Samsung Galaxy A35

At Rs. 119,999, the Samsung Galaxy A35 is priced as a premium mid-ranger. In Pakistan it is sold mainly as the 8GB + 256GB version, so storage is generous from the start.

Main advantages:

• One of the most reliable cameras in its class, with OIS and natural colours
• A 120Hz Super AMOLED screen with good outdoor visibility
• IP67 water resistance and Gorilla Glass Victus+ on the front
• Up to 4 major Android upgrades and five years of security updates

Main disadvantages:

• The Exynos 1380 is slower than rival chips at this price
• A weak 8 MP ultrawide camera
• 25W charging with no charger in the box
• Thick bezels and a heavy 209 g body

Alternatives: the Vivo V70 FE (Rs. 121,999) offers a much bigger 7000 mAh battery with 90W charging and a 200 MP main camera. The Oppo Reno 16F (Rs. 139,495) adds a 50 MP telephoto camera and 80W charging, but costs more.

Verdict: the A35 is not the best performer for the money, but it is a balanced, durable and well-supported phone. It makes sense for buyers who value camera reliability, water resistance and long software support over gaming power or fast charging.

Official specs: a 6.6 inches Super AMOLED panel with 1080 x 2340 resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate and up to 1000 nits in high brightness mode. Gorilla Glass Victus+ protects the front.

Real-world use: colours are rich and pleasing, contrast is strong and touch response is excellent. The A35 now supports an adaptive refresh rate that moves between 60Hz and 120Hz depending on what is on screen, an improvement over the Galaxy A34, which could only be locked to one setting.

Outdoor visibility: the screen gets decently bright, and Samsung's Vision Booster adjusts the image in harsh sunlight, so it stays readable outdoors.

Media and gaming: the 120Hz panel makes scrolling smooth, and loud stereo speakers make videos enjoyable, although the sound is not the most balanced.

Limitations:

• Thick bezels around the screen look dated compared with rivals
• The punch-hole selfie camera replaces the old notch, but the overall look is still less modern than slimmer-bezel phones
• The optical in-display fingerprint sensor is reliable, but not the fastest

The Galaxy A35 uses the Exynos 1380 (5 nm), the same chip as the Galaxy A54, paired with 8GB RAM and UFS 2.1 storage in the Pakistani version.

Everyday use: after many software updates, this chip is now stable for daily tasks. Multitasking and browsing work without stutters. However, the phone feels slightly slower than rivals when opening apps or moving through menus. Reducing the animation speed in the settings makes it feel a little quicker.

Gaming: the Exynos 1380 is not a gaming chip. PUBG Mobile and Genshin Impact run at around 30fps on lower settings, while lighter games such as Call of Duty Mobile reach about 60fps. That is enough for casual players, but serious gamers will find faster chips at this price.

Heating: a key strength. Under every kind of load, including long gaming sessions, the phone stays cool.

Limitations: benchmark scores are modest for the price, and the vibration motor feels buzzy and less precise than on the Galaxy A55.

Bottom line: smooth and cool for daily use, but not for buyers who want top gaming performance.

Official specs: a 50 MP main camera with OIS, an 8 MP ultrawide and a 5 MP macro camera on the back, with a 13 MP selfie camera on the front.

Daylight: the main camera is the highlight. Photos show classic Samsung colours with pleasing greens and blues, punchy contrast and good detail, without looking overly vibrant. HDR is handled very well, even in harsh sunlight.

Low light: night photos are bright and sharp thanks to OIS. Night mode sometimes over-processes images, so normal mode often gives better results.

Portraits and selfies: portraits keep natural detail without smoothing skin, though skin tones can look slightly bright or yellow. Edge detection is good, and the blur strength can be adjusted. The 13 MP selfie camera captures good facial detail, but its colours are a little warm.

Ultrawide and macro: the ultrawide is the weak point. Colours shift compared with the main camera, and detail and dynamic range drop, especially at night. The macro camera works from a comfortable distance of a few centimetres.

Video: the rear camera records up to 4K at 30fps with good colours and strong stabilisation. The front camera also records 4K, though 4K selfie video is not the most stable. The ultrawide records only Full HD.

Official specs: a 5000 mAh battery with 25W wired charging.

Real-world use: battery life is a strong point. Even with heavy use, the Galaxy A35 easily lasts a whole day, with around 7 hours of screen-on time. The efficient chip and the adaptive refresh rate help here.

Charging: 25W is slow for this price. A full charge takes around an hour and a half. There is no charger in the box, so you need to buy a 25W USB-C adapter separately.

There is no wireless charging.

Compromise: rivals such as the Vivo V70 FE and Oppo Reno 16F offer far bigger 7000 mAh batteries with much faster charging. The A35 lasts well, but it takes longer to refill.

The Galaxy A35 launched with Android 14 and One UI 6.1, and has since been updated to One UI 7. Samsung promises up to 4 major Android upgrades and five years of security updates, and it is known for sending monthly or quarterly security patches on time.

Everyday experience: One UI is stable, polished and full of customisation options. It feels the same as on Samsung's more expensive phones.

Useful features:

• AI noise cancellation during calls, which reduces background noise in busy places
• An option to use part of the storage as extra RAM
• Vision Booster to keep the screen readable in sunlight

The software is one of the main reasons to choose the A35 over rivals with faster chips. Note that it has no headphone jack, and the memory card slot is shared with the second SIM.