Forget The iPhone 16e, Samsung's Newest Galaxy A-Series Phones Start At Just $299

At the Mobile World Congress (MWC) technology tradeshow in Barcelona, Samsung announced successors to its big-selling budget phones: the Galaxy A26 5G, A36 5G, and A56 5G. When they launch at the end of March, the $300 A26 and $400 A36 will be the only Android phones offering six years of OS and security patch updates at their price range. The trio also get a welcome design refresh (as slight as it is) by being thinner and lighter than before plus obtaining a camera island.

Outside of the Samsung Galaxy S-series, phones like the budget A14 and A15 have historically been big money makers for the company. However, we think the company is trying to bump up the value quotient of the pricier phones in the lineup to encourage buyers to move up the product chain even if a little. Also, now that the iPhone 16e has officially left the psychological $500 barrier, Samsung might be in a good spot to win over some new customers. 

Let's start with what each model have in common. All will sport a 6.7-inch FHD+ 120Hz Super AMOLED panel (with Gorilla Glass Victus protection), 50-megapixel main camera with OIS, IP67 dust-water resistance, a 5,000mAh battery, a very nice six years of OS and security updates, a small spattering of Galaxy AI features (such as Circle to Search and Object Eraser in photos), and 128GB of storage.

Somewhat befuddlingly, each phone has a different processor running the show: the A26 rocks an Exynos 1380 with 6GB RAM, the A36 has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 with 6GB RAM, and the A56 sports an Exynos 1580 with 8GB RAM. Not exactly the best power-to-price ratios, but they should offer smooth daily use. 

For the ultrawide cameras, the A26 and A36 have an 8MP unit, whereas the A56 has a larger 12MP sensor. Unfortunately, all three devices still house macro cameras (2MP on the A26, and 5MP for the other two). Interestingly, the A26 has a slightly bigger 13MP selfie cam versus the 12MP units on the pricier siblings, although Samsung says that the latter two can shoot 4K30 video in 10-bit HDR for increased color accuracy.

The Samsung Galaxy A26 and A36 will go on sale at the end of March, starting at $300 and $400, respectively. The Galaxy A56 arrives later this year for $500.