Samsung South Africa unveiled three new handsets today at a media event in Sandton. The A Series lineup has two new additions, the Galaxy A51 and A71. The A51 will be out next week and the A71 in February.

Maps Maponyane in conversation with Justin Hume, Samsung Mobile SA

The handsets are well priced at R8999 and R6999 respectively, and includes a longer lasting battery; an Infinity-O screen seen on the premium S range; quad cameras; and Samsung Pay. To date Samsung Pay has garnered over 2 million transactions in South Africa. It’s great to see what was regarded a high-end feature come to more well-priced handsets. The Infinity-O has been one of my favourite things about the S and Note range on Samsung flagships, it’s the best-looking smartphone screen in my opinion.

Left to right: Galaxy A51 and Galaxy A71

The bigger star of the show is the Galaxy Note10 Lite. The Note range now appeals to a wider audience, and comes in the eye-catching hue “Aura Glow”, wildly popular on the premium range. It has updated specs in certain areas, like a 32MP selfie-cam (vs. the 10MP on the premium range); and a bigger 4500mAh battery (vs. the 3500mAh on the Note10). It also comes with an S-Pen.

The Note10 Lite has 12MP trio of rear cameras; 6GB of RAM; 126GB storage; a large 6.7-inch display and on-screen fingerprint sensor. It will retail for R12 999. Samsung says the Note10 Lite will be released in a few weeks time.

Testing the 32MP selfie-cam with Paula Gilbert

Galaxy A51
6.5-inch screen (1080×2400); 48+12+5+5MP rear cameras; 32MP selfie cam; Octa-core chipset (quad 2.3Ghz + quad 1.7Ghz); 4GB RAM; 128GB storage; micro SD card; dual SIM; 4000mAh battery; fast charging; on-screen fingerprint sensor; facial recognition. R8999.

Galaxy A71
6.7-inch screen (1080×2400); 64+12+5+5MP rear cameras; 32MP selfie cam; Octa-core chipset (dual 2.2Ghz + Hexa 1.8Ghz); 6GB of RAM; 128GB storage; micro SD slot; dual SIM; 4500mAh battery; super-fast charging; on-screen fingerprint sensor; facial recognition. R6999.