Gadget Preview : Samsung Galaxy Alpha

Thus far, Samsung's strategy for selling smartphones, like many other Android makers, involved peppering every single segment of the market with smartphones in hopes of overwhelming the consumer. True enough, almost everywhere you turn, someone has a Galaxy-type smartphone. However, unlike other Android makers, Samsung has not done a very good job separating its premium line of smartphones from the rest of its product line. HTC (and even LG to a certain extent) go out of their way to mark out their premium models, and while the HTC M8 is often considered the most beautiful smartphone of the year (yes even compared to the iPhone), Samsung's Galaxy S5 still looks very similar to the rest of the family and that polycarbonate body and unmistakable faux-leather has become a bit of joke. Following the lacklustre welcome for the Samsung S5, the company has made it a point to launch more phones featuring premium metals and an overhauled design. Yesterday, we got a chance to see the first fruits of all this labour: the Galaxy Alpha. Unfortunately, it fails to impress.

Pros:

Mostly-metal frame
12MP Camera
Quad-Core 1.8 GHz Processor

Cons

32GB (internal) version only
Only 1860 mAh battery

Design and Display: A little metal here and a lot of plastic there

Keep in mind that the design is not radical. The Galaxy Alpha does not feature a metal uni-body design. Instead, much of the phone, including the entire back panel will feature the much derided polycarbonate material. Instead, the Galaxy Alpha features a thin metal frame. While it is quite thin (132.4 x 65.5 x 6.7mm) it seems the size reduction has come at the cost of a smaller battery. The thin profile has also translated to a lighter weight - 115g.

The Galaxy Alpha will feature a 4.7" 720 x1280 (~320 PPI) Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, which is inferior to that of the S5 (5.1" and 432PPI).

Performance

Underneath the hood, the Galaxy Alpha comes loaded with a ExnyosOcta 5430 Quad-core 1.8 GHz processor (or 1.3 GHz version depending on where your location). This is complimented with a Mali-T628 MP6 PU and 2GB of RAM. The Galaxy Alpha will be available in a 32 GB variant only and there will be no room for a SD Card.

The Galaxy Alpha will also come loaded with all the bells and whistles the standard suit of sensors, apps, GPS, etc. Nothing earth-shattering.

Camera

It is not possible to verify the quality of the camera just yet but the specs are promising. The primary camera will be a 12MP system (4128 x 3096 pixels) while the secondary camera will be a 2.1 MP system ( a little low considering the selfie-obsessed society we live in). 

OS

Rumours of Android L were premature. Instead, the Galaxy Alpha will come loaded with Android 4.4 (KitKat) and the standard built in apps from Samsung.

Battery

A 1860 mAh battery is quite shocking considering the specs involved.  For Context, the Galaxy S2 featured a 1650 mAh battery while the S3 featured a 2100 mAh battery. As many critics have pointed out, it seems that dramatic weight loss and slim profile came at too heavy a cost.

Conclusion

It seems Samsung's half-hearted attempt to switch to a premium design will not be met with much enthusiasm. However, if this effort leads to a radical design or bolder use of exotic materials, then things might change for the better. On that thought, it is also important to understand the obsession with premium-materials, since many users simply slap a phone cover on their beloved devices, thereby defeating the purpose of those extra dollars and fancy manufacturing techniques. I wouldn't mind sticking to my plastic Galaxy range phone as long as it works smoothly, features the latest Android updates and doesn't come loaded with a tonne of bloat ware. Maybe Samsung should be focusing on the small things first, before trying radical design changes.

By Navam Niles