Gaze upon the desirable Son of Alpha: Samsung Galaxy A5

Whizzy themes and slurping the juice

Multi-window display is a function that runs just as well under third party launchers, so you are not stuck with Samsung's offering. That’s just as well, as the option to disable the FlipBoard-powered My Magazine part of the TouchWiz launcher (a news feed accessed by a left-swipe as per HTC’s BlinkFeed and Google Now) seems to have disappeared.

Another theme and the split screen enables access to two apps

A recent addition to TouchWiz is the Themes option. Out-of-the-box there are four alternatives to the default. Changing from one to another refreshes the UI graphics and changes the app icons. If there is a way of adding new themes I couldn’t find it. Another handy feature for a five-incher – and one that's migrated from the Note 4 – is the option to reduce the size of the interface panel for easier single-handed use.

Samsung has so far resisted the trend of adding more and larger speakers to its phones so you will look in vain for the sort of front-facing stereo blowers that grace the Moto G or HTC Eye. That said, the solitary speaker that sits next to the camera lens isn’t too shabby. It’s more composed than the speaker in my Galaxy S5.

The Galaxy A5 has the standard, and familiar, Samsung dialler

As for battery life, my usual video loop test drained the Galaxy A5’s battery in five minutes shy of 11 hours, which is pretty decent. In everyday use I had to recharge the A5 every 36 hours or so. That’s better than my S5, its larger battery notwithstanding.

To wrap up. 4G reception was tip top, the A5 showing none of the problems that besmirched The Reg’s S6 review handset, as was call quality. If you want to use the A5 as a TV remote you are up the creek because there’s no IR transmitter but you do get an FM radio, an NFC chip and dual-band 802.11n Wi-Fi. Don't drop it down the khazi as there’s nothing in the way of waterproofing.

Mid-range attraction: fixed battery but you do micro SD expansion

The Reg Verdict

The Samsung Galaxy A5 is a bit pricey for a mid-ranger, but it has the looks and build quality of a flagship. It costs £150 more than the Motorola Moto G but you are getting a significantly more appealing bit of kit for your money. HTC’s Eye is more powerful but £100 more expensive, bigger, heavier and uglier.

Solid, light and visually exquisite, this new mid-price Sammy really is a thoroughly desirable device. It’s difficult to overemphasise just how far Samsung has upped its game with the Galaxy S6 and A5 models. Both are amongst the very best devices in their class in terms of style and quality of build as well as features and technology. ®