get a fourth option that takes you to a setting page where you can provide it. This is done to prevent the user from accidentally selecting this option while blazing through the permission dialogs.
Share options pinning and permissions handling
The settings menu has seen a subtle but meaningful makeover. Subcategories are made more legible by using a dot separator and extra intervals, while recent searches are now shown as bubbles instead of a list. Additionally, there's a newly added feature to search settings by hashtags - for conceptually related things found in different places in the menu.
Settings UI
The dialer comes with a bunch of cosmetic changes itself. You get to pick one of two layouts for the in-call screen. You can also set up a background image or video for that screen, though it's going to be all the same for all of your calls - you can't have a different one on a per-person basis.
Samsung dialer
There are plenty of other smaller visual changes scattered all throughout One UI 3.1. Samsung's excellent theme support and rich online selection are present, as well. Same goes for the system navigation options, with a few tweaks and layouts available for gestures, as well as old-school button controls, even the really-old original style, with the back button on the right side.
One UI 3.1 and navigation options
Like we already mentioned, the Galaxy A52 has a surprisingly-rich selection of additional Samsung software features. Things like the Edge panels interface, Bixby and full integration of the SmartThings platform. There is also Game launcher, the hub for all your games, which also provides options for limiting distraction when gaming is here to stay as well.
Additional software features
Samsung still elected not to include some of its more advanced features on the Galaxy A52, notably Dex. Even in its absence, though, you can still get a lot of its functionality through the Link to Windows feature that has been implemented in cooperation with Microsoft.
Synthetic benchmarks
Samsung chose what can probably best be described as the "sensible" route for the chipset on the Galaxy A52. And in fact, the galaxy A72, as well. The Snapdragon 720G is just "good-enough" to provide the "oomph" to power its feature set and does so it a very smooth manner, as per our testing. We are also sure than many of the "pickier" users out there will appreciate the choice of a Qualcomm chip this time around, instead of an Exynos, like on the previous-gen Galaxy A51 or a MediaTek unit, like on the A32 and the A41.
Of course, a more cynical view on things brings some other interesting handsets into the comparison, like the Galaxy M51 and its Snapdragon 730G chipset or the two included OnePlus Nord models, with a Snapdragon 690G and 765G, respectively, that are priced kind of similarly to the Galaxy A52.
GeekBench 5 (multi-core)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
2009 - OnePlus Nord
1953 - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
1910 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
1848 - Realme 7 Pro
1811 - Realme 7 5G
1794 - Samsung Galaxy M51
1774 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
1694 - Google Pixel 4a
1626 - Samsung Galaxy A52
1577 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
1374 - Samsung Galaxy A51
1294 - Samsung Galaxy A32
1277 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
1261 - Samsung Galaxy A41
1175 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
1100 - Samsung Galaxy A12
1034
GeekBench 5 (single-core)
Higher is better
- Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
661 - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
643 - OnePlus Nord
610 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
608 - Realme 7 5G
598 - Realme 7 Pro
576 - Google Pixel 4a
553 - Samsung Galaxy M51
546 - Samsung Galaxy A52
525 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
521 - Samsung Galaxy A32
361 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
349 - Samsung Galaxy A51
347 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
315 - Samsung Galaxy A41
309 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
184 - Samsung Galaxy A12
169
The 2x2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6x1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver CPU setup on the Galaxy A52, while far from chart-topping clearly holds its own. Again, better than most Galaxies from a generation ago, not rocking Qualcomm silicon.
Though, that being said, there are still some interesting comparisons here potentially worth pondering upon. For instance, the MediaTek Dimensity 800U, as found in the Realme 7 5G and its surprisingly-potent CPU, as well as overall performance, as per AnTuTu, which is a much more-compound benchmark, that takes into account things like memory and storage size and speed. For the record, our Galaxy A52 review unit is the highest-tier 8GB/256GB model.
AnTuTu 8
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
324686 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
318882 - Realme 7 5G
318535 - OnePlus Nord
312794 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
279579 - Realme 7 Pro
278414 - Google Pixel 4a
268714 - Samsung Galaxy M51
266620 - Samsung Galaxy A52
261282 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
253271 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
187863 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
182875 - Samsung Galaxy A51
175363 - Samsung Galaxy A32
174332 - Samsung Galaxy A41
170044 - Samsung Galaxy A12
107189 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
107157
Moving on the GPU tests and the Adreno 618 GPU, things aren't looking overly impressive. Naturally, we ran all of the on-screen runs at 90Hz in hopes of seeing some FPS counts above 60. Unfortunately, even in the lowest-intensity OpenGL ES 3.1 Manhattan scenarios we still run, the Galaxy A52 didn't even come close.
GFX Manhattan ES 3.0 (offscreen 1080p)
Higher is better
- OnePlus Nord
55 - Realme 7 5G
51 - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
46 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
45 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
42 - Samsung Galaxy M51
41 - Realme 7 Pro
41 - Google Pixel 4a
41 - Samsung Galaxy A52
39 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
33 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
32 - Samsung Galaxy A32
24 - Samsung Galaxy A41
21 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
19 - Samsung Galaxy A51
16 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
16 - Samsung Galaxy A12
12
GFX Manhattan ES 3.0 (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
59 - OnePlus Nord
50 - Realme 7 5G
48 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
39 - Google Pixel 4a
38 - Samsung Galaxy M51
37 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
37 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
36 - Samsung Galaxy A52
35 - Realme 7 Pro
35 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
28 - Samsung Galaxy A32
21 - Samsung Galaxy A41
19 - Samsung Galaxy A12
19 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
19 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
17 - Samsung Galaxy A51
15
Looking at the numbers next to the Realme 7 Pro, which is rocking the same Snapdragon 720G chipset, it is encouraging to see that Samsung is not leaving any major potential performance on the table. Consistency is probably the best thing one can see within these otherwise purely theoretical benchmark tables, which are otherwise not representative of real-world scenarios anyway.
GFX Car Chase ES 3.1 (offscreen 1080p)
Higher is better
- OnePlus Nord
21 - Realme 7 5G
20 - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
19 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
19 - Realme 7 Pro
18 - Samsung Galaxy A52
17 - Samsung Galaxy M51
17 - Google Pixel 4a
17 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
17 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
14 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
10 - Samsung Galaxy A32
9.3 - Samsung Galaxy A41
8.1 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
7.2 - Samsung Galaxy A51
6.6 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
6 - Samsung Galaxy A12
3.3
GFX Car Chase ES 3.1 (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
33 - OnePlus Nord
19 - Realme 7 5G
17 - Google Pixel 4a
16 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
16 - Samsung Galaxy A52
15 - Samsung Galaxy M51
15 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
15 - Realme 7 Pro
14 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
13 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
13 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
11 - Samsung Galaxy A32
8.1 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
7.6 - Samsung Galaxy A41
6.9 - Samsung Galaxy A51
5.6 - Samsung Galaxy A12
5
Unsurprisingly, the Adreno 618 doesn't suddenly find its hidden stride and excel at the harder Aztek runs with the Vulkan API.
GFX Aztek Vulkan High (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
23 - OnePlus Nord
13 - Realme 7 5G
11 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
11 - Samsung Galaxy A52
10 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
9.9 - Realme 7 Pro
9.7 - Google Pixel 4a
9.6 - Samsung Galaxy M51
9.2 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
8.7 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
8.6 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
6.6 - Samsung Galaxy A51
5.6 - Samsung Galaxy A32
4.4 - Samsung Galaxy A41
3.9 - Samsung Galaxy A12
3.8 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
3.5
GFX Aztek ES 3.1 High (onscreen)
Higher is better
- Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
21 - OnePlus Nord
13 - Realme 7 5G
12 - Google Pixel 4a
11 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
11 - Samsung Galaxy A52
10 - Samsung Galaxy M51
10 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
10 - Realme 7 Pro
9.7 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
8.9 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
7.1 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
5.7 - Samsung Galaxy A51
5.6 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
5.6 - Samsung Galaxy A32
5 - Samsung Galaxy A12
4.6 - Samsung Galaxy A41
4.5
Same goes for the 3DMark runs, which are arguably even a bit kinder and more generous towards the Galaxy A52.
3DMark SSE ES 3.1 (offscreen 1440p)
Higher is better
- OnePlus Nord
3285 - Realme 7 5G
3163 - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
2819 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
2789 - Realme 7 Pro
2541 - Samsung Galaxy A52
2529 - Google Pixel 4a
2487 - Samsung Galaxy M51
2474 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
2467 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
2166 - Samsung Galaxy A51
1574 - Samsung Galaxy A32
1323 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
1186 - Samsung Galaxy A41
1149 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
1092 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
888 - Samsung Galaxy A12
365
3DMark SSE Vulkan 1.0 (offscreen 1440p)
Higher is better
- OnePlus Nord
3067 - Realme 7 5G
3028 - Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
2609 - Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite
2595 - Samsung Galaxy A52
2406 - Realme 7 Pro
2358 - Samsung Galaxy M51
2290 - Google Pixel 4a
2275 - Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite
2248 - OnePlus Nord N10 5G
2012 - Samsung Galaxy A51
1554 - Samsung Galaxy A32
1371 - Samsung Galaxy A41
1161 - Motorola Moto G9 Power
1125 - Samsung Galaxy M31s
1013 - Samsung Galaxy A21s
901 - Samsung Galaxy A12
612
Circling back to the important bits here, though, the Galaxy A52 runs One UI 3.1 perfectly smooth and chews through daily tasks and the most popular apps with relative ease. We are confident that the Snapdragon 720G provides perfectly adequate performance for 90%, if not more, of the prospective buyers of the A52. The additional features packed inside the Qualcomm package are not a hindrance to the overall feature set of the phone in any way. Samsung has still managed to provide things like the 90fps operation on the UI itself. Plus, other things like 4K video capture on both the main and ultrawide cameras, excellent video stabilization, both of which we will cover in the camera section. Not to mention 25W charging support.
Familiar quad camera setup, now complete with OIS
"Familiar" might just be a bit of an exaggeration here since, despite our best snooping, the Galaxy A52 refused to give up any usable hardware identifiers for its actual camera modules. Even so, its quad-camera setup is still familiar in the sense that most every modern mid-ranger that's worth its salt is rocking a main+ultrawide+macro+depth camera arrangement these days.
Credit where credit is due, though, Samsung opted for a higher-res 64MP Quad Bayer main cam instead of a 48MP unit. One that has a fairly bright aperture of f/1.8 and a sensor size somewhere in the 1/1.7X" neighborhood. The ultrawide unit is also a higher-res option at 12MP, f/2.2, instead of an 8MP one. Same goes for the dedicated macro and depth sensors, which are 5MP, f/2.4, instead of the popular 2MP units.
Like we said, we aren't quite sure of the exact hardware modules in use here. However, the Galaxy A52's camera setup does look suspiciously similar to that of the popular Galaxy M51. If that is indeed where Samsung borrowed the sensors from, we are looking at a Sony IMX 682 for the main cam and Samsung S5K3L6 for the ultrawide. The 32MP Quad Bayer selfie cam on the A52 is also likely the same Sony IMX 616 as on the Galaxy M51.
There is one notable upgrade on the A52, though - the addition of OIS to the main camera. It's not an insignificant one either, offering a tangible reduction in blurry photos due to shaky hands. Alongside the resolution increase on the sensor itself, the main camera on the A52 constitutes a nice upgrade over the 48MP unit on last year's Galaxy A51. Though, the ultra-wide and two 5MP extra cams and the 32MP selfie cam appear to be carried forward.
Camera UI
If there is one aspect of the Galaxy A52's camera that is truly familiar, it is definitely the Samsung camera UI. Aside from some incremental polish and an extra feature here and there, it has remained consistent for quite some time. Shutter and a mode carousel on the right, along with toggles for cameras and zoom levels (in the case of the A52 - 0.5x, 1x, 2x, 4x and 10x), as well as a Scene optimizer indicator/toggle in the corner. The A52 can distinguish between 30 scenes automatically. On the opposite side - resolution and aspect, timer, flash controls and some color filters.
Samsung main camera UI
Samsung did not skimp on the available modes either. In no particular order, users get to enjoy things like AR DOODLE, FOOD mode, as well as SINGLE TAKE. The latter instantly captures a few different shots and even short clips with a single press of the shutter key and is a perfect example of a feature that originally debuted a while back on flagship Galaxy devices and has successfully made its way to the mid-range.
Samsung SINGLE TAKE
Speaking of added-value features, FUN MODE is a new addition to the mix, prominently featured in PR materials for the Galaxy A52 and A72. It is basically a collaboration with Snapchat that puts some of that app's fun AR filters in the native Samsung camera app. It's just a bit of extra trendy "flare" to have around.
Samsung FUN MODE
FUN MODE works for both photos and videos (captured by long-pressing the shutter key). The filter selection consists of 7 "basic" lenses, one of which gets changed-out daily, as well as an additional menu of 9 more effects that also get "changed regularly".
Additional FUN MODE filters
FUN MODE requires an active network connection to work, which makes sense, considering all the "swapping" that's going on. Seeing how the filter selection is constantly subject to change, you can't exactly pick your favorites and use them regularly. Hence, the whole feature is more of a promotional one than anything else, meant to ultimately grab your attention and direct you to the Snapchat app for the full experience. We don't particularly might that, even if the lack of a static filter selection is a bit annoying.
Circling back to the main part of the camera app and its settings, in particular, we find some nifty additional options, like HEIF for images and HEVC for videos. Also, a floating shutter and extensive voice commands and a palm shot shortcut. Nothing out of the ordinary, though. It is worth noting that the options change depending on whether you enter settings from a photo or video come. The latter is where you will find a toggle for the always-on by default video stabilization, in case you want to do some tripod shooting.
Camera settings
There is naturally a Pro mode included, as well. It is fairly in-depth, offering ISO from 50 to 4000, shutter speed from 1/6000 to 10 seconds, white balance from 2300K to 1000K, as well as exposure compensation and the ability to set different spot metering for the expose and autofocus.
Pro photo mode
One interesting and not-so-common addition to the Pro model is the separate Levels menu, which offers control over contrast, highlights, shadows, saturation and tint. These are parameters you typically find and tend to adjust in editors, but it's kind of nifty to have them separated into this way as you are capturing the shots.
Pro mode levels
Video capture mode is just slightly different from the main photo one, with most controls in their familiar places. The zoom level and camera selection on the Galaxy A52 stays the same with video capture. The ultrawide can even do 4K recording itself. But, more on that in the video section.
Pro video mode
There is also a Pro video mode with pretty-much the same adjustments available as the Pro Photo one. Not too shabby.
Daylight image quality
Daylight photos from the main camera on the Galaxy A52 are quite decent, even if mostly unremarkable. Dynamic range is wide for what we're used to in the midrange, though a higher-end phone will still get you better developed tonal extremes.
Colors are lively without going overboard. Detail is plenty. The only real issue we see here is the slightly-higher levels of noise and noise-suppression artefacts left in the shots. This is not something we typically associate with Samsung processing.
Samsung Galaxy A52 16MP main camera samples
Samsung's Scene optimizer doesn't really make a huge difference in most shots, but when it does, it can still come through and save the occasional still. While at times a bit sluggish, its detection never actually tripped up and ruined a shot for us, so there is no benefit in turning it off. The same goes for the Auto HDR mode.
While the main 64MP camera on the Galaxy A52 is meant to shoot in a binned 16MP mode by default, there is a 64MP option in the camera UI. We were honestly rather impressed with how much extra detail it brought into shots. Even the HDR seems to look a bit better at 64MP than at 16MP for some od reason. The A52 does struggle a bit and is kind of slow to capture these stills, but we would say the wait is well worth it.
Samsung Galaxy A52 64MP main camera samples
The Galaxy A52 lacks a proper telephoto camera - that one is reserved for the A72. Still, we have seen 64MP Quad Bayer shooters do a pretty good job of cropping and demosaicing for some strong 2x results. Though we can't say for sure whether the A52 is going that route or upscaling 16MP shots and then cropping instead, we are willing to give the 2x photos a soft pass. Pun intended since the extra softness is instantly visible. At least the algorithm didn't go overboard with sharpening in an attempt of overcompensating.
Samsung Galaxy A52 16MP samples: 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x • 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x
The Galaxy A52 has toggles in the UI for 4x and 10x zoom, as well. Of course, you can get any zoom level in between by pinching. Still, if Samsung deemed these to be "official" zoom levels, we felt kind of compelled to try them. While not so bad as to call them "throwaway", both 4x and 10x shots are unimpressive, with plenty of softness and even more sharpening artefacts.
Samsung Galaxy A52 16MP samples: 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x • 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x
The ultrawide camera on the Galaxy A52 captures respectable 12MP stills as well. Sure, there is extra softness, especially around the edges of the frame, and Samsung didn't manage to get the color science quite right and consistent with the main snapper. Colors seem less saturated and lively, and the overall pallet is a bit colder.
Samsung Galaxy A52 12MP ultrawide samples
Even so, none of these is a dealbreaker, and the ultrawide delivers solid performance for its class.
As with all recent Samsungs, there's software distortion correction enabled on the Galaxy A52. It's only marginally detrimental to image quality in the corners, while the geometric benefits are huge, and we'd keep it on unless the barrel distortion look is what you're after in particular.
Samsung Galaxy A52 12MP ultrawide distortion correction: On • Off • On • Off
Low-light image quality
Low-light photos from the Galaxy A52 are what we would consider a bit above average for a mid-ranger. There is a good amount of detail preserved, though noise, as expected from the slightly noisier daylight shots, is an even bigger issue with low-light images. A hint of desaturation can be spotted, but colors are generally not bad, and the dynamic range is wider than most.
Samsung Galaxy A52 16MP main camera, low-light sample
Night mode brings notable improvements in the highlights where it restores a lot of details otherwise lost in photo mode. However, we do not see dramatic improvements in the shadows, and the dark areas remain quite dark. Night mode on the main cam produces 12MP stills, instead of 16MP.
Samsung Galaxy A52 12MP main camera Night mode samples
As you can imagine, zooming at night without a dedicated telephoto is not the best idea. We would call 2x usable, but not much else.
Samsung Galaxy A52 low-light samples: 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x • 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x
At least you can use Night mode on any one of the zoom levels. With varying results, of course.
Samsung Galaxy A52 Night mode samples: 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x • 1x • 2x • 4x • 10x
Low-light photos from the ultra-wide aren't as good, and with such a wide frame, there's inevitably going to be a lot of super dark areas unless you pick your scenes carefully. If presented with evenly lit scenes, the A52's ultra-wide will create usable images with decent detail, saturated colors, and a wide dynamic range.
Samsung Galaxy A52 12MP ultrawide, low-light samples
Night mode is arguably helping the ultrawide out a lot more than the main cam. Particularly in shadows, which seem to get a nice boost.
Samsung Galaxy A52 12MP ultrawide, Night mode samples
Rounding the main camera section off, we have the Galaxy A52 at both its default 16MP and 64MP in our extensive Photo compare database. You can pixel-peep to your heart's content.
Samsung Galaxy A52 against the Samsung Galaxy A71 and the Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G in our Photo compare tool
64MP: Samsung Galaxy A52 against the Samsung Galaxy A71 and the Xiaomi Mi Note 10 Lite in our Photo compare tool
Portrait mode
Portrait mode, also sometimes referred to as Live focus in Samsung "slang" on the Galaxy A52 is good, but not overly impressive. The bokeh effect itself is natural and convincing. The intensity slider is gradual and never really goes overboard.
Samsung Galaxy A52 portrait mode samples
Subject detection and separation, however, left is wanting from time to time. Of course, usually with more complex backgrounds or messy hair. While not dramatic and experience-ruining in any way, we still expected a bit more out of a phone with a dedicated 5MP depth sensor.
Macro shots
Speaking of dedicated 5MP snappers, the macro one on the Galaxy A52 is quite impressive. It has a forgivingly-wide focus plane, and you don't have to get all that physically close to the subject.
Samsung Galaxy A52 5MP macro samples
Shots come out nice and detailed. Generally, a lot better than what you get from the alternative 2MP macro snappers floating around in the mid-ranger space.
Selfies
The Galaxy A52 has a 32MP selfies camera, which, just like the main cam is a Quad Bayer module. Hence, it is meant to natively produce 8MP stills. And, indeed, in its default mode, it shoots at 3264 x 2448 pixels, or right around 8MP.
Samsung Galaxy A52 8MP selfie samples
However, in typical Samsung fashion, the selfie cam has a narrow and wide mode. We wish this would become a thing of the past already. Anyway, in wide mode, selfies come out in 4000 x 3000 pixels or exactly 12MP. Presumably, there's some interpolation going on because a 32MP Quad Bayer camera should output 8MP photos. That being said, we can't notice any noteworthy difference in quality and detail between the two modes.
Samsung Galaxy A52 12MP selfie samples
Overall selfie quality is solid, with plenty of detail in decent noise performance. Skin tones can be a bit inconsistent from time to time. Thankfully, there is both Auto HDR and Scene optimizer available on the selfie.
That is unless you decide to shoot in 32MP on the selfie cam for some reason. In that case, you lose both Auto HDR and Scene optimizer and have to be extra mindful of the lighting conditions.
Samsung Galaxy A52 32MP selfie samples
Selfie portrait mode is a thing as well. The results are surprisingly pleasing. The bokeh effect is nice, and so is subject separation.
Samsung Galaxy A52 Portrait selfie samples
FUN mode is available on the selfie cam as well with the same selection of Snapchat AR filters. Beyond that, you get some more-traditional color filters.
Samsung Galaxy A52 selfie color filters
Samsung also gives you the ability to create filters based on your own photos. The way it works is that the phone analyzes the overall color palette of the shot and then tries to skew other photos in the same manner. It is a nifty idea, but can produce some funky results, as well.
Selfie camera and filters
Naturally, there are Beauty filters to play around with, as well. Fairly in-depth ones at that, including sliders for smoothness, skin tone, jawline, and eye enlargement.
Beauty filters
Finally, here are some selfies from the Galaxy A52 with lower-light conditions for your consideration.
Samsung Galaxy A52 low-light selfie samples
Night mode tries its best to fix things up here, as well. Not too shabby.
Samsung Galaxy A52 Night mode selfie samples
Galaxy A52 vs. Galaxy A32 camera comparison
It is tempting to compare the A52 to the A32 in the camera department and conclude that sans OIS, the two share the same setup, with the latter costing you less. In reality, this is not the case. The main 64MP camera on the Galaxy A32 is different and has smaller individual pixels, among other things. Then there is also the unavoidable difference in processing when going from a Qualcomm to a MediaTek chipset and respective DSP. We happened to have the Galaxy A53 at the same time, so we did a quick comparison. We're seeing better sharpness in the A52's shots, hand in hand with more noise than on the A32. The A52 has overall more vibrant colors and warmer yellows and greens.
Comparison, main cam (1x): Galaxy A32 • Galaxy A52
Zooming in, the differences remain the same - not a surprise since these are crops from the same cameras.
Comparison, main cam (2x): Galaxy A32 • Galaxy A52
In full-res mode, a more significant gap opens up in exposure handling and dynamic range or at least its allocation. The Galaxy A52 exposes darker so it salvages a lot more of the highlights, lost in the A32's images. At the same time, we wouldn't say its shadows are too dark.
Comparison, main cam, 64MP: Galaxy A32 • Galaxy A52
Comparing the ultrawides, the A32 loses hands-down. The A52 has the advantage in resolution and detail, plus the software distortion correction.
Comparison, ultrawide cam: Galaxy A32 • Galaxy A52
Video recording
The Galaxy M52 is a surprisingly competent video recorder. It has 4K@30fps capture on all of its "real" cameras. That is to say, the main cam, the ultrawide, as well as the selfie. The ultrawide lacks 60fps capture, which is to be expected, and that's about the only limitation we spotted.
Both the main cam and the ultrawide manage to maintain a solid bitrate of around 48Mb/s for their 4K footage - AVC + 48kHz stereo audio, inside an h.264 MP4 container. Naturally, you can choose to do HEVC instead and save some space.
Starting with the main cam, detail is excellent, and the processing is fairly natural. Noise is non-existent too. Dynamic range is reasonably wide. Colors are spot-on too. In fact, if you ask us, it's the natural color reproduction that really stands out in these videos.
Doubly so after looking at the ultrawide footage and its respectable color consistency with the main camera. Definitely better than what is available for photos. The detail is good for videos by an ultra-wide cam, no complaints here, but noise is prominent, and the shadows have somewhat distracting pulsating noise patterns. Not half bad overall, however.
Stepping down to 1080p on the primary camera introduces a surprising amount of extra noise. We aren't quite sure why that is the case, but we would try to stick to 4K.
The ultrawide is also noisy at 1080p, but since its 4K feed is a bit noisy, to begin with, it's not that big of a deal.
You can capture videos at up to 4K at each and every zoom level on the main camera. The 2x footage even looks rather decent. The detail is there, noise is well kept at bay, colors are solid and the dynamic range is wide.
Anything beyond that, however (4x and 10x) is more akin to a painting than actual video footage. You can see the sharpening algorithm sweating and doing its best, but there's only so much data left there to work with. We would avoid going beyond 2x.
Video stabilization is available for both the main and the ultrawide cameras on the Galaxy A52, but only at FullHD resolution. Actually, stabilization comes in two "stages", for lack of a better term. There is a toggle in the general camera settings menu, which is enabled by default. That would be the basic stabilization, which, indeed, works on the ultrawide and main camera at every zoom level. It does a very decent job at smoothing-out jitters and handles pans well. Here is a sample showcasing the primary camera with and without the basic stabilization.
Then there is Super steady. It gets its video feed from the ultrawide camera and also only works at FullHD. The extra smoothness is there, but the step-up from the regular stabilization to Super steady isn't all that major. You just have to decide whether it is worth the extra crop of the field of view. Here is the ultrawide with just basic stabilization against Super steady.
Here is a quick playlist showcasing how the Galaxy A52 handles itself in low-light conditions. It includes videos from the ultrawide, as well as the main camera at 1x and 2x, all at 4K resolution.
Finally, you can check out the Galaxy A52 in our video comparison tool.
Samsung Galaxy A52 against the Samsung Galaxy A71 and the ZTE nubia Xiaomi Mi 10T Lite 5G in our Video compare tool
Competition
Samsung really wasn't joking around with "Awesome is for everyone" slogan for the Galaxy A52. The value proposition this year really is rather unique. Don't believe us? Well, let's just pop into our Phone finder really quick and look for phones from 2020 and 2021, in a fairly-generous EUR 200 to 400 price range, that also have a high refresh rate display and IP6x certification. Drumroll - the query only returns the Galaxy A52. We don't even have to specify any other criteria, like an OLED display or dual speakers and 3.5mm jack or OIS on the main camera. So, to pick out any potential competitors, you'll have to set some different priorities and make some compromises.
Xiaomi has plenty of options in roughly this price range. The Poco F3 instantly stands out. It costs just about as much as the Galaxy A52, while also offering a more-powerful Snapdragon 870 chipset and a faster 120Hz AMOLED display, with HDR10+ certification. It even has a stereo speaker setup. The camera setup is a slight downgrade, and there is no formal ingress protection.
Xiaomi Poco F3 • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro Max • Xiaomi Redmi K40 Pro • Xiaomi Poco X3 Pro
If you want to prioritize the camera experience, there is the Redmi Note 10 Pro or Pro Max to consider. If it is available where you reside, of course, which is a limitation with many Xiaomi models.
Alternatively, if a proper flagship chipset is high on your priorities list, the Redmi K40 Pro is actually a great match for the Galaxy A52, with a full-on Snapdragon 888 chipset on top of a fast 120Hz AMOLED display, stereo speakers and even a lesser, but still official IP53 rating.
We can't make a proper Xiaomi list without including the Poco X3 in some capacity. It's a great way to save some money compared to the Galaxy A52 and still get very similar hardware. Well, granted, it comes with an IPS display and a slight camera downgrade.
Of course, there is plenty of choice beyond Xiaomi's lineup as well. The OnePlus Nord will set you back right around as much as the Galaxy A52. It also has a 90Hz AMOLED panel and one with HDR10+ certification to sweeten the deal. The Snapdragon 765G is also looking pretty sweet, especially with its 5G support. You do have to sacrifice some bits, however, like the IP-rated ingress protection, the stereo speakers and the camera setup, to name a few.
OnePlus Nord • Sony Xperia 10 II • Samsung Galaxy M51
The Sony Xperia 10 II is admittedly a bit of an unpopular choice than the other phones we mentioned so far. However, there is the benefit of its great build quality, including an IP65/IP68 certification, plus a 21:9 OLED display setup.
Last, but not least, a shoutout to the slightly-older Galaxy M51. Specs-wise, it comes pretty close to the A52, with a few notable omissions, like the stereo speakers, 90Hz refresh rate, IP rating and OIS. What you do still get, however, is the Samsung One UI software experience, as well as a massive 7,000 mAh battery and impressive battery endurance.
Verdict
Samsung has managed to step up its mid-ranger game quite impressively this year. The new Galaxy A72 and A52 pack-in a lot of value with a feature-set closet to flagship-territory than ever for the Galaxy A family. While the 5G variants are likely to get the most attention and marketing effort, at EUR 350, the basic 4G Galaxy A52 is the truly affordable one out of the bunch.
Circling back to our Phone Finder experiment, the A52 feature set is properly unrivaled at its price point. Going over the highlight once more, in no particular order - a 90Hz smooth and very bright AMOLED display, IP67 certification, a very solid stereo speaker setup with Dolby Atmos and a 3.5mm jack, a solid quad-camera setup, now with OIS on the main snapper and a respectable 4,500 mAh battery, with 25W charging support. All of it tied nicely together by Samsung's excellent and latest One UI 3.1, on top of Android 11, chock-full of advanced and nifty software features, plus a newfound promise for long-term updates (3 Android release) and support.
There's honestly very little to actually criticize about the Galaxy A52. Sure, the Snapdragon 720G is not the quickest chip around, but it doesn't seem to be holding back the experience in any practical way. Samsung's "Awesome is for everyone" slogan actually rings very true here. We, for one, are on board and give the A52 a hearty recommendation.
Pros
- Nice color options and new silky finish, standout, stylish design, IP67 rating, Gorilla Glass 5.
- Bright AMOLED display with 90Hz refresh rate.
- Solid battery life.
- Impressive hybrid stereo speaker setup for the price range.
- Latest One UI 3.1 and Android 11 setup, with plenty of advanced Samsung features and a promise of 3 major OS updates and 4 years of security patches.
- Versatile quad camera setup, with OIS on the main 64MP snapper.
- 4K video recording with every camera and at every zoom level.
Cons
- You get a basic 15W charger in the box even though 25W charging is supported.
- You can get much faster chipsets than the Snapdragon 720G at this price point.
- Color consistency in photos across the ultrawide and main cameras needs some work, so does 1080p video capture.
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