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Now, big players like Samsung, which were out of the online-only race (partly due to their large offline dealer and distributor networks), have also decided join the bandwagon. The Korean giant has launched Galaxy J7 and J5 4G-enabled Android smartphones that offer superior specifications compared to some higher-priced mid-range phones from the company. The phones will retail exclusively on Flipkart and will not be sold offline.
We spent some time with the Galaxy J7 and here are our first impressions of the device...
The Galaxy J7 doesn't sport the premium metal-clad look like the A5 and A7 and instead follows the same old design language we've seen in the Galaxy S3, Grand and a number of other Samsung phones.
The plastic body, removable back panel and a metallic chrome frame, will all
look very familiar if you've used a Samsung phone before. The phone is easy to grip even though it features a large 5.5-inch display. Below the display, you'll see the hardware Home button and two capacitive touch keys for menu/app switcher and back buttons.
Above the display, there's a chrome grill embellished earpiece, sensors, a 5MP camera lens and a front LED flash. The power button is at the right edge while the volume keys are at the left. The metallic keys offer average tactile feedback and are easy to reach.The micro-USB port is at the bottom while the 3.5mm headset jack is placed at the top edge.
Read the full specs of Galaxy J7
The back features a plastic cover that hides the sim card and microSD card slots and a 3000mAh battery. It's got matte finish making it less susceptible to smudging.
Samsung Galaxy J7 sports a 5.5-inch 720p Super AMOLED display and although we expected a 1080p screen, the HD panel doesn't look bad. Just like other AMOLED displays, even this one offers slightly oversaturated albeit vivid colours and great viewing angles. Touch response was excellent but the panel doesn't come with Gorilla Glass leaving the phone vulnerable to scratches.
The Galaxy J7 is powered by a 1.5GHz Exynos octa-core processor and 1.5GB RAM with 16GB storage and a microSD card slot for expansion. It comes with a 3000mAh battery. The phone runs Android 5.1 Lollipop with Samsung's TouchWiz UI skin.
In our brief use, we did not experience any lag or stutter while navigating the home screens, opening and switching between apps, browsing and taking pictures. The dual-sim phone also features FM radio.
Samsung claims that the phone is optimized for gaming. To test the claim, we played Asphalt 8 on the phone for a few minutes without encountering any stutter or frame drops.
Of course, we'll need to spend more time with the phone to test its performance.
The Galaxy J7 sports a 13MP rear camera and a 5MP front facing camera with front flash. The enhanced front camera cashes in on the selfie craze but we're not sure the front flash is a good idea. We did not encounter shutter lag in our brief use. However, we'll take a detailed look at the camera in our full review.
At Rs 14,999, the Galaxy J7 offers good value for money compared to other Samsung phones. It would face competition from the likes of Xiaomi Mi 4, which is now available at the same price and offers superior hardware and better build quality, but doesn't come with the benefits of 4G and expandable storage. Another major rival could be the Lenovo K3 Note which comes at a much cheaper price. We'll have a detailed review of the phone, very soon.
