Samsung Galaxy A7 vs A5 (2016) Comparison, Camera Review

After reviewing the Samsung Galaxy A5 2016 and publishing the Galaxy A7 vs A9 full comparison and camera review, we put the A5 and A7 into a battle. Separated by screen size and RAM, which is better between Galaxy A5 and A7 2016 editions?

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Design and build quality

There’s no denying that both phones look identical to Galaxy S6, premium and sleek, thanks to the curved glass and metal around the device. The fingerprint sensors on both phones are fast and accurate.

The fingerprint sensors on both phones are fast and accurate. Setting up takes a minute or two.

Housed on the right, the SIM card tray is a hybrid dual nano-SIM slot and microSD card.

The A7 is a bit bigger and quite a challenge with one-handed usage. Handling the A5 is easier due to its smaller size, though, your mileage may vary.

Display

Again, we’re looking at the same Super AMOLED screen only separated by the pixel density and diagonal size. The Galaxy A7 measures 5.5-inches and Galaxy A5 at 5.2-inches. The difference in sharpness is hard for untrained eyes to notice. Both screens remain vivid, bright, and great for watching movies. On top of each, is a Gorilla Glass 4 protection.

Camera in low light, daylight, selfie

The main shooter on each is a 13MP coupled Optical Image Stabilization and 1080p Full HD video. Front-facing selfie camera is 5MP. Quality in still images are very similar: poor detail preservation, lacks saturated colors, and mediocre exposure control, but overall images look bright and OK on the AMOLED screens.

Daylight shooting

Low light and night

Selfie front-facing

Performance and benchmark

Under the hood, is the same Snapdragon 615 octa-core chip with 3GB RAM on A7 and 2GB RAM on A5. Speed difference is not huge while benchmark scores are close.

Antutu Benchmark Scores

• Galaxy A7 2016 – 34272
• Galaxy A5 2016 – 35035

Battery life test

We were impressed by what Samsung has done on the battery lives to their A series. Both easily last up to the 2nd day with 4-5 hours screen-on time and less than 2 hours charging time.

Samsung Galaxy A7 2016 Battery Test

Samsung Galaxy A5 2016 Battery Test

Speaker test

Another feature similar to both phones is the mono speaker. Low and high levels are matched. Overall output is clear, loud and crisp.

Pricing and verdict

Now on pricing, the Samsung Galaxy A5 2016 currently retails at P19,990 pesos, which is expensive. The Galaxy A7 is yet to be launched, but we expect it to retail for P23k pesos.

The difference between the two A series is small with A7 having a larger screen and more RAM. However, we still prefer the Galaxy A5 over A7 for handling and a bit lower price. But that’s our preference of course. if you want a bigger screen real estate the A7 and A9 are the next great choices.

Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) vs A7 (2016) Video Comparison