A close look at the Samsung Galaxy Alpha and its new metallic frame
Hands-on: Samsung Galaxy Alpha
A New Focus on Design
For years, Samsung has been coming under intense criticism for using all polycarbonate designs in its flagship mobile devices as competing brands such as ASUS and HTC continued to deliver devices with premium materials and better build quality.
With the recent reports of falling sales and stiffening competition, Samsung knew that it had to appeal the demanding smartphone consumers. One of its strategies involved a new line of Galaxy devices under the "Alpha" brand to take the lead for fresh designs. The 4.7-inch Galaxy Alpha was announced on August 13 and became the first Samsung phone to sport a metallic frame. Following which, some of these design elements found its way to the newly announced Galaxy Note 4 and Note Edge devices.
We managed to lay our hands on a prototype unit of the Galaxy Alpha in Berlin during the Samsung Unpacked 2014 Episode 2 event. Before we detail our first impressions of the device, we have tabulated the key specs of the Galaxy Alpha and how it fares against the Galaxy S5 flagship smartphone:
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Design & Handling
It's not hard to guess where Samsung got its inspiration for "its fresh approach to design with the Galaxy Alpha". The main (and only) hardware difference seen on the Galaxy Alpha is the metallic frame which has chamfered edges and strips of plastic at the top and bottom.
The button placement on the Galaxy Alpha is similar to most Samsung phones; each side of the Samsung Galaxy Alpha houses one hardware control with the Power button located on the right and the volume rocker on the left.
As seen in the two photos above, the metallic frame of the Galaxy Alpha bears some resemblance to the Apple iPhone 5/5S, ASUS PadFone Infinity and HTC One (2013) and is a stark contrast to most Samsung phones where aesthetics are concerned.
Thanks to its 6.7mm thin chassis and lightweight (115g) form factor, the Galaxy Alpha felt very comfortable in our hands. In fact, we felt that the Galaxy Alpha offered the best handling of any Galaxy phone so far. It’s unfortunate that the rear cover is still made of soft touch plastic.
As you can see from the photos thus far, the Galaxy Gear has no memory card slot. Therefore, you have to make do with its 32GB internal storage. It's strange why Samsung could not squeeze a memory card slot into the Galaxy Alpha, but we reckon the company wants to position the Galaxy Alpha as an iPhone alternative for consumers.
Software Features
Besides Android 4.4.4 KitKat, the Galaxy Alpha runs on the same TouchWiz interface as the Galaxy S5. As such, you can expect the familiar interface layout and features such as Ultra Power Saving mode, S Health and Private Mode.
Other Specs
The Galaxy Alpha is driven by an Exynos 5 Octa 5430 processor (Quad 1.8GHz + Quad 1.3GHz) and 2GB RAM. Unlike the Galaxy S5's 16-megapixel rear camera, the Galaxy Alpha is equipped with a 12-megapixel rear camera unit.
Availability and Pricing
We were told by Samsung Mobile Singapore that the Galaxy Alpha will be available next month although pricing is yet to be confirmed. Based on its retail price (€649) in Germany, the Galaxy Alpha could cost as much as S$1,068 (based on currency exchange rates at press time).