Samsung fans are excited about the upcoming flagship Galaxy S9. But the Korean company will also unveil a few mid-range smartphones early next year. Samsung has dropped more than one hint that it is gearing up to unveil the Galaxy A5 and A7. It has slashed prices of the 2017 A5 and A7 models in major markets such as India. Before Samsung makes the Galaxy A5 (2018) official, let’s take a look at the phone’s rumored features, specifications, and possible release date.
Galaxy A5 gets regulatory approval ahead of launch
The Korean electronics behemoth has quietly posted a support page on its South Korean website for a phone with model number SM-A530. The support page doesn’t reveal much about the device. The model number is widely believed to be the Galaxy A5 (2018). The 2016 A5 was SM-A510, and the 2017 A5 was SM-A520.
The South Korean National Radio Research Agency has also published the phone’s basic profile. It bears the model number SM-A530, and one of its variants is SM-A530N. The international version of the device will likely carry the model number SM-A530F, which recently appeared on some benchmarking sites. According to MobileXpose, the Galaxy A5 (2018) has also been certified by the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for sale in the US.
Upcoming A5 to have an Infinity display
The A5 was expected to borrow a few elements from the flagship Galaxy S8. The 2017 A5 has borrowed the IP68 rating for water- and dust-resistance from the Galaxy S7 and S7 Edge. According to an HTML5Test listing, the 2018 A5 will ship with a bezel-less Infinity display, similar to the Galaxy S8 and Note 8. It would have an aspect ratio of 18.5:9, same as the Galaxy S8.
Samsung has said in the past that the bezel-less design was here to stay. The reports of Infinity display on the Galaxy A5 (2018) gained further credibility when a cover case of the device appeared on Chinese microblogging site Weibo. The S8-like design philosophy should make the A5 slimmer.
2018 Galaxy A5 hardware specifications
The next-gen Galaxy A5 is rumored to sport a 5.5-inch Full HD+ display with 1080 x 2160 resolution. It is said to support the Always-On display functionality that would allow users to quickly check out time, date, and latest notifications without having to unlock the phone.
The phone would be powered by Samsung’s Exynos 7885 chipset, which consists of two Cortex-A73 cores and six Cortex-A53 cores. The Exynos 7885 has a clock speed of 2.1GHz, and it is built using 14nm manufacturing process. It would offer 4GB RAM and 32GB of internal storage, which you can further expand via a microSD card slot.
The Galaxy A5 would come with the latest Bluetooth 5.0 that allows users to connect multiple devices to the smartphone. The Bluetooth 5.0 also enables better data transfer and a longer range than Bluetooth 4.0.
The phone is rumored to feature a 16MP camera on the back with LED flash and fast autofocus. Renders leaked by prolific tipster @OnLeaks suggest that the phone will have a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor. Unlike the Galaxy S8 and Note 8, the A5 fingerprint scanner will be placed below the camera so that users can easily unlock the phone.
The renders also show a 3.5mm headphone jack and a USB Type-C port at the bottom of the device. Power button is on the right side while the SIM tray and volume controls are on the left.
Galaxy A5 (2018) release date
Samsung hasn’t confirmed any of these features. But we should find it out soon as the phone’s launch is only a couple of months away. The Korean company traditionally refreshes the mid-range Galaxy A5 in January. So, we can expect the A5 (2018) unveiling to take place in January 2018. After that, Samsung would focus on the much bigger Galaxy S9 launch in February.
