The Galaxy A52 and the Galaxy A52 5G are two of the finest mid-range phones ever from Samsung. But the global chip shortage seems to have played havoc with Samsung's plans to keep selling the two handsets, which is evident by how they are out of stock in quite a few markets, and it seems that's the reason why Samsung decided to make the Galaxy A52s 5G.
The A52s 5G is the same device as the A52 5G in every respect except one: It is powered by the Snapdragon 778G, a 6nm chip that offers extreme performance despite not being a flagship-grade chip like the Qualcomm's 8-series chips that power Samsung's top-of-the-line phones.
That means it's easy for us to quickly get to a verdict here in this review: The Galaxy A52s 5G is amazing. It's got everything that makes the Galaxy A52 so good – fantastic high refresh rate AMOLED display (now running at 120Hz instead of 90Hz), stereo speakers, excellent main camera with optical image stabilization, awesome battery life with 25W charging, Samsung's excellent software with a promise of three major OS upgrades, and a water-resistant design.
And thanks to the Snapdragon 778G processor, you're now getting what can only be described as top-of-the-line performance. I literally saw no reason to go back to a flagship Galaxy phone while using the Galaxy A52s. It can handle everything you can throw at it and not break a sweat. 12-band 5G support is part of the package, as well, though this wasn't something I was able to test as there are no 5G networks in India at this time.
The only thing that disappointed me about the A52s 5G is that Samsung didn't switch out the macro camera at the rear for a telephoto lens. It's the one feature that could have made the A52s a perfect mid-range phone, but I guess Samsung didn't do it because it wants to continue selling the Galaxy A72 and also because it doesn't want to encroach on the territory occupied by 2020's Galaxy S20 FE.
Still, if you're in the market for a new 5G-enabled mid-range phone that performs like a flagship device without cutting too deep into your pockets, the Galaxy A52s 5G is a top-notch option you should seriously consider.
For a deep dive into features like the display, cameras, battery life, and software, check out our Galaxy A52 review.
