Samsung Galaxy A7 2018, we have tested it

Samsung Galaxy A7 2018, we have tested it

The triple camera reaches the mid-range: with three lenses in the main camera, the new Samsung Galaxy A7 2018 offers very good features in hardware and performance for 350 euros .

The Samsung Galaxy A7 has an attractive design and a large screen (6 inches) to enjoy multimedia content.

Its main strength is the rear camera , composed of three lenses to achieve very good results and to capture scenes with depth of field effect.

Additionally, the phone comes standard with Android 8 Oreo , the latest stable version available of the Android operating system.

Sleek, eye-catching design with gloss finish

The Samsung Galaxy A7 from 2018 stands out at first glance for the striking design , made of glass and aluminum. The edges of the terminal are rounded and the back is in a glossy finish, in black, blue or gold.

One disadvantage of the finish on the back is that fingerprints are very easily marked.

The smartphone weighs 168 grams and measures 159.8 millimeters high x 76.8 millimeters wide and 7.5 millimeters thick.

The phone's screen is 6 inches, with a FullHD + resolution of 1080 x 2220 pixels and a density of 411 pixels per inch. The format that is achieved is panoramic, 18.5: 9. The panel is protected by a Corning Gorilla Glass.

There are three important details that are worth noting about the design of the Galaxy A7:

  • The screen is presented with almost no side edges, but there is a bit of black margin, both above and below the screen. The smartphone has no indentation ( notch ) .
  • Although Samsung is betting on waterproof terminals (IP67), the Galaxy A7 from 2018 does not have this certification .
  • The fingerprint sensor is on the right side , on the on / off button.

The main disadvantage of this location for the sensor is that fingerprint detection takes a long time and fails almost always. Usually, it takes two or three attempts to support the finger for the mobile to recognize and unlock it. It is undoubtedly quite an annoying question for everyday phone use.

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Samsung Galaxy A7 2018, mid-range with powerful interior

The Samsung Galaxy A7 from 2018 works with an octa-core Cortex-A53 processor at a speed of 2.2 GHz. In addition, we have a 4 GB RAM memory that guarantees smoothness in all processes (even with several open applications) .

Another advantage of the new Galaxy A7 is that it comes standard with the latest stable version of the Android operating system ( Android 8 Oreo ), along with its own customization layer: Samsung Touchwiz.

The smartphone is DualSIM and has three card trays . This means that we can use two nanoSIMs simultaneously and without having to give up the extra storage, because the microSD card does not occupy a SIM tray.

We therefore have two nanoSIM trays and a microSD card tray that supports cards up to 512 GB .

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If we add the 64 GB of internal storage to this , we will have plenty of space to manage and store applications and videos in high quality.

Regarding connections, the phone has Bluetooth 5.0 (one of the most recent versions), GPS and NFC, so we can make contactless payments with the Samsung Pay service.

Samsung Galaxy A7 (2018)

screen6.0-inch, FullHD + 1080 x 2220 pixels (411 dpi)
Main chamber24 megapixels, f / 1.7 + 8 megapixels, f / 2.4 + 5 megapixels, f / 2.2

FullHD video (1080p)

Camera for selfies24 megapixels, f / 2.0, Full HD video (1080p)
Internal memory64 GB / Expandable via microSD card
ExtensionmicroSD up to 512GB
Processor and RAMEight cores at 2.2 GHz, 4 GB of RAM

AnTuTu Benchmark Power Test: 123046 points

Geekbench 4 Power Test: 1513 points (Single-Core) / 4442 points (Multi-Core)

Battery3,300 mAh
Operating systemAndroid 8.0 Oreo + Samsung Touchwiz customization layer
ConnectionsBT 5.0, GPS, microUSB, NFC
SIMDualSIM (dual nanoSIM)
DesignGlass and aluminum, fingerprint reader

Three colors available: blue, black, gold

Dimensions159.8 x 76.8 x 7.5 millimeters (168 grams)
Featured FeaturesFM radio, Samsung Pay, facial recognition, Dolby Atmos sound in headphones
Release dateAvailable
Price350 euros euros

Triple camera, the main attraction of the Samsung Galaxy A7 of 2018

The Samsung Galaxy A7 of 2018 is strongly committed to its cameras to conquer the young and demanding public with photos and videos.

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In fact, this mid-range terminal has a triple rear camera , made up of three lenses:

  • A 24 megapixel lens with aperture f / 1.7 and equipped with phase detection autofocus.
  • A second 8 megapixel lens , with f / 2.4 aperture and 13 mm sensor, ideal for taking wide-angle shots.
  • The third lens, 5 megapixels and f / 2.2 aperture, which provides the depth sensor to enjoy blur and bokeh effects  .

In addition, the main camera of the new Galaxy A7 is equipped with an LED flash.

For its part, the front camera also guarantees very high quality selfies, thanks to the 24 megapixel lens and f / 2.0 aperture . The secondary camera has HDR function and can record video in FullHD quality.

Another interesting detail is that the camera of this smartphone incorporates Bixby Vision, Samsung's artificial intelligence system that allows detecting objects and analyzing texts, in a similar way to Google Lens.

Main camera functions and modes

One of the most interesting attractions of the camera app is the full view , so that the scene we want to photograph appears in full screen. It's a detail that makes framing and focusing easier.

In addition, at any time we can select if we want the normal or wide-angle amplitude in each scene. We can use the basic settings of the camera to activate or deactivate the flash or add filters.

  • The automatic mode of the Samsung Galaxy A7 2018 camera adjusts the best parameters at all times to capture each scene, depending on the lighting conditions and what we want to photograph. The HDR function is automatic and turns on or off according to the conditions of each scene.
  • In addition, the scene optimizer uses artificial intelligence to identify objects or people (food, landscape, flowers, etc.) and configure the color settings to obtain the best possible result.

samsung galaxy a7 2018 scene optimizer

  • The professional mode , on the other hand, offers us complete control of the capture parameters: we can manually adjust the white balance, exposure, ISO values ​​and focus.
  • If what we want is to get the most out of the triple lens depth sensors, it is best to select the dynamic focus mode , which allows you to manually configure the blur level of the image background. It is best suited for taking portrait-type photos where the background is less important.
  • Panorama mode , to capture large scenes or landscapes in a single photo, panning with the camera.

The Samsung Galaxy A7 2018 camera also allows you to record video in fast motion and slow motion , directly selecting these modes in the top menu of the app.

The beauty function of the main camera allows you to manually adjust skin color and softness parameters, as well as improve the appearance of the eyes and face or modify the light sources.

Capture modes on the front camera

In the secondary lens of the phone we can choose between the following capture modes:

  • Selfie mode .
  • Selfie focus , to generate the background blur effect.
  • Panoramic selfie .
  • AR Emoji .

How AR Emoji Works on the Samsung Galaxy A7 2018

AR Emoji is an augmented reality feature available for both the main and front cameras. In both cases, the lens is capable of detecting faces to add masks and effects such as stamps, stickers, and short audio clips.

samsung galaxy a7 2018 ar emoji

In this way, we can create fun compositions, both in photography and in short video , perfect for sharing on social networks such as Instagram.

Samsung Galaxy A7 2018 battery

Inside the smartphone we find a 3300 mAh battery , which is recharged through a microUSB 2.0 port. It is important to mention that the phone does not have any fast charging technology.

In terms of autonomy, the phone behaves very well with moderate use and lasts the whole day without problems. However, it is noted that the energy consumption of the screen is very high : two or three hours of videos and multimedia content in a row will drastically lower the level of the remaining battery.

Standard applications on the smartphone

In addition to the Google suite (with Chrome, Gmail, YouTube, Google Maps, etc.), the Samsung Galaxy A7 2018 comes with few pre-installed applications, which is an advantage because we do not have to give up a lot of storage space with apps that do not let's use.

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On the phone we find the basic tools (calendar, contacts, clock, etc.), Samsung's own Gallery application and Microsoft's Office suite for mobile phones : with Word, Excel, PowerPoint and OneDrive.

We also have two social media apps pre-installed (Facebook and LinkedIn), the FM radio app and Samsung's own app store , Galaxy Apps.

In addition, the Galaxy A7 has the Secure Folder service , to store files and photos with an extra protection using the Samsung account.

Conclusions, price and availability

The new Samsung Galaxy A7 from 2018 is now available in Spain for 350 euros . It is the version with 64 GB of internal storage and 4 GB of RAM, and we can buy it in black, blue or gold.

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In other countries the brand has also launched the terminal in pink. In addition, there is a version with better features (128 GB of storage and 6 GB of RAM) that has not yet reached our country. We will have to wait to see if the brand wants to bring it to the Spanish market as well.