We had the opportunity to review the Galaxy M30s from the M30 series that Samsung launched last year, but we could not experience this model because the Galaxy M30 model did not reach us. But the new member of the family is the successor model Galaxy M31, this time. We have been receiving a lot of comments about this phone from you for a while, and in this review, we will examine crucial details about the Samsung Galaxy M31.
Galaxy M31 vs M30
Let’s start by saying that the Galaxy M31 contains significant updates, especially compared to its predecessor Galaxy M30. Galaxy M31, which is a model developed in almost every aspect other than the screen, draws attention with its being a phone that appeals to users who want high battery life.
Samsung Galaxy M31 Design Features
The Galaxy M31 is a model where Samsung continues the design language that has now become standard. The phone, which offers a wide viewing experience with its rounded back edges and the screen surrounded by a thin bezel on the front, is a heavier and thicker model than its predecessor. The weight of the M31 is 191 grams because it contains a battery with a capacity of 6000 mAh and the edge thickness is 8.9 mm.
Color Options
Galaxy M31 is available with a magenta colored pink, in blue and black color options. Consisting of a plastic body, the phone still contains plastic material in its frame. It’s hard to say it’s very attractive with its design, but of course it’s a detail that varies from person to person.
Samsung Galaxy M31 Dual Sim Card Feature
When we look around the Galaxy M31, it carries the volume and power buttons on the right side and the SIM card and microSD card drawer on the left. Galaxy M31, a dual SIM card phone, also shares the microSD card slot as a separate slot.
On the bottom edge of the phone, we see the 3.5 mm headphone jack, USB-C port, and speaker loop. While the M31 is a phone with a single speaker, it also has microphone inputs on the lower and upper edges.
Fingerprint Sensor and Face Recognition
The fingerprint sensor on the phone is also physically located on the back. In addition to the fingerprint sensor that works amazingly fast for its class, face recognition via the camera is also available on the phone. We can say that face recognition works effectively under normal conditions, but as the light rate decreases, it is adversely affected.
Is Samsung Galaxy M31 Waterproof?
By the way, the Galaxy M31 is not a water-resistant phone. It is not a feature that we see very often in this class of models, but if you remember that we have seen splash resistance in the realme 6i from similar phones we have recently reviewed. This feature is not available in the M31.
Galaxy M31 Screen
The Samsung Galaxy M31 has a large screen with a drop notch camera on the top. The M31, which has improved in many ways compared to the Galaxy M30 model, does not change the screen. The Galaxy M30 was already a high-end model for its class with its screen and Samsung aimed to continue that with the M31, which we think is a very correct move.
Galaxy M31, which owns a 6.4-inch screen, provides a resolution of 1080×2340 pixels and this resolution provides 403 ppi pixel density. Super AMOLED panel is on the phone, which offers a 19.5:9 screen aspect ratio, aside from 84.1 percent screen-to-body ratio.
It is possible to say that the screen is perfect for this segment with its color, resolution ratio and black level. However, let’s add to this that when we had the opportunity to experience the phone under the sun in Istanbul, which gave us the spring months a few days ago, we saw that the brightness level was somewhat insufficient under harsh sunlight.
Galaxy M31 Features and Performance
Samsung Galaxy M31 runs the Android 10 operating system and comes with the One UI 2.0 interface. The processor, which provides a similar usage to high-end Samsung phones with the updated interface and operating system, is the 8-core Exynos 9611. While there is an improvement in this sense compared to the predecessor model, the phone, together with this processor, can combine performance and efficiency with 4 2.3 GHz frequency Cortex-A73 and 4 1.7 GHz frequency Cortex-A53 cores.
Storage Capacity
The graphics unit of the phone, which also has 6 GB of RAM and 128 GB of storage, is Mali-G72 MP3. Together with this graphics processor and peripherals and it is suitable for the game performance class of the phone. The phone we tried in PUBG can provide a fluent experience at high graphics settings. By the way, it is possible to say that the phone gets hot after a 30-minute PUBG session. The temperature, which was 27 degrees when idle, rose to 39 degrees after 30 minutes of PUBG.
Samsung Galaxy M31 AnTuTu Benchmark Test
On the other hand, we also tested the Galaxy M31 with synthetic tests so that you can clearly evaluate it in terms of performance. Galaxy M31, which collects 194 thousand 502 points from the AnTuTu Benchmark test, which is the general performance tool, finds itself in the middle when it is placed side by side with other middle class phones with this score.
When we look at the processor performance, the M31, which can provide 347 points with a single core score from Geekbench and 1362 points with a multi-core result, draws a chart that is suitable for its class with these scores.
Battery Life
The Samsung Galaxy M31 has a giant battery with a capacity of 6000 mAh. The phone, which can spend a long time on a single charge with this battery, gives impressive results compared to its counterparts, especially for intensive use. The phone, which can easily roll over 2 days with normal use, is a suitable model especially for those who watch intensive videos from the phone.
You can also read our Xiaomi Redmi Note 9S review: https://www.techblimp.com/2020/09/24/xiaomi-redmi-note-9s-review/
In our 90-minute Full HD video test, the M31 lost only 9 percent of charge at full screen brightness and in the scenario connected to Wi-Fi, so it is included in this test with low battery consuming models.
In this way, the phone, which provides around 16.5 hours of movie viewing experience, can provide higher times when you lower the screen brightness. Similar scenario applies to the game. When we play PUBG for 30 minutes, the phone loses an 8 percent battery rate at the end of 30 minutes, so roughly 6 hours of uninterrupted play time is reachable.
The M31 brings a 15W fast charging adapter with it. However, the high battery capacity causes the phone not to be very fast in charging. The battery, which can be filled by 22 percent in the first 30 minutes, reaches 55 percent at the end of 1 hour. It takes 2 hours and 35 minutes to fully charge the phone.
Samsung Galaxy M31 Cameras
Galaxy M31 improves on camera compared to M30 model. The phone, which has a 4-camera setup on the back, can take 64 MP photos with its main camera. This camera with f/1.8 aperture and 26mm wide angle does not include OIS support, but includes phase detection laser autofocus.
While the second camera in the phone can take 8 MP ultra-wide-angle photos, the aperture level of this camera is f/2.2.
The front camera of the Galaxy M31, which can record 4K video with both its rear and front cameras, is also 32 MP. With the f / 2.0 diaphragm and 26 mm front camera, you can capture nice photos, especially during the daytime shooting. You can also take photos where you can blur the background using Live Focus mode on the front camera. Let’s also say that front camera performance is negatively affected as the light conditions are reduced. An important note about the front camera: This camera on the phone works at 8 MP by default. To take a more detailed 32 MP scale photo, you need to bring the image ratio to 3:4H.
As for the performance of the rear cameras, let’s start by stating that you need to change the top setting to be able to take 64 MP photos with the rear main camera just like the front camera. The main camera can take beautiful photos, especially during daytime shooting. However, just like the front camera, it is useful to know that the quality of the photo will get lower as the light conditions decrease. Although the phone has Night mode, we have to say that this is not very satisfactory.
In Brief
To sum up as a result, the Galaxy M31 comes across as a refined product that received significant updates compared to its predecessor. While the performance of the AMOLED screen, the diversity with the 4-camera setup, the long battery life are the important advantages of the phone, of course it has its shortcomings.
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