The Samsung Galaxy A51, the brand’s leading mid-range phone of 2020, is now available to buy in the US for $399 – the same price as Apple’s new iPhone SE 2020.
How do they stack up? Well, while the new iPhone SE recycles a lot of parts from the iPhone 8, including a single rear camera, the Samsung Galaxy A51 has a more modern complement of four rear cameras (well, three and a depth sensor). That includes a 48MP main shooter, a 12MP ultra-wide camera, a 5MP Macro camera, and a 5MP depth sensor. It also has a 32MP front-facing camera.
The cameras are the standout feature, but the rest is just as impressive for a mid-range phone: a 6.5-inch AMOLED display at FHD+ resolution (2400x1080p), octa-core Exynos 9611 chipset, and a 4,000mAh battery. The configuration for the US release includes 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage (expandable up to 512GB via microSD).
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The Galaxy A51 is available through Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint, as well as unlocked for $399 from Samsung’s website and Amazon. You can pick up the Galaxy A51 for even cheaper by trading in your old phone, knocking the price down to a minimum $229. If you do buy one, Samsung will throw in a pair of wireless Galaxy Buds earbuds for free, at least for now.
Battle of the mid-range
Now is the ideal time for the A51 to hit the US market, especially since folks shopping for phones may be hesitant to pay top dollar for high-priced flagships amid the outbreak.
While the long-awaited iPhone SE 2020 has finally been released as a serious value proposition, its lone rear camera and enormous chin and top bezels are compromises that the A51 doesn’t make. But both phones are set to get serious competition should the Google Pixel 4a launch as soon as May 22, if rumors are true.
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