The first smartphone of the J7 series from Samsung appeared back in 2015, and it can still be found in stores selling mobile phones. One way or another, Samsung made it a rule every year to release an updated model of the device, which can be seen by looking at the model of 2016 and the current 2017. But it seemed to the company that this year one new J7 would not be enough, and she decided to release another one model, a little simpler and a little cheaper than the regular version - Samsung Galaxy J7 Neo.
Why is this new product so remarkable and what is better than the regular version? In this we just want to understand in the framework of today's review. Let's get started!
Description
Before starting the review of the Samsung J7 Neo, I would like to talk a bit about the device itself. It came out about six months after the presentation of the main version of J7 2017. The device turned out to be completely different in design from the real “seven”, but here the general features with more budget models are clearly visible. So, the J7 Neo very much resembles the models: J1, J1 mini prime, J2, J3 and even J5.
Nevertheless, these devices cannot be directly compared, as they are in different price categories, and the hardware is significantly different. But the price of the Samsung J7 Neo is noticeably lower compared to the regular version and, accordingly, higher than the above models. We will tell you in detail about the cost separately. Let the price remain a secret for now.
Equipment
The Samsung J7 Neo phone is delivered in a small box of blue color. There are no images on the package. There is only the name of the model on the top of the package in large print. On the back you can read about the main technical characteristics of the device.
Inside, in addition to the smartphone itself, there are: instructions, a warranty card, an empty bag of battery (it is already installed in the phone), simple in-ear headphones with a microphone, a microUSB cable and a charger adapter with a capacity of 1.5 A. That's it the entire scope of delivery. It is unfortunate that the manufacturer did not put a film on the screen or a simple protective glass inside the package.
In extreme cases, a silicone case could be a bonus. Incidentally, it obviously will not hurt here, since the case is completely made of plastic, which means that over time, paint will slide off and scuffs will appear.
By the way, if you suddenly need a cover on the Samsung Galaxy J7 Neo, then finding it will not be difficult. They are sold in almost any mobile device store.
Appearance
The next stage of our review of the Samsung J7 Neo is the external vit of the smartphone. As already mentioned, the case is completely made of plastic. The back cover is removable, and on its surface you can see a small pattern (texture). The phone will fit well in the hand, primarily due to the rounded corners and edges. The build quality is not bad, but there are suspicions that over time, the back cover will begin to play and creak.
So, on the right side of the phone is the power / lock key of the device. The left side is also not empty - there is a volume rocker on it. The location is quite convenient.
There is nothing at the top end of the phone, but at the bottom there is a 3.5 mm jack for connecting headphones, a microUSB connector and a microphone. On the back, the Samsung J7 Neo has only an external speaker, a main camera lens and an LED flash. The camera eye itself protrudes slightly above the surface and has a small edge.
Well, the last is the front part. Everything is standard here for the Samsung. Below the screen are already the classic touch keys "Back" and "Menu", and the slightly elongated mechanical Home button separates them. Above the screen, you can find a speaker, a front camera, a flash for the front camera and proximity and light sensors.
Characteristics
The characteristics of the Samsung J7 Neo are as follows:
- Model - J7 Neo.
- The number of SIM cards is 2.
- The type of SIM card is mirco-SIM.
- Screen - Super Amoled, 1280 x 720, 267 ppi.
- Screen size - 5.5 inches.
- Processor - Exynos 7870 Octa 53, 8 cores.
- The processor frequency is 1.6 GHz.
- Video Accelerator - Mali-T830.
- The amount of RAM is 2 GB.
- The amount of internal memory is 16 GB.
- Support for microSD - there is a separate slot.
- The maximum capacity of a memory card is 256 GB.
- Communication - GSM850, GSM900, DCS1800, PCS1900, 3G, 4G LTE.
- Bluetooth - 4.1.
- Wi-fi - 802.11 b / g / n 2.4 GHz.
- Camera - 13 megapixels, aperture F 1.9, autofocus, LED flash.
- The front camera is 5 megapixels, aperture F 2.2, LED flash.
- The operating system is Android 7.0.
- Battery - 3000 mAh.
- Dimensions (W / H / T) - 78.6 mm / 152.4 mm / 7.6 mm.
- Weight - 170 grams.
- Additionally - GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, proximity sensor, light sensor, gyroscope.
In principle, the characteristics of the “Samsung J7 Neo” are pretty good, but they still lose a little bit to the standard version of the 2017 J7.
Display
The screen of the Samsung J7 Neo has a diagonal of 5.5 inches, a resolution of 1280 x 720 and a pixel density of 267 ppi, which is not very good. The matrix is made using Super Amoled technology, and there is only one claim to color rendering - the colors are too bright, but this is rather a feature of all AMOLED matrices.
Calibration as a whole is not bad, although not perfect. The brightness margin also does not reach the optimum, but there are no problems with the readability of information in cloudy weather or in the bright sun. Viewing angles are about the same as on the regular version of J7. Contrast and saturation at a good level.
Performance
Based on the technical characteristics of the Samsung J7 Neo, it can be assumed that the smartphone will perform quite well in games and some synthetic tests. You should probably start with the traditional Antutu. In this test, the phone scored almost 46 thousand points, which is not so bad, but noticeably worse than the regular version, and some competitors. In the video accelerator test in the GeekBench 4 program, the phone produced a result of 2366 points. Also not perfect, but still not bad.
Well, the Asphalt 8 game will complete the testing. The final result was a pleasant surprise. At maximum graphics settings, the phone produces a good FPS, which allows you to comfortably play any modern games. The only thing is that the smoothness of the game process itself is a little lame, that is, the FPS “jumps” a little, but it is not critical.
Camera
The phone has a 13 megapixel camera module with support for autofocus, LED flash. Takes a smartphone medium. In the room, noise is noticeable in the photo, color rendering is falling. On the street, the pictures come out bright, saturated, with a minimum of noise. Focusing works well, but sometimes misses.
For those who care about the front camera, the good news is that it’s good. There is focus and flash. The quality of front-end photos will satisfy most requests. Reviews about the Samsung J7 Neo regarding the camera show that most users are satisfied with its capabilities, the only thing that does not suit is the video, which is not always of good quality.
Operating system and shell
The Samsung J7 Neo ships with the Android version 7.0 on board. For the shell meets the proprietary TouchWiz from Samsung. Actually, there are no special changes here, and something new, in comparison with the 2015 J7, did not appear. The system works smartly, the animation is smooth and pleasant, there are no twitches in the interface or no slowdowns.
As for the system settings, they are standard. There are also separate settings from Samsung, but there is nothing new in comparison with the 2016 and 2017 models. Moreover, the Settings application itself has not changed at all.
Autonomy
The phone has a battery with a capacity of 3000 mAh, which is not very much, considering the 8-core processor, support for 4G and Super Amoled screen. A full charge of the battery at an average intensity of use is barely enough for a day. With more active use of the device, it will need to be recharged once a day.
If you look at the reviews on the Samsung J7 Neo about the battery life, users are extremely unhappy with the weak battery. According to them, a good indicator of autonomy can be achieved only if you use the phone as a dialer + SMS and a bit of Internet.
Reviews
As the reviews on the Samsung J7 Neo show, the phone turned out to be average in all respects. Users note weak autonomy, an average camera, and low pixel density per inch (ppi) as the main disadvantages of the new device. It is clear that the phone was produced as the youngest version of the classic J7, but in some moments it is inferior even to the usual J5 of 2016, which costs less than this model.
Price
Finally we got to the price of the Samsung J7 Neo. Currently, the price tag for a smartphone varies between 11,800-13,000 rubles. Is it worth the money? Probably not, since it’s more profitable to buy the same J5 of 2016, which costs 10,500 rubles, or pay a little extra and take the J5 of 2017 for 13500-15000 thousand rubles. Well, of course, do not forget about smartphones from the Middle Kingdom, which are cheaper, and their characteristics are no worse.
Conclusion
The smartphone leaves a double feeling. On the one hand, this is a fresh device in 2017 from the J7 line with seemingly good features and characteristics. On the other hand, the smartphone turned out to be a certain stripped-down version of the usual J7, only in a plastic case, with a worse camera, worse performance and some more parameters. It is clear that in this way the difference in price was compensated, but was it worth it?
Reviews about the Samsung J7 Neo also show that the smartphone is not bad, but they are not very willing to buy it, even taking into account the advertising campaign. Whether or not to buy a phone, everyone will decide for himself, and that’s all. Enjoy the shopping.