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Samsung Galaxy Alpha early reviews - interesting but no game changer

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dawheat

Diamond Member
The only review so far seems to be in Russian (Google translate) and they seem pretty positive about it.

http://hi-tech.mail.ru/review/Samsung_GALAXY_Alpha-rev.html

Without holding one yet, I have to say it looks better than I expected:

1. Honestly the build item I dislike the most about my Note 3 is the chrome-colored plastic frame. It feels cheap and looks cheap. I've never really minded the front design (though it is getting a bit repetitive) or the faux leather back. I've even tried some aluminium bumpers, but threw them out when the build quality was crap. So I do like this design change of the Alpha, even if they didn't go all the way with the back.

The slimness and overall compact size should be quite good in hand - I'm actually a bit surprised how it's not that much bigger than the 5S.

2. I do wish it came with an AMOLED 1080p screen. Yes it was probably dropped to reduce the burden on the SOC and a dpi of 305 is probably good enough, but I think it will be criticized in some circles for not having a top notch display. On the good side, the review of the screen quality seems to be quite favorable - continuing the trend of recent AMOLED screens.

3. 32GB internal is probably good enough for most and there is a 64GB version. I'm ambivalent on the no microSD since they at least made 32GB the base level.

4. The battery really seems to be the biggest weakness - I think they could have traded some slimness for a bigger battery. Sure the battery and software improvements in the S5 probably means it has barely good enough battery life, but they should have aimed for better. The same improvements with a 2200mAh battery would have been acceptable.

5. Overall - nothing to be excited about, will try it out if/when it makes it into stores, and hopefully some of these changes make it onto the Note 4.

90aede78ce56521250df00e86bc4.jpg
 
I don't think it looks all that different from the current Galaxy. I was expecting an all metal phone, not just the frame. I also thought this was supposed to be positioned above the S5, but it's a midrange phone...

Samsung needs a redesign. Considering they're the major AMOLED user, with no backlighting needs they should really be able to incorporate front facing stereo speakers and not impact bezel size too much. After having held and used a OnePlus One, it is the best looking phone IMHO. The frame on the OPO is plastic yet it looks much, much better than what Samsung is doing.
 
what is the price???
if just for looks, i rather get the BLU VIVO IV, only $300 on amazon. world's thinnest at 5.5mm. covered in glass n aluminum. it has mid range specs like this alpha in a ridiculously sexy body.
 
The running joke from some people I know:

"Samsung just announced the iPhone 5s."

Yes, it's not *that* similar, but there's no question where the Alpha's influences come from. It's fine, but it comes across as trying to emulate a product without really understanding what makes it special. The back should be metal, not just the sides; it should also represent the best the company can offer, not a step down. It's going to be hurting when the next iPhone comes out with a thinner, nicer-looking design that's also more powerful.
 
Well supposedly this is Samsung's answer to the iPhone 6. It has a 4.7 inch display like the iPhone 6 is expected to have. And it's aluminum frame will give it a more premium feel that iPhone users expect from a phone.

I just don't get the 1280x720 display. The iPhone 6 will likely top that and it's below what your normally get an a premium Android phone. And the Exynos 5 is pretty mediocre too.

Samsung has become very confident I guess.
 
Why can't I have flagship specs in a 4.5"-5.0" device. I really don't think that's too much to ask. I was even ready to cave and go for mega phone w/ the LG G3 but they had to F that up with it's absurdly high resolution.
 
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_alpha-review-1114p3.php

Seems plenty fast to me. I honestly think this is a much better phone than people are giving it credit for. Very thin, very light, MUCH MUCH smaller than phones with the same screen size. Exynos 5430 Seems plenty fast. Snapdragon 800 performance. We will just have to see how battery life is. I suspect it won't be too bad seeing as the display is "only" 720P and AMOLED is getting really good as of late.

Speaking of the display, that is probably the one downside, but if it has a full set if subpixles per pixel, it should look as good as the iPhone display.

So Here is your Flagship phone with Highend specs. Well except maybe the display.

I also noticed on the AT front page. The US version comes with S801. So whats the problem again?
 
Ravynmagi said:
Well supposedly this is Samsung's answer to the iPhone 6. It has a 4.7 inch display like the iPhone 6 is expected to have. And it's aluminum frame will give it a more premium feel that iPhone users expect from a phone.

I just don't get the 1280x720 display. The iPhone 6 will likely top that and it's below what your normally get an a premium Android phone. And the Exynos 5 is pretty mediocre too.

Samsung has become very confident I guess.
Click to expand...

There will be a model with a Snapdragon 801 in some markets, which could include North America. I don't think I'd consider the phone otherwise! As it stands, the Alpha may not get much attention given its features and timing -- it's probably going to be outclassed very shortly.
 
I guess beveled edges are not patented by you-know-who? XD

Edit: It is strange that they skipped SD card slot while having a removable back cover.
 
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Okay, okay. I was being dramatic again. It's not the worst phone ever made. But these specs are lower than the Galaxy S5. Why build this apparently beautiful phone with aluminum frame, and then slap a 720p display and less RAM (that 2GB with TouchWiz isn't quite the same as 2GB on most Android phones)?

Well, it's not like I was excited and waiting on this phone. But it just seems like a puzzling move on Samsung's part. Hopefully the Note 4 will have a metal frame or something a bit more premium as well.
 
Ravynmagi said:
Okay, okay. I was being dramatic again. It's not the worst phone ever made. But these specs are lower than the Galaxy S5. Why build this apparently beautiful phone with aluminum frame, and then slap a 720p display and less RAM (that 2GB with TouchWiz isn't quite the same as 2GB on most Android phones)?

Well, it's not like I was excited and waiting on this phone. But it just seems like a puzzling move on Samsung's part. Hopefully the Note 4 will have a metal frame or something a bit more premium as well.
Click to expand...

I don't have any issue with the SOC, memory, or storage. The performance results of the phone appear to be very good and doesn't appear to give anything up to current flagships.

I'll have to see the 4.7" 720p screen in person - it appears to be very accurate and high quality - just not as sharp as the current flagships. This could be an area where it's a non-issue or a step back.

The battery probably is the biggest sore spot though in all fairness, it might not be as bad as it seems. We'll have to see what real life usage and on-screen time is like. It won't be S5 great for sure, but it might be good enough. Still - probably the right tradeoff for Samsung to include a 2200 mAh battery.

The more I look at the phone, the better it looks. If my wife was ever seriously looking at leaving the iPhone, this probably would be a good option. I think it'll feel quite good in hand and a good compromise between the larger 5" flagships and the current iPhone.

gsmarena_007.jpg
 
dawheat said:
I don't have any issue with the SOC, memory, or storage. The performance results of the phone appear to be very good and doesn't appear to give anything up to current flagships.

I'll have to see the 4.7" 720p screen in person - it appears to be very accurate and high quality - just not as sharp as the current flagships. This could be an area where it's a non-issue or a step back.

The battery probably is the biggest sore spot though in all fairness, it might not be as bad as it seems. We'll have to see what real life usage and on-screen time is like. It won't be S5 great for sure, but it might be good enough. Still - probably the right tradeoff for Samsung to include a 2200 mAh battery.

The more I look at the phone, the better it looks. If my wife was ever seriously looking at leaving the iPhone, this probably would be a good option. I think it'll feel quite good in hand and a good compromise between the larger 5" flagships and the current iPhone.
Click to expand...

I'm sure the phone is good enough. But that still doesn't explain why they built this phone with seemingly higher quality materials, likely to attract iPhone converts, and then put lower specs in it.

I'm sure it's a good phone. But with inferior specs to their own phones launched months ago or even phones launched a year ago.

However if Samsung really surprises me and prices this around $400 or $500, then I suppose it's lackluster specs would be understood.

Samsung makes a lot of phones, they just throw a bunch of stuff against a wall to see what sticks, and quite a few of them, like this one leaves me scratching my head.
 
If it's priced well I think it's best to just think of this as the S5 Mini people might actually want compared to the real S5 Mini with a Snapdragon 400.
 
Ravynmagi said:
I'm sure the phone is good enough. But that still doesn't explain why they built this phone with seemingly higher quality materials, likely to attract iPhone converts, and then put lower specs in it.
Click to expand...
Look, if you got an iPhone recently you're clearly ok with subpar resolution and RAM.
 
720p is the biggest drawback here. Everyone has come to expect 1080p and it makes sense now in 2014 from an UI, text, and photo display perspective too. Its quite puzzling. I don't worry that much about the slower cpu or lower battery capacity though, because that can be compensated for in software (and Samsung should have every incentive to unbloat these days).
 
I think TIME basically got it right.
http://time.com/3108808/galaxy-alpha-samsung/

.... Samsung CEO JK Shin says the phone was “built and designed based on the specific desires of the consumer market,” which I think means people were getting tired of $600 Samsung phones covered in cheap plastic.

But as a response to those demands, the Galaxy Alpha seems like a mix of laziness and cynicism. The design takes no risks and breaks no new ground aesthetically.... It’s as if Samsung just threw some aluminum on a phone to shut people up. You want metal? Here’s your stupid metal.
Click to expand...
 
zerogear said:
I think TIME basically got it right.
http://time.com/3108808/galaxy-alpha-samsung/
Click to expand...

In fairness, it seems written by someone who hasn't actually used/held the phone but is going off pictures and specs.

It's built to test the desire for a more premium feeling Galaxy phone - I'm going to reserve judgement until I get to hold it on whether Samsung met their goal or not. Reviews from people who actually have the phone to test seem pretty happy with the feel.
 
s44 said:
Look, if you got an iPhone recently you're clearly ok with subpar resolution and RAM.
Click to expand...

Why would an iPhone fans leave their iPhone with subpar resolution and RAM for an Android with subpar resolution and RAM when there are so many better Android phones? You need to give them something substantially better to leave their precious iOS ecosystem for.
 
The Alpha's issue isn't so much inside it as the timing.

It reminds me of the original Galaxy Tab 10.1 in February 2011. It was clearly built as a response to the first iPad from a year earlier. There was only one problem: Apple unveiled the iPad 2 just days afterward, completely outclassing the Tab. Samsung was embarrassed to the point where it rushed out a near-total ergonomic redesign in five weeks -- it had to delay its big launch to avoid being DOA.

The Galaxy Alpha has similar hallmarks. It's clearly influenced by and targeted at last year's iPhone... but what happens if (and more likely when) the next iPhone is thinner, faster and a better camera phone than the Alpha? Does Samsung scramble to upgrade the specs and design again to keep up?
 
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