An impeccable combination of a small body and a high level of smartphone performance is Samsung Alpha. The characteristics of this device at the software and hardware levels allow today to solve problems of any level of complexity. And a similar situation will continue over the next 2-3 years. This phone will be considered in great detail in the framework of the material.
Background of the appearance of the smartphone
Until recently, Apple released high-performance smartphones with a small diagonal display. But the South Korean giant produced flagships only with a large diagonal. But with the release of the iPhone 6, the situation has changed dramatically. It was immediately presented 2 devices on the same hardware and software platform. The difference between them lies in the diagonal of the screen, which in the first case is 4.7 inches (a more modest device) and 5.5 inches (iPhone 6 Plus). As a result, the South Korean company had to be rebuilt, and in addition to the S5, a gadget such as Samsung Alpha appeared on sale. Characteristics (reviews confirm this) they are almost identical. The difference between these devices is the diagonal of the display and the cost of the device. So it turns out that this smart phone owes its appearance to Apple's bold experiments.
Equipment
Very good equipment at the Samsung Galaxy Alpha. The technical specifications given later in the text allow this smartphone to be attributed to high-performance solutions. Accordingly, his equipment is above average. It includes, in addition to the device itself, such components and accessories:
- External battery.
- Charger.
- Stereo headset with improved sound quality.
- Additional pneumatic suction cups for stereo headsets.
- Interface cord.
- User manual with warranty card at the end.
- An advertising booklet with a recommended list of accessories.
Design solution
Samsung has long worked on the design of its smart phones, and now it’s not difficult to recognize its appearance by appearance. So something unusual is not to be expected from Samsung Alpha. Technical characteristics allow us to attribute this gadget to the premium class, but in appearance you can not say right away. As expected, most of the front panel is occupied by a display whose diagonal is 4.7 inches. Above it are the earpiece, the front camera eye and light and proximity sensors. At the bottom is a typical smartphone control panel, which consists of a proprietary mechanical button ( a fingerprint scanner is also built into it ) and two touch buttons. All the side faces of the device are made of metal and you certainly cannot argue with a similar design solution: the strength of the case increases several times. The shutdown button is displayed on the right side, and the swing on the left side to adjust the volume level of the gadget. In addition to the microUSB port, a loud microphone and a hole for the conversational microphone are also displayed on the lower edge of the smart phone. At the top is an audio port and microphone to suppress external noise and interference. There are only two holes on the back cover of the gadget: under the camera and under the LED backlight.
CPU and its features
A very productive processor solution is used in Samsung Alpha. The characteristics of Exynos 5 Octa 5430 are as follows: 8 cores based on the "A7" architecture divided into 2 computing clusters. The first of them operates at a frequency of 1.3 GHz and is used in cases where there is no need to use the maximum computing resources of the smartphone. Also in this case, the maximum level of battery saving is ensured. The second cluster is turned on when demanding applications are launched (Asphalt 8 can be taken as an example) and it operates at a frequency of 1.8 GHz. The computing capabilities of this chip are quite enough to solve a wide range of problems.
Display and video accelerator
As expected, the type of screen matrix is Super AMOLED in Samsung Alpha. Characteristics of the display are very, very good. Its resolution is 720x1280, that is, the picture on it is displayed in HD format. Of course, some smartphone owners are outraged that it is not in FullHD format. But, on the other hand, this allows you to increase the battery life of the gadget with a small battery capacity. The air gap, as expected for a premium smartphone, is absent between the sensor and the display, and the image quality at any viewing angles is not satisfactory. The device also has a Mali-T628 MP6 graphics adapter, which will easily pull any application at the moment.
Device cameras
Quality cameras are used at Samsung Alpha. The characteristics (photos and videos obtained with their help, this only confirms) they have impressive. The main one is based on a 12 megapixel sensor. Programmatically, it implements the autofocus function, there is also an LED backlight. Its key feature is the ability to record video in the format of 2160 r, while the update speed will be 30 frames per second. There are also more "modest" modes for clips: 1080 r at 60 frames per second or 720 r at 120 frames per second. Although a more modest sensitive element in the front camera is 2.1 megapixels, but in terms of parameters it is not so much inferior to the main one. With it, you can record video in 1080 p format and a refresh rate of 30 frames per second. This allows you to make video calls with a very high-quality picture. And the “selfies” obtained with its help are also not satisfactory.
Memory
The memory subsystem in Samsung Galaxy Alpha is perfectly implemented. Her characteristics are as follows:
- The amount of RAM is 2 GB. Somewhere around 1 GB of them is occupied by system processes (operating system) and the TouchViz software shell. The rest is dedicated to solving user problems, and this is quite enough even to run such resource-intensive applications as Asphalt 8.
- The capacity of the internal drive is 32 GB. And this is more than enough to install new applications and store personal data.
But there is no slot for installing an external flash card. Therefore, with a lack of integrated 32 GB, you will have to use cloud services. But such an approach is justified - if the device breaks down, the most important information will be saved and it will not be difficult to restore it.
Battery
One of the most controversial issues is the battery capacity at Samsung Galaxy Alpha. Her characteristics are really modest. A capacity of 1860 mAh at best will allow the owner of this device to stretch for 1-2 days on an average charge. Theoretically, this value can be increased to 3 days, but at the same time, the smartphone will turn into just a regular “dialer”. Well, if you play the same Asphalt 8 or a similar toy on this device, then the battery will last for 8-12 hours.
But, on the other hand, the developers wanted to get a device with a small thickness and low weight. As a result, they did it, and their autonomy remained at an acceptable level.
Interfaces
An impressive communication set of interfaces is implemented in Samsung Galaxy Alpha. Specifications indicate the following list:
- The device can work in all types of mobile networks, including LTE.
- The Wai Fai transmitter is built-in, capable of also exchanging information with any wireless router at the moment.
- There is also a "Bluetooth" version 4.0.
- For navigation, the device is equipped with one ZhPS transmitter, which, in addition to the standard ZhPS network, can also determine the location using GLONASS satellites.
- The main wireless interface is microUSB, the version of which in this device is 3.0.
- Another wired port is a 3.5-mm audio port, designed to output and input audio information.
Software
“Android” with the current version 4.4 is used as system software, but this is not the limit that owners of such a device as the Samsung Alpha smartphone can count on. The characteristics of its hardware components allow you to install later versions of this operating system on it. So we expect software updates from the manufacturer. The rest of the set of pre-installed programs is typical: mini-applications of social networks, utilities from Google and built-in software.
User Feedback
You feel the good work of Korean developers at Samsung Galaxy Alpha. Characteristics, reviews, this only confirms, he has really impressive. The only two points that can be faulted are the display resolution and low battery capacity . In the first case, instead of HD, developers could equip the gadget with a Full HD matrix. As a result, image quality would be greatly improved. But even so, the picture quality is not satisfactory. But the small battery capacity leads to the fact that the autonomy of the device allows for one maximum charge to stretch for 2 days. It’s quite difficult to count on more. But, on the other hand, this made it possible to reduce the weight and thickness of the apparatus. As a result, the developers chose a middle ground: both autonomy is acceptable, and thickness with weight does not scare potential buyers.
Summary
$ 450 is the average cost for the current Samsung Alpha smartphone. Its characteristics are above average and such a high cost is justified. Moreover, in terms of hardware and software resources, this smartphone will be able to solve any problems within 2-3 years. This is an ideal solution for those who need a phone with a small diagonal and excellent filling.