Samsung Galaxy A36 5G Review: A Mid-range marvel with standard features

April 06, 2025, 12:59 PM
by Farhana Afrose Rini

UNB News
Publish- April 06, 2025, 12:59 PM
Farhana Afrose Rini
Update- April 06, 2025, 01:35 PM

Samsung Galaxy A36 5G

The Samsung Galaxy 'A' series has long been celebrated for delivering premium features at accessible prices, striking a balance between performance and affordability. Continuing this legacy, the A36 was first released on March 10, 2025. Let’s delve into the key specs, pros, cons, and pricing of the Samsung Galaxy A36 5G in Bangladesh.

Key Features of Samsung Galaxy A36 5G

Design and Build Quality

The Samsung Galaxy A36 5G impresses with its sleek, premium look and feel. At 7.4mm thick and weighing 195g, it is slightly lighter and thinner than the Galaxy A35, which measures 8.2mm in thickness and weighs 209g. The A36 also features Gorilla Glass Victus+ on both the front and back with a plastic frame, mirroring its predecessor but in a more refined form. Both phones sport IP67 water and dust resistance, which adds to their durability.

Compared to the realme 14 Pro and vivo Y300 Pro+, the A36 falls somewhere in between. The realme model is lighter at 179g and features a MIL-STD-810H rating along with IP68/IP69 certification, making it more rugged. Meanwhile, the vivo Y300 Pro+ offers an elegant form but only IP64 splash resistance. Overall, the A36 strikes a balance between elegance and robustness, with modern colours like lavender, lime, and white.

Display Quality

Samsung's Super AMOLED display in the A36 is a highlight, offering 6.7 inches of vivid display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 1900 nits peak brightness. It is a solid upgrade from the A35’s 6.6-inch panel that maxes out at 1000 nits. The jump in brightness and screen-to-body ratio (86.5% vs 84.8%) makes for a more immersive viewing experience, especially under sunlight.

When stacked against the realme 14 Pro and vivo Y300 Pro+, the A36 still holds its own. realme boasts a 6.77-inch OLED panel with a whopping 4500 nits peak brightness, the highest in the category, which is impressive for outdoor usage.

Vivo’s Y300 Pro+ is not far behind with 5000 nits peak brightness and AMOLED technology. Despite slightly lower peak brightness, Samsung's colour tuning, sharpness, and Always-on Display feature give it an edge in everyday usability and visual appeal.

Like the ancestor A35, the latest A36 features a resolution of 1080 by 2340 pixels with ~385 ppi density, which is close to the realme 14 Pro and vivo Y300 Pro+, featuring 1080 by 2392 with ~388 ppi density.

Camera Performance

The Galaxy A36 features a triple camera setup: a 50MP (f/1.8) main shooter with OIS, an 8MP (f/2.2) ultrawide, and a 5MP (f/2.4) macro lens. This setup mirrors the A35’s cameras, but the A36 benefits from improved image processing thanks to the newer Snapdragon chipset. It captures better detail in low light and handles HDR more effectively.

Against competitors, the realme 14 Pro offers a dual setup with a similar 50MP sensor and a depth lens. It lacks an ultrawide camera, which limits its versatility. The vivo Y300 Pro+ also has a dual setup with a 50MP primary and 2MP depth sensor. While both realme and vivo benefit from solid hardware, the absence of a dedicated ultrawide limits their camera flexibility.

Selfie performance gets a slight bump in the A36 with a 12MP (f/2.2) sensor featuring 10-bit HDR, better than the A35’s 13MP selfie cam with no HDR. The Vivo Y300Pro+ does stand out here with its 32MP front-facing camera. Capable of 4K recording with the front sensor, the Samsung Galaxy A36 outperforms the realme 14 Pro and Vivo Y300 Pro+, limited to 1080p video.

Processor Performance

Under the hood, the Galaxy A36 5G is powered by the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 chip, a 4nm octa-core processor that brings considerable improvements over the 5nm Exynos 1380 in the A35. Multitasking, app launches, and AI tasks feel noticeably faster and smoother. It is a much-needed boost and helps the A36 stay relevant through future Android updates (6 major upgrades promised vs. 4 in the A35).

Compared to the Dimensity 7300 of the realme 14 Pro and the Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 of the vivo Y300 Pro+, the A36 offers good competition. The Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 matches realme’s chip in efficiency but slightly lags behind vivo’s newer 7s Gen 3 in raw benchmarks. However, the A36 delivers stable thermal performance and handles day-to-day tasks without stutters, keeping it highly competitive.

Gaming Performance

Gaming on the A36 is a treat for casual and semi-heavy gamers. The Adreno 710 GPU and 120Hz refresh rate offer fluid gameplay in titles like PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty: Mobile, and Genshin Impact at medium-high settings. It maintains frame rates well without significant heating, unlike the A35, which struggled during extended gaming sessions due to its older GPU.

The realme 14 Pro, with its Mali-G615 GPU, delivers marginally better frame rates in graphics-intensive titles, while the vivo Y300 Pro+’s Adreno 710 clocked at 940MHz offers similar performance with a bit more efficiency thanks to better thermal handling. In real-world usage, all three phones deliver respectable gaming performance, but realme edges out slightly for hardcore gamers.

Battery Life

Battery life is a strong suit of the Galaxy A36, thanks to its 5000 mAh cell and efficient processor. It easily lasts a full day with moderate to heavy use. Samsung has also improved charging with 45W wired support, filling the battery to 66% in 30 minutes and a full charge in just over an hour.

This is a major leap over the A35’s 25W charging, which feels sluggish in 2025.

Still, the realme 14 Pro and vivo Y300 Pro+ outperform the A36 in this department. realme supports 45W charging but has a 6000 mAh battery that delivers more screen time. Vivo takes the crown here with a massive 7300 mAh battery and 90W fast charging that powers the phone in record time. For power users and frequent travellers, vivo clearly leads.

However, the Samsung Galaxy A36 lacks demanding features like reverse charging and wireless charging features, which many competitors like the vivo Y300 Pro+ are offering in similar price ranges.

Software and User Interface

Samsung's One UI 7, based on Android 1515, offers a smooth, intuitive, and feature-rich user experience on the A36. Samsung has committed to 6 major Android updates, which is outstanding and surpasses even some flagship brands. The interface is bloat-free, customisable, and integrates features like Circle to Search and enhanced virtual proximity sensing.

In contrast, the A35 ships with One UI 6.1 and Android 14 with only 4 years of updates. The realme 14 Pro runs realme UI 6.0, which is clean but slightly behind Samsung in polish and support. The Vivo Y300 Pro+ uses OriginOS 5, which is vibrant and feature-packed, though a bit cluttered for first-time users. In terms of longevity and overall software experience, the A36 is the clear winner.

Storage Options

Samsung offers a wide range of configurations for the A36, starting at 128GB with 6GB RAM and going up to 256GB with 12GB RAM. However, there is no microSD card support, which might disappoint some users. The A35 does offer expandable storage, which gives it a niche advantage.

realme and vivo also skip the SD card slot but offer higher internal storage variants—up to 512GB with 12GB RAM. Power users and media hoarders might lean toward those options, but for average users, the A36 provides enough flexibility in its current options.

Pros and Cons of Samsung Galaxy A36 5G

Pros

- Large 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate.
- Bright screen with up to 1900 nits peak brightness.
- Powered by Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 for smooth performance.
- Available in 6GB, 8GB, and 12GB RAM options.
- Triple rear camera setup with 50MP main lens.
- 12MP selfie camera supports 4K video and HDR.
- Stereo speakers for better audio experience.
- In-display fingerprint sensor for secure unlocking.
- 45W fast charging, 100% in about 68 minutes.
- IP67 rated for dust and water resistance.
- One UI 7 with Android 15 and long software support.

Cons

- Plastic frame, not as premium as metal.
- No 3.5mm headphone jack.
- FM radio not supported.
- No microSD card slot for storage expansion.
- Slightly higher price compared to rivals with similar specs
- No wireless charging option
- No reverse charging option.

Price of the Samsung Galaxy A36 5G in Bangladesh

The Samsung Galaxy A36 5G is priced at approximately BDT 37,000 for the base variant.

Final Words

The Samsung Galaxy A36 5G shines with its AMOLED display, strong performance, and fast charging. However, the plastic build and lack of a headphone jack may disappoint some. Ideal for users seeking a balanced mid-range phone with reliable performance and camera quality. Not recommended for those needing expandable storage, a wireless or reverse charging option, or a more premium build.