Samsung Galaxy A35 Review: Brings Flagship-Grade Experience in the Upper Mid-Range

Samsung is known for its flagship Galaxy S range, innovative Galaxy Flip and Fold series, as well as budget-friendly Galaxy F and M lineup. But if you ask us about Samsung’s dark horse, it would be the Galaxy A series. Curious as to why? Well, the Galaxy A phones continue to be among the best-selling devices across the world, globally. The Galaxy A34, for instance, grabbed the 8th spot in 2023 Q4, per Counterpoint, and is accompanied by quite a few Galaxy A series devices.

Can its successor – the Galaxy A35 – repeat the feat? Well, only time can tell, but what we can share is whether it has all the makings of a best-seller or not. So, let’s go through the Samsung Galaxy A35 review to find the answer.

Samsung Galaxy A35 Review: Design and Display

Looks-wise, the Galaxy A35 continues with the minimalistic elegance Samsung devices are known for. The display occupies most of the fascia, though bezels are noticeable. The back panel is quite plain too, and the monotony is broken by three camera sensors that jut out of the body a bit. However, since the camera module is placed in the top left corner, it doesn’t result in the device wobbling when kept on a flat surface.

The handset shares its premium attributes with the Galaxy S series, and we particularly like the lilac colour too, though you can opt for classic black and white hues too. But the glass back panel – while looks good with reflections depending upon the angle light falls on it – is a fingerprint magnet and quite slippery too. On more than one occasion, it fell because of this when it was placed slightly slanted. For one’s mental peace, the inclusion of a protective case in the retail box would have been a plus.

Another similarity that the Samsung Galaxy A35 shares with the brand’s flagship series is being dust and waterproof, thanks to IP67 certification. The flat edges and rounded corners also add to the ergonomics, and the device doesn’t feel heavy at 203g as the weight is distributed well. However, this is because the device is primarily constructed from plastic.

1 of 2

There’s no surprise in terms of the buttons and port placement, but we liked the bump for placing the volume rocker and power switch, making it easier to locate them. The device comes with dual speakers that offer a loud sound output, though we would’ve liked a bit more bass as that’s flat. For authentication, the Samsung Galaxy A35 features an in-display fingerprint sensor. Sadly, however, its speed or accuracy isn’t the best and at times, we had to resort to the good ol’ pin to unlock the phone.

Speaking of the display, the Galaxy A35 comes with Samsung’s signature visual goodness… which means sharp text and punchy colours. The refresh rate also makes scrolling and playing games quite fun. The sunlight legibility is on point too with ample brightness supported by the panel. The screen is also resistant to scratches or even drops, as it gets Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ protection.

Samsung Galaxy A35 Review: Hardware and Software

It seems that Samsung is going back to incorporating its chipsets in its devices. The Galaxy A35 draws power from the in-house Exynos SoC. Of course, we don’t mean to say it’s not a good choice, as the 5nm octa-core processor balances performance and efficiency well. It’s also an upgrade from the Galaxy A34’s MediaTek Dimensity 1080 chip. Furthermore, the processor is paired with a capacious RAM. Thanks to this combination, there were no instances of a lag or slowdown. However, the benchmark scores show that the device lags behind the similarly-priced rivals.

The storage onboard is roomier too, but comes with older UFS 2.2 technology, which is odd as most brands have started opting for UFS 3.1 or higher.

Gaming performance is good while playing casual titles. Even Battlegrounds Mobile India can be played well with HD graphics, save for some jitters here and there when dealing with squads. Sadly, Samsung’s Galaxy A35 does heat up at the back, and not just while gaming, but even when it’s stressed a bit with continuous streaming or while using navigation.

Software-wise, if you’ve used a Samsung phone before, you’d find yourself right at home. The Galaxy A35 boots OneUI 6.1 running atop Android 14. There are usual goodies such as Samsung Pay (which works seamlessly with the NFC support), etc. The best part is that Samsung promises four years of Android updates, which is almost unheard of, in the mid-range. Then there’s the promise of five years of security updates too.

Samsung Galaxy A35 Review: Cameras

On the imaging front, the primary snapper in the triple-camera array gets an upgrade from the predecessor. The 50-megapixel shooter gets the usual conditions right, be it daylight shots, indoors, or close-ups. Its low-light capabilities could’ve been better, however. The night mode does come to the rescue, as it offers better lighting while keeping the noise levels in check.

Talking about the accompanying cameras… there’s no denying that the secondary wide-angle shooter enables a lot of versatility. Sadly though, it does face a fish-eye effect towards the edges. It was the macro lens that left us wanting more, as you need extremely steady hands to get up close to a subject and capture it. Even then, you’d get a better quality with a primary camera and digitally zooming in. Speaking of that, while there’s 2x zoom, it’s not optical one, and hence you could notice sharpness getting lost when images are taken in this mode.

1 of 14

For video recording, it can shoot up to 4K and if you are shooting full HD videos, then you can switch between main and ultrawide cameras too. Selfies are taken care of by a 13MP shooter which works well.

Samsung Galaxy A35 Review: Battery and charging

Although Samsung claims a two-day battery life, the Samsung Galaxy A35 realistically lasts a day and then some more. This was showcased via PCMark battery test too, where it lasted 11 hours and 42 minutes. While it supports 25W charging, there’s no adapter in its retail packaging.

Sadly, this meant that we had to hunt for different chargers. For example, OnePlus’ Dash Charger – while supporting a higher 80W rating – took almost two hours to juice it up from 10 to 100%. On the other hand, an older 40W Huawei adapter fuelled the Galaxy A35 in about 90 minutes.

Samsung Galaxy A35 Review: Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy A35 is an elegant smartphone with features that would meet the needs of modern, everyday consumers. But as with its predecessors, it carries a similar premium of Rs 30,999 for the base model of 128GB built-in storage to deliver the same.

In the past few years, this upper mid-tier segment has drawn a lot of competition. So, if you want pure specs, you can find better options such as the Motorola Edge 50 Pro and Realme 12 Pro Plus. Both handsets ship with Qualcomm’s powerful 7 series processors and quad cameras at the back. If you’re looking for beauty with brains, then the Vivo V30 is also a good option, especially considering it’s the first V series handset with Zeiss certification for imaging.

Having said that, if you are looking for a reliable device that scores well on all aspects, then the Samsung Galaxy A35 should be on your shortlist.