Samsung Galaxy A52s vs A52 5G vs A72: What’s the difference?
Samsung announced the sub-flagship Galaxy A52s 5G in August, following on from the Galaxy A52 5G, Galaxy A52 and Galaxy A72 smartphones that were revealed at an event in March. All three of these Galaxy A devices sit below the company’s flagship S21 series, but offer a few of its great features and some of its design traits.
We’ve covered off how the Galaxy A52 5G compares to the Galaxy S21 in a separate feature, but here we are looking at how the Galaxy A52s 5G, Galaxy A52 5G, standard Galaxy A52 and Galaxy A72 compare to each other to help you work out which Samsung Galaxy A device could be right for you.
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Design
A52s 5G/A52 5G: 159.9 x 75.1 x 8.4mm, 189gA52: 159.9 x 75.1 x 8.4mm, 189gA72: 165 x 77.4 x 8.4mm, 203g
The Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, A52 5G, Galaxy A52 and the A72 all share a very similar design. The Galaxy A72 is the larger and heavier of the four devices, but it also offers a larger display.
All four offer a centralised punch hole camera at the top of their screens and they all have a rectangular camera housing on the rear with a quad camera offering three large lenses and one smaller lens. All four devices are also IP67 water and dust resistant and they all feature flat displays and under-screen fingerprint readers.
The Galaxy A52s 5G comes in Awesome Black, Awesome White, Awesome Violet and Awesome Mint. The Galaxy A52 5G, A52 and A72 come come in Awesome Black, Awesome White, Awesome Violet and Awesome Blue.
Display
A52s 5G/A52 5G: 6.5-inch, Super AMOLED, Full HD+, 120Hz, 800nitsA52: 6.5-inch, Super AMOLED, Full HD+, 90Hz, 800nitsA72: 6.7-inch, Super AMOLED, Full HD+, 90Hz, 800nits
The Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G and A52 5G come with a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED display with a Full HD+ resolution. It’s Samsung’s Infinity-O display and it offers a 120Hz refresh rate, like the Galaxy S21 series, though it isn’t adaptive.
The Galaxy A52 LTE model has the same size and resolution display as the 5G model but it has a 90Hz refresh rate instead. Both the 4G and 5G models have a maximum brightness of 800nits, as does the Galaxy A52s 5G.
The Galaxy A72 meanwhile, has a slightly larger 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display, which is also Samsung’s Infinity-O display like the A52 models. It also offers a Full HD+ resolution, 800nits maximum brightness and a 90Hz refresh rate like the standard A52 model.
Hardware and specs
A52s 5G: Qualcomm SD778G, 5G, 6/8GB RAM, 128/256GB storage, 4500mAhA52 5G: Qualcomm SD750G, 5G, 6/8GB RAM, 128/256GB storage, 4500mAhA52: Qualcomm SD720G, LTE, 4/6/8GB RAM, 128/256GB storage, 4500mAhA72: Qualcomm SD720G, LTE, 6/8GB RAM, 128/256GB storage, 5000mAh
The Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G chipset, which is an upgrade to the A52 5G which runs on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G processor. The Galaxy A52 and Galaxy A72 both run on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G chipset. The Galaxy A52s 5G and A52 5G are 5G-enabled, as you might have guessed, while the A52 and A72 are both LTE.
The Galaxy A52s 5G, A52 5G and Galaxy A72 come in a choice of 6GB or 8GB of RAM with 128GB or 256GB storage. The Galaxy A52 has a choice of 4GB, 6GB or 8GB of RAM, with storage options of 128GB and 256GB. All four devices have microSD support for storage expansion up to 1TB.
In terms of battery capacity, the Galaxy A52s 5G, A52 5G and Galaxy A52 4G have a 4500mAh battery, while the Galaxy A72 has a slightly larger 5000mAh capacity. All four devices have stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos.
There’s no wireless charging on board any of the models.
Camera
A52s 5G/A52 5G: Quad rear (64MP main + 12MP ultra wide + 5MP depth + 5MP macro), 32MP frontA52: Quad rear (64MP main + 12MP ultra wide + 5MP depth + 5MP macro), 32MP frontA72: Quad rear (64MP main + 12MP ultra wide + 8MP telephoto + 5MP macro), 32MP front
The Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G, A52 5G, A52 and Galaxy A72 all come with a quad rear cameras but their compositions differ.
The Galaxy A52s 5G, A52 5G and Galaxy A52 all have a 64-megapixel main camera with an f/1.8 aperture and OIS, a 12-megapixel ultra wide-angle lens with f/2.2 aperture, a 5-megapixel depth sensor with f/2.4 aperture and a 5-megapixel macro sensor with f/2.4 aperture.
The Galaxy A72 meanwhile, has the same 64-megapixel main camera, along with the same 12-megapixel ultra wide-angle sensor and the same 5-megapixel macro lens. It swaps the depth sensor for an 8-megapixel telephoto lens though, offering 3x optical zoom, OIS and an aperture of f/2.4.
All four devices have the same 32-megapixel front camera with an aperture of f/2.2.
Price
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The Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G costs £409 in the UK and goes on sale 24 August, shipping from 3 September. Samsung’s Galaxy A52 5G costs £399 in the UK and €429 in Europe. The Galaxy A52 LTE model isn’t available in the UK but costs €349 in Europe.
The Samsung Galaxy A72 is slightly more expensive, costing £419 in the UK and €449 in Europe.
Conclusion
The Samsung Galaxy A72 is the most expensive of the four devices being compared in this feature, offering the largest display, largest battery and a telephoto lens for 3x optical zoom.
It misses out on a more advanced processor compared to the A52s 5G, as well as the A52 5G, 5G capabilities and the 120Hz refresh rate display though, while the A52s 5G and A52 5G trade the telephoto lens of the A72 for a depth sensor.
Meanwhile, the standard A52 – which isn’t available in the UK – is a mix between the A52s, A52 5G and the A72, offering the same camera, display, design and battery as the A52s 5G and A52 5G, but with the LTE capabilities, 90Hz refresh rate display (albeit smaller) and processor as the A72.
The decision between these devices will therefore likely come down to which features matter to you most. Do you want a fast refresh rate and 5G? Then the A52s 5G is the one for you, especially as this offers a processor upgrade on the A52 5G for only a little more cash. If you want a big display, big battery and optical zoom capabilities, but you’re happy to lose 5G and the faster refresh rate display, you’ll likely want to pay the £10 extra for the A72.
