Forget the $599 iPhone 16E: Samsung’s New Galaxy A Phones Are Truly Affordable

Samsung has debuted its latest mid-range phones, the Galaxy A36 and A26. This includes a larger display, a more powerful processor, and inevitably new AI features. The phones cost $400 and $300 respectively and will be on sale in late March.

The company has also announced the Galaxy A56 mobile phone. This is priced at $500 and will be available later this year. The A56 has a larger display than last year’s Galaxy A55, new AI features and camera improvements, says Samsung.

When you arrive at the heels of your $599 iPhone 16E, Apple’s affordable phone ideas aren’t cheap. All three new Samsung Galaxy phones seem to prove that phone makers can really create affordable devices and Expand new features such as Android 15 and single UI 7. All phones have six years of OS and security updates and are built using Samsung’s. Knox Bold For device security and privacy, and for IP67 ratings for dust and water resistance.

Samsung’s announcement comes soon Mobile World Congress In Barcelona. Everything you need to know about the Galaxy A36, A26, A56 is here.

Samsung Galaxy A36: $400

At 8.2mm thick and 196 grams, the Galaxy A36 5G is thinner and lighter than last year’s A35 5G, weighing 7.4mm thick and weighing 209 grams. Like last year, the phone packs a 5,000 mAh battery, but now has a super fast charge of 45 watts, and Samsung says it can charge your phone nearly 70% in 30 minutes. (CNET will test this. Check out the device yourself and stay tuned.)

The thin bezel hits the display 6.7 inches compared to the 6.6 inches of the A35. The A36 features a 120Hz refresh rate and an increase in peak brightness of 1,900 nits, making it ideal to watch the screen even when in a bright, bright environment. Both the front and back feature Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus Plus, which Samsung says will improve durability. The company says they are all “FHD+” resolution, usually meaning 2,220×1,080 pixels.

It also upgrades the camera with support for HDR video recording on the 50 megapixel main camera. Like last year’s mobile phones, the A36 also comes with an 8-megapixel Ultrawid and a 5-megapixel macro camera. The front camera is 13-12 megapixels, but it supports 10-bit HDR video recording. It is worth noting that more megapixels do not automatically mean the camera.

HDR support allows images and videos to have a wider dynamic range (difference between the brightest and darkest parts of the image), helping them to look more detailed and colorful. For night shots, Samsung says that larger pixels provide a sharper and more vivid image with minimal noise. Keep an eye out for CNET testing. Check the camera’s functionality.

There is an AI feature that allows you to search for A36s, like Google’s Circle. This allows you to translate text on the screen to identify music. Samsung debuted these new features in its flagship Galaxy S25 lineup in January. AI-powered photo editing tools include an enhanced object erasing device that allows you to select multiple objects to be deleted, and a filtering feature that allows you to create custom filters based on photos. For example, if you have a sunset shot and like the tone of the image, you can apply that filter to other photos as well. Editing suggestions will use AI to analyze images and provide recommendations to improve it, such as removing shadows and reflections.

The A36 is the Exynos 1380, which is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor and is featured on the Galaxy A35. It comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Samsung says it also has a larger cooling system to better dissipate heat and optimize it for gameplay and streaming.

The Galaxy A36 will be available in black and lavender on March 26th. The exclusive Lime version is also available from Best Buy.

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Samsung Galaxy A26: $300

The (even cheaper) Galaxy S26 is thinner than its predecessor, measuring at 7.7mm compared to the 8.3mm on the Galaxy A25. It also gets a larger FHD+ display thanks to a reduced bezel matching the 6.5 inch of the A36. It shares a 120Hz refresh rate.

Last year’s A25 had a glass front and plastic back, but like the A36, the A26 has stepped in step with the Gorilla Glass Victus Plus on both the front and back. The frame remains plastic. Like last year’s model, the A26 has a 50-megapixel wide-angle camera, an 8-megapixel ultraweed camera, a 2-megapixel macro camera, and a 13-megapixel selfie camera.

Despite the low price, AI features are still available, such as photo editing suggestions and object erasers, as well as circles to search for. The A26 runs the Exynos 1380 chipset and comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. It also has up to 2TB of expandable memory and packs a 5,000 mAh battery.

The A26 will be available on March 28th and will only be available in Black.

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Samsung Galaxy A56: $500

To complete the trio, the Galaxy A56 has a 6.7-inch display and a 5,000 mAh battery, which supports 45 watts of charging, just like the A36. The A56 is powered by the Exynos 1580 chipset and also has a large steam chamber that allows you to play games and watch videos for longer.

The A56 has a 50 megapixel wide camera, a 12 megapixel ultraweed camera, and a 5 megapixel macro camera. The selfie camera has a 12-megapixel sensor compared to the Galaxy A55’s 32-megapixel front camera, both of which took it. 12 or 8 megapixels image After pixel binning. Selfie cameras also have 10-bit HDR support, which helps you take sharper, lower-light photos in low-noise modes, says Samsung.

The feature available only on the A56 is called Best Face. This helps you nail the group photos by choosing the best representation of up to 5 people and then combining them into one image. This is similar to Google’s best take feature in the Pixel series. The A56 also acquires the Erase Device and Filter Function for Extended Objects.

Samsung has not yet shared the A56 color options and has only said it will be available later this year.