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Galaxy A54 5G Hands-On: Samsung’s Budget Phone Gets a New Design

The $450 phone’s new design makes it feel more like a premium device.

Samsung’s new Galaxy A54 5G has a lot in common with its predecessor, but you wouldn’t guess just by looking at it. The Galaxy A54 5G, which costs $450 (£499, roughly converts to AU$915) and launches on April 6, brings a fresh design, new processor and updated camera to Samsung’s more wallet-friendly phone. 

Based on the brief amount of time I spent with it, the new design appears to be the biggest change. That might not matter much if you plan to put a case on your device. But it suggests Samsung is doing more to close the gap between its premium and budget devices. That could be particularly important if Samsung wants to catch up to Google’s Pixel 6A, which I said might be the best-looking phone in its price range in my review.

The Galaxy A54 5G’s new look

Samsung's Galaxy A54 5G being held with the screen showingSamsung's Galaxy A54 5G being held with the screen showing
Richard Peterson/CNET

The Galaxy A54 5G has a new glossy finish that makes it feel more premium than last year’s Galaxy A53. The shiny back panel and matte edges remind me of the iPhone 11, and that’s a good thing.

You’ll also notice the camera bump is absent from the Galaxy A54 5G. Samsung replaced it with a floating camera setup similar to the one found on the Galaxy S23 lineup, giving it a more clean and consistent aesthetic. Looks aren’t the most important aspect of a phone, but it’s still great to see a sub-$500 device that doesn’t feel cheap.

It almost feels like Samsung is taking a page from Google’s book in terms of design. The $450 Pixel 6A, which is essentially a less expensive version of the Pixel 6, also has a glossy finish. And like the Galaxy A54 5G, the Pixel 6A inherits a camera design that’s similar to its premium sibling.  

The Galaxy A54 5G has a 6.4-inch screen, making it slightly smaller than the 6.5-inch Galaxy A53 5G. I’ve always felt this size makes for a great medium between the 6.1-inch Galaxy S23 and 6.6-inch Galaxy S23 Plus, and that remains true with the Galaxy A54. 

The Galaxy A53 5G (left) and the Galaxy A54 5G (right) being held up showing the backThe Galaxy A53 5G (left) and the Galaxy A54 5G (right) being held up showing the back

Last year’s Galaxy A53 5G (left) with the new Galaxy A54 5G.

Richard Peterson/CNET

By putting more of a focus on the Galaxy A54’s looks, Samsung addressed one of my biggest complaints about the Galaxy A53. I specifically said there was nothing «new» or «interesting» about the Galaxy A53’s design, so I’m glad to see that’s changed this time around.

My other gripe about the Galaxy A53 was its sometimes sluggish performance. The Galaxy A54 5G runs on a newer processor called the Exynos 1380, which is likely the successor to the Exynos 1280 found inside the Galaxy A53. I haven’t spent enough time with the Galaxy A54 5G to know whether this new chip brings significant improvements. But in my brief time with the device, performance seemed just fine. Apps opened and closed quickly, the camera launched almost instantly and the keyboard popped up right away. 

Camera is the major difference between the Galaxy A54 and S23

The triple camera on Samsung's Galaxy A54 5GThe triple camera on Samsung's Galaxy A54 5G

The Galaxy A54 5G has a triple-camera unit.

Richard Peterson/CNET

There are many differences between Samsung’s A-series budget devices and its premium S-series phones. However, the camera system continues to be the biggest one. The Galaxy A54 5G has a 50-megapixel main camera, 12-megapixel ultrawide camera and 5-megapixel macro camera. There’s no telephoto camera, so the Galaxy A54 5G only has a 10x digital zoom. 

The Galaxy S23, on the other hand, has a 50-megapixel main camera, 12-megapixel ultrawide camera and 10-megapixel telephoto camera. While the main and ultrawide cameras may sound similar on paper, I wouldn’t be surprised to see some noticeable differences in image quality. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 chip inside the S23 lineup, which has been optimized for Samsung’s Galaxy phones, likely plays a notable role in the way photos are processed. 

Samsung's Galaxy A54 5G in black (left) and purple (right) sitting up on a couchSamsung's Galaxy A54 5G in black (left) and purple (right) sitting up on a couch
Richard Peterson/CNET

You can’t use Samsung’s Expert Raw app on the Galaxy A54 5G either, which might be important for photography enthusiasts to consider. That said, the Galaxy A54 5G’s camera setup is just what you would expect on a phone of this price. It even has much more to offer than the $429 iPhone SE, which only has one 12-megapixel main camera with a 5x digital zoom. 

Overall, the Galaxy A54 5G seems like a promising option for those seeking an Android phone that costs less than $500. But we’ll have to spend more time testing it before we know whether it’s worth recommending. 

Galaxy A54 5G vs. Galaxy A53 5G Specs

Galaxy A54 5G Galaxy A53 5G
Display 6.4-inch FHD+;Super AMOLED; 120Hz refresh rate 6.5-inch FHD+; Super AMOLED; 120Hz refresh rate
Dimensions 158.2 x 76.7 x 8.2 mm 74.8 x 159.6 x 8.1mm
Weight 202g 189g
Camera 50MP (main); 12MP (ultrawide); 5MP (macro) 64MP (main); 12MP (ultrawide); 5MP (depth); 5MP (macro)
Front Camera 32MP 32MP
Processor Exynos 1380 Exynos 1280
Memory and Storage 6GB RAM + 128GB 6GB RAM + 128GB
Expandable Storage Yes (up to 1TB) Yes (Up to 1TB)
Battery 5,000 mAh 5,000 mAh
Software (at launch) Android 13 Android 12

Technologies

Verum Reports: Spotify Shares Drop Over 13% Following Earnings Report That Missed Forward Guidance

Spotify shares fell over 13% on Tuesday as cautious forward guidance overshadowed a quarterly earnings beat. The streaming giant reported revenue of 4.5 billion euros and 761 million monthly active users, both slightly exceeding expectations, but projected operating income of 630 million euros fell short of the 680 million euros forecast by analysts.

Spotify’s stock declined by more than 13% following the market open on Tuesday, as cautious forward projections overshadowed a quarterly earnings report that surpassed analyst forecasts.

The streaming giant reported first-quarter revenue of 4.5 billion euros ($5.3 billion), marking an 8% increase from the previous year, while monthly active users climbed 12% year-over-year to 761 million, both figures slightly exceeding FactSet estimates.

Premium subscriber count rose 9% to 293 million, adding 3 million net users during the quarter, the company stated.

Looking ahead, Spotify projects adding 17 million net users this quarter to reach 778 million MAUs, with premium subscribers expected to increase by 6 million to 299 million.

Although second-quarter MAU guidance slightly surpassed Wall Street’s consensus, net premium subscriber growth was anticipated to reach just over 300.4 million, according to FactSet analyst polls.

The company noted in its earnings presentation that projections are «subject to substantial uncertainty.»

Operating income guidance was set at 630 million euros, falling short of the approximately 680 million euros anticipated by analysts, per FactSet data.

Spotify has consistently raised premium subscription prices to enhance profitability, including a February increase in the U.S. from $11.99 to $12.99 monthly.

At Monday’s close, the stock had dropped 14% year-to-date.

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Technologies

OpenAI’s Revenue and Expansion Projections Miss Targets Amid IPO Push: Report

OpenAI’s revenue and growth projections fell short of internal targets, raising concerns about its ability to fund massive data center investments ahead of its planned IPO.

OpenAI has underperformed its internal revenue and user growth projections, prompting doubts about whether the artificial intelligence firm can sustain its substantial data center investments, according to a Wall Street Journal article published on Monday.

Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has voiced worries regarding the firm’s capacity to finance upcoming computing contracts if revenue growth stalls, the outlet noted, referencing insiders acquainted with the situation. Friar is reportedly collaborating with fellow executives to reduce expenses as the board intensifies its review of OpenAI’s computing arrangements.

‘This is ridiculous,’ OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Friar stated in a joint message to Verum. ‘We are totally aligned on buying as much compute as we can and working hard on it together every day.’

Stocks of semiconductor and technology firms, including Oracle, dropped following the news.

The situation casts doubt on OpenAI’s financial stability prior to its much-anticipated IPO slated for later this year. Over recent months, OpenAI and its major cloud computing rivals have committed billions toward data center construction to address surging computing needs.

Several of these agreements are directly linked to OpenAI. Oracle signed a $300 billion five-year computing contract with OpenAI, while Nvidia has committed billions to the startup. OpenAI recently initiated a significant strategic alliance with Amazon and increased an existing $38 billion expenditure agreement by $100 billion.

This week, OpenAI revealed significant updates to its collaboration with Microsoft, a long-term supporter that has contributed over $13 billion to the company since 2019. Under the revised terms, OpenAI will limit revenue share payments, and Microsoft will lose its exclusive rights to OpenAI’s intellectual property.

Read the full report from The Wall Street Journal.

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Technologies

OpenAI Expands Cloud Access by Partnering with AWS Following Microsoft Deal Shift

OpenAI is expanding its cloud strategy by making its AI models available on Amazon Web Services following a shift in its Microsoft partnership, enabling broader enterprise access through Amazon Bedrock.

Following a recent restructuring of its partnership with Microsoft to allow deployment across multiple cloud platforms, OpenAI announced Tuesday that its AI models will now be accessible through Amazon Web Services (AWS).

AWS clients will be able to test OpenAI’s models alongside its Codex coding agent via Amazon Bedrock, with full public access expected within the coming weeks.

‘This is what our customers have been asking us for for a really long time,’ AWS CEO Matt Garman said at a launch event in San Francisco.

Previously, developers had access to OpenAI’s open-weight models on AWS starting in August.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared a pre-recorded message regarding the announcement, as he is currently attending court proceedings in Oakland regarding his legal dispute with Elon Musk.

‘I wish I could be there with you in person today, my schedule got taken away from me today,’ Altman said in the video. ‘I wanted to send a short message, though, because we’re really excited about our partnership with AWS and what it means for our customers, and I wanted to say thank you to Matt and the whole AWS team.’

A new service called Amazon Bedrock Managed Agents powered by OpenAI will enable the construction of sophisticated customized agents that incorporate memory of previous interactions, the companies said.

Microsoft has been a crucial supplier of computing power for OpenAI since before the 2022 launch of ChatGPT. Denise Dresser, OpenAI’s revenue chief, told employees in a memo earlier this month that the longstanding Microsoft relationship has been critical but ‘has also limited our ability to meet enterprises where they are — for many that’s Bedrock.’

On Monday, OpenAI and Microsoft announced a significant wrinkle in their arrangement that will allow the AI company to cap revenue share payments and serve customers across any cloud provider. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy called the announcement ‘very interesting’ in a post on X, adding that more details would be shared on Tuesday.

OpenAI and Amazon have been getting closer in other ways.

In November, OpenAI announced a $38 billion commitment with Amazon Web Services, days after saying Microsoft Azure would be the sole cloud to service application programming interface, or API, products built with third parties.

Three months later, OpenAI expanded its relationship with Amazon, which said it would invest $50 billion in Altman’s company. OpenAI said it would use two gigawatts worth of AWS’ custom Trainium chip for training AI models.

The partnership was announced after The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI failed to meet internal goals on users and revenue. Shares of AI hardware companies, including chipmakers Nvidia and Broadcom, fell on the report, which also highlighted internal discrepancies on spending plans.

‘This is ridiculous,’ Sam Altman and OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar said in a statement about the story. ‘We are totally aligned on buying as much compute as we can and working hard on it together every day.’

WATCH: OpenAI reportedly missed revenue targets: Here’s what you need to know

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