While it launched globally in 2020, the Samsung Galaxy A42 5G is only just now arriving stateside. Sandwiched between the $279.99 Galaxy A32 5G and the $499.99 Galaxy A52 5G, the $399.99 Galaxy A42 5G fails to stand out. Ultimately, its millimeter-wave (mmWave) 5G connectivity and long battery life don’t make up for underwhelming cameras, a low-resolution display, and sluggish performance. We recommend the Galaxy A32 5G if you’re looking to spend less, or the $449.99 Google Pixel 5a with 5G if you have a bit more cash to spare. No matter your budget, both phones offer a better blend of features and performance for their respective prices.
A Flashy Design With Little Substance
The Galaxy A42 lacks the sophisticated, squared-off design you’ll find in the rest of Samsung’s 2021 A-series portfolio. Instead, it sports a glossy and curvy back panel similar to last year’s Galaxy A51. The phone is available in black, gray, or white, all of which have a distinct gradient. I tested the black model, which has four chunky blocks that transition from pure black to metallic blue. While it’s a bold, unique design, the high-gloss finish shows off smudges and scratches easily.
At 6.5 by 3.0 by 0.3 inches (HWD) and 6.8 ounces, the Galaxy A42 is big, but light and thin enough to hold in one hand. And while the glossy shell doesn’t offer any resistance, the phone is well balanced and doesn’t feel like it will slip out of your hands.
A 6.6-inch, 1,660-by-720 pixel AMOLED panel dominates the front of the phone. The screen’s colors are lush and vivid, but there’s noticeable pixelation because of its low resolution. That said, it’s bright enough to use in direct sunlight without any issues, and its viewing angles are excellent.
The phone’s optical, under-display fingerprint sensor is slow and finnicky. It’s smaller and less accurate than the ultrasonic sensors on more expensive flagships like the Galaxy S21; I wish Samsung used the side-mounted sensors from the Galaxy A32 here.
The top of the Galaxy A42 is bare, while the bottom is home to a USB-C charging port, a 3.5mm headphone jack, and a speaker. The speaker maxes out at 94dB; audio quality is mediocre and unbalanced, with thin mids and not the slightest hint of bass. Fortunately, there’s Bluetooth 5.0 and the aforementioned headphone jack for better audio. The handset also supports NFC for mobile payments.
On the left edge, there’s a SIM/microSD slot. The power button and volume rocker are on the right; the buttons are thin and feel a bit spongy to the touch.
Durability is a mixed bag. The Galaxy A42’s plastic frame and back panel should withstand minor drops and dings without much damage, but its Gorilla Glass 3 display is unlikely to fare as well. And unlike the IP67-rated Galaxy A52, an accidental dip in the pool will likely spell doom for the Galaxy A42.
Optimized for Verizon and Visible
The Samsung Galaxy A42 5G is optimized for use on Verizon’s 5G network. That means it sports LTE, mid-band 5G, and mmWave connectivity. There is no C-band support, however.
I tested the phone in Chicago on Visible (which uses Verizon’s network) in several neighborhoods. My test speeds were solid and consistent, averaging 240Mbps down and 71Mbps up.
Call quality is good. Earpiece volume maxes out at 87dB and is loud enough to hear on a busy street. Test calls were crisp and clear; noise cancellation worked well, too.
Don’t Ditch Your DSLR
Samsung makes some of the best smartphone cameras on the market, but you’re not going to find them on the Galaxy A42. Instead, you get a rear stack with a 48MP primary sensor and an f/1.8 aperture; an 8MP ultrawide sensor with an f/2.2 aperture; and a 2MP depth sensor for improved depth of field and portrait mode. The front-facing camera clocks in at 20MP and has an f/2.2 aperture.
If the rear camera sounds familiar, that’s because it’s the same as in the Galaxy A32. Save for a 5MP macro sensor on the less expensive Galaxy A32, the camera modules are identical. It’s a pretty good stack for a $279.99 phone like the Galaxy A32, but it is downright underwhelming compared with what you can get in the A42’s $400 price range.
The Galaxy A42’s primary lens is capable of decent shots in sufficient light. Daylight test shots have good depth of field and crisp detail in the foreground. However, background detail is soft and colors are blown out in most of my test photos.
Daylight test shots with the ultrawide lens tell a similar story, with a few key differences. Background details are hazy in some of my test shots thanks to overly aggressive noise reduction. There is also significant distortion in many images.
Low-light photos with the primary and ultrawide sensors are shallow, with noticeable blurring. Samsung’s noise reduction process obliterates background detail in most of these shots. The camera sometimes creates an unnatural outline around lights and objects, and most of my ultrawide shots show complex distortion.
The 20MP selfie camera performs well. Daylight photos are crisp and warm, while foreground detail is excellent. Low-light test photos are a little flat and show only minor background blurring.
Not Enough Power
A Qualcomm Snapdragon 750G chip and 4GB of RAM power the Galaxy A42. It includes 128GB of storage, of which 110GB is available out of the box. You can add up to an additional 1TB of storage via the microSD slot.
The Galaxy A42 lags behind the Pixel 5a and even the Galaxy A32 in terms of performance. Apps take a beat to open, there’s some hesitation when swiping between screens, and caching is prevalent with more than half a dozen Chrome pages or apps open simultaneously.
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Games run slowly on the A42. Genshin Impact took several minutes to load and I noticed several instances of skipped frames during an hour of gameplay. The less resource-hungry Alto’s Odyssey loaded quickly, but I still noticed a few skipped frames while riding the desert sands.
Benchmarks are comparable with other phones that use similar hardware. On Geekbench 5, a synthetic benchmark that quantifies raw performance, the Galaxy A42 earned 652 single-core (SC) and 1,976 multi-core (MC), about on par with the Galaxy A52 5G (645 SC/1,905 MC).
On PCMark Work 3.0, a suite of tests that emulates typical smartphone tasks, the Galaxy A42 5G scored 8,439, trailing the Pixel 5a (8,528) slightly. That said, the Pixel feels far more nimble in daily performance. Benchmarks are a convenient way to assign a numerical value to different performance factors, but don’t necessarily reflect how a smartphone performs with normal use.
The Galaxy A42’s 5,000mAh battery can easily get you through a full day between charges. In our battery drain test, which streams HD video over Wi-Fi at full brightness, the phone lasted 12 hours and 4 minutes before shutting down. A 15W power adapter is included, but the phone doesn’t support wireless charging.
Years of Android Updates
The US version of the Galaxy A42 ships with Android 11, along with Samsung’s One UI 3.1. The Verizon version of the phone is crammed with bloatware, while the Visibile and unlocked models are far tidier.
No matter which version you choose, you get Samsung’s suite of productivity apps, which are mostly extraneous considering Google bakes them into Android. On the plus side, Samsung has partnered with Microsoft to integrate services, which is useful. For example, you can select OneDrive as your backup service, keep track of your Samsung Notes in OneNote, and even access your phone directly from Windows.
Granted, this integration is nowhere near as polished as what you get between iOS and macOS. For example, you still have to play with the settings on your computer and phone, tap dozens of security notifications, and make sure both of your devices are on the same network or within Bluetooth range for everything to sync. That said, it’s definitely a move in the right direction toward a cohesive ecosystem between Android and Windows.
The Galaxy A42 5G will get two years of OS upgrades and four years of security patches, which means it’ll see Android 12 and 13 upgrades. That’s generous for a midrange smartphone, though you’ll likely have to wait longer for OS upgrades than you will with the Pixel 5a; Google pushes OS upgrades directly to its Pixel lineup, so you don’t have to wait for manufacturer updates or carrier certifications.
Millimeter-Wave Isn’t Enough
Each year, Samsung’s Galaxy A-series lineup gets a little better, but there’s always an awkward outlier. This year, it’s the Samsung Galaxy A42 5G. Yes, it offers millimeter-wave 5G, but that isn’t enough to make up for its shortcomings. With sluggish performance, unimpressive cameras, and a low-res display, the Galaxy A42 5G doesn’t stand out from the competition and simply isn’t a good value at $400. For an extra $50, the Google Pixel 5a With 5G is miles better, with a sharper display, clearer cameras, and superior software, making it our Editors’ Choice award winner for midrange phones. If you’re looking to spend less, meanwhile, Samsung’s own Galaxy A32 5G is our Editors’ Choice winner for affordable models, and offers much better value for the money than the A42.
