Exclusive: Galaxy A42 to make 5G Samsung phones even cheaper in 2021

Samsung's 5G ambitions are no secret. The Korean giant's first 5G phone was the Galaxy S10 5G, and Samsung followed it up with 5G models in the Galaxy Note 10 and Galaxy 20 lineups. Samsung has also introduced variants of the mid-range Galaxy A51 and Galaxy A71 that support the fifth generation standard for mobile networks in a bid to make the technology more affordable, and we have learned that the company could double down further on achieving that goal next year.

Samsung has started development on what seems to be a 5G-enabled smartphone as part of its 2021 Galaxy A series. The device in question sports model number SM-A426B, and based on Samsung's current system for putting model numbers on phones, the SM-A426B should be the international variant of the Galaxy A42 5G.

Galaxy A42 5G to lower the barrier of entry

Interestingly, we can't find any evidence of a LTE-only Galaxy A42, which makes us think that Samsung could bring mid-range 5G phones to a wider audience next year. Of course, a non-5G Galaxy A42 will no doubt be released as well. From what we hear, this device is going to feature 128GB of internal storage, which would be remarkable for a handset in this category, since the Galaxy A41 has 64GB of storage. It's going to be available in gray, black and white colors.

5G-only handsets are compatible with 4G LTE networks so they can be used in markets where no 5G networks exist. However, Samsung has maintained a split so far by launching 5G and LTE-only variants. It did that for the entire Galaxy S20 lineup as well as for the Galaxy A51 and Galaxy A71. Is it now moving towards a future where only 5G variants are released? This was bound to happen at some point.

As for the 2021 Galaxy A series and particularly the Galaxy A42 5G, it's still early days. The new Galaxy A handsets won't break cover until at least the end of this year so a lot could change between now and then. One thing's for sure, though, Samsung will continue to bring down 5G's barrier of entry.

Abhijeet Mishra - Editor-in-Chief

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First Samsung device: SGH-D500

Abhijeet's writing career started with guides for custom firmware for Samsung devices (including the original Galaxy S), and he moved to SamMobile in mid-2013 and worked up the ranks to Editor-in-chief. In addition to phones and mobile devices, his interests include gaming on both PC and console, PC hardware, and spending countless hours on YouTube watching videos on tech, movies, games, politics, and internet dramas.

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