Having used the Samsung Galaxy S20 for a while now, I did get a bit of a surprise when I took the new A72 out of its box and saw the size difference. Yes, the A72 has a 6.7-inch display, just 0.1 inches smaller than that of the S21 Ultra’s. If you’ve been using the A71 though, this is nothing new.
What is new, however, is that Samsung’s ditched the curved displays for the A Series this time around, much like how it did for the S21 and S21+ released earlier this year (the S21 Ultra kept the curved edge).
In a way, the flatter screen edge makes the display feel much bigger, which is satisfying to the eyes. While using the A72, I was also less likely to have accidental screen touches.
The A72 has an FHD+ Super AMOLED display, which was bright and vibrant. Interestingly, even more so than my S20’s despite both being set to Vivid and around the same brightness toggle. If I had to pick which looked better, I’d easily pick the A72’s screen.
Behind It All
We received the unit in the pretty Awesome Violet, which is almost like a powdery purple. It’s not reflective, purely matte thanks to its plastic back. It looked nice but certainly sounded cheap when tapped on with your fingers.
I actually don’t mind the plastic back, as I’m not planning to drop the phone from a height anytime soon and one would reasonably at least opt for a clear case to protect the pretty back.
Thanks to the plastic, the phone’s weight also clocks in at only 203g, though it’s heavier than the S21 which weighs only 171g. I’d say that the weight makes it feel as solid as can be with its plastic back, plus it’s not really a drag-your-pants-down kind of heavy anyway.
One of the most noticeable changes this time was the camera housing. It’s a seamless design, with no crevices around it, moulded perfectly to fit the quad-camera setup. On the edges of the phone, you have a shiny metallic band all around.
I must say that I also prefer the layout of the A72’s cameras, which look a lot more balanced than even the S21 Ultra’s, weirdly enough. Of course, these are all just cosmetic preferences though.
Looking Through The Lenses
The A72 has 64MP wide, 8MP telephoto, 12MP ultrawide and 5MP macro cameras. To my amateur eyes, photos I took of random spots from the same position didn’t look much different between what the S20 and the A72 captured.
I can confidently say that the A72’s pictures still came out crisp and vibrant after its Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS) kicked in. Anyway, I’ll be testing its cameras more properly in a full review soon, especially since it has the 30x Space Zoom which came to the S Series only last year too.
What’s Inside
Packed with a 5,000mAh battery and able to benefit from 25W fast charging, the battery is no joke. From my brief testing with multiple apps running and the brightness up by almost half, I’d say the battery drainage is decent and not worrying.
I’ve yet to test it out for gaming, and I’d also like to see how it’d hold up with its Snapdragon 720G processor. During my casual use such as watching videos and scrolling social media, I have yet to notice any heating issues on the A72.
Well, Am I Impressed?
Based on my first impressions, I have to say yes. I’ve laid my hands on a variety of Samsung phones, from the Ultras to the Notes, but this is the first time I’m using an A Series one.
Of course, I haven’t spent enough time to really get to know its flaws, but for now I can say that I’m quite pleased. While its price in Malaysia is still unknown, many are estimating it to be around RM2,205 based on its price in Euros.
That’s reasonable to me. All the fancy numbers and feature names mean little to me, so my judgement is purely from my own experience. So far, the A72 definitely impresses and I’m glad to see it carries some of the cooler features from the S20 and even the S21 series.
They seem to mainly be quality of life improvements, but as they say, it’s the little things that matter in life… Or something like that.
Editor’s Note: We’ll be updating this article with the Malaysian pricing and launch date once the details have been released.
