Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016) review: Galaxy S6 doppelganger

A good design does not date. It only gets better with time, like a bottle of fine wine. This is what you will think when you look at the Galaxy A5 (2016). It is almost exactly like last year's Galaxy S6. But look closer and you'll find Samsung has made subtle changes that translate into visible refinements. The Galaxy A5 (2016) is the Galaxy S6 done better in terms of design.

The Galaxy S6 was launched at a starting  (32GB) while the top-end (128GB) variant went all the way up to USD 904.56 . The Galaxy A5 (2016), on the other hand, has been priced at USD 443.2344. Not bad, eh? So, what's the catch? There are quite a few. The most important one: the original S6 can be purchased for as low as USD 512.58400 now. And where does that leave the new Galaxy A5? In a tight spot!

Design and build quality

Who would have thought that a Samsung A-series phone would look like an S-series phone? But in 2016, it does.

The Galaxy A5 (2016) seamlessly fuses glass and metal to offer a premium design and build quality at a mid-range price. Subtle but useful changes built atop the design of the Galaxy S6 make the Galaxy A5 pleasing to the eye as well as improve its ergonomics. The phone comes with curved 2.5D Gorilla Glass 4 on the front as well as on the back. This glass blends into the chamfered metal frame. It's a match made in heaven, as they say.

Chamfered edges and bumpy corners add to the overall grip. It's a pleasure to hold a premium glass and metal phone in your hand that stays inside your hands. The Galaxy S6 was so much more slippery. Though, one thing that hasn't improved is how it attracts fingerprints and smudges. The Galaxy A5 is as reflective and as fingerprint friendly as the S6.

The power button is on the right while the volume rocker is on the left. These are well-placed and offer excellent feedback. The right side also houses a dual slot for one SIM and microSD card. There's another SIM slot, on the upper end. Inside the home button, there is a fingerprint scanner.

While The A5's thickness (7.3mm) is in line with phones like the Google Nexus 5X and the HTC One A9, it's slightly heavier at 155 grams to accommodate the chunkier battery inside. Numbers, however, tell only half the story. The Galaxy A5 (2016) is the best-looking and the best-designed phone at its price point, even more so than the One A9.

Display
The Galaxy A5 (2016) comes with a 5.2-inch FullHD display with a 1080x1920 pixels resolution. The screen uses Samsung's Super AMOLED panel, which has built quite a reputation for itself in the market, so much so that you know you can't go wrong with a Samsung display 9 out of 10 times. The new Galaxy A5 is no different. The display here is top-notch in every sense of the word.

It looks every bit as good as the one on the Galaxy S6. Yes, the latter has more pixels per inch, but the difference is almost indiscernible, simply because there isn't much of a difference anyway. Just like Sumper AMOLED screens in other Galaxy phones, the Galaxy A5 screen shows exceptionally bright and punchy colours. It also has excellent viewing angles.

Unlike the HTC One A9's AMOLED panel, colours on the Galaxy A5 appear slightly more accurate. Meanwhile, brightness is in line with what you get on the Moto X Style (another phone with top-notch display) . One area where it excels over the Moto X Style is adaptive brightness. The Galaxy A5 is crazy fast while adapting to the available light. Overall, we feel the Galaxy A5 (2015) has the best display in and around its price point (under USD 452.28).

Software

The Galaxy A5 (2016) runs Android 5.1.1 Lollipop-based TouchWiz UI. Samsung got a lot of praise last year for trimming down the bloated TouchWiz user interface. Things are only getting better with time. Sadly, the Galaxy A5 (2016) -- despite the relatively toned-down UI -- feels way out of league and sluggish in comparison to