Samsung Galaxy A15 Phone Review: Best Budget-Friendly Option

Samsung Galaxy A15 Phone

4

Overall Score

4.0/5

The Good Stuff

• Affordable
• Long battery life
• Standard camera performance
• Good overall performance
• Standard screen quality
• microSD card compatible

The Bad Stuff

• Plastic frame build
• No water/dust resistance

Samsung Galaxy A15

In simpler terms, the Samsung Galaxy A15 phone offers more features, better performance, and longer battery life than its rivals, making it the best Android phone you can get.

SPECS

Looking for a budget-friendly Android phone? Look no further than the Samsung Galaxy A15 phone. Boasting a large, crisp display, outstanding battery life, expandable storage, and smooth performance, this phone punches above its weight for just less than $200. Plus, with four years of guaranteed software updates, it’s an investment that will last. While the build quality could be slightly more premium, the Galaxy A15 phone outshines its competitors in this price range, making it our top pick for budget Android users.

Average Design

The Galaxy A15 phone looks a lot like other Samsung phones, measuring similar in size to both the Galaxy S23 FE and Galaxy S24+, despite costing significantly less.

While it feels solid, it isn’t as sleek as its pricier siblings. The screen is made of ‘Dragontrail Pro’ glass, but the back and frame are plastic. Unlike some other budget phones, the A15 isn’t water or dust resistant, so be careful around spills.

The buttons are a bit awkwardly placed, with the power button doubling as a fingerprint reader that takes some getting used to. It does have a headphone jack and a microSD card slot, which are becoming increasingly rare even in mid-range phones.

Three cameras sit on the back without a bump, and a selfie camera sits in a notch at the top of the screen. The phone comes in two colors: Blue Black and Light Blue.

AMOLED Display

The Galaxy A15 boasts a decent-sized 6.5-inch Super AMOLED screen, though it has thicker bezels than most modern phones. While the resolution is sharp (2,340 x 1,080 pixels) and the refresh rate is smooth (90Hz), the maximum brightness of 800 nits is less impressive.

Compared to competitors like the $179.99 TCL 40 X 5G (bigger screen, lower resolution) and the $299.99 OnePlus Nord N30 5G (higher resolution, faster refresh rate, lower brightness), the A15 offers a middle-ground option.

Indoors, the display is impressive, but outdoors, it can be hampered by reflections in bright light.

Decent Smartphone Performance

While the Galaxy A15 doesn’t boast top-of-the-line specs, it performs well enough for everyday tasks. For $200, you get a phone that handles email, web browsing, and videos smoothly, although it might lag when switching between multiple apps.

Benchmarks show the A15 competes well with similar budget phones like the TCL 40 X 5G, but falls behind pricier options like the S23 FE and S24 that use more powerful processors.

It can handle less demanding games like Mario Kart Tour, but struggles with high-end titles like Genshin Impact on anything other than the lowest settings.

Overall, the A15 offers decent performance for everyday users, but those looking for a powerful gaming phone or smooth multitasking experience might want to consider a more expensive option.

Superb Battery Life

The Galaxy A15 boasts a major improvement in battery life compared to its predecessor. It lasted a whopping 14 hours and 3 minutes in our video streaming test, surpassing the A14’s 9 hours and 40 minutes.

This puts it slightly ahead of competitors like the TCL 40 X 5G (11 hours 13 minutes) and the OnePlus Nord N30 5G (11 hours 18 minutes), all while packing the same 5,000mAh battery capacity.

While the phone lacks wireless charging, it supports faster 25W wired charging compared to the A14’s 15W.

A full charge takes about 90 minutes, and you can reach 28% and 49% battery in just 15 and 30 minutes respectively. However, keep in mind that a charger is not included in the box.

Decent Camera

While the Galaxy A15 received a slight camera upgrade over its predecessor, it’s important to manage expectations. The main 50MP camera captures decent photos with slightly oversaturated colors and occasional lens flare.

The newer ultra-wide camera offers a wider perspective but suffers from blurry details and warping along the edges. The macro camera is only useful in well-lit situations due to grainy results.

The front-facing camera captures portraits with decent detail but struggles with color accuracy and edge detection. Video recording is limited to 1080p resolution without stabilization, leading to shaky footage.

Overall, the A15’s cameras deliver acceptable performance for the price, but photography enthusiasts looking for more advanced features and sharper results might be better served by spending more on a different phone.

My Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy A15 phone is a significant upgrade over its predecessor, the Galaxy A14, offering double the storage, a brighter screen, and a massive boost in battery life. Compared to other phones in its price range, it stands out with its smooth performance, long-lasting battery, and Samsung’s commitment to software updates.

We highly recommend it as its perfect for students, middle-class, and those who want a phone for simplicity. These improvements earn it one of the best budget-friendly Android phones today.

In simpler terms, the Samsung Galaxy A15 phone offers more features, better performance, and longer battery life than its rivals, making it the best Android phone you can get. At under US$200 you can rest assured that you have made a valuable investment. 

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