Samsung Galaxy A51 (2019)

Absolute garbage – Had to send off to be repaired 3 times in one year as it has an issue with the charging port and would stop charging. They fixed and it would work for a while, then it stopped charging again. On the 3rd time I sent it back, they said there were signs of corrosion, and that it is now not covered under warranty and wanted to charge me $200aud to… Read more

fix. I have always kept it in a life proof style case (see attached images of condition), so my guess is either they're lying, or when they fixed it one of the times moisture got in. Have owned Samsung since the s1 and never had an issue with their phones, but will never buy again and will recommend everyone i speak to, to not purchase a phone by Samsung. Absolute joke.

This is very bad phone – This is very bad phone specially the screen 2 times fixing it gets black. I thought samsung has improved over time but the Samsung phones meant to be temporary phones not life time phones. I have oneplus 5 and since 2017 and got not a single problem and A51 not a year and just got couple of problems Show details

Great camera – I mainly bought this phone for the camera which does live up the expectations based on much research. Pictures are sharp, colours good, and there is a full manual option to get the best out of each scene. I don't like the fiddly charging port and some of the functions are not very user friendly. The battery size should give better performance, it drains very quickly - maybe a lot of background stuff going on?  Show details

Nice phone at a good price... Unless something goes wrong – Right out the box, screen the is fantastic, camera takes quality pics and performance is spot on! However for the following reason I will be unlikely to ever buy another Samsung electronic device. What they don't tell you is that there is a liquid damage indicator strip just inside the Simcard opening which can be triggered from sweat while being… Read more

in your pocket. If this happens, it will void the manufacturers warranty due to "water damage" and all remedies will be refused regardless of the cause of the fault in question. I learned this the hard way, once they see any marking on the LDI, all investigation stops and is stated as water damage, even if the fault seems completely unrelated.

poor battery and audio connection – Ive been using this phone for about 7 months, I have found that I have to recharge during the day. I do play some games but not during the day also when on a call I have found it drops calls and sometimes the sound is poor so you have to ask for repeats of conversation. When answering a call it doesnt accept my swipe to connect and I mostly have to call people back. My last 3 phones have been Samsungs and I am quite disappointed with this one. Show details

Dismayed With Quality & Lack of Immediate Support – I purchased the A51 in October 2020 and was not impressed with the lag when using the internet. Less than 3 months after purchase I thought the phone would not turn on; it was on but I had a black screen rendering it useless. Located in Wollongong, NSW the nearest service centre was 80km away so i was told to post it to them which i did… Read more

through the place of purchase and was advised it would be 7 working days before it would even be assessed.

Whilst I am certain it will be repaired under warranty, ths lack of service centres and reasonable response times is making me question is it time to go back to Apple.

As a small business owner my phone is a mandatory requirement and whilst I am currently using one of my previous handsets, I upgraded that as it does not hold charge.

To say i am extremely disappointed would be an understatement.

Not a good phone – Well, right from day 1 apps, pages even writing emails very laggy, 3 months on same, now pages and apps locking all the time. Turned phone off then on again (as suggested) which I shouldn't have to do! Also maintained software updates (as suggested) no improvement only battery life average, during a recent phone call phone goes silent and up comes a button resume call! sorry I left Apple. Show details

Worse phone I have ever owned – I loved the Samsung S range but I have had nothing but trouble with the A51 and have had one replaced already after only three months use. The phone is unreliable and often cuts out during calls. My Daughter had an A50 which also died after a few months but due to a tiny crack in the corner of the screen she wasn't able to replace it under warranty. Despite always buying Samsung I'm considering trying an iPhone after this one. Show details

Decent phone - Like the wide angle camera, battery and screen – It's a decent phone. I've had this for about 3 weeks now (received as gift) to replace an S7 (incredible phone for the time, and still decent today although no OS updates mean some aps won't run, a 4 year worn battery and beginning to hit the limits of RAM these days, though a reset will speed it up for a while). So far this one seems faster than… Read more

the S7 even though it isn't a flagship. screen is very nice. 6GB of ram certainly helps. Great battery life. Initially I though it was too big, but now I think the S7 is too small. (funny how a few weeks of use can change your perspective on something like screen size)

Pro's -Nice screen - It's a $5-600 phone - not $2,000+ like some phones these days -Fast enough - brisk between apps an no issues running anything I have thrown at it. No problems surfing the web, watching youtube, netflix, casting to the tele, running two apps at ones in split screen or whatever. It copes great. -Great battery life - easily get a day and some with my use -Charges fast on a good charger -Wide angle lens on camera is nice -Photos and videos are good -Runs googles amazing sound recorder app (after apkmirror installer) -Regular updates - and promise of another 2 years worth of updates from Samsung which is great change from the previous 1 year policy. -Doesn't cost a bazillion dollars like the latest flagships, yet offers good performance. -SD card slot (can always expand the capacity of the phone storage as necessary) -Plenty of ram for apps- 6GB. Noticeably better than the 3GB on the S7. - Large 120gb usable storage - noticably better than the 23gb usable on the S7 - no need to uninstall apps all the time, or risk problems with apps on the SD card. -Headphone port (very handy if you work with sound files) -Comes with case, charger and USB C cable -Samsung phones have been reliable for me over the years so I expect this to do the same.

Cons - Fingerprint scanner is frustrating - perhaps 2 out of 10 goes it works, making it effectively useless. (a pin or pattern works fine) It's certainly not a deal breaker. -My cheek often seems to activate the loud speaker, call pause or something (not a problem when using my bluetooth headset) - No waterproof rating - Again not a deal breaker, the s7 had it and it would be nice given the non replaceable battery. - No wireless charging - not a deal breaker but the s7 had it - Camera is usable without being amazing. There is significant colour differences between the lenses. for some reason the large megapixel sensor is the normal length lens. Would prefer the large megapixel sensor on the ultrawide. and a smaller sensor with zoom lens. - Non-user replaceable battery. I understand on the waterproof phones but this isn't so it should have a user changeable battery. It's just manufacturers building in sleazy obsolescence making something that should be easy into an expensive/or tricky to do job ...

Summary I got this as a gift from a friend who has too many phones - which is fantastic for me and the perfect price :).

Overall It's a decent phone that I am happy with without being standout brilliant. It's generally a step up from the 5 year old S7 in many significant regards (battery, wide angle lens, speed, memory, runs newer apps, etc), but not all ways (no Waterproofing, fingerprint scanner issues, wireless charging and in some ways the camera on the S7 will take a better shot depending on the situation if pixel peeping)

It does prove that these days you probably don't need the latest flagship phone to have a decent phone experience, unless you want the absolute top best camera available on the market or need the absolute fastest in processors.

I recommend it to anyone who wants a Samsung phone with great battery life, great everyday performance and is happy with a decent, but not amazing camera. Get one you are likely going to be very happy with one of these.

That said, if I was standing in a shop today (Jan 2021) using my own money to make a choice I would be sorely tempted to get the pixel 4a for roughly the same $$ for the native google app drops and the better camera, (though the no sd card thing does bother me quite a bit) or perhaps an S10 with wireless charging, better Camera and faster chip...

It is an ever changing market with newer models coming out competing for your money afterall. Hope that helps

Terrible, broken and warped within 3 weeks – Bought this phone and it seemed like a good phone at first with lots of features, but my happiness turned to dismay and anger. The phone seemed to be suffering from overheating issues and within 3 weeks it had warped it's shape and would no longer charge up power, basically died without power. In less than 3 weeks out of the box! I took it back… Read more

to JB HiFi and they refused to replace it because of the warping from the heat and said it could only be sent away to be assessed for repair, and I may also have to PAY for the cost of repairs on top of that. A brand new phone!

I feel totally RIPPED OFF and upset with my experience shopping with JB HiFi and Samsung. Do not waste your money, buyer beware!

Not as good as hoped – Design is nicer than my old edge S7. Camera is good, colours are bright and love the wide angle camera! However, finger print sensor is rubbish, half the time it doesn't work, and I've registered my thumb print 3 times hoping it would more accurately read it but nope. Face recognition is about the same too. When talking on the phone, the… Read more

sensor than would normally turn the phone screen off sometimes doesn't work and next minute you have loud speaker yelling in your ear or you're pushing buttons with your cheek

Have to hold camera still so it doesn't blur. And don't bother zooming in on taken pick as they're not very clear after a certain point. Still much better than my S7 edge phone.

For the price you pay the camera is great, would still expect the finger print sensor and the screen to turn off during a call for that price though