5 Years of Android for Under $200?

In a nutshell

The Galaxy A15 5G is one of the most recommended smartphones for $200. One reason for this is that Samsung is expected to provide the entry-level smartphone with security updates for five years.

In everyday use, the display and the chic S24-look design are particularly impressive. The disadvantages include a limited camera and rather mediocre performance.

This article was created as part of a cooperation with MediaMarktSaturn. This had no influence on the exact content or the editorial opinion.

Design & Display

Samsung also speaks a clear design language with its entry-level smartphones. The back of the Galaxy A15 5G is strongly reminiscent of the Galaxy S23, Samsung’s current flagship. If we turn the phone over, we also see a good display. However, thick display edges and a waterdrop notch indicate that Samsung had to cut costs. The same applies to plastic in the choice of materials.

Pros:

• Typical Samsung design.
• Beautiful AMOLED display with 90 Hz.
• Headphone output.

Cons:

• Water drop notch looks outdated.
• Mono speakers are quite inferior.
• No protection against water and dust.

If you’ve ever looked at a Samsung phone in an electronics store, you’ll recognize most of the design of the A15 5G. Like its larger and more expensive brothers, the A15 5G is a particularly simple cell phone. On the back, you only see three rings in which the cameras are embedded. The front is dominated by a display that appears a little more borderless thanks to the water drop notch at the top.

Although the edges appear quite thick compared to models such as the Galaxy S24 (review), the display is impressive in everyday use. Thanks to AMOLED technology, both the contrast and the colors of the display are excellent. At the same time, there are no shadows around the edges or around the notch in the display. Thanks to a refresh rate of 90 Hz, content also appears particularly smooth.

The 6.5″ display is therefore really good for photos, films and applications such as Instagram or TikTok. In direct sunlight, however, it can be a little difficult to see content. Here, more expensive smartphones offer brighter panels that are easier to read in summer. However, if we consider the Galaxy A15 5G in its price range, there are hardly any models with a better display.

The build quality of the A15 5G is also okay considering the price tag. Although the entire casing is made of plastic, there is no creaking or cracking when you bend the phone a little. However, it is annoying that there is no protection against dust or water. Experience has shown that the A15 5G can be used in the rain, but I would definitely avoid temporarily submerging it.

The built-in mono speaker is also disappointing. If you hold the phone in both hands when playing mobile games, for example, there is a risk of covering the speaker on the underside. And even if the opening remains free: Party mood doesn’t really want to happen with the A15 5G. Even though the speaker is quite loud, music and videos sound tinny and thin.

Overall, however, the A15 5G scores points in the “Design and display” category given the price. The AMOLED display in particular is a special feature in this price range. And Samsung’s design language is also known to be very popular.

Performance and software

Samsung relies on a Mediatek processor in the A15 5G, so it does not use its own SoC. The Dimensity 6100+ is well established in this price range, but here you get up to 256 GB of internal memory and up to 8 GB of RAM. Also pleasing: you can insert a microSD memory card and get the next four Android versions as well as five years of security updates.

Pros:

• Great update guarantee.
• Expandable memory.
• Performance is sufficient for current mobile games.

Cons:

• Few performance reserves for the future.
• Basic version with only 4 GB storage space.
• Pre-installed advertising apps.

As an entry-level smartphone, the Galaxy A15 5G doesn’t have to offer tremendous performance. However, it would be desirable if Samsung had planned a little extra performance on the drawing board.

After all, the manufacturer will provide the affordable phone with four more Android versions and five years of security updates. This means that it could theoretically be used for another five years, which only makes sense if the performance is still good in a few years’ time.

Let’s start with the basics: The pre-installed Android 14 is paired with Samsung’s One UI version 6.0 in the A15 5G. There is a detailed test for Android 14 at nextpit and we have also collected all the information about Samsung’s One UI in the linked section. In my opinion, this combination is one of the most beautiful Android experiences, but it can be a little overloaded at times.

With the affordable A15 5G, this feeling is compounded by the fact that Samsung pre-installs some apps. Although you receive personalized app recommendations when you first set up the smartphone, if you don’t select anything here, you will find applications such as Royal Match, marktguru or the online shopping platform Temu in the app drawer. To uninstall these once, you need to allow around five minutes for the setup.

During this setup, you will also notice that Samsung offers a very solid working speed in the A15 5G. This is despite the fact that the model we tested only has 4 GB of RAM. Apps do have loading times and there are occasional stutters, but if you turn down the animations of the operating system, the installed Android is quite fast. But let’s take a look at the benchmark results:

In the test, I was able to play the mobile game “Call of Duty: Mobile” smoothly on medium graphics settings with this performance. This should allow you to play all current mobile games for Android, even if the quality and frame rates are not optimal. If you can spend a little more money and are looking for a powerful cell phone, you will find more powerful models from the competition.

As the name suggests, the A15 5G supports the new 5G mobile communications standard. In addition, the phone comes with dual SIM compatibility, whereby you have to choose between SIM and microSD cards in one slot. In addition to mobile communications, the A15 5G supports the Bluetooth 5.3, Wi-Fi 5, GPS and NFC wireless standards. Contactless payment is therefore also possible with the A15 5G.

Overall, you have to accept some compromises with the A15 5G in terms of performance. However, the fact that Samsung provides security updates for up to five years, even for such an affordable model, is really welcome. Whether the A15 5G will still be fun in the year 2029, however, I doubt a little.

Camera

Samsung uses a triple camera with a maximum resolution of 50 megapixels in the A15 5G. However, to improve the image quality of the main camera, these are downscaled to 12 megapixels. In addition to the wide-angle main camera, there is an ultra-wide-angle camera with 5 megapixels and a macro camera with 2 megapixels. Selfies have a resolution of 13 megapixels.

Pros:

• Photos from the main camera are impressive during the day.
• Ultra-wide angle available.

Cons:

• The quality of the ultra-wide angle is not convincing.
• Night shots are rather below average.
• Selfie quality disappointing.

To bring the A15 5G close to the S24’s optics, Samsung has to install three cameras on the back. As a result, there is a rather poor macro camera on the back of the phone, which is hardly convincing in practice with overgrown photos and 2 megapixels. Unfortunately, this also applies in part to the smartphone’s ultra-wide-angle camera. Although it has a resolution of 5 megapixels, the quality is much lower than that of the main camera.

The 50 megapixel main camera is quite usable in sunny conditions. Photos are clear, show a solid sharpness, especially at full resolution, and the autofocus is also correct for most photos. At dusk or at night, however, the quality of the photos decreases. The digital zoom is also not convincing in the practical test.

If you like taking selfies, you won’t really have much fun with the A15 5G. The phone has a 13-megapixel front camera, but its images look very blurry. It’s good enough for video calls, but you shouldn’t do much more with the selfie camera.

Incidentally, you can record videos with the A15 5G in Full HD at 30 frames per second. In addition to the standard functions, Samsung has also integrated some video filters from the Snapchat app into the camera app. At the end of the day, however, this is nothing more than a nice gimmick.

Battery and charging

The A15 5G is powered by a permanently installed 5,000 mAh battery. A power adapter is
not included in the scope of delivery, but Samsung does support 25 W charging. This means the phone offers limited fast charging, but there is no wireless charging option.

Pros:

• Long-lasting battery life.
• “Fast charging” with 25 W not bad by Samsung standards.

Cons:

• No charging cable included in the scope of delivery.
• No wireless charging.
• Competition offers faster charging speeds.

Like most entry-level smartphones, the Galaxy A15 5G has a large 5,000 mAh battery. This ensures that you can use the phone for one and a half to two days with moderate use. The Samsung smartphone achieved 16.5 hours in the PC Mark battery benchmark, which is an excellent value.

While the battery life is impressive, we see a typical Samsung problem when we look at quick charging. At 25 W, the charging power is severely limited and seems almost ridiculous when we compare it with the competition from China.

The fact that Samsung does not include a charger in the scope of delivery can theoretically be a little more sustainable. However, if you are switching from an older phone with microUSB or from an iPhone, you will have to buy an additional charger.

However, the charging times of the A15 5G are the biggest disadvantage in the battery category. With a powerful charger, it took 1h40m hours until the battery was fully charged. That is too long, even in the price range below $300.

Final verdict