The Samsung Galaxy A33 succeeds last year’s Galaxy A32 and appears simultaneously with the slightly better Galaxy A53. Are you still with all those models? It becomes much more confusing, as you can read in this Samsung Galaxy A33 review.
Samsung Galaxy A33
Recommended retail price From € 329,-
Colors Pink, Blue, Black, White
OS Android 12 (OneUI 4.1)
Screen 6.5″ AMOLED (2400 x 1080, 120 Hz)
Processor 2.4GHz octa-core (Exynos 1280)
RAM 6GB
Storage 128GB
Battery 5,000 mAh
Camera 48. 8.5, 2 megapixel (rear), 32 megapixel (front)
Connectivity 5G, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS, NFC
Format 16 x 7.4 x 0.8 cm
Weight 186 grams
Other splash-proof
Website www.samsung.com
6.5 Score 65 
- Pros
- Camera
- Update Support
- battery life
- Negatives
- To upload
- unnecessary lenses
- Performance variable
- bloatware
The Samsung Galaxy A33 was presented simultaneously with the slightly more expensive Samsung Galaxy A53. The smartphone also succeeds last year’s Galaxy A32. But it is put on the market considerably more expensive with a suggested retail price of 369 euros. The Galaxy A32 came out for 299 euros. However, prices of Samsung Galaxy A smartphones are as changeable as the weather. If you are in the market for the Galaxy A33, then also throw the Galaxy A53 in the price comparison at the same time. Sometimes the price differences are minimal, making the Galaxy A53 a smarter choice.
The names may be difficult to distinguish, but the update policy does make the difference.
In terms of name, the Galaxy A33 is difficult to distinguish, but that is also the case in other areas. In terms of design, the device hardly stands out compared to the aforementioned Galaxy A53 and Galaxy A32. Nevertheless, the device stands out positively compared to the competition due to the long support period.
Samsung promises to provide the smartphone with updates for five years. This way you know that the Galaxy A33 will last a long time. Competition in the same price range can’t match this. Yet for the higher price you also have less in some areas. For example, the adapter is missing from the box and the audio connection has also been removed. That is not the case with the Galaxy A32.
Is the Samsung Galaxy A33 a good smartphone?
Thanks to the long support, the Samsung Galaxy A33 is a safe purchase for the coming years. The 6.4-inch screen with thin edges ensures a handy size. The screen is sufficient, but is a bit difficult to read in bright sunlight. For the enthusiast, the screen has a slightly increased refresh rate (90 hertz). The Full HD resolution is more than sufficient for the image size.
Unlike the Galaxy A32, this smartphone is equipped with a chipset of its own making. Samsung’s Exynos chip may be one of the reasons why Samsung can provide the device with updates for so long. MediaTek, which supplied the chipset of the Galaxy A32, does not have a good reputation when it comes to driver support with which manufacturers (such as Samsung) update their devices. The Exynos chipset ensures that you are ready for the future and the 5G support helps with that. Speed is a concern. The chipset does not break any speed records and here and there I noticed that the smartphone stutters.
The 6GB of RAM is not enough. The 128GB storage is sufficient, partly thanks to the fact that you can expand it with a memory card if desired.
Battery life: enough time to find an adapter
You have to buy an adapter separately, or use an old one. A USB-C cable is just present in the box. What is present: a large battery. With a capacity of 5,000 mAh, you have more than enough to get through the day. Even with regular use, a high image refresh rate and 5G on, a day and a half is more than feasible.
Really fast charging is not available for the Galaxy A33, wireless charging is also not an option. In practice, this pain is well mitigated by the long battery life itself.
Camera: many possibilities, little use
You see it more often with smartphones in a low price range: a full corner at the back is covered with all kinds of lenses. But in practice, the five-megapixel cameras that you get are of little use. That is also the case with this Galaxy A33. The regular camera shoots good photos for its price range, better than the competition. The extra cameras are more or less for show.
The Samsung Galaxy A33 has four lenses on the back. In addition to the regular camera, you have a wide-angle, zoom and macro lens to your camera arsenal. This is also the case with the somewhat more expensive Galaxy A55. In practice, it turned out that the wide-angle lens also managed to take acceptable photos. The zoom and macro lens only turned out to yield meaningful results in ideal lighting conditions.
Even then, you actually have sharper and noise-free photos if you crop a photo of the regular lens. That is also the case with the Galaxy A33, with the difference that the wide-angle lens also simply sacrifices too much in quality to be used as an alternative to the regular camera.
Especially in difficult lighting conditions, too many details are lost and noise is predominant in all cameras, with the exception of the regular camera. In short, the Galaxy A33 has a very decent camera on board. But the other lenses seem to have more to impress in terms of housing and specification list.
From left to right: wide angle, regular, zoom and macro. The color and detail difference is especially striking.
Android 12 with OneUI
The big advantage of Samsung’s affordable smartphones compared to other brands is that these devices do receive proper update support. You get four Android version updates and five years of security updates. Minimal.
Samsung’s software skin is also recognizable, solid and full of Samsung apps and services. Not all of which add something, such as the Bixby assistant. Unfortunately, bloatware is also present, from unnecessary apps to an even more unnecessary McAfee virus scanner in the settings.
Learn how to remove Samsung bloatware here.
Alternatives to the Samsung Galaxy A33
Although the Samsung Galaxy A33 is a safe choice and, because of its long support, is recommended over smartphones from OnePlus, Motorola, Oppo and Xiaomi in a comparable price range, there is one smartphone that beats the raison d’être a bit under this smartphone. The Samsung A53 is only slightly more expensive and for that money you have a better screen and better cameras – and the same long support. Perhaps Samsung has priced the Galaxy A33 just a bit too high on the market, especially because last year’s Galaxy A32 was a bit cheaper at launch.
As a result, the price of the Galaxy A33 may drop significantly in the near future. If the price differences with the Galaxy A53 become greater, then the Galaxy A33 becomes an interesting alternative. But for now the conclusion is simple: invest that little bit extra in the Galaxy A53.
Conclusion: Buy Samsung Galaxy A33?
The Samsung Galaxy A33 is a solid smartphone, with which you are assured of a no-nonsense device for years. The update support is good and the same can be said about the build quality, battery life and primary camera. However, there is one drawback, which is that the Galaxy A53 costs about the same, but is relatively much better.
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