Galaxy A55 vs OnePlus 12R: it doesn't even feel close

Galaxy A55 vs OnePlus 12R: it doesn’t even feel close،

Introduction

Samsung is preparing to introduce its latest mid-range phone, the Galaxy A55, but rumors and leaks so far only indicate a few improvements we can expect. Then there's the OnePlus 12R that recently hit the markets and lives up to the company's OG nickname “the flagship killer.”

So the question here is, what can Samsung add to the A55's portfolio to make it more equal to the OnePlus equivalent? Well, the A55 might have some advantages over the 12R, but it's hard to say they would be enough.

Let's get to the heart of the matter together and see how these two phones might compare.

Galaxy A55 against OnePlus 12R differences explained:

Galaxy A55	OnePlus 12R
The Exynos 1480 chipset, probably with average performance	Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (4nm), a powerful flagship chip
A smaller phone with a 6.5-inch flat screen	A bit bigger, with a much larger 6.78-inch curved screen
Only supports HDR10+, 1080 x 2340 pixels	Supports HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, 1264 x 2780 pixels
Corning Gorilla Glass Victus	Corning Gorilla Glass Victus2
Water resistance IP67	Water resistance IP64
5,000 mAh battery, 25W wired charging	5,500 mAh battery, 100W wired charging (80W in US)
Features expandable storage	Does not have expandable storage
Starting price of $450	Starting price of $500

Design and display quality

A different look and feel

THE Galaxy A55 It is said to resemble Samsung's flagship lineup, the Galaxy S24 series, just as it has in recent years. This time around, however, the A5x series will stand out a little more thanks to a new design feature that has been named by leakers Key Island.

The so-called “Key Island” is a newly introduced bump where the volume and power buttons sit on the Galaxy A55, something that did not exist on the A54. Besides this new element, the A55 will likely retain the same square design, alongside flat edges, screen and rear panel, as well as curved corners.

On the other hand, we have the recently released OnePlus 12R, which takes a completely different approach in terms of design. It comes with a curved screen that bends nicely at the edges and joins the aluminum frame. The edges themselves are oval, which arguably makes the phone more comfortable to hold.

Of course, we can't forget to mention the huge circular camera island on the back of the 12R, which has a rather questionable, albeit unique, look. The A55 reportedly retains the three protruding cameras individually, which we think is a cleaner, sleeker approach than OnePlus has chosen for its phones.

In terms of size, we expect the 12R to be larger than the A55 and have a significantly larger screen, at 6.78″ versus 6.5″ for the A55. Speaking of the display, both phones will be capable of a 120Hz screen refresh rate, but the OnePlus offers a special feature dubbed Aqua Touch, which keeps the screen responsive even when extremely wet.

In terms of brightness, it is expected that Galaxy A55 to make up for the 1147 nits of the OnePlus 12R that we measured during our display tests. That said, one difference between the two will be that the Samsung only supports the HDR10+ video format, while the 12R also supports Dolby Vision.

When it comes to durability, the Samsung will win, as it will surely have at least an IP67 water resistance rating, meaning it can withstand submersion in water up to 1 meter for 30 minutes. The 12R has an IP64 rating, meaning it's safe enough to withstand a few light sprays of water, but nothing more.

We also expect the Galaxy to get improved glass durability with Gorilla Glass Victus, but that still won't beat the Gorilla Glass Victus 2 on the OnePlus 12R. That said, the difference between these two generations is not that significant, so it cannot be considered a major drawback.

Performance and software

The flagship killer nature of the OnePlus shows its teeth

The Exynos 1480 would come with the Galaxy A55 and the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 that powers the OnePlus 12R could both be built on the 4nm process, but boy, will there be a difference in performance once we get to test these bad boys.

Samsung's Exynos xx80 chipsets have always been average, with rather average performance. They get the job done and are good enough to give you an overall smooth user experience, but are certainly far from anything at the level of a flagship. The Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, meanwhile, powers phones like last year's Samsung Galaxy S23 series, so it's among the big players and blows anything you throw at it out of the water, even he is 1 year older now. .

When it comes to memory and storage, both phones will likely be the same for base models, with 8/128 GB of RAM and internal storage. That being said, the upgraded version of the OnePlus 12R not only comes with a 16/256GB combo (for $100 more), but the storage upgrades from UFS 3.1 to UFS 4.0, which is twice as fast and much more energy efficient.

An area where the Galaxy A55 However, it could beat the 12R by a lot if Samsung made its software update window extend to 7 years instead of 4, which is what OnePlus is offering with the 12R.

Camera

An almost equal match on paper

Both phones come with a triple-camera setup, with a primary, ultra-wide, and macro camera on the back. The main cameras are both 50MP, with the ultra-wide also matching 12MP. The A55 will also likely retain its predecessor's 5MP macro camera, while the 12R's is 2MP. On the front, integrated into their displays, the A55 will likely feature a 32 MP selfie shooter, which we'll compare to the OnePlus' 16 MP one.

We expect broadly similar performance here, but it would be interesting to see how the two manufacturers differ in their approach to the camera app and image processing behind the scenes.

Audio and haptic quality

The OnePlus 12R has an incredible pair of speakers that can be extremely loud without noticeable distortion. There's even some punch in the low frequencies, and the overall audio quality is clear and rich. THE Galaxy A55However, must introduce something better than its predecessor, as the A54 produced distorted sound at higher volumes and sounded a bit tinny in general.

OnePlus' haptics are top-notch among the company's more expensive options, and the 12R has adopted a vibration motor of similar quality. The A55 should also be pretty good in this regard, but we expect the OnePlus to be better in comparison.

Battery life and charging

Much faster charging on the OnePlus 12R

THE Galaxy A55 will likely have the same 5,000 mAh battery as the A54, and if the Exynos 1480 is at least as power efficient as last year's model's silicon, the A55 will have great battery life. Then there's the 12R, which comes with a slightly larger 5,500mAh battery, but might be a bit more power hungry due to that flagship chipset. In other words, we expect somewhat similar results from our battery life tests.

Charging is an entirely different matter, however, with the OnePlus 12R's 100W (80W in the US) wired charging simply eclipsing the expected 25W on the smartphone. Galaxy A55. Neither phone has wireless charging.

Summary and final verdict

So, for $50 more, the plain OnePlus 12R offers a lot more to the user. In fact, it almost feels like we're talking about two entirely different weight classes here, as the 12R feels more like a flagship than a mid-range phone. The choice is even easier if Samsung raises the price of the A55 to match that of the 12R at $500.

Of course, Samsung could bring some AI features launched with the higher price tag. Galaxy S24 series, and that could include 7 years of software updates versus the 4 years offered by OnePlus. But, truth be told, we don't think any of these features would make the A55 more interesting, at least for most users.