Samsung Galaxy M31 smartphone review with key features

The presentation of the Samsung Galaxy M31 took place on February 25 in India. The official date of the start of sales is still unknown, but it is expected that the novelty will appear in Russia at the end of March. The M 31 is expected to be an improved version of the previous smartphone with optimized main camera performance (from 48 megapixels to 64 megapixels) and an additional macro lens.

Main characteristics

Design

No frills, simple and minimalistic. Almost identical to the M30s. The same large 6.4-inch U-notch display for the selfie camera, the so-called Water Drop Notch. Slim black bezel, rounded corners and plastic body. The narrowed “chin” at the bottom does not irritate and does not interfere with the view. Corning Generation 3 Gorilla Glass is scratch and scratch resistant.

The plastic quality of the back panel cannot boast of excellent characteristics. Still, the Galaxy M 31 is announced as a budget smartphone. The plastic is uneven - this is especially striking when light hits. The only joy is the color gradient (stated in the description on the official website), which, by the way, is almost invisible. Among the shortcomings - the average build quality (uneven joints, the module with cameras protrudes above the surface), which, however, does not affect the functionality in any way. Another drawback is that the glossy plastic “collects” fingerprints and is easily scratched, so you can't do without additional protection.

The physical control buttons are located on the right side (the volume control is above the power button, which is not very convenient), at the bottom there is a connector for charging and headphones. On the left side there are 2 slots, one of which is for SIM cards, the other for a microSD memory card. It's very convenient, you don't have to choose between another SIM card or installing a microSD card.

Important: there is a headphone jack, but there are no headphones themselves, only a USB-C cable and a 15 W charger are included, instead of the standard 10, which is not bad.

On the back is a fingerprint reader - an easy way to protect user data and unlock the screen. The manufacturer took into account its own mistakes and, unlike the predecessor M30s, the scanner works from a light touch.

Display

Super AMOLED with a high resolution (2340 x 1080 pixels) at 6.4 inches, so that in terms of color reproduction the new model is in no way inferior to smartphones in the premium segment. The wide viewing angle and brightness will allow you to see the image on the screen even in sunny weather.

Comes with Vivid pre-installed - bright, juicy, but eyes get tired quickly. You can change the sharpness and brightness mode manually or change it in the settings to a comfortable level.

The display of the M31 is declared as HDR, but this is not entirely true - neither brightness nor color range is enough. When watching videos on YouTube, the function turns on automatically, and for example, the Netflix application does not recognize the HDR device at all.

Otherwise, everything is fine when you consider that the budget gadget is equipped with AMOLED, instead of the standard LCD display for this price segment.

Battery

Deserves special attention. The device received a 6000 mAh battery, so it will calmly “live” a couple of days without recharging, even with active use. And it’s not realistic to “drain” the battery if you use the gadget only for calls. No wonder the Galaxy M 31 received the title of monster in absentia.

By the way, the M31 is still the leader in terms of battery capacity in its class. Charging is not fast (even at 15 W), on average it takes about 3 hours. You can turn off the fast charge mode if you take your time to reduce the strain on the battery.

Performance and software

The Galaxy M31 is powered by the Exynos 9611 (the same chipset used on the Galaxy M30, Galaxy A50-51), so this is nothing new. Plus 6GB of RAM handles even demanding games with ease, even with default settings. No stuttering while scrolling through apps or watching videos. The only drawback is that there may be freezes when loading or switching applications. It is also possible that performance degradation occurs when the battery is low and using AR filters on Instagram, for example. It also takes a little longer for the smartphone to install the downloaded apps.

The performance is directly related to the battery charge. The lower it is, the slower the applications load because the power saving mode is activated.
Software - Android 10 with One UI 2.0 add-on. The latter provides a simple and intuitive interface and new control options. As for the design, nothing has actually changed here.

Applications

Smartphones come preloaded with Google, Netflix, Facebook, Candy Crush Saga and Samsung Max apps. Plus My Galaxy (sends notifications throughout the day, which gets annoying over time) and Samsung Shop. Setting permissions or blocking is not easy. For example Facebook has been supplemented with 3 more applications. To find them and disable (delete), you will have to dig into the settings.
In general, users who used the gadget in test mode noted that it really turned out to be overkill with advertising applications.

By the way: the pre-installed apps may vary depending on the country. In this particular case, we are talking about Pakistan and India.

As for advertising content, Samsung apps can be disabled by checking the corresponding checkboxes in the permission settings.

Sound

Despite the presence of one speaker, the sound is not bad, although music lovers most likely will not have enough volume.
The M 31 claims Dolby Atmos function, which transforms stereo into 3D surround sound. But, the phone itself does not support the Dolby Atmos codec. When you try to view files with a similar sound track, a system error message will appear on the display and there will be no sound at all.

Camera

The main one consists of 4 modules: a 64-megapixel quad-camera, an 8-megapixel wide-angle sensor (can work independently), plus a macro lens and a 5MP depth sensor each. The quad-camera takes 16-megapixel images by default (you can switch to full resolution in the settings).

The Galaxy M31 is excellent for shooting in bright light (focuses and recognizes objects). When zoomed in, the image remains clear. For example, if you take a photo of a page with text, the quality will not be lost when you increase it.
Night mode produces mediocre results. Firstly, the photos are cropped for some reason, and secondly, the frames are blurry and more like a watercolor painting, without clear outlines. HDR, which in this case turns on automatically, is of little use.

When shooting with a wide-angle camera, objects around the edges of the picture may be distorted. This is especially noticeable if objects with clear geometric lines, for example, the facades of houses, fall into the lens - the image turns out to be curved.

Selfies turn out to be quite usable, clear and require almost no processing thanks to the front 32 megapixel camera. The camera separates the background from the object quite well and, by the way, the smartphone automatically turns on HDR, which allows you to convey the slightest nuances, color transitions. By default, the user gets 8-megapixel photos, but a mode switching function is available.

The situation is worse with video. There is practically no stabilization. The "picture" twitches, and in low light the videos do not look very good at all, to put it mildly. Although the 4K resolution and 30fps are impressive.

Macro photography is possible, but from a distance of up to 10 cm from the subject, while the photo quality will be very, very mediocre. The only way out is to shoot objects exclusively in nature and in good lighting. Indoors, a shadow will inevitably fall on the object, and when you try to photograph glossy surfaces, you will additionally be able to remove your own reflection. Moreover, this problem will remain regardless of the angle at which the camera is tilted. In general, the idea with a separate macro-camera, if not a failure, requires serious work.

Additional sensors

In addition to a fingerprint sensor, the gadget has a proximity sensor, a gyroscope (detects small movements of the display), and an accelerometer. And also a virtual light sensor - a virtual light sensor.

Advantages and disadvantages

• Bright screen;
• Capacious 6000 mAh battery;
• Modern OS;
• Photo module.

• Long charging time, even fast.

Overall, the Samsung Galaxy M31 is a great option for those who value reliability. Powerful battery, wide-angle Super AMOLED display and decent camera performance. M 31 will appeal to fans of online games and selfies. In general, the updated line is likely to be in demand, given the budget cost - it is assumed that the price of a smartphone will not exceed the 17,000 rubles bar.