Get ready, because Samsung’s new Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56 smartphones are the Galaxy phones you should pay attention to this year, as after the lukewarm Galaxy S25 series, they both feel like genuine upgrades, and worthy of your money even if you own last year’s models. I had a short time with both phones, and this is why they impressed me.
What’s the difference?
There are distinct differences between the Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56, and unlike the Galaxy A35 and Galaxy A55, this time there’s a real noticeable advantage to buying the more expensive phone of the two, but we’ll come back to that in a short while. First, it’s important to understand the visual and design differences between them.
Both phones have the same 6.7-inch AMOLED screen, but the Galaxy A56 has a brushed metal chassis and it feels much higher quality than the A36’s plastic frame, which lacks the brushed effect and desirable metallic shine. Samsung has shaved fractions from the bezel, making it a tiny bit smaller, but it has retained the raised “Key Island” section on the side which makes the buttons on both phones easier to locate and press. Both phones are slim, light, and relatively easy to use with one hand.
The slightly uncomfortable to hold nature of the Galaxy A55 has been banished, and both phones have a great in-hand feel. The cameras are arranged vertically in the top corner on the back of both phones, but the A56 has a flat metal surround instead of the A36’s plastic surround. There’s a definite “family” look to the Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56, which do resemble the Galaxy S25, but are different enough that they have a distinct A-series character.
Samsung has brought back a beloved color scheme from its past for the A-series. Several colors have a fantastic iridescent finish, just like the old Galaxy Note 10’s Aura Glow color. It’s subtle until you get it in the right light when the pearl-like finish comes to life. It’d normally be the one I’d instantly recommend, but Samsung has done a great job with providing a variety of good-looking alternatives, making it a harder choice than usual.
A-series performance
The Galaxy A36 has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor, while the Galaxy A56 has a Samsung Exynos 1580 processor inside. In the short time I had to compare the two, navigating around the One UI 7 software didn’t reveal any performance difference, until I tried out the cameras. The Galaxy A56 with the Exynos 1580 switches between the wide-angle and main camera much faster than the Galaxy A36. I was informed it’s twice as fast, and the turn of speed is a joint effort between the processor and the AI.
Although I wasn’t able to play any, the Galaxy A56 will be the one to choose if mobile games are important to you according to Samsung, and if the camera app’s performance is anything to go by, I’m inclined to believe it. It’ll be a feature we’ll be paying close attention to when we review the phones. Each comes with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage space, and there’s a 15% larger vapor chamber for improved cooling compared to the previous series.
Both phones use a 50-megapixel main camera with optical image stabilization (OIS) and a 5MP macro camera, but the Galaxy A56 gets a 12MP wide-angle camera, while the Galaxy A36 makes do with an 8MP wide-angle. There are some unique special features on the A56, likely enabled by the Exynos chip. These include an upgraded AI ISP, Best Face mode, and an Auto Trim mode for video, which creates a highlight reel from your recorded videos. I was pleased to see the same brilliant image editing tools introduced on the Galaxy S25 arrive on the Galaxy A-series phones too.
There’s good news on the software, as both phones use Samsung’s latest One UI 7 over Android 15. It’s easily Samsung’s best version of Android yet, and impressed a lot on the Galaxy S25 series. How about Galaxy AI? Samsung hasn’t made a big deal out of it here, with Circle to Search and Samsung’s excellent object eraser in the Gallery app being the highlights. The Now Brief is nowhere to be seen, but you do get the Now Bar on the lock screen. Samsung will provide major software and security updates for six years.
2025’s bargain Galaxy phones?
I’ve saved the best upgrade to last. Samsung has added 45W wired charging to the Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56, and states a 30 minute charge will take the 5,000mAh battery to about 65%, and on to 100% in 68 minutes. This means the A-series phones have faster wired charging than the Galaxy S25, and matches the Galaxy S25 Plus and the Galaxy S25 Ultra. However, neither have wireless charging.
I came away from my time with the Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56 impressed with both. The colors make the most of the design, there’s an IP67 dust and water resistance rating on both, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the front and back, a good turn of speed in the software, and some desirable feature updates over the last models. I love that I can see and feel a difference to last year’s models, and that I’ve already discovered a tangible reason to buy the more expensive one. It’s what I want to see from an annual update, especially in the often challenging mid-range, where updates can be harder to implement.
The Samsung Galaxy A36 costs 399 British pounds, or about $505, while the Galaxy A56 is 499 pounds which is around $635, and both will be available to pre-order from March 2 with a release date of March 19. A U.S. release hasn’t been confirmed, but the previous A-series did eventually arrive, so it’s highly likely the new models will come soon too.
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