Samsung Galaxy A03s vs A03 Core
Here we compared two budget smartphones: the 6.5-inch Samsung Galaxy A03s (with MediaTek Helio P35) that was released on August 18, 2021, against the Samsung Galaxy A03 Core, which is powered by Unisoc SC9863A and came out 3 months after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy A03s
- Modern USB Type-C port
- Newer Bluetooth version (v5)
- Supports 15W fast charging
- Fingerprint scanner
- More energy-efficient CPU – MediaTek Helio P35
- More recent OS version: Android 13 versus 12
- Supports Dolby Atmos sound technology
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (
*
) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
Value for money
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | PLS TFT | PLS TFT |
| Size | 6.5 inches | 6.5 inches |
| Resolution | 720 x 1600 pixels | 720 x 1600 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 20:9 | 20:9 |
| PPI | 270 ppi | 270 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 60 Hz | 60 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | No | No |
| Max rated brightness | 400 nits | 450 nits |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Screen protection | Tempered glass | Tempered glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 81.8% | 81.8% |
| RGB color space | 93.9% | - |
| PWM | 806 Hz | - |
| Response time | 43 ms | - |
| Contrast | 1126:1 | - |
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 164.2 mm (6.46 inches) | 164.2 mm (6.46 inches) |
| Width | 75.9 mm (2.99 inches) | 75.9 mm (2.99 inches) |
| Thickness | 9.1 mm (0.36 inches) | 9.1 mm (0.36 inches) |
| Weight | 196 g (6.91 oz) | 211 g (7.44 oz) |
| Waterproof | No | No |
| Rear material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Frame material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Colors | White, Black, Blue | Black, Blue |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-button | No |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | MediaTek Helio P35 | Unisoc SC9863A |
| Max clock | 2350 MHz | 1600 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (4 + 4) | 8 (4 + 4) |
| Architecture |
- 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Cortex-A53
- 4 cores at 2.3 GHz: Cortex-A53 |
- 4 cores at 1.2 GHz: Cortex-A55
- 4 cores at 1.6 GHz: Cortex-A55 |
| Lithography process | 12 nanometers | 28 nanometers |
| Graphics | PowerVR GE8320 | PowerVR GE8322 |
| GPU shading units | 32 | 64 |
| GPU clock | 680 MHz | 550 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~43.5 GFLOPS | ~70.4 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
| CPU | 51263 | 53962 |
| GPU | 20113 | 9540 |
| Memory | 35388 | 41846 |
| UX | 36853 | 43831 |
| Total score | 144853 | 149382 |
Memory
| RAM size | 3, 4 GB | 2 GB |
| Memory type | - | LPDDR3 |
| Channels | 2 | 1 |
| Storage size | 32, 64 GB | 32 GB |
| Storage type | eMMC 5.1 | eMMC 5.1 |
| Memory card | MicroSD | MicroSD |
| Memory card max size | Up to 1024 GB | Up to 1024 GB |
Software
| Operating system | Android 11 (Can be upgraded to Android 13) | Android 11 (Can be upgraded to Android 12) |
| ROM | One UI Core 5.0 | One UI Core 4.0 |
| OS size | 13.2 GB | 8.8 GB |
Battery
| Capacity | 5000 mAh | 5000 mAh |
| Max charge power | 15 W | 10 W |
| Battery type | Li-Ion | Li-Ion |
| Replaceable | No | Yes |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (15% in 30 min) | No |
| Full charging time | 3:38 hr | 2:50 hr |
| Web browsing | 15:57 hr | - |
| Watching video | 14:23 hr | - |
| Gaming | 06:16 hr | - |
| Standby | 124 hr | - |
General battery life
Camera
| Matrix | 13 megapixels | 8 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 4128 x 3096 | 3264 x 2448 |
| Zoom | Digital | Digital |
| Flash | LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | No | No |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 30FPS | Up to 30FPS |
| Slow motion | No | No |
| Lenses | 3 (13 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP) | 1 (8 MP) |
| Wide (main) lens |
- 13 MP
- Aperture: f/1.8 - Phase autofocus |
- 8 MP
- Aperture: f/2.0 - Phase autofocus |
| Macro lens |
- 2 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4 |
- |
| Depth lens |
- 2 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4 |
- |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode | - |
| Megapixels | 5 megapixels | 5 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 2560 x 1960 | 2560 x 1920 |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.2 |
| Sensor type | CMOS | CMOS |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 4 (802.11 b/g/n) | Wi-Fi 4 (802.11 a/b/g/n) |
| Wi-Fi features |
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5 | 4.2 |
| Bluetooth features | LE, A2DP | LE, A2DP |
| USB type | USB Type-C | Micro USB |
| USB version | 2 | 2 |
| USB features |
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou |
| NFC * | Depends on the region | No |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM * | 2 | 2 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | Standby |
| eSIM support * | No | No |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| LTE Cat * | 4 | 4 |
| 5G support | No | No |
Sound
| Speakers | Mono | Mono |
| Headphone audio jack | Yes | Yes |
| FM radio | No | - |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | No |
Speakers test
Max loudness
Other
| Category | Budget | Budget |
| Announced | August 2021 | November 2021 |
| Release date | August 2021 | December 2021 |
| SAR (head) | 0.36 W/kg | 0.24 W/kg |
| SAR (body) | 1.09 W/kg | 1.39 W/kg |
| Sensors |
- Proximity sensor
- Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Fingerprint |
- Proximity sensor
- Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor |
| Bundled charger | Yes, 15 W | Yes, 10 W |
*
Disclaimer!
NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
After analyzing all the data, we think that the Samsung Galaxy A03s is definitely a better buy.