Samsung Galaxy A34 5G Review After One Month

I have been daily driving the Samsung Galaxy A34 5G for a while now and this is my review after weeks of using it. The phone costs Ksh 45,000 and can be purchased at any Samsung store and outlet in Kenya. For the A series, Samsung is promising good quality performance.

The A34 5G has an amazing display apart from the bezels which someone will get used to after a short time of use. The display is bright enough for daily usage and gets even brighter when used under direct sunlight. When it’s time to rest or maybe use it at night, you can use the extra dim option to lower the brightness even more. Still on the display, it refreshes at 120Hz which is very visible when scrolling through social apps and when gaming. The display is strong enough even for use without a screen protector but in case of an accidental fall, Samsung has their Care+ package to sort you out. The all-round feel of the Galaxy A34 has a premium to it although it is plastic. Samsung has managed to borrow the S23 series style and incorporated it into the A34 apart from the teardrop notch.

Performance on the A34 has been steady in my time of use, Gaming has been smooth always, and no sign of overheating or lag. The Dimensity 1080 powers the phone really well. Opening apps is smooth and when it’s time to get back to a previous app, most of the time I have found those apps still functional, and no need to restart the app again. The version I have is a 6GB RAM version with 128GB of storage.

For the cameras, I can say am really proud of what the A34 can achieve. You get a 48MP main sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide, and a Macro lens. The 48MP option can be toggled on separately on the Samsung camera app since the phone shoots 12MP photos by default. The photos are detailed, natural bokeh is applied evenly and photos of up to 4X zoom can be viewed with much clarity. 10X zoom here brings about grain. The night mode here delivers usable images but is not the best in the market. The portrait mode which I have used very much applies the bokeh evenly as long as the subject is not in motion. What I don’t like that much about the camera is the processing. Not that the processing is bad, but sometimes it over-processes the images giving a different effect from what someone sees on the viewfinder. Below are some photos shot on the Samsung A34 5G.

For the video, I like the fact that there is an inclusion of 1080p@60fps and also an option for 4K@30fps for the rear camera. 60fps brings about smooth footage and allows for the slowing down of videos when post-editing. The A34 shoots very good videos when coupled with adequate light but lags behind when it comes to low-light scenarios. There is an option for pro mode both for video and photo for those who like tweaking individual camera settings.

Everything can’t be said without the inclusion of OneUI 5.1. This is the software Samsung has placed on top of Android 13 for the A34 5G. The software allows users to use any Samsung device with just one hand due to its ease of use. Features like Modes and routines help when focusing on a certain activity be it working, exercising, or driving. Every mode you chose tweaks the phone settings to match the activity. OneUI 5.11 comes with added security features to help with the privacy of the device. The timely software updates are something I can give Samsung a thumbs up for. They have managed to keep the device up to date with the latest major software and monthly security updates.

So far, a feature I have loved about the A34 is the speaker system. They managed to pack stereo speakers and even though it is embedded in the speaker grill, Samsung has managed to make it loud enough in a way that it matches the bottom-firing speaker.  It is filled with adequate lows, mids, and highs in a way that fills your space giving you comfortable and enjoyable output.

The battery life is something that caught my eye from day one of using the Galaxy A34. Most of the time I have managed to end the day with over 15% of battery life remaining and when not using the device heavily I have managed to use it for more than 24hrs without needing to charge. The A34 doesn’t come with a charger in the box. It charges the 5000mAh battery at a max charge of 25W which is a bit low for a 2023 smartphone.

Some of the things that I do not like about the Samsung A34 are:-

1. Charging speeds. The phone takes too long to charge and coming from a phone that charges fully in under 1hr, it feels so slow to charge the A34 fully in 2hrs.
2. There is no sign of 5G even in 5G available areas. Samsung has not informed us yet if 5G is blocked or needs a software update to operate.
3. The screen is not well aligned with the side plates which leaves some gaps that allow dirt to accumulate in the screen really fast.
4. Camera over-processing at some point alters the final result to the extent that it doesn’t look the same as the viewfinder image. This happens in certain scenarios but not always but overall the image output on the A34 is amazing.