Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) launches: Official specs, features and release details revealed

Samsung has opened up 2017 with its new Galaxy A series line-up. The South Korean tech titan has officially announced the latest incarnations of the Galaxy A3, Galaxy A5 and the Galaxy A7, which are all water resistant and significantly improved compared to its predecessors. The new Samsung smartphones are slated for an early January release in Russia before expanding to other markets.

The top-tier among the 2017 Galaxy A series handsets, the A7 boasts of a 5.7-inch screen that is as big as that of the now-defunct Galaxy Note 7. The FHD Super AMOLED display comes with a 1080 x 1920 pixel resolution and 386 ppi pixel density. The A series leader equips an Exynos 7870 processor with a 1.9 GHz octa-core Cortex-A53 CPU, Mali-T830MP2 GPU, 3 GB of RAM, 32 GB of internal storage and an external microSD memory slot that is expandable up to 256 GB.

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Just like the 2017 Samsung Galaxy A5, the new Galaxy A7 has two 16 MP cameras (front and back) with f/1.9 optics. Its battery is the most capable among the latest A series handsets, boasting a potent 3,600 mAh non-removable lithium-ion cell with Fast Charging technology. The new A7 runs on Android 6.0.16 Marshmallow and not the operating system’s latest 7.1 Nougat, which is a minor downside.

Like its Galaxy A series little brothers, the A7 is also IP68 certified and can be dipped into water 1.5 meters deep and a maximum of 30 minutes. It’s dust proof as well, and doesn’t call for external casings and covers to keep from dirt and sand. The latest Galaxy A7 also equips a 3.5 mm headphone jack and has a surplus of features like S-Voice, Samsung KNOX and Samsung Pay (through Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) and Near Field Communication (NFC) technology).

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The Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017) is available in four colours: black sky, peach cloud, blue coral and gold sand. The company has yet to reveal how much the new A7 will cost. Also, the handset will not be available in Europe unlike the Galaxy A3 and A5, which retail for €329 (AU$479) and €429 (AU$624) respectively.