Samsung A73 5G – the pick of the 2022 A-series (smartphone review)

14/06/2022
By Ray Shaw
In Featured Reviews

The Samsung A73 5G is the definite pick of its 2022 A-series. Not because its lower-cost siblings, the $599 A33 or $699 A53, are not good too, but because this model does everything very well in a no-ifs-and-buts way – it is a very capable phone.

Our Samsung A53 5G – a decent 5G smartphone for $699 (review) scores 8.7/10. The Samsung A73 5G has a larger screen, is slightly thinner/lighter weight, has a 108MP primary camera, better processor, and Wi-Fi AX – way more value than the extra $100 denotes.

We are also retesting the $1849 Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra and using that as a reference. The $799 Samsung A73 5G is more than a match in so many ways that we are suitably impressed. It has our unreserved buy recommendation.

To explain – we review via price brackets – $700-799. We look at what we expect these devices to do. The Samsung A73 5G exceeds many of those parameters and is nipping at the heels of the $999 Samsung Galaxy S21 FE, Fan Edition (review) that costs two hundred more. We think using the Qualcomm SD778G 5G system-on-a-chip (SoC) gives it the operating edge (not raw speed) over the Exynos 1280 in the S21 FE.

Samsung Galaxy A73 5G Model SM-A736B/DS, 6/128GB, hybrid dual sim/microSD to 1TB

Website	Product Page
Price	$799
Colours	Awesome Mint or Awesome Grey
From	Samsung approved retailers Harvey Norman, Domayne, Bing Lee, Videopro, and Officeworks.
Warranty	12-months ACL
More	CyberShack Samsung News and Reviews

New Deep-Dive review format

It is now in two parts – a five-minute overview for most readers and a separate 300+ line database-driven spec including over 70 tests to back up the summary. It also helps us compare different phones and features.

Note that we use Fail (below expectations), Pass (meets expectations) and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below. We occasionally give a Pass ‘+’ rating to show it is good but does not quite make it to Exceed.

Watch out – buy genuine if you want 5G to work here

We issue a strong warning that you must buy a genuine model with Australian firmware if you want to use 5G. Read Don’t buy a grey market phone to ensure you get the Australian ‘B’ model (SM-A736’B’ and /DS for dual sim.

It is easy to identify the Australian version – usually, under Settings, About Phone, Legal Information, and Regulatory compliance, you will see the Australian RCM C-tick mark.

Models to avoid are any other colour, single sim, 8GB or larger than 128GB storage. If you receive a shrink-wrapped phone, it likely will not work on 5G here.

First Impression – Classy in Awesome Grey and fun in Awesome Mint – Pass +

I don’t mind plastic backs (or PPMA glastic – whatever you call it), but this matte Awesome Grey is classy, and the Awesome Mint looks fun but more inexpensive. They are not so much a fingerprint magnet as a greasy finger magnet.

The faux chrome plastic frame looks good, but it can mark easily, so buy a bumper cover. The screen is reasonably scratch-resistant Gorilla Glass 5.

It is thin and light at 163.7 x 76.1 x 7.6 mm x 181g.

Screen – 6.7″ 2400 x 1080, 60/120Hz, 8-bit 16.7m colour AMOLED – Pass

Samsung quotes 800 nits, but that is HBM (high brightness mode). Frankly, that is a marketing hype measure of a ridiculously small percentage of the screen at maximum brightness to enable it to claim HDR10/+ support – not at all realistic. The screen is closer to 400 nits at maximum automatic exposure and, in most use, between 230-300 nits. In fact, HDR10/+ content downscales to the screen capability, as does Netflix, that only offers SDR content (pretty typical).

It also claims 120Hz refresh (true), but it is either 60 or 120Hz – not adaptive as many OLED screens are. The latter refresh rate has a significant 30% hit on battery life.

On the plus side, it is relatively colour accurate (offers Natural sRGB and Vivid DCI-P3) as well as basic colour temperature and RGB adjustments.

Summary: Nice basic AMOLED screen, but it would have been so much better to have an adaptive refresh rate.

Processor (SoC) – Qualcomm SD778G is the Goldilocks SoC – Exceed

You can pretty well guarantee that any SD778G smartphone (OPPO Reno 7, realme GT/9, Vivo T1, Motorola Edge 20, Samsung A52s and nearly 80 models) will perform well. No, it is not flagship-class – but it closely matches the 2020 flagship SD865.

The Samsung A73 5G had no throttling (excellent) and plays PUBG: New State Mobile at 60fps maximum frame rate in 120Hz Games Mode with 6+6GB (RAM and virtual RAM). This means you can borrow up to 6GB from storage for swap space.

Storage read/write is 563/91MBps, typical of UFS 2.2, and the MicroSD card is 89/19MBps – plenty fast enough for 4K video.

Comms – adequate, but the SoC is capable of far more, so why not use it? Pass(able)

The SD778G SoC offers

Peak Wi-Fi 6 AX speeds of 2800Mbps VHT160, but this maxes out at 480 (fewer Wi-Fi streams and VHT80 only)
USB-C 3.1 but only implements USB-C 2.0
BT 5.2 but only appears to implement 5.0
Dual-band GPS but only appears to implement single band

Simply put, these are cost-saving compromises so as not to get too close to the S21 FE model.

Phone – brilliant for city, suburbs, regional and rural use with one caveat – Exceed

Not only did it get signal strengths to 16pW (excellent), but it found the nearest four towers (excellent). But there is one issue you need to be very aware of. The phone antenna is at the bottom of the phone – where you may typically hold it. If you cover this with your hand, signal strengths are very average. To be clear – hold the phone in the middle of the frame.

Battery – two days easy – Exceed, but no charger supplied. Fail

The 5000mAh battery will last two days of typical use, maybe one with heavy use. The video loop test (50% screen brightness/volume, aeroplane mode) was excellent at 21 hours 20 minutes.

PC Mark 3 battery test (typical use) was 18 hours and 58 minutes, and Accubattery verified this at 18 hours. Heavy screen-on use (GFX Benchmark Manhattan and T-Rex) were 6.15/10.55 hours. 100% load, screen-on discharge from 100-0% is 4 hours and 6 minutes.

But Samsung loses points (and it will continue to do so as it slavishly follows Apple) with no charger in the box and an underrated 2W cable (you need 3W to get a fast charge). It also uses 9V/2.77A, standard on Samsung 25W chargers, but the PD standard is 9V/3A, so most third-party USB-C PD chargers drop back to 9V/2A/18W or 5V/3A/15W charging. Charge time at 25W is 1 hour and 18 minutes, and 15W is nearly 3 hours.

Sound – pretty good – Pass+

It uses the same dual Cirrus Logic CS35L41 amplifiers, each 5.3W, 1% THD, 8 ohms, as the Samsung Galaxy S21 FE and S22-series.

This gives excellent volume (85dB), and the speakers have a warm and sweet sound signature suitable for most music. It has Dolby Atmos decode/downmix to the stereo 2.0 speakers and a nice wide sound stage.

Hand-free is quite a step up from the A53 with dual microphone noise-cancelling and sensitivity, although it is not quite as good when recording video.

As it is a Qualcomm SD SoC, it supports SBC, AAC, aptX and LDAC, but the whole aptX suite (low latency, high def) has been left out to save costs. We tested with aptX and LDAC headsets (high res), and it was superb.

Build – Pass

Earlier, we commented that the faux chrome-plated plastic (polycarbonate) frame was prone to scratching. Over the four-week test (while taking extreme care to keep it in a separate pocket away from keys etc.), it picked up marks. Please buy a cover.

And in good news, Samsung now offers a 24-months warranty matching class-leaders OPPO (its main nemesis).

Missing – Fail, but should you care?

If we don’t keep telling Samsung that no charger in the box is a deal-breaker ($29 from Samsung plus an extra cost of a 3W cable), then it will never change.

It does not have

3.5mm jack (no big deal as Bluetooth and USB-C/3.5mm DACs are cheap and good)
Wi-Fi 6 proper implementation (480Mbps is slow)
BT 5.2 proper implementation (would provide multi-point connections)
USB-C 3.1 proper implementation (would allow Alt-DP audio/video external screen)
Adaptive screen refresh
GPS dual-band proper implementation
Additional side or top phone antennas
More Qualcomm BT aptX codecs
Buds and bumper cover (no big deal)

Despite these things, Joe and Jane Average will not notice, will love this phone, and be blissfully unaware that similarly priced phones have it all.

Operating system – up to four years of upgrades and five years of security patches – Exceed

Samsung’s policy makes owning one better and more secure for longer. That means Android 12 may reach Android 15! But we were disappointed that the security patch was February for a June review (most competitors are at May).

One UI 4.1 is a light touch over Android and allows for its Samsung customisations. But we are growing more concerned at the need to sign up for a Samsung Account to access anything in its Theme or Galaxy App store – it is bad enough that Google knows all about us.

Our advice is not to use Samsung apps that substitute for Google ones, especially if you brand swap and want seamless changeovers.

Samsung A73 5G Camera – Pass+

True, 108MP gives Samsung bragging rights, but in practice, this Samsung SK5HM6 Nonapixel RGB Bayer Pattern combines 9 pixels (3×3) to create a 12MP image. The image quality also depends on the AI capability (12 TOPS compared to 26 for the S22-series). Overall, it’s a great sensor that produces better-than-average daylight shots.

We found:

OIS is on the primary 108/12MP sensor only and works well
Daylight: Good natural colours and lots of details in shadow and highlights
Ultra-wide: lacks dynamic range and is a different colour. It uses a considerably older (September 2015) 13MP Sony IMX258 sensor, which we put down to COVID-related parts shortages. It gets very grainy on zoom
Zoom: forget it past 2X, and 10X zoom is unusable
Office light: Natural colours, fast focus, good dynamic range
Bokeh: Severe default blur but can be adjusted
Macro: We tried several shots, but all lacked the precision focus we like
Dark <40 lumens: Pretty good colour and detail
Night <40 lumens: Refines the image and adds a little more highlight. It is not up to Samsung’s S22-series Nightography that has far more AI power
Selfie – 32MP bins to 8MP offering a decent quality selfie in day or office light
Video – 4K@30fps is fine. 1080p with OIS is superb. Voice recording is average

1X Excellent shot – accurate colours and good detail in the foreground and background

Excellent office light shot with great colours and details

<40 lumens and a pretty good shot without Night Mode.

CyberShack’s view – At $100 more than the A53 5G, the Samsung A73 5G is the pick of the litter

Our reviews are objective – we run over 70 tests and don’t read press releases or review guides that are much regurgitated as part of 99% of the other reviews.

So, there is no malice in telling it like it is; frankly, this phone will rate better than the $699 A53 and $999 S21 FE. Why? Because in the $700-799 bracket, it is pretty good, and Samsung is a safe bet.

Competition is quite fierce, and we note other phones you should compare it with

OPPO Find X5 Lite $799 has 8/256GB and fast 65W charging (supplied). Its primary camera is 64MP and binned to 16MP, and its photography tech is better.
Motorola Edge 30 Pro ($999 but on special at $799) has the latest Qualcomm SD8 Gen 1 SoC, Wi-Fi 6E, 30W charger in box (68W capable), Adaptive OLED screen and decent twin 50MP camera.
Motorola Edge 20 Pro (2021 run-out) $899 but on runout at $719
Samsung S20 FE (2021 run-out) at $699

They are all good phones, but Motorola Edge 30 Pro must be killing all comers in this bracket with the special price.

https://youtu.be/MUKBLghesn0?list=PLhpbZcOKxtO2On3hyyJAzJG-ACCyQhka9

Samsung A73 5G

Brand	Samsung
Model	A73 5G
Model Number	SM-A756B
Price Base	6, 128
Price base	799
Warranty months	24
Tier	mid-mid range
Website	Product page
Manual	Manual PDF
From	Samsung Online and approved retailers
Country of Origin	Either Vietnam or Korea
More	CyberShack Samsung news and reviews
Test date	1-13/6/22
Ambient temp	11-18°
Release	Apr-22
Other models not for Australia (Don’t buy)	Must be ‘B/DS’, 6/128, not White

Screen

Size	6.7
Type	sAMOLED Plus
Flat, Curve, 2D, 3D	Flat, centre O-hole
Resolution	2400 x 1080
PPI	393
Ratio	20:9
Screen to Body %	87
Colours bits	8-bit 16.7M colours
Refresh Hz, adaptive	60 or 120Hz fixed (not adaptive)
Nits typical, test	400 (Tested 389) but needs to be turned up in direct sunlight
Nits max, test	Claim 800 nits HBM (tested 745)
Contrast	Infinite
sRGB	Tested 97%
DCI-P3	Tested 98% in vivid mode
Delta E (<4 is excellent)	2.6
HDR Level	HDR10/+/HLG
SDR Upscale	No
Blue light control	Yes
PWM if known	Yes, but at low brightness so it won’t affect users
Daylight readable	Yes
Always on Display	Yes
Edge display	Yes
Accessibility	Yes
DRM	Widevine L1 60Hz 1080p HDR (tested)
Gaming	Game mode
Screen protection	GG5
Comment	Nice bright, colourful screen, but its lack of Adaptive refresh puts it slightly behind the leaders. Battery life is hardly affected by 120Hz.

Processor

Brand, Model	Qualcomm SD778 5G
nm	6
Cores	4 x 2.4GHz + 4 x 1.8GHz
Modem	X53 5G
AI TOPS	12
Geekbench 5 Single-core	781
Geekbench 5 multi-core	2823
Like	Close to the SD865 in the 2021 S20 FE
GPU	Adreno 642L
GPU Test
Open CL	2291
Like	Similar to SD865
Vulcan	2412
RAM, type	6 LPRDDR4X plus 2/4/6GB virtual ‘swap’ RAM from storage.
Storage, free, type	128 (97GB free) UFS 2.2
micro-SD	Yes, to 1TB (hybrid slot)
CPDT internal seq. Read MBps	563
CPDT internal seq. write MBps	91
CPDT microSD read, write MBps	89/19
CPDT external (mountable?) MBps	Won’t test – seen as external storage but can’t mount as internal storage
Comment	The SD778 5G is one of those Goldilocks SoCs. Not too hot, not too cold, but just right. It has heaps of power, reasonable game performance, good battery life, and enough AI TOPS to ensure great point-and-shoot photos. Videographers and vloggers will soon run out of space without mountable storage, seen as internal storage.
Throttle test
Max GIPS	252332
Average GIPS	247285
Minimum GIPS	239715
% Throttle	Nil (excellent)
CPU Temp	50
Comment	The SD778 runs cooler, and this is an excellent result. While it has 6GB of physical RAM, it can take 2/4/6GB from storage to use as virtual RAM.

Comms

Wi-Fi Type, model	Wi-Fi 6 AX VHT80 MIMO 2×2
Test 2m -dBm, Mbps	-22/480
Test 5m	-52/480
Test 10m	-0.11875
BT Type	5
GPS single, dual	Dual (but appears to only work in single antenna mode)
USB type	USB-C 2.0
Alt DP, DeX, Ready For	No
NFC	Yes
Ultra-wideband	No
Sensors
Accelerometer	Yes – combo with Gyro
Gyro	Yes – combo with Gyro
e-Compass	Yes
Barometer	No
Gravity	No
Pedometer	No – emulated in the combo
Ambient light	Yes
Hall sensor	No
Proximity	Yes
Other	Optical fingerprint under glass
Comment	It is a shame to limit Wi-Fi speeds to 480Mbps when the SoC supports 1200/2400/4800Mbps Wi-Fi 6 and 6E. It is also a lost opportunity to use USB-C 2.0 when the SoC supports 3.1 and BT 5.0 when it supports 5.2)

LTE and 5G

SIM	Hybrid dual sim with microSD
Active	One at a time
Ring tone single, dual	Single
VoLTE	Carrier Dependent
Wi-Fi calling	Carrier Dependent
4G Bands	1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12 ,13, 17, 20, 28, 38, 40 41, 66
Comment	All Australian bands and most world bands
5G sub-6Ghz	n1, 3, 5, 7, 28, 40, 41, 66, 78
Comment	All Australian sub-6GHz and low bands
mmWave	No
Test Boost Mobile, Telstra
UL, DL, ms	21/23/31ms (average)
Tower 1 -dBm, fW or pW	-78 3-16pW (exceptional)
Tower 2	-85 2-4pW (ditto)
Tower 3	-90 1-2pW (ditto)
Tower 4	-100 <1pW (ditto)
Comment	This is excellent reception for city, suburb, regional and rural areas. But do not hold it by the ‘bottom’ where the main antenna is, as you can block the signal.

Battery

mAh	5000 – claim 17-21 hours LTE (not 5G)
Charger, type, supplied	No – the maximum charge is 9V/2.77A/25W, so make sure your charger supports that, or you will get 15-18W.
PD, QC level	Samsung sells a $29 25W capable PS 2.0 5V/3A/15, 9V/2.77A/25W or 3.3-5.9V/3A and 3.3-11V/2.25A, but you need a 3W cable to charge above 2W.
Qi, wattage	No
Reverse Qi or cable	No
Test (60Hz or adaptive screen)	60Hz
Charge % 30mins	48%
Charge 0-100%	1 hour 18 minutes
Charge Qi, W	N/A
Charge 5V, 2A	4 hours approx.
Video loop 50%, aeroplane	21 hours and 20 minutes
PC Mark 3 battery	18 hours 58 minutes Accubattery 18 hours
GFX Bench Manhattan battery	368.8 (6.15 hours) 3046 frames
GFX Bench T-Rex	632.8 minutes (10.55 hours) 3372 frames
Drain 100-0% full load screen on	4 hours 6 minutes
Watt full load	2200mA
Watt idle Screen on	200-250mA
Estimate loss at max refresh	20-30%
Estimate typical use	We estimate that this phone will go two days of typical use and one day under heavier use.
Comment	While Samsung’s 17-21 hours use claim is accurate (Similar to PC Mark), it depends on your use and if you are using a 60 or 120Hz screen and 5G. GFX Manhattan and 100% screen-on drain 4-10 hours reflect a power user.

Sound


Speakers	Stereo – top earpiece and bottom down-firing.
Tuning	No
AMP	2 x Cirrus Logic CS35L41 each 5.3W, 1% THD, 8 ohm
Dolby Atmos decode	Yes, downmix to two speakers
Hi-Res	32-bit, 384kHz
3.5mm	No
BT Codecs	SBC, AAC, aptX, LDAC
Multipoint	Should be
Dolby Atmos (DA) EQ	Auto, Movie, Music, Voice
Normal EQ	Normal, Pop, Classic, Jazz, Rock, Custom
Mics	Dual with top for noise-cancelling
Test dB – all on EQ flat DA off	85 – above average
Volume max	85
Media (music)	80
Ring	83
Alarm	80
Notifications	77
Earpiece	55
Hands-free	The bottom mic is for voice only, and the top for noise reduction. Good hands-free pick to about 600mm and good speaker loudness
BT headphones	Excellent left-right separation and DA makes quite a difference with DA content.

Sound quality

Deep Bass 20-40Hz	No
Middle Bass 40-100Hz	No
High Bass 100-200Hz	Solid linear build to 200Hz
Low Mid 200-400Hz	Flattening but still building
Mid 4000-1000Hz	Flat
High-Mid 1-2kHz	Flat
Low Treble 2-4kHz	Flat
Mid Treble 4-6kHz	Flat
High Treble 6-10kHz	Slow linear decline to 15kHz
Dog Whistle 10-20kHz	Deep dip at 15kHz but recovers slightly
Sound Signature type	It is fairly neutral, but given the default is Warm and Sweet (bass/mid boosted, treble recessed) – it is the nirvana for most music and movies.
Soundstage	2D (no 3D spatial height, but DA gives a wider sound stage.
Comment	While it lacks the musically important mid-bass (which adds character), the upper-bass offers satisfying bass notes. Upper-treble is missing, so you don’t quite get precise directionality. Overall, it is pleasant for most music genres that don’t need a lot of bass. It is one of the better phones in its class.

Build

Size (H x W x D)	163.7 x 76.1 x 7.6
Weight grams	181
Front glass	Gorilla Glass 5
Rear material	matte plastic flow over camera hump – attracts grease but not fingerprints
Frame	Plastic chrome finish
IP rating	67 1m for 30min
Colours	Awesome Mint Awesome Grey
Pen, Stylus support	No
In the box
Charger	No
USB cable	Yes, 2W (you need a 3W cable if you want to charge at 25W)
Buds	No
Bumper cover	No
Comment	More Samsung penny-pinching

OS

Android	12
Security patch date	1/02/2022 (out-of-date as the May patch has been out for some time)
UI	One U1 4.1
OS upgrade policy	original plus 3 upgrades
Security patch policy	4 years
Bloatware	Samsung alternative to Google suite. Microsoft suite and OneDrive (requires subscription)
Other	Selection of Galaxy Apps
Comment	Great upgrade policy, and One UI is easy to use. But more and more, Samsung wants you in their tent (like Apple) by enticing you to create a Samsung account to access Galaxy Apps. It is just a further privacy issue – Google knows enough already!

Security
Fingerprint sensor location, type	Optical under glass
Face ID	Yes
Other	Knox and Secure folder

Samsung A73 5G Camera

Rear Primary	Wide
MP	108MP bins to 12MP
Sensor	Samsung SK5HM6 Nonapixel RGB Bayer Pattern
Focus	PDAF
f-stop	1.8
um	.64 bins to 1.8um
FOV° (stated, actual)	85 (70.9-83.3)
Stabilisation	OIS
Zoom	8X digital
Rear 2	Ultra-wide
MP	12
Sensor	Sony IMX258 (13MP)
Focus	Fixed
f-stop	2.2
um	1.12
FOV (stated, actual)	123 (104)
Stabilisation	No
Zoom
Rear 3	Macro
MP	5
Sensor	GC5035
Focus
f-stop	2.4
um
FOV (stated, actual)
Stabilisation
Zoom
Rear 4	Depth
MP	5
Sensor	GC5035
Focus
f-stop	2.4
um
FOV (stated, actual)
Stabilisation
Zoom
Special
Video max	4K@30fps EIS
Flash	Single LED
Auto-HDR	Yes
QR code reader	Yes
Night mode	Nightography

Selfie

Front
MP	32MP bins to 8MP
Sensor	Sony IMX616
Focus	Fixed
f-stop	2.2
um	0.8 bins to 1.6
FOV (stated, actual)	83 (71)
Stabilisation	No
Flash	Screen fill
Zoom	4x digital
Video max	4K@30fps
Features
Comment	Daylight: Good natural colours and lots of details in shadow and highlights Ultra-wide: lacks dynamic range Zoom: forget it past 2X OIS steady Ultra-wide gets very grainy on zoom Office light: Natural colours, fast focus Bokeh: Severe but can be adjusted Macro: We tried several shots, but all lacked the precision focus we like Dark: Pretty good colour and detail Night: Refines the image and adds a few more highlights Video – 4K@30fps is fine. 1080p with OIS is superb. Voice recording is average. Selfie – 32MP bins to 8MP offering a decent quality selfie in day or office light.

Ratings

Features	9
	It has everything you need
Value	8.5
	COVID supply issues and global uncertainty see this a tad higher price than it should be.
Performance	9
	The Qualcomm SD778G is a mid-range SoC that provides better performance and no throttling
Ease of Use	9.5
	Excellent OS upgrade/update policy and 2-years warranty.
Design	8.5
	Nice but a little bland
Rating out of 10	8.9
Final comment	It is a good successor to the 2021 A72, which was a great value handset. Almost perfect for the price.

Samsunbg A73 5G smartphone

$799

8.9

Features

9.0/10

Value

8.5/10

Performance