Samsung has launched the Galaxy A80 smartphone in India, and for Rs 47,990 you’re looking at a device that packs a motorised rotating camera, a first from the brand.
But the question everyone must be asking is: Can the Galaxy A80 match up with another innovative product, which is the OnePlus 7 Pro?
The phone is priced starting at Rs 48,999, the most expensive price point for a OnePlus device to date, except you do get top-end hardware.
Here’s a detailed look at what both the phone manufacturers are offering with their respective products, and which of these devices offers a better value for the features in tow.
Design
Fair to say that both the brands have done a decent job with the design of their respective devices. With the A80, Samsung is offering a phone with bezel-less screen, which enhances the viewing experience of the device for the user. Even the chin size has been shaved off the bottom of the display, which makes it look appealing to the user.
We’re also impressed with how the Galaxy A80 looks from the back. The mix of glass and metal offers durability, but we’d still recommend using a phone case, if you’ve got butter fingers. Albeit, because of the improvised rear camera setup, the design is clean and polished.
Concerning the OnePlus 7 Pro, everything is different from anything OnePlus has made till date. It gets a 6.67-inch screen with edge finish and the resulting design is as impressive as most flagships in the market. The notch has been removed and you get a pop-up camera on the front.
Another big difference with the 7 Pro is its weight at 206 grams, making it bigger and heavier to hold, and we’ve already felt the impact while using it.
At the back, you can choose between metallic and glass finish variants, where you’ll come across three cameras, another first for the brand, and no fingerprint scanner as expected.
It’s clear that both these phones offer good looking features to entice the buyer.
Display and Hardware
Samsung has opted for a 6.7-inch AMOLED screen with support for 2400x1080 pixels resolution. Compared to this, OnePlus 7 Pro packs a 6.67-inch 3120x1440 pixels resolution display, with support for 90Hz refresh rate.
Now, when a buyer looks at these differences, he might be tempted go for the latter, especially when they are only paying Rs 1000 more to get a 90Hz screen, which offers enhanced viewing and touch experience.
Looking beyond this, you’ve got the OnePlus 7 Pro packed with octa-core Snapdragon 855 processor, paired with up to 12GB RAM and offering maximum storage of 256GB, which is non-expandable.
While Samsung has gone with a mid-range Snapdragon 730 processor, coupled with 8GB RAM and offers 128GB storage, which is also non-expandable.
It’s also worth pointing that OnePlus and Samsung have offered USB Type C port on these devices, but OnePlus 7 Pro gets the latest UFS 3.0 port which offers better results while playing files on the device and transferring data as well.
Last but not the least, you’ve got a 4000mAh battery loaded on the OnePlus 7 Pro, with support for 30W Warp Charge. Samsung has packed the Galaxy A80 with a 3700mAh battery which is claimed to come with a 25W fast charger.
Cameras
OnePlus 7 Pro houses three rear cameras, the main one being the 48-megapixel with f/1.6 aperture wide lens. The added price tag also brings in an 8-megapixel telephoto (f/2.4) and 16-megapixel (f/2.2) ultrawide lens, which again, has become a flagship requisite in 2019.
During our time with the device, we’ve extensively tested the cameras, and it’s fair to say they’ve gradually improved in quality with regular software tweaks, even in low-light conditions.
But we’ve got to talk about the cameras on the Galaxy A80 in more detail. You’re getting a motorised camera setup, which houses three cameras at the back, and same unit rotates to work out as a front camera as well.
In terms of sensors and megapixel count, the setup carries a 48-megapixel (f/2.0), 8-megapixel ultra wide (f/2.2) and a TOF 3D camera. It’s clear with these hardware features the Galaxy A80 won’t be able to compete rigorously with the OnePlus 7 Pro, but we’ll reserve our verdict till we get to test them together.
Which One Should You Buy?
If you want to buy a phone up to Rs 50,000 then the OnePlus 7 Pro does offer more features for the price. After all, it features a 90Hz screen, more RAM, storage options, and a bigger battery packed in as well.
On the other hand, Samsung Galaxy A80 gets an AMOLED screen but with 1080 pixels resolution only. And while the 3700mAh battery does support fast charging, it’s lacking the oomph factor of the OnePlus 7 Pro.
Also, even with the unique camera setup, it’s hard to understand the reason behind going for a mid-range processor, especially when you’re getting an alternative device with Snapdragon 855 in tow.
Which is why, we’d pick the OnePlus 7 Pro over the Galaxy A80 any day, unless you have reservations about buying a non-Samsung phone, even in this price bracket.
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