Samsung Galaxy A8+ review: Throwing down the gauntlet The Galaxy A8+ is Samsung's most ambitious showing in the mid-range segment, but that may not be enough.
Samsung Galaxy A8+ review: Throwing down the gauntlet
The Galaxy A8+ is Samsung's most ambitious showing in the mid-range segment, but that may not be enough.
Galaxy A8+ Specs
Operating System Android 7.1.1 Nougat
Samsung Experience 8.5 Display 6.0-inch Super AMOLED 1080 x 2220 (411ppi)
Corning Gorilla Glass Processor Exynos 7885 Octa
2 x 2.2GHz Cortex A73, 6 x 1.6GHz Cortex A53
14nm FinFET GPU Mali-G71 RAM 6GB Storage 64GB Expandable Yes, up to 256GB (dedicated slot) Battery 3500mAh Charging USB-C Rear Camera 16MP f/1.7, PDAF
1080p@30FPS Front Camera 16MP + 8MP, f/1.9
1080p video Connectivity Wi-Fi 802.11 ac, Bluetooth 5.0
FM radio, 3.5mm jack
GPS/AGPS, GLONASS Security One-touch fingerprint sensor at the back
Iris scanning SIM Dual SIM slot Dimensions 159.9 x 75.7 x 8.3mm
191g Colors Black, Gold
| Operating System | Android 7.1.1 Nougat Samsung Experience 8.5 |
| Display | 6.0-inch Super AMOLED 1080 x 2220 (411ppi) Corning Gorilla Glass |
| Processor | Exynos 7885 Octa 2 x 2.2GHz Cortex A73, 6 x 1.6GHz Cortex A53 14nm FinFET |
| GPU | Mali-G71 |
| RAM | 6GB |
| Storage | 64GB |
| Expandable | Yes, up to 256GB (dedicated slot) |
| Battery | 3500mAh |
| Charging | USB-C |
| Rear Camera | 16MP f/1.7, PDAF 1080p@30FPS |
| Front Camera | 16MP + 8MP, f/1.9 1080p video |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 802.11 ac, Bluetooth 5.0 FM radio, 3.5mm jack GPS/AGPS, GLONASS |
| Security | One-touch fingerprint sensor at the back Iris scanning |
| SIM | Dual SIM slot |
| Dimensions | 159.9 x 75.7 x 8.3mm 191g |
| Colors | Black, Gold |
Galaxy A8+ Design and hardware
We're now in the fourth generation of Galaxy A devices. The first-generation launched back in 2014 and offered Samsung's take on the affordable flagship: a body made out of premium materials backed by solid cameras. Over the years, we've also seen features from the Galaxy S series trickle down to Galaxy A devices, namely Samsung payand IP68 water resistance.
With the Galaxy A8+, Samsung is bringing over its Infinity Display design aesthetic over to the mid-range segment. Like the S8 series and the Note 8, the A8+ has an 18.5:9 panel with narrow bezels, but there are a few differences. First up, the display itself is FHD+ and not QHD+ like the flagships, and the panel isn't curved. So the overall effect isn't quite as breathtaking as what you'd get on the Note 8.
We're now in the fourth generation of Galaxy A devices. The first-generation launched back in 2014 and offered Samsung's take on the affordable flagship: a body made out of premium materials backed by solid cameras. Over the years, we've also seen features from the Galaxy S series trickle down to Galaxy A devices, namely Samsung payand IP68 water resistance.
With the Galaxy A8+, Samsung is bringing over its Infinity Display design aesthetic over to the mid-range segment. Like the S8 series and the Note 8, the A8+ has an 18.5:9 panel with narrow bezels, but there are a few differences. First up, the display itself is FHD+ and not QHD+ like the flagships, and the panel isn't curved. So the overall effect isn't quite as breathtaking as what you'd get on the Note 8.
Biometrics
To accommodate the minimal-bezel S8+ and Note 8, Samsung had to move the fingerprint sensor next to the camera module at the back. To say that the decision wasn't well-received would be an understatement, as the position of the sensor make it awkward to reach for most users.
Thankfully, Samsung has rectified the problem with the A8+. The fingerprint sensor is still located at the back, but it's now placed below the camera module, so there's less chance of smudging the camera lens when you're looking to unlock the phone. The sensor isn't as easy to access as other phones — I prefer the position of the OnePlus 5T'ssensor — but you can at least locate it with your finger.
It's not quite at the position where your finger naturally rests at the back of the device, but it is significantly better than that of the S8+ and Note 8. There's also a face recognition feature, which isn't the same as iris scanning on the S8+ and Note 8. The feature works as long as there's adequate light, but it isn't very reliable. For now, the fingerprint sensor is still the most secure method to safeguard your device, and I'm just glad the sensor is at an accessible location on the A8+.
To accommodate the minimal-bezel S8+ and Note 8, Samsung had to move the fingerprint sensor next to the camera module at the back. To say that the decision wasn't well-received would be an understatement, as the position of the sensor make it awkward to reach for most users.
Thankfully, Samsung has rectified the problem with the A8+. The fingerprint sensor is still located at the back, but it's now placed below the camera module, so there's less chance of smudging the camera lens when you're looking to unlock the phone. The sensor isn't as easy to access as other phones — I prefer the position of the OnePlus 5T'ssensor — but you can at least locate it with your finger.
It's not quite at the position where your finger naturally rests at the back of the device, but it is significantly better than that of the S8+ and Note 8. There's also a face recognition feature, which isn't the same as iris scanning on the S8+ and Note 8. The feature works as long as there's adequate light, but it isn't very reliable. For now, the fingerprint sensor is still the most secure method to safeguard your device, and I'm just glad the sensor is at an accessible location on the A8+.
Performance
The Galaxy A8+ is powered by Samsung's latest Exynos 7885 Octa chipset, which has two high-performance Cortex A73 cores clocked at 2.2GHz and six Cortex A53 cores at 1.6GHz. The phone is no slouch, but there were times when I noticed the odd stutter when navigating the interface. A lot of that has to do with Samsung's UI, and a recent update with stability tweaks addressed most of these issues.
That said, the A8+ is lacking in grunt when seen next to the likes of the OnePlus 5T and the Mi Mix 2, its main competitors in this category. The sheer performance of the Snapdragon 835 combined with the optimized OxygenOS is no match for the Exynos 7885 and the latest version of Samsung Experience. However, you'll only notice the difference when using both devices next to one another, and in regular everyday usage the A8+ does just fine.
The A8+ isn't the fastest phone around, but it gets the job done.
It's certainly not the fastest device in this segment, but Samsung isn't targeting enthusiasts — the manufacturer is instead going after those looking for a phone with a design aesthetic similar to the S8+ and Note 8 for half the price. And in that context, the A8+ does very well indeed.
The variant sold in India features 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, but there's also a version with 4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. As for battery life, the 3500mAh battery managed to easily last a day without breaking a sweat, and I easily saw screen-on-time of four hours on average.
The Galaxy A8+ is powered by Samsung's latest Exynos 7885 Octa chipset, which has two high-performance Cortex A73 cores clocked at 2.2GHz and six Cortex A53 cores at 1.6GHz. The phone is no slouch, but there were times when I noticed the odd stutter when navigating the interface. A lot of that has to do with Samsung's UI, and a recent update with stability tweaks addressed most of these issues.
That said, the A8+ is lacking in grunt when seen next to the likes of the OnePlus 5T and the Mi Mix 2, its main competitors in this category. The sheer performance of the Snapdragon 835 combined with the optimized OxygenOS is no match for the Exynos 7885 and the latest version of Samsung Experience. However, you'll only notice the difference when using both devices next to one another, and in regular everyday usage the A8+ does just fine.
The A8+ isn't the fastest phone around, but it gets the job done.
It's certainly not the fastest device in this segment, but Samsung isn't targeting enthusiasts — the manufacturer is instead going after those looking for a phone with a design aesthetic similar to the S8+ and Note 8 for half the price. And in that context, the A8+ does very well indeed.
The variant sold in India features 6GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, but there's also a version with 4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. As for battery life, the 3500mAh battery managed to easily last a day without breaking a sweat, and I easily saw screen-on-time of four hours on average.
Galaxy A8+ Software
For a device releasing in January 2018, it's inexcusable that the A8+ comes with Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box. It's possible that Samsung is saving the Oreo build for the Galaxy S9, which is set to make its debut on February 26. As a result, what we have with the A8+ is a software experience that should be immediately familiar if you've used a Samsung device in 2017.
And considering just how long it takes Samsung to roll out an update, it's entirely likely the Oreo update won't be available for the device until the next quarter (if not longer). Samsung has to contend with hundreds of regional variants and carrier models when it comes to platform updates, so it's understandable that they take time.
But there's nothing stopping the company from launching a new device with the latest version of Android, particularly when you consider that the first developer build for Oreo rolled out over ten months ago.
If you were looking to use Oreo out of the box, get ready to be disappointed.
Much like Samsung's flagships, the Samsung Experience skin on the A8+ is loaded to the gills with features. For its part, Samsung has made it easier to uninstall or disable pre-installed apps that you're not going to use, and there are enough customization options to keep you busy for a few hours.
At this point, it's safe to assume that Samsung will put Bixby into most products it makes, and for the most part it's easy to ignore the assistant completely. Thankfully, there isn't a dedicated hardware button to invoke Bixby, and you can disable the service. Other features include a dual messenger mode that lets you run two instances of an app simultaneously, swipe gestures for the fingerprint sensor, blue light filter, access to hundreds of themes, one-handed mode and Game Launcher, and a split-screen multitasking mode.
For a device releasing in January 2018, it's inexcusable that the A8+ comes with Android 7.1.1 Nougat out of the box. It's possible that Samsung is saving the Oreo build for the Galaxy S9, which is set to make its debut on February 26. As a result, what we have with the A8+ is a software experience that should be immediately familiar if you've used a Samsung device in 2017.
And considering just how long it takes Samsung to roll out an update, it's entirely likely the Oreo update won't be available for the device until the next quarter (if not longer). Samsung has to contend with hundreds of regional variants and carrier models when it comes to platform updates, so it's understandable that they take time.
But there's nothing stopping the company from launching a new device with the latest version of Android, particularly when you consider that the first developer build for Oreo rolled out over ten months ago.
If you were looking to use Oreo out of the box, get ready to be disappointed.
Much like Samsung's flagships, the Samsung Experience skin on the A8+ is loaded to the gills with features. For its part, Samsung has made it easier to uninstall or disable pre-installed apps that you're not going to use, and there are enough customization options to keep you busy for a few hours.
At this point, it's safe to assume that Samsung will put Bixby into most products it makes, and for the most part it's easy to ignore the assistant completely. Thankfully, there isn't a dedicated hardware button to invoke Bixby, and you can disable the service. Other features include a dual messenger mode that lets you run two instances of an app simultaneously, swipe gestures for the fingerprint sensor, blue light filter, access to hundreds of themes, one-handed mode and Game Launcher, and a split-screen multitasking mode.
Galaxy A8+ Camera
The highlight with the Galaxy A8+ is the dual 16MP + 8MP front cameras, a first for a Samsung device. Phones with high-resolution front cameras are all the rage in India, and Samsung is setting its sights on that audience with the A8+. The main goal with the secondary camera is to enable Live Focus, the feature that made its debut a few months ago on the Note 8.
Live Focus lets you create a background blur effect, and while the feature was available in the rear camera on the Note 8, you can use it for selfies with the A8+. The feature certainly works as advertised, and you can also adjust the intensity of the blur after the fact.Coming to the rear camera, the good news is that the module doesn't protrude from the body of the phone. What's not so great is that it doesn't have OIS. Image quality is decent, with the camera able to take great photos in daylight conditions. Things aren't so rosy when it comes to low-light shooting, as the camera starts to struggle when focusing on subjects. There's also a lot of noise in images taken under less than ideal lighting conditions, and more often than not the software algorithm is far too aggressive with smoothing out the edges.
The highlight with the Galaxy A8+ is the dual 16MP + 8MP front cameras, a first for a Samsung device. Phones with high-resolution front cameras are all the rage in India, and Samsung is setting its sights on that audience with the A8+. The main goal with the secondary camera is to enable Live Focus, the feature that made its debut a few months ago on the Note 8.
Live Focus lets you create a background blur effect, and while the feature was available in the rear camera on the Note 8, you can use it for selfies with the A8+. The feature certainly works as advertised, and you can also adjust the intensity of the blur after the fact.Coming to the rear camera, the good news is that the module doesn't protrude from the body of the phone. What's not so great is that it doesn't have OIS. Image quality is decent, with the camera able to take great photos in daylight conditions. Things aren't so rosy when it comes to low-light shooting, as the camera starts to struggle when focusing on subjects. There's also a lot of noise in images taken under less than ideal lighting conditions, and more often than not the software algorithm is far too aggressive with smoothing out the edges.
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