REVIEW

Galaxy Alpha A Samsung smartphone that can outshine any other smartphone in terms of design — Rohit Arora The Octa-core chipset runs the show: Alpha ships with an Exynos 5 Octa-core processor that is built by combining a quad- core 1.8 Ghz Cortex A15 and a quad-core 1.3 Ghz Cortex A7 chipsets. Complementing it is 2GB RAM which fosters multitasking without any lags. The phone performed smoothly with whatever we threw at it. The 12 MP rear shooter captures detailed shots in proper light and the 4K videos are also very crisp. Pictures in low light come out to be grainy with flash turned off. The 2.1 MP front camera has a beauty mode Price: `39,990 that delivers good shots. But we must say that the camera on HTC One M8 Eye performed slightly better than the Alpha’s. The Touch-Wiz integrated with sensors: Alpha features the same Touchwiz as seen on Galaxy S5 over Android 4.4.4 KitKat, so you will get all the Samsung tweaks such as Smart Stay, Air view, Multi Windows, Ultra Power Saving Mode, etc. The finger print scanner works fine but is not as effective as iPhone’s. At the back is a heart rate monitor which works in sync with S Health app and monitors your overall activity (steps, calorie burnt, sleep pattern, weight, etc.) throughout the day. Because of the compact and sleek design, amsung has been criticized in terms of there is just 1830 mAh battery which ran for its design, particularly after S3, Duos 6 hours 30 min in our video playback test (HD Key Specs: Sand Galaxy Grand series, which is why it video at full brightness on Wi-Fi) and managed 4.7 inch HD Super AMOLED screen, Exynos introduced Alpha. to survive a day. 5 Octa 5430 chipset (four 1.8GHz Cortex A15 The new benchmark in design: Enclosed in cores and four 1.3GHz A7 cores) 2GB RAM, a metal frame with chamfered edges, elegant 100000 12 MP rear camera, 2.1MP front camera, volume and power buttons, Alpha speaks of 3150 2797 32GB inbuilt storage, 1830 mAh battery. a premium built quality. However, this is only 80000 2786 17686 16099 limited to the side edges, as the removable rear Vellamo HTML casing is the rubberized plastic with dotted pat- 15667 Pros: 60000 18287 3DMark ISU Sleek design, light-weight, integration of tern (same as Galaxy S5). A metal or glass back 24241 scanner and heart rate monitor, would have made a big difference but it makes 23830 40000 Quadrant perfectly sized, can shoot 4K, slow and fast Alpha amazingly lightweight (115g). And with

motion videos just 6.7 mm thickness, Alpha is 0.2 mm thinner 48982 Antutu than the iPhone 6, more compact and does not 20000 41753 33065 slip from hands like iPhone 6 does. Cons: Not an Alpha in terms of screen: Consider- 0 Screen is not full HD, no MicroSD card HTC One LG G3 Samsung ing the price point, it’s difficult to digest that M8 Eye Galaxy Alpha support, battery backup is not up-to the Samsung has not included a full HD display. The mark, UI feels cluttered phone comes with a 4.7 inch 1280x720p super Bottomline: Galaxy Alpha is a proof that AMOLED panel that is not the latest technology Samsung can design premium looking smart- Write to: and does not complement with other aspects of phones but considering the price point, Alpha Samsung India the smartphone. However 312ppi density makes struggles to be a flagship model because of Phone: (STD code) 30308282 everything sharp and vivid. The outdoor visibility the lack of full HD display, non availability of Email: [email protected] and viewing angles are decent but the colors are microSD card, same rubberized plastic back over saturated. and just a moderate battery backup.

Price Performance Features Overall

68 PCQuest DECEMBER 2014 pcquest.com twitter.com/pcquest facebook.com/pcquest linkd.in/pcquest [email protected]