[Review] Is the Starting Price Only 490,000 Won?…Insane Value for Money Galaxy A34

Design, Performance, Display, Battery at High Level
Smooth Gameplay for Games like Battlegrounds Mobile
Sharpness Drops Significantly When Using Camera Zoom Function

In a word, it was a “smartphone that offers insane cost-effectiveness.” This is about Samsung Electronics’ ‘Galaxy A34,’ released last month. It was not far behind flagship phones in design, performance, display, and battery. The camera was somewhat disappointing. Considering the launch price of 499,400 KRW, it was hard to think of looking for another device in this price range.

Galaxy A34 Front View (Photo by Oh Yugyo)

Exterior ‘Similar to S23’, Satisfying Grip

The first impression when meeting the silver-colored A34 was ‘luxurious’ and ‘neat.’ At a glance, it didn’t look much different from the S23. The camera arrangement and shape were the same, which made it feel even more similar.

The front is flat, adding to the clean look. The size that fits perfectly in one hand was very pleasing. The external specs are 161.3 x 78.1 x 8.2mm. It features a 6.6-inch display. The weight is 199g, slightly heavier than its predecessor, the A33 (186g). The weight was not bothersome.

The top and bottom bezels are slightly thinner than the A33, while the left and right bezels are a bit thicker. Thanks to the slightly thicker side bezels, the grip was actually satisfying. However, it was a bit disappointing that the back showed many fingerprints. The silver color might have made this more noticeable. There are a total of four colors: Lime, Graphite, Violet, and Silver.

MediaTek Processor with ‘Insane Performance’

Battleground Mobile also runs smoothly (Photo by Oh Yugyo)

Performance is as important as design. The fact that it is equipped with the ‘Dimensity 1080’ processor to enhance performance was noticeable. There was no lag at all. I also recalled that MediaTek recently outperformed ‘Qualcomm’ and ‘Apple’ in benchmark tests.

Web surfing, watching YouTube, and Netflix were all quite smooth. Contrary to the common notion that ‘MediaTek has issues with game optimization,’ running most mobile games was smooth. Playing the high-spec mobile game Battlegrounds made this clear. Mid-range phones often experience left-right stuttering when playing this game, but such issues were hardly noticeable.

The Camera Is a Bit Disappointing

Photo taken with 10x zoom (Photo by Oh Yugyo)

We live in a world where phones have long replaced cameras. Many people judge phones by their camera specs. From that perspective, the camera was hard to give a high score. Removing the 2-megapixel depth camera that was on the A33 for cost-saving seemed to make a subtle difference.

The A34 has a 13-megapixel front camera. The rear triple camera consists of ▲ 48-megapixel main camera ▲ 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera ▲ 5-megapixel macro camera.

Zoom functionality is especially important these days when ‘direct cam’ videos using phones are popular. The reason the S23 was a hot topic among photography enthusiasts was that even with ‘10x zoom’ from a distance, the image remained clear. The A34 showed a significant drop in clarity when zoomed in 10 times. Night shots were even worse.

However, considering the price is in the 400,000 KRW range, this is understandable. The S23’s launch price is 1,155,000 KRW, and the S23 Ultra is 1,599,400 KRW. The battery felt exactly as specified (5000mAh). The A34 was the best phone in this price range?if you don’t obsess over the camera.