Samsung Galaxy A55 5G review: More premium, lower price

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G review: Quick summary

Samsung has packed in several ‘firsts’ for the Galaxy A series in the A55 5G, including a metal frame which looks — and feels — sleek and ultra-premium, but for under $700. Thanks to its overall great performance and stylish look, Samsung seems to be closing the gap between premium and budget-friendly.

• The cameras offer an all-round solid performance, but macro and portrait modes could be hit and miss at times.
• A zippy and smooth performance backed by up to 120Hz refresh rate makes for an all-round great experience, whether you’re scrolling social media or streaming video and gaming.
• Samsung’s purported ‘two-day battery life’ is backed up by real-world use, with it easily lasting for a couple of days of light or moderate usage.

Galaxy A55 5G pros and cons

Pros:

Looks and feels more like a premium Samsung phone
Screen size and quality great for watching videos
Decent battery life with moderate usage

Cons:

Macro and portrait modes a bit hit and miss
Shiny finish on the back prone to smudges
Price on the more expensive end of ‘budget-friendly’

Samsung overall customer satisfaction rating for smartphones: ★★★★★

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G features and specs

Samsung’s Galaxy A series spans from cheaper phones to the mid-range market. One of its latest additions, the Samsung Galaxy A55 5G offers a more premium experience but at a mid-range price point, with several firsts for the Galaxy A series.

With a metal frame and gorgeous glossy finish, along with a two-day battery life, great camera setup and 5G access for under $700 AUD, the Samsung Galaxy A55 5G packs in a lot and sees the next step in value-for-money for the budget-friendly series.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G design

Samsung has upgraded the materials for the Galaxy A55 5G compared to its predecessor, the A54 5G. You’ll get a metal frame and Gorilla Glass Victus Plus, which is an upgrade from its predecessor, and it’s a design and finish that looks sleek and feels premium. The slick metal frame is raised around the side buttons and helps to make it feel like a high-end premium phone.

The back of the A55 5G is glossy — which can be prone to smudges and fingerprints — and the Awesome Lilac colour, which I was given, features a rainbow shimmer when light hits the back of the phone. It reminded me of the stunning rainbow finish of several OPPO phones, such as the Reno8 Lite 5G, however I felt the glossy finish took away from the rainbow illusion.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G functionality

Despite its large 6.6-inch display size, the A55 5G was still a comfortable phone to hold. It did feel surprisingly heavy, which can equate to it feeling like a premium phone (and what you expect from the Galaxy S series).

The side-mounted buttons were well positioned and I liked where the on-screen fingerprint scanner was located, as it was easy to reach with my thumb. Both fingerprint and face recognition unlocking were quick and seamless to unlock. Ultimately, I found it a rather easy phone to use, despite the weightiness.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G display and audio

It’s hard to find fault with what the Galaxy A 55 5G delivered when it came to the viewing experience. The Super AMOLED display with 1,000 nits of brightness and up to 120Hz refresh rate delivered a display that offered great clarity and true-to-life colours. This was backed up by a great performance from the built-in speakers, which offered a lot of depth and clarity to the sound, no matter if you’re watching video or listening to music. Considering the mid-range price for the A55 5G, it delivered the kind of display and audio performance I would expect of a phone at this price.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G cameras

The Samsung Galaxy A55 5G includes a triple-rear camera setup with 50-megapixel main camera, 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera and 5-megapixel macro camera. For your selfie needs, you’ll get a 32-megapixel front-facing camera.

Outdoor photos, especially in sunny conditions, were a stand-out. The A55 offered great clarity and true-to-life colours without the overly vibrant, almost saturated finish that I’ve noticed with other Galaxy phones.

I was also impressed with photos taken indoors, especially in well-lit environments, where the colours looked rather natural and not too dull, as is often the case with cheaper phones. You also get a good natural-looking boost to the brightness. Using food mode indoors, especially in low-light conditions, offered some great results with natural-looking background blur and great focus on the food.

Night photos and very low-light conditions also delivered an impressive performance. In conditions with some light source, it did a good job at brightening your shots and maintaining clarity, and using night mode gave even more of a boost.

Macro was perhaps the major let down, as I struggled to work out what the right distance was from the subject, I found that even when I seemed to get it right, the results could be rather blurry. In brighter conditions, it seemed to have better luck focusing, but macro shots are also much cooler than when you use the standard lens.

Portrait mode was decent, although it could be prone to blurring around the subject and struggled to focus on the subject in lower light conditions and there was some noise in darker conditions. The best portrait mode results were in brighter conditions.

The video quality was also another stand out. I took it for a spin at a live music show and didn’t experience any audio distortion, despite being right near the speakers.

Overall, the A55 5G’s cameras offer a solid performance whether you’re taking photos or recording video, and offers the kind of quality you would expect for a phone at this price point.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G performance

Samsung has packed in an Exynos 1480 processor with big upgrades compared to its predecessor, including a 70%+ larger cooling chamber, along with 8GB of RAM and 5G connectivity. The A55 5G also has eSIM — a first in an A series device from Samsung.

I found the Galaxy A55 5G delivered an all-round solid performance. It easily handled my day-to-day usage, whether it was streaming videos, playing games or scrolling through socials. It was also super responsive and quick to switch between apps and I didn’t have any issues with slow processing.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G battery and charging

The Galaxy A55 5G includes a 5,000mAh battery and fast charging, with Samsung touting it as a two-day battery. I found this was a pretty accurate claim, as the battery could easily last two days of light to moderate usage — heavier usage would probably need a daily recharge. The fast charging did an okay job, as I was able to charge from 0% to 100% in just over two hours of charging with a 20W fast charger.

After 12 hours and 20 minutes of moderate usage (video streaming, gaming, social media browsing and regular idle periods), it drained 37% of the battery. The battery drained 5% from 50 minutes of Netflix streaming, and dropped 2% with 22 minutes of HD YouTube streaming, while there was a 3% battery drain from 30 minutes of gaming.

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G price

The Samsung Galaxy A55 5G is $699 AUD RRP, which is the most expensive in the Galaxy A series released in 2024. This makes the phone a good compromise between affordability and better tech.

Related: What is the cheapest Samsung phone in Australia?

Samsung Galaxy A55 5G phone plans

You can buy the Samsung Galaxy A55 5G on a phone plan from Telstra, Optus and Vodafone. If you choose to buy your phone outright, you’ll need to pair it with a SIM-only phone plan.

The following table shows selected published 24-month plans for the Samsung Galaxy A55 5G on Canstar Blue’s database, listed in order of standard monthly cost, from the lowest to highest and then by data allowance, largest to smallest. Use our tool for mobile phone plan comparison to see a wider range of plans from other providers. This is a selection of products with links to a referral partner.

Related: Motorola Moto G84 5G review: Great quality, low price

Should I buy the Samsung Galaxy A55 5G?

As part of Samsung’s more affordable Galaxy A series, the Galaxy A55 5G offers a lot of great features and an all-round solid performance. It is a great phone that can handle your daily usage needs and offers a good camera performance with decent battery life.

The price for the Galaxy A55 5G is still rather steep for a mid-range phone, especially considering the A series is meant to be a budget-friendly device. Competitor brands like OPPO and Motorola often pack a lot more in for cheaper price points. However, Samsung has delivered an overall premium-feeling experience that you don’t often get in a mid-range phone. The A55 5G feels closer to what you might get from the ‘FE’ versions of the Galaxy S series.

The Galaxy A55 5G also carries a lot of ‘firsts’ for the A series, such as eSIM inclusions and a metal (rather than plastic) frame. This demonstrates Samsung’s focus on the more budget-conscious user, looking for a quality phone performance but without the premium price tag. The Galaxy A55 5G delivers that in spades and offers a good compromise for premium feel, but cheaper cost.

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Product used for review/testing was a free sample provided by Samsung.