Samsung quietly announces Galaxy A03 with upgraded cameras

Samsung quietly unveiled the Galaxy A03 moments ago. The company hasn’t revealed any availability details; instead, it highlighted some of the best Galaxy A03 features through an infographic.

Even though Samsung hasn’t revealed any pricing details yet, the Galaxy A03 is undoubtedly a low-cost phone, much like the Galaxy A02 before it. However, it has a couple of upgrades over the previous model. The 6.5-inch Infinity-V display with an HD+ resolution looks similar, but the A03 features a dual-camera setup comprising a 48MP (f/1.8) primary sensor and a 2MP (f/2.4) depth shooter. The selfie camera embedded in the Infinity-V notch has a resolution of 5MP (f/2.2).

Galaxy A03 offers three colors and three memory options

The Galaxy A03 is powered by a 5,000mAh battery and an unnamed octa-core 1.6GHz chipset featuring a dual-core CPU cluster along with another six-core cluster. Samsung will offer the device in three memory options, namely 3GB of RAM+ 32GB storage / 4GB+64GB / 4GB+128GB.

Similarly, the Galaxy A03 will be available in three color options: black, blue, and red. The device has a unique camera housing and a fiber-like finish on the back panel. The body measures 164.2 x 75.9 x 9.1mm, which essentially means that the Galaxy A03 has the same footprint as the Galaxy A02. Color and memory availability will differ by market.

With the official introduction out of the way, the Galaxy A03 could hit the shelves before the end of the year, right in time for the holiday shopping season. We’ll keep you up to speed as soon as we find out more.

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MediaTek SoC exploit makes Galaxy phones vulnerable to eavesdropping

A cyber security firm uncovered a security vulnerability that affects MediaTek chipsets, which, in turn, means that it affects roughly 40% of all smartphones in the world. This includes a handful of Galaxy mobile devices released in 2020 and later, but thankfully, a fix is already being provided.

For a bit of background on the recent vulnerability, every modern MediaTek SoC contains an AI processing unit (APU) and a digital signal processor (DSP). After reverse-engineering the audio DSP firmware, Check Point Research found a vulnerability that, when exploited, allows an attacker to hide malicious code and listen in on user conversations.

There are a handful of Samsung devices that feature a MediaTek chipset and are technically vulnerable to these exploits. The list includes the Galaxy A31, Galaxy A41, Galaxy A03s, Galaxy A12, Galaxy A22, Galaxy A32, Galaxy M22, and the Galaxy Tab A7 Lite.

The October 2021 security patch should address this vulnerability

Fortunately for Samsung customers who are using Galaxy smartphone or tablet powered by MediaTek, the chipmaker is aware of the vulnerability. Not only that, but it has already addressed it last month, according to its October security bulletin.

Samsung’s recent security patches don’t seem to mention this vulnerability, though details could be missing for security reasons. But in theory, the fix for this MediaTek SoC vulnerability should already be included in Samsung’s October security patch. The aforementioned Galaxy A and Galaxy M phones have already received the October and/or the November 2021 security update, and the good news continues, as the vulnerability doesn’t seem to have been discovered by malicious parties before MediaTek addressed it.

If you use one of the Galaxy devices listed above, make sure it runs the latest security patch just to be on the safe side. You can refer to our firmware section, where you can check which security patch is available for your device in your region.

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How much do camera megapixels matter? Let’s talk at SamMobile TV

The smartphone camera megapixel war has been going on for about a decade now. There was a period of respite in recent years, but it didn’t last long, and OEMs are now racing again to increase the resolution of their smartphone cameras. Samsung’s been doing the same ever since it released the Galaxy S20 Ultra featuring a 108MP main camera. Furthermore, the company recently announced the world’s first 200MP sensor, so it’s obvious that Samsung is in this race for the win. But the bigger question that we’re addressing in our latest SamMobile TV episode is whether or not the company should even participate in this race.

Samsung’s 200MP ISOCELL HP1 has a large 1/1.22-inch sensor with 0.64μm pixels and 2×2 or 4×4 pixel binning. This sensor has yet to be used for a commercial device, so its real-world capabilities are unknown, but we’re hopeful that this high MP count combined with the large sensor size won’t cause autofocus issues, similar to the Galaxy S20 Ultra. The latter flagship left Dual Pixel Autofocus behind in favor of a larger sensor with a higher resolution, and we all know this didn’t pan out quite well.

50MP is more than enough for 8K video recording

We’re aware of the benefits of having a smartphone camera with a higher resolution, such as enabling 8K video recording. However, after a point, the advantages offered by more megapixels become less noticeable, yet they lead to downgrades in other areas, including autofocus.

In reality, you don’t need a resolution higher than 33.3MP to achieve 8K video recording. So why is Samsung seemingly willing to sacrifice image quality in other areas for the sake of chasing megapixels?

Well, it’s probably related to marketing, most of the time. A larger number is usually better in the eyes of the average smartphone buyer, who’ll generally find a 200MP sensor more appealing than a 16MP one. It’s also important to keep in mind that Samsung isn’t the only OEM that uses the in-house ISOCELL sensors. Many high-resolution sensors developed by Samsung debut on phones from other OEMs, and the ISOCELL HP1 shouldn’t be any different. In other words, Samsung’s pace is influenced by the demands of its clients, who also happen to be its rivals.

Ultimately, we believe that once a smartphone camera reaches 50MP, it shouldn’t aim for an even higher resolution. Rather, OEMs — Samsung included — should try improving the camera UI experience, optimizing the software, and developing other areas such as autofocus.

Check our latest tech talk video at SamMobile TV if you want to dive deeper into this topic of megapixels and the ISOCELL HP1, and don’t forget to follow our social media channels below.

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After December, Samsung might never make a new Galaxy Note again

The future of Samsung’s Galaxy Note series remains uncertain. It didn’t launch a new Galaxy Note series in 2021. Samsung clearly prioritized its new foldable smartphones over the phablet this year.

It has continued to sell last year’s Galaxy Note 20 series, though. It appears that the company may stop doing that in the coming months. A new report suggests that Samsung may end production of the Galaxy Note 20 series before the end of this year.

The Galaxy Note story could end next month

Like many of its predecessors, the Galaxy Note 20 series was very well received. It has continued to sell strongly in the market despite being a year old. If you’re still interested in one, you can take advantage of the official Samsung Black Friday 2021 deals to get it at a discount.

It won’t keep the Galaxy Note 20 and Galaxy Note 20 Ultra around forever, though. A report out of South Korea claims that production of the Galaxy Note 20 models will stop by the end of this year. This decision might have something to do with the fact that Samsung has basically killed the Galaxy Note series.

All rumors and leaks point to the Galaxy S22 Ultra having a rather Note-like design. The S Pen might also be stored in the device itself. The changes would mean that Samsung has essentially absorbed the Galaxy Note series into the Galaxy S lineup.

If the production ends next month, new units of the Galaxy Note 20 will longer be available once retailers and carriers sell their inventory. This would be a big albeit sad milestone. Samsung may never make a new Galaxy Note device again.

For a series that did so much for Samsung and retains a very loyal fanbase to this day, it would be a bittersweet end.

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Galaxy Z Fold 3’s camera is better than Galaxy S21 Ultra, according to DxOMark

The Galaxy S21 Ultra is Samsung’s best smartphone camera ever. It is flexible and reliable, and offers very good image and video quality. It even bests the iPhone 13 Pro Max in ultrawide and zoom performance. But according to DxOMark, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 has a better camera than the Galaxy S21 Ultra.

DxOMark recently published its Galaxy Z Fold 3 camera review and awarded it a score of 124 points. That’s 1 point higher than the Galaxy S21 Ultra’s Snapdragon variant and three points higher than the Exynos variant. According to DxOMark’s review, the Galaxy Z Fold 3 has lower noise in still images and videos when compared to the Galaxy S21 Ultra. Moreover, Samsung’s flagship foldable smartphone apparently has a more reliable autofocus performance, slightly better exposure, colors, and texture.

The Galaxy S21 Ultra scored more in ultrawide (48 points) and zoom (98 points) performance, though. The Galaxy Z Fold 3’s ultrawide camera scored 47 points, and the telephoto camera scored 79 points. The Galaxy Z Fold 3 scored 103 points in video recording, while the Galaxy S21 Ultra scored 102 points.

In our testing, though, the Galaxy S21 Ultra (Exynos 2100 variant) performed slightly better, showcasing more details, wider dynamic range, and better sharpness across the frame. It even has a marginally better selfie camera. The Galaxy Z Fold 3 performed better in terms of autofocus and low-light videos, but it captured more saturated colors. We concluded that the Galaxy S21 Ultra has a slightly better and more flexible camera, but most people would be happy with the Galaxy Z Fold 3 as well.

Which smartphone camera would you prefer? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Unlocked Galaxy S21 units in the US join the Android 12 update party

Samsung had recently released the Android 12 update to international and US carrier-locked variants of the Galaxy S21 series. Now, the unlocked variants of the smartphones are getting the Android 12-based One UI 4.0 update in the US. The update is available on almost all US carriers, including AT&T, Bluegrass Cellular, Cellular South, Comcast, Sprint, Tracfone, and Xfinity Mobile.

This major Android OS update for the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+, and the Galaxy S21 Ultra comes with firmware version G99xU1UEU4BUK7. Apart from One UI 4.0, the update also includes the November 2021 security patch.

If you are a Galaxy S21 series smartphone user in the US, you can check for the update manually by navigating to Settings » Software update and tapping on Download and install. You can also download the appropriate firmware file from our database and flash it manually (but not before backing up all your important data).

One UI 4.0 is based on Android 12. It features a revamped UI design with Material You-like Color Palette feature that extracts colors from the chosen wallpaper and applies it throughout the UI and Samsung’s and Google’s apps. The update includes improved stock apps, improved Bixby, more fluid performance, new widget designs, a new widget picker UI, and enhanced privacy and security.

You can view most of the important One UI 4.0 features in our dedicated video below.

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Galaxy A42 5G, Galaxy A70s finally getting October 2021 security update

Samsung has finally started rolling out the October 2021 security update to the Galaxy A42 5G and the Galaxy A70s. The new software update is rolling out to the Galaxy A42 5G in all of Europe, while the Galaxy A70s is getting the update in India.

The latest software update for the Galaxy A42 5G comes with firmware version A426BXXU3BUI5, and it is currently available in Europe. The new software for the Galaxy A70s comes bearing firmware version A707FDDS3CUJ1. The October 2021 security patch fixes more than 60 privacy and security-related vulnerabilities. The updates might also bring general bug fixes and device stability improvements.

If you are a Galaxy A42 5G user in Europe or a Galaxy A70s user in India, you might have already received a notification of the new update. If you haven’t received it yet, you can check for the update manually by navigating to Settings » Software update and tapping on Download and install. You can also download the latest firmware file from our database and flash your phone manually.

The Galaxy A42 5G was launched one year ago with Android 10 on board, and it received the Android 11-based One UI 3.1 update earlier this year. The Galaxy A70s is a two-year-old smartphone that debuted with Android 9.0 Pie, and it received the Android 10 update last year and the Android 11 update earlier this year.

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