Samsung's Galaxy A35 and Galaxy A55 are just that little bit more premium

Samsung just announced its latest mid-tier phones - the Galaxy A35 and Galaxy A55 - and both benefit from a few new premium trimmings. 

To start, both phones are protected by Gorilla Glass Victus Plus, rather than Gorilla Glass 5 like last year's models. Gorilla Glass Victus Plus was last seen on the Galaxy S22 family, and is naturally more durable than Gorilla Glass Victus. Gorilla Glass Victus is able to survive drops on to rough surfaces from heights of up to two metres. 

The Galaxy A55 gets even more than flagship features. It features an aluminium frame rather than plastic, and is the first A-series phone to support eSIM. eSIM support is still quite rare in non-flagship devices. 

Naturally, this means the Galaxy A55 is more expensive than the Galaxy A35. You'll pay $699 for the Galaxy A55, or $549 or the Galaxy A35. Both phones will be available from March 25. While Samsung isn't taking pre-orders for the new phones, there'll still be a launch period offer.

If you buy either phone before April 15 through the Samsung Online Store, you'll get $100 bonus trade-in credit, no matter the condition of your old device. Galaxy A55 purchases will also come with a bonus pair of Galaxy Buds FE, while the Galaxy A35 will be available for $100 off. 

At this stage, we don't have confirmation of what retailers will be ranging the new devices, but it's pretty safe to say the usual suspects will be on board. This means Telstra, Optus and Vodafone will offer them on a mobile plan, and the likes of Amazon, JB Hi-Fi, and Harvey Norman will sell them outright. We'll likely see launch period offers from these retailers too. 

The Galaxy A55 (pictured above) and Galaxy A35 both share a few key features. They have a 6.6-inch 1080p+ display with a 120Hz refresh rate, 128GB of expandable storage, IP67 water resistance, a 50MP primary lens and 5MP macro lens, a 5,000mAh battery with fast charging, and 5G. 

The two key differences are secondary cameras and processors.

On the Galaxy A55, you'll get a 12MP ultra-wide camera and a 32MP selfie camera. On the Galaxy A35, there's an 8MP ultra-wide camera and a 13MP selfie camera. The Galaxy A55 is powered by an Exynos 1480 processor, while the Galaxy A35 is powered by an Exynos 1380.  

Here is how the pair compare: 

Locally, the Galaxy A35 will come in a choice of ice blue and or navy. The Galaxy A55 comes in lilac or navy. Both phones will get four major Android operating system updates and five years of security updates. This falls short of Samsung's new seven-year policy for the Galaxy S24 family, but is still great for what could be considered budget phones. 

Alex Choros

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Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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