Samsung Galaxy A04

The Samsung Galaxy A04, launched on October 10, 2022, is a budget-friendly smartphone offering a basic set of features.

Build Quality

The Galaxy A04 measures 164.4 mm in height, 76.3 mm in width, and 9.1 mm in depth, with a weight of 192 grams. It's constructed with a plastic build, typical for its price point. The phone is available in Black, White, Green, and Copper. Its dimensions make it reasonably comfortable to hold, though the plastic construction lacks a premium feel. The lack of a USB Type-C port is a notable drawback.

Screen Quality

The device features a 6.5-inch PLS LCD display with a resolution of 720 x 1600 pixels, resulting in a pixel density of 270 ppi. The screen has an aspect ratio of 20:9 and features a waterdrop notch. The display lacks HDR support, and it has no specified refresh rate, suggesting a standard 60Hz panel. The LCD panel is a budget display, with no exceptional brightness, color reproduction, or refresh rate features. It is also noted to be a capacitive multi-touch display.

Camera Performance

The Samsung Galaxy A04 features a dual-camera setup on the rear. The main camera is a 50MP sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and 0.80µm pixel size. It's accompanied by a 2MP depth sensor with an f/2.4 aperture. The camera setup lacks any advanced features like optical stabilization, but it does include an LED flash. The primary camera offers standard features such as digital zoom, autofocus, touch focus, HDR, and panorama. Video recording is limited to 1080p at 30fps. The front-facing selfie camera is a 5MP sensor with an f/2.2 aperture. Image quality is adequate for basic use but does not excel in low light.

Software Experience

The device ships with Android 12, with the possibility of upgrading to Android 13. The user interface is Samsung’s custom skin which adds several features and customization options to the Android experience. Its performance is adequate for basic tasks, but can struggle when multitasking with multiple applications.

Battery Performance

The Galaxy A04 is equipped with a 5000 mAh Li-Ion battery. It lacks fast charging and wireless charging capabilities. The large battery provides enough charge for a full day of moderate use, making it reliable for users who need extended battery life.

Hardware and Performance Internally the device uses the MediaTek MT6765 Helio P35 (12 nm) chipset, featuring an octa-core CPU with four 2.3 GHz Cortex-A53 cores and four 1.8 GHz Cortex-A53 cores. The graphics are handled by a PowerVR GE8320 GPU. The device offers multiple RAM and storage options, including 3GB/32GB, 4GB/32GB, 4GB/64GB, 4GB/128GB, and 6GB/64GB variants, depending on the region. The phone achieves an AnTuTu v9 score of approximately 124,000, indicating its entry-level performance capabilities. There is no SD card slot.

Connectivity

The Galaxy A04 supports 4G LTE, 3G, and 2G networks with dual SIM dual standby capabilities. Connectivity features include Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n/ac with Wi-Fi Direct and Hotspot capabilities, Bluetooth 5.0 LE with A2DP support, and GPS with A-GPS and GLONASS. It uses microUSB 2.0, but does not have OTG or display port capability. It lacks NFC functionality.

Value for Money

The Samsung Galaxy A04 is positioned as a low-priced smartphone. Pricing for the 4GB/128GB model is around $69.50 USD. The phone represents a basic option for users who primarily need calling, texting, and some browsing capability, and are not looking for intensive use cases. Its main strengths are its long battery life and adequate, though not impressive, camera performance for the price range. Its major drawbacks include the low-resolution display, lack of fast charging, and basic construction.