Samsung Galaxy A36 5G vs Nothing Phone (3a)
67 out of 100
VS
71 out of 100
Here we compared two mid-range smartphones: the 6.7-inch Samsung Galaxy A36 5G (with Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 ) that was released on March 2, 2025, against the Nothing Phone (3a), which is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 and came out 1 month 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 A36 5G
- Waterproof body (IP67 classification)
- The front-facing camera can record video at 4K
- Ready for eSIM technology
Reasons to consider the Nothing Phone (3a)
- The rear camera has a 2x optical zoom
- 32% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (816K versus 619K)
- 17% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 1178 and 1007 points
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.
Choose the importance of each parameter to more accurately identify the smartphone that best meets your particular needs.
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | Super AMOLED | AMOLED |
| Size | 6.7 inches | 6.77 inches |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2340 pixels | 1080 x 2392 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 19.5:9 | - |
| PPI | 385 ppi | 387 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | Yes | Yes (60-120 Hz) |
| Max rated brightness | 1200 nits | 1300 nits |
| Max rated brightness in HDR | 1900 nits | 3000 nits |
| HDR support | Yes, HDR10+ | Yes, HDR10+ |
| Screen protection | Gorilla Glass Victus Plus | Panda Glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 86.5% | 88% |
| Display features | - DCI-P3 - Always-On Display | - DCI-P3 - Always-On Display - DC Dimming |
Design and build
| Height | 162.9 mm (6.41 inches) | 163.52 mm (6.44 inches) |
| Width | 78.2 mm (3.08 inches) | 77.5 mm (3.05 inches) |
| Thickness | 7.4 mm (0.29 inches) | 8.35 mm (0.33 inches) |
| Weight | 195 g (6.88 oz) | 201 g (7.09 oz) |
| Waterproof | IP67 | IP64 |
| Advanced cooling | - | Vapor chamber |
| Rear material | Glass | - |
| Frame material | Plastic | - |
| Colors | White, Black, Green, Purple | White, Black, Blue |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-display | Yes, in-display |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 | Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 |
| Max clock | 2400 MHz | 2500 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (4 + 4) | 8 (1 + 3 + 4) |
| Architecture | - 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 4 cores at 2.4 GHz: Cortex-A78 | - 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Kryo Silver (Cortex-A520) - 3 cores at 2.4 GHz: Kryo Gold (Cortex-A720) - 1 core at 2.5 GHz: Kryo Prime (Cortex-A720) |
| Manufacturing | Samsung | TSMC |
| Lithography process | 4 nanometers | 4 nanometers |
| Neural processor (NPU) | Hexagon | Yes |
| Graphics | Adreno 710 | Adreno 810 |
| GPU shading units | 256 | 256 |
| GPU clock | 940 MHz | 1050 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~481.3 GFLOPS | ~537.6 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
| Geekbench Compute (GPU) | 3504 | 4435 |
| Single-core score | 1007 | 1178 |
| Multi-core score | 2917 | 3214 |
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
| CPU | 204782 | 273497 |
| GPU | 118902 | 201133 |
| Memory | 139771 | 173729 |
| UX | 156102 | 168025 |
| Total score | 619557 | 816384 |
| Samples | Less than 3 | Less than 3 |
Memory
| RAM size | 6, 8, 12 GB | 8, 12 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR4X | LPDDR4X |
| Memory clock | 2133 MHz | 2133 MHz |
| Channels | 2 | 4 |
| Storage size | 128, 256 GB | 128, 256 GB |
| Storage type | UFS 2.2 | UFS 2.2 |
| Memory card | No | No |
Software
| Operating system | Android 15 | Android 15 |
| ROM | One UI 7.0 | Nothing OS 3.1 |
| OS size | 22.6 GB | - |
Battery
| Capacity | 5000 mAh | 5000 mAh |
| Max charge power | 45 W | 50 W |
| Battery type | Li-Ion | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Reverse charging | - | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (66% in 30 min) | Yes (50% in 19 min) |
| Full charging time | 1:08 hr | 0:56 hr |
Main camera
| Matrix | 50 megapixels | 50 megapixels |
| Image resolution | - | 8192 x 6144 |
| Zoom | Digital | Optical, 2x |
| Flash | LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Optical | Optical |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | Up to 30FPS | Up to 30FPS |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| Slow motion | 240 FPS (720p) | 240 FPS (720p) |
| Angle of widest lens | 123° | 120° |
| Lenses | 1) Standard: 50 MP 2) Ultrawide: 8 MP 3) Macro: 5 MP | 1) Standard: 50 MP 2) Telephoto: 50 MP 3) Ultrawide: 8 MP |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
| Image resolution | 50 MP | 50 MP |
| Aperture | f/1.8 | f/1.9 |
| Focal length | - | 24 mm |
| Sensor | - | Sony LYT-600 |
| Sensor size | 1/1.96" | 1/1.56" |
| Pixel size | - | 1 micron |
| Autofocus | Phase autofocus | Phase autofocus |
| Stabilization | Optical | Optical |
| Image resolution | - | 50 MP |
| Aperture | - | f/2.6 |
| Focal length | - | 50 mm |
| Sensor size | - | 1/2.74" |
| Pixel size | - | 0.64 micron |
| Stabilization | - | Optical |
| Image resolution | 8 MP | 8 MP |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.2 |
| Focal length | - | 15 mm |
| Sensor | - | Sony IMX355 |
| Sensor size | 1/4.0" | 1/4.0" |
| Pixel size | - | 1.12 micron |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Image resolution | 5 MP | - |
| Aperture | f/2.4 | - |
| Stabilization | Digital | - |
Selfie camera
| Megapixels | 12 megapixels | 32 megapixels |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.2 |
| Focal length | - | 22 mm |
| Sensor | - | CMOS |
| Sensor size | - | 1/3.44" |
| Autofocus | No | No |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Video resolution | 2160p (4K) at 30 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS |
| Depth sensor (TOF 3D) | No | No |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) |
| Wi-Fi features | - Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display | - Dual Band - Wi-Fi MiMO - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5.4 | 5.4 |
| Bluetooth features | LE | LE |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 2 | 2 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| DisplayPort | No | No |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS | GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, QZSS |
| NFC* | Yes | Yes |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM* | 2 | 2 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | Standby |
| eSIM support* | Yes | No |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| 5G support | Yes | Yes |
Sound
| Speakers | Stereo | Stereo |
| Headphone audio jack | No | No |
| FM radio | No | No |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | - |
Other
| Category | Mid-range | Mid-range |
| Announced | March 2025 | March 2025 |
| Release date | March 2025 | March 2025 |
| Launch price | $399 | $329 |
| Configurations | - 6 / 128 GB - 8 / 128 GB - 8 / 256 GB - 12 / 256 GB | - 8 / 128 GB - 8 / 256 GB - 12 / 256 GB |
| SAR (head) | 0.53 W/kg | - |
| SAR (body) | 1.29 W/kg | - |
| Sensors | - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint | - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
| Bundled charger | Not included | Not included |
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
