Samsung Galaxy A51 arrives unlocked in the US with an extra reason to buy
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Samsung's Galaxy A51 affordable midranger has arrived in the US, with the unlocked version of the Android smartphone promising carrier liberty. Launched earlier this month on Xfinity Mobile and AT&T, this unlocked version can be used with a much longer list of American carriers.
That includes AT&T, Sprint, and Verizon, though it's worth noting that the Galaxy A51 tops out at 4G LTE rather than 5G. Your $399.99 gets you a 6.5-inch Infinity-O Display with a Super AMOLED panel and a punch-hole 32-megapixel selfie camera.
There's a quad camera array on the back, the headline sensor of which is 48-megapixels with an f/2.0 lens. It's joined by a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera, a 5.0-megapixel macro camera (f/2.4), and a 5-megapixel depth camera (f/2.2). The ultra-wide has a 123-degree field of view, while the macro camera can shoot as close as 40mm away.
Inside, there's an octa-core processor, 4GB of memory, and 128GB of storage. The latter can be augmented by up to 512GB with a microSD card. An in-display fingerprint sensor, 4,000 mAh battery, and USB-C fast charging round out the key specs.
Clearly this isn't going to knock the Galaxy S20 Ultra 5G off its pedestal. Still, it's also a fraction of the price of that Android flagship. Initially, Samsung is also bundling in a pair of free Galaxy Buds with the phone, that would typically cost you $129.99 on their own.
Savvy shoppers might skip the Galaxy A51, though
While the Galaxy A51 promises plenty of phone for the money, it's not the only deal out there. Although it may not be offered through Samsung's own official unlocked program, the Galaxy A71 is also fairly widely available. In fact, you can find it online for around $362.99, so undercutting the A51.
That's despite having a higher-resolution 64-megapixel rear camera, plus a larger 6.7-inch display. The primary drawbacks are that it only supports 4G LTE on AT&T and T-Mobile, but not the CDMA networks of Verizon and Sprint. That limits which SIM cards you can slot inside and expect to work.
The other downside is that many people selling this international Galaxy A71 aren't offering a warranty. Samsung's Galaxy A51, in contrast, comes with a 12-month warranty as you'd expect.