Samsung Galaxy M35 Review: A Budget Star with Excellent Battery Life and Performance
The Samsung Galaxy M35 5G is the latest offering from the Korean tech giant’s M series, known for offering affordable phones with good value for money. The Galaxy M35 5G builds upon its predecessor, the Galaxy M34 5G, with some hardware upgrades and design changes. But, with these new inclusions comes a higher price tag. In this review, we’ll find out if the phone is a good all-rounder for its price.
Design and Display
The phone’s design is a minor departure from its predecessor, with a slightly more prominent camera ring and a different pattern on the rear panel. The phone is thick and heavier than most phones in its segment, weighing in at 222g. The rear panel is slippery, but it’s not a fingerprint magnet. The phone has a tapered edge, but it’s all flat on the front and sides.
The 6.6-inch full-HD+ display is excellent for content consumption, with good brightness (1,000 nits peak) and color reproduction. The display is protected by Gorilla Glass Victus+, a rare feature in this price segment. The screen is also smooth, with an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz and two display color options: Vivid and Natural.
Software
The phone runs on One UI 6.1, one of my favorite Android skins, with minimal bloatware. The app drawer has a Discover tab that recommends apps, but I’d say it’s best to just search the Play Store for whatever app you need. Samsung has promised four years of Android OS updates and five years of security patches, an incredible feat in this price segment.
Performance
The Exynos 1380 SoC on the Galaxy M35 5G is a good budget chip that gets the job done. I didn’t face any major lag or app crashes while using the phone to browse, watch videos, play games, run multiple apps, and take photos. The phone also features a vapour-cooling chamber, which helps keep the phone cool during gaming and other resource-intensive activities.
Cameras
The triple rear camera setup is decent, with the primary 50-megapixel camera taking good photos in daylight conditions. The camera app is also pretty straightforward, with all the main modes within easy reach. The ultra-wide camera performs decently well in both daylight and lowlight conditions, but the lowlight photos have a lot more noise than the main camera.
Battery Life
The 6,000mAh battery on the Galaxy M35 5G is a monster, lasting an incredible 47 hours and 17 minutes in our HD video loop test. None of the phones in its price segment got even close to that number. Daily usage numbers will be lower, but you can easily get the phone to last one and a half days or more with all kinds of usage.
Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy M35 5G is a budget star that offers excellent battery life, good performance with almost no heating issues, a good set of cameras, and brilliant software support. While it may not have the best design or fastest charging, it’s a great option for those looking for a phone under Rs. 20,000. If you’re willing to compromise on design and charging speed, the Galaxy M35 5G is definitely worth considering.
