We’re all awaiting the Galaxy S23 reveal at Unpacked in a number of weeks, however the S23 will not be Samsung’s first telephone launch of 2023. That honor belongs to the budget-oriented Galaxy A14 5G, which matches on sale right now for a mere $200. It provides a number of significant upgrades over final yr’s A13, and it will get a whopping 4 years of replace help, which is uncommon even for telephones that price a number of occasions extra.
The telephone has considerably bigger bezels than costlier telephones, and there is a tear drop-style notch for the front-facing digicam as an alternative of the much less intrusive gap punch. Because the display is LCD, you will even have a side-mounted fingerprint sensor as an alternative of 1 within the show. On the flip aspect, this telephone nonetheless provides a microSD card slot and headphone jack, each of that are more and more uncommon even on funds telephones.
Price range telephones have suffered from provide chain shortages throughout the pandemic, regressing to lower-cost ARM chips and lower-resolution screens. Whereas the Galaxy A14 would not have a Snapdragon chip, it does have a really succesful MediaTek Dimensity 700. It additionally sports activities a 6.6-inch 1080 x 2408 LCD touchscreen as an alternative of the 720p panel on final yr’s A13 and most different equally priced funds telephones. It additionally has a 90Hz refresh for smoother animations.
Samsung guarantees multi-day battery life from the 5000mAh battery, however the 15W most charging velocity is a bit of sluggish by 2023 requirements. You will not have to attend for an Android replace proper out of the field, although. Whereas many funds telephones are nonetheless transport with Android 12, the A14 comes with Android 13 and the most recent One UI interface. Plus, Samsung guarantees 4 years of safety patches and two main Android OS updates (Android 14 and 15). That is about all you may count on from a funds telephone, which you will most likely need to substitute inside of 4 years.
One of many locations you need to compromise with funds telephones just like the A14 is the digicam. This telephone has three lenses on the again, however do not count on the identical outcomes as a three-lens Galaxy S telephone. The first 50MP digicam is nothing to sneeze at, however the 2MP macro and 2MP depth cameras will do little to enhance your cellular images expertise.
Samsung offers the telephone unlocked, in addition to branded for all three main carriers. The carriers themselves could have the telephone of their shops, however Samsung has prompt trade-in provides. When you’ve got an iPhone or Galaxy from a number of years in the past, it’s going to most likely shave $100 off the worth tag.
