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Samsung Galaxy M12 vs Galaxy A03

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Samsung Galaxy M12 vs Galaxy A03

51 out of 100
Samsung Galaxy M12
VS
49 out of 100
Samsung Galaxy A03
Samsung Galaxy M12
Samsung Galaxy A03

Here we compared two budget smartphones: the 6.5-inch Samsung Galaxy M12 (with Exynos 850) that was released on November 24, 2020, against the Samsung Galaxy A03, which is powered by Unisoc T606 and came out 12 months after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.

  1. Differences
  2. Review
  3. Specs
  4. Benchmarks
  5. Battery life
  6. Camera
  7. Comments

Key differences

An overview of the main advantages of each smartphone
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy M12
  • Higher display refresh rate – 90 Hz
  • Modern USB Type-C port
  • Fingerprint scanner
  • More energy-efficient CPU – Exynos 850
  • Has an ultra-wide angle camera lens
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy A03
  • 30% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (206K versus 158K)
  • Compatible with Wi-Fi 5 wireless networks
  • The phone is 1-year newer
  • Weighs 18 grams less

Review

Evaluation of Samsung Galaxy M12 and Galaxy A03 crucial features
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.
NanoReview Score
Final comparison evaluation

Value for money

Tests and specifications

Comparison table of technical specifications and tests
Phone:
Galaxy M12
vs
Galaxy A03

Display

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 90 Hz 60 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No No
Max rated brightness 450 nits 400 nits
HDR support No No
Screen protection Corning Gorilla Glass 3 Tempered glass
Screen-to-body ratio 81.9% 81.8%
Display tests
RGB color space 93.3% 96%
PWM - Not detected
Response time 39 ms 45 ms
Contrast 926:1 1641:1
Peak brightness test (auto)
Galaxy M12 +2%
431 nits
Galaxy A03
422 nits

Design and build

Height 164 mm (6.46 inches) 164.2 mm (6.46 inches)
Width 75.9 mm (2.99 inches) 75.9 mm (2.99 inches)
Thickness 9.7 mm (0.38 inches) 9.1 mm (0.36 inches)
Weight 214 g (7.55 oz) 196 g (6.91 oz)
Waterproof No No
Rear material Plastic Plastic
Frame material Plastic Plastic
Colors Black, Blue, Green Black, Blue, Red
Fingerprint scanner Yes, in-button No
Screen-to-body ratio

Performance

Tests of Samsung Galaxy M12 and Samsung Galaxy A03 in the benchmarks
SoC
Chipset Samsung Exynos 850 Unisoc T606
Max clock 2000 MHz 1600 MHz
CPU cores 8 (8) 8 (2 + 6)
Architecture - 8 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A55 - 6 cores at 1.6 GHz: Cortex-A55
- 2 cores at 1.6 GHz: Cortex-A75
L3 cache - 1 MB
Lithography process 8 nanometers 12 nanometers
Graphics Mali-G52 MP1 Mali-G57 MP1
GPU shading units 24 64
GPU clock 680 MHz 650 MHz
FLOPS ~39.4 GFLOPS ~83.2 GFLOPS

Benchmarks

Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
Galaxy M12
158901
Galaxy A03 +30%
206902
CPU 49204 75655
GPU 27150 25987
Memory 46333 49741
UX 36160 54622
Total score 158901 206902
3DMark Wild Life Performance
Max surface temperature 41.7 °C 43.2 °C
Stability 98% 97%
Graphics test 2 FPS 2 FPS
Graphics score 429 407
PCMark 3.0
Web score 5424 5985
Video editing 5775 3936
Photo editing 9817 13761
Data manipulation 4274 5461
Writing score 5355 8396

Memory

RAM
RAM size 3, 4 GB 3, 4 GB
Memory type LPDDR4X LPDDR4X
Memory clock 1866 MHz -
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage size 32, 64, 128 GB 32, 64, 128 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 13)
ROM One UI Core 5.0 One UI Core 5.0
OS size 14 GB 13.5 GB

Battery

Capacity 5000 mAh 5000 mAh
Max charge power 15 W 15 W
Battery type Li-Ion Li-Ion
Replaceable No No
Wireless charging No No
Reverse charging No No
Fast charging Yes (40% in 60 min) Yes (20% in 40 min)
Full charging time 2:30 hr 3:35 hr

Camera

Specs and camera test of smartphones
Main camera
Matrix 48 megapixels 48 megapixels
Image resolution 8000 x 6000 8000 x 6000
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
Angle of widest lens 123° -
Lenses 4 (48 MP + 5 MP + 2 MP + 2 MP) 2 (48 MP + 2 MP)
Wide (main) lens - 48 MP
- Aperture: f/2.0
- Pixel size: 0.8 micron
- Sensor: 1/2", Samsung S5KGM2 (CMOS)
- Phase autofocus
- 48 MP
- Aperture: f/1.8
- Phase autofocus
Ultra-wide lens - 5 MP
- Aperture: f/2.2
- Pixel size: 1.12 micron
- Sensor: 1/5.0" (CMOS)
-
Macro lens - 2 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4
-
Depth lens - 2 MP
- Aperture: f/2.2
- 2 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4
Camera features - Bokeh mode
- Pro mode 		- Bokeh mode
Selfie camera
Megapixels 8 megapixels 5 megapixels
Image resolution 3264 x 2448 2560 x 1960
Aperture f/2.0 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 5 (802.11 b/g/n/ac)
Wi-Fi features - Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot 		- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5 5
Bluetooth features PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, 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
GPS GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS
NFC * Yes No
Infrared port No No
Network
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 * 7 4
5G support No No

Sound

Speakers Mono Mono
Headphone audio jack Yes Yes
FM radio Yes -
Dolby Atmos Yes Yes
Speakers test
Max loudness
Galaxy M12
77.6 dB
Galaxy A03 +6%
81.9 dB

Other

Category Budget Budget
Announced November 2020 November 2021
Release date April 2021 January 2022
SAR (head) 0.54 W/kg -
SAR (body) 1.39 W/kg -
Sensors - Proximity sensor
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
- Fingerprint 		- Proximity sensor
- Accelerometer
- Ambient light sensor
Bundled charger - Yes, 0 W
* Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.

Conclusion

If the display, camera, and connectivity are more important to you, then choose the Samsung Galaxy M12 . But if the design is more of a priority – go for the Samsung Galaxy A03 .

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