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Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017) battery life test shows some interesting results

By Victor Hristov

Updated: Mar 10, 2017, 4:51 AM

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Samsung Android

The Galaxy A3 (2017) is Samsung's new and smallest member of the affordable A series. A 4.7-inch phone with tiny bezels, it's smaller than an iPhone 7 (yet not quite in iPhone SE territory), but still packs some impressive features like a stylish glass-and-metal design, IP 68 water protection, the new Samsung interface and more.

The new A3 also packs a 2,350 mAh battery, which may sound small, but let's not forget that this phone has an HD display and features Samsung's new and more power efficient Exynos 7870 system chip. With all the excellent news about the battery life on the Galaxy A5 (2017), we were naturally curious to find out more about battery life on this cute new A3.

We have run our custom battery test that puts all phones at equal conditions: the screen is set to the same brightness level (200 nits, comfortable for indoor use) and the test measures typical smartphone performance.

Despite its small battery, the new A3 (2017) lasts a very long time

Good news is that the A3 (2017) not only passed it with excellence: it was among the longest lasting phones we've ever tested. This little phone is a true battery beast, despite its fairly compact sizes. It scores 11 hours and 4 minutes, nearly 10% better than its predecessor and practically on par with the A5 (2017). This is an outstanding score: the Galaxy S7 gets only 6 hours and 37 minutes and even longer lasting flagship phones like the Google Pixel and iPhone 7 do not get more than 8 hours on our test.

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We can congratulate Samsung for squeezing out so much out of a 2,350 mAh battery: that is due not only to the great hardware, but also to the proper software customizations in the new Grace interface. You can also select various power efficiency settings and further optimize this performance easily with Samsung's new battery tools.

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Not the fastest charging phone, but not slow either

Another important aspect of the battery experience on a phone is the recharge time, or how much it takes the phone to go from 0 to a fully charged, 100% battery. While the A3 (2017) does not ship with Samsung's powerful Adaptive Fast charge wall plug, it does not need to because of the smaller battery. The new A3 charges its battery fully in a little less than 2 hours: it's a little slower to charge than Samsung's new A5, but is actually faster than phones like the Google Pixel, which is a good place to be.

Overall, the new Galaxy A3 (2017) is definitely a remarkable little thing when it comes to battery life and charge times: it lasts long and recharges fast, this is definitely one of the phone's strong sides.

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Victor, a seasoned mobile technology expert, has spent over a decade at PhoneArena, exploring the depths of mobile photography and reviewing hundreds of smartphones across Android and iOS ecosystems. His passion for technology, coupled with his extensive knowledge of smartphone cameras and battery life, has positioned him as a leading voice in the mobile tech industry.