Samsung Electronics Ltd. wants budget-minded Canadian smartphone owners to know it hasn’t abandoned them.
On Thursday, the South Korean electronics giant’s Canadian division revealed at CES that it will soon be releasing the latest edition of its mid-range Galaxy A line, the 5.2-inch Galaxy A5, in Canada, though when and for how much isn’t yet known.
In a Jan. 5 statement, Samsung Canada COO and executive vice president of mobile solutions Paul Brannen framed the A5 as an opportunity for Canadians to “have access to the latest innovation.”
“The Galaxy A5 is a testament to this,” he said. “We integrated our unique approach to design with features Canadians have come to love to provide added performance to fit their connected lives.”
In its press materials, Samsung emphasized the new device’s waterproof metal and glass design; front and rear 16-megapixel cameras, both of which feature improved autofocus and low-light shooting capabilities thanks to a front-mounted flash; its quick-charging, long-lasting battery life; 256 GB microSD support; USB Type-C port; and 1.9 GHz octa-core processor. Users will also be able to choose from two colours: black and blue, which Samsung is calling “Black Sky” and “Blue Mist.”
According to Samsung, the A5 will feature what the company calls a “floating camera” button that will allow users to swipe through subject-specific modes (such as a “food mode” optimized for shooting your latest gourmet meal) or filters to instantly activate picture effects.
Images are backed up on Samsung Cloud, and can be stored on a Secure Folder, which can be accessed using biometric authentication.
As for waterproofing, the phone features the new-standard IP (Ingress Protection) rating of IP68, which guarantees dust resistance and allows the device to be submerged in up to 1.5 metres of water for up to 30 minutes.
The device’s full specs are listed below:
- Dimensions: 146.1 x 71.4 x 7.9 mm
- Screen: 5.2-inch FHD Super AMOLED
- Processor: Octa-core 1.9 GHz
- OS: Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow
- Camera: 16-megapixel (F1.9) rear camera, 16-megapixel (F1.9) front-facing camera
- Memory: 3GB RAM + 32 GB storage, MicroSD slot (up to 256 GB)
- Battery: 3,000 mAh
- Wi-Fi: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth v 4.2, ANT+, USB Type-C, NFC (UICC, eSE)
- Network: LTE Cat.6
- Other Features: Accelerometer, Proximity, Geomagnetic, RGB Light, Hall, Fingerprint scanner, Barometer
Samsung also revealed the Galaxy A3 at CES; however, Canadians will only see the A5, and no price or release date has been set. A Samsung Canada representative told website MobileSyrup that “at this time we do not have any Canadian-specific information on timing and price to share. As always, we will keep you updated on any Samsung Canada related news as it becomes available.”