Notch, teardrop, hole-punch; there are loads of smartphone designs in 2019, but very few of them boast a true all-screen design. Enter the Samsung A80, whose display takes up the whole face of the phone. But that doesn’t mean there’s no front-facing camera. In a novel (literal) twist, the top of the phone raises up when it’s selfie-time, and the rear camera module turns 180-degrees to face you. This means that you get to retain 100 per cent of phone screen real estate, plus you get the same lens that you use to take landscape shots for livestreams and video calls. Otherwise, the A80 is packed with the sort of tech we’re coming to expect from a mid-ranger: an AMOLED display, in-screen fingerprint reader and 3D depth camera for bokeh photos and video. Is there anything in this single, rotating camera module lark? Or is it just a gimmick? We went hands on to find out.<doc-sep>Samsung has taken the wraps off its brand-new Galaxy A80 – not the A90 as many thought. It's the first Galaxy smartphone with a truly all-screen design, enabled by a very innovative camera system. Samsung has gradually been shrinking the size of the bezels around its screens throughout the last year, starting with the thinner borders on the Galaxy S9, followed by the hole-pinch Infinity-O design on the Galaxy A8s and Galaxy S10 range. This, however, is a step up again. The 6.7-inch Full HD+ Super AMOLED screen on the Galaxy A80 covers the entire front of the handset. Samsung says there are 'no distractions' when you watch video, look through photos, or run multiple apps simultaneously – which seems like a bit of a kick in the teeth if you've recently splurged on an S10, especially the pricier Galaxy S10 Plus which has a bigger, more unsightly, pill-shaped cut-out for the dual front-facing selfie cameras. The A80's display isn't even interrupted by a speaker grill, since the sound is emitted through the glass itself. Rival Huawei used the same technique in its flagship P30 Pro. When it comes to the front-facing camera, the element that typically takes up the most space in the notch or hole-punch on the front of a smartphone, Samsung has a genuinely unique solution. The Galaxy A80 slides down to reveal a separate drawer behind the screen, but rather than housing a separate selfie set-up like we've seen on the likes of the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 and Honor Magic 2, Samsung simply rotates the rear-mounted camera system, so you get the fully-featured array pointed straight at your visage. That means you're able to use a number of features that, until now, were reserved solely for the rear-mounted camera, including ultra-wide angle shots, an LED flash, OIS video capture, and the depth-effect Live Focus image. You'll also be able to enable this bokeh-style blur to the background of videos with the Galaxy A80 – a feature we first heard about for the Galaxy S10 5G, something we had thought would be exclusive to this handset, which has six cameras to enable this effect on the front- and rear-mounted cameras. The rear-cum-front-facing camera array on the Galaxy A80 is made-up of a 48MP main camera, coupled with a 3D Depth camera that offers Live Focus videos by scanning objects for measurement and depth. There's also an 8MP camera with an ultra-wide lens with 'the same viewing angle as the human eye' – so you shouldn't miss anything out of the viewfinder that you're able to see when framing up your shot. From left to right: First image shows the front of the Galaxy A80 with the camera facing backward, second image shows the back of the A80 with the camera facing backwards, and then facing forwards with the sliding drawer extended in the final image Samsung is committed to offering the highest possible screen-to-body ratio. Until now, we thought its Infinity-O display design, as seen on the S10e, S10 and S10 Plus, was the best way of reaching that goal – at least until it manages to seamlessly embed the selfie cameras beneath the screen, something it has previously revealed will take at least another two years to achieve. However, it's possible the Galaxy A80 is the first glimpse at the design we can expect to see roll out to the next batch of flagship smartphones from Samsung. If you're wondering why Samsung would unveil the latest and greatest innovations to its mid-range handsets before the priciest devices in its portfolio, it's because Samsung mobile chief DJ Koh believes this is the key to keeping ahead of the intensifying competition from the likes of Huawei and Xiaomi. Mobile division boss DJ Koh has previously said: 'In the past, I brought the new technology and differentiation to the flagship model and then moved to the mid-end. But I have changed my strategy from this year to bring technology and differentiation points starting from the mid-end.' Elsewhere, the Galaxy A80 has a 3,700mAh battery that works with fast wired charging at 25W, which should mean you don't have to be tethered to the wall socket for too long when the smartphone finally runs out of juice. Samsung says it has built-in an intelligent battery system into the A80 that learns your daily routine and app usage patterns to optimise power consumption too. Unfortunately, there's no 3.5mm headphone port here, so you'll be forced to use a USB-C wired headphones, Bluetooth, or a 3.5mm-to-USB-C dongle. There's also no expandable storage via microSD card – a staple on most other Galaxy handsets – so make sure you buy the correct amount of storage, as you can't increase it later on after you've snapped a few hundred high-resolution selfies with that stellar camera. The Galaxy A80 is available in three colour finishes: Angel Gold, Ghost White and Phantom Black. The Angel Gold colour includes elements of pink, while the Ghost White option has a few shades of blue hidden in there. Like the P30 series, these graduated finishes really only sparkle and reveal all their shades in direct sunlight. 'Consumers are at the centre of everything we do and they search for devices personalised to their specific lifestyle. Armed with our expertise, global capabilities and rich consumer insights, Samsung is uniquely positioned to provide innovations for everyone,' added DJ Koh who sadly, despite a lot of musical performances at the A80 launch, did not at any point do any DJing. 'The Galaxy A Series provides a range of models so everyone can choose a device that fits their unique needs and enables them to pursue their passions. The Galaxy A80 offers premium features for digital natives who want to fully engage in the Era of Live.' • The Galaxy A80 will launch on May 29, 2019. There's no word on UK pricing or pre-orders just yet but stay tuned…<doc-sep>Not a fan of the Galaxy S10's Infinity-O display and hole punch treatment for the front-facing camera? Tired of notches and other obstructions impeding your screen real estate? Then does Samsung have a phone for you. It's called the Galaxy A80, and rather than utilizing a pop-out selfie camera or one module of lenses that flips around to capture forward- and backward-facing images, the A80 combines both mechanisms for what is undoubtedly the most wild imaging setup — in terms of mechanics, anyway — that we've ever seen. First, the cameras slide out from the top, in a style similar to Oppo's Find X. But then, within that panel, the phone's trio of lenses — one of which captures 48 MP, and another being a depth-aware time-of-flight sensor — actually flips around, so it can take photos in either direction. Personally, while I appreciate Samsung's willingness to take design risks, I think the A80's mechanism is a silly, over-engineered and failure-prone solution to a perceived problem that most people either don't care about, or can live with. That said, even I can recognize that there are certainly functional purposes for this approach. The advantages here, beyond the lack of a notch of hole-punch front-facing camera, is that the A80 gets to leverage the very same cameras it uses for the back as it does for selfies. And that's a huge benefit, because practically all phone makers downgrade the front sensor in relation to the ones on the back in an effort to keep costs down and save space. If you're not familiar with Samsung's Galaxy A-series products, these are the firm's midrange handsets that are sold selectively in certain parts of the world. In fact, out of last year's big batch of A-series phones, Samsung only brought the relatively uninspiring Galaxy A6 to the U.S., while customers elsewhere received much more exciting options, like the quad lens-toting Galaxy A9. In recent years, Samsung has elected to use the top of the A-series range as its testbed for innovations. The Infinity-O display actually premiered in the Galaxy A8, even though many more customers likely encountered it first in the recently-released Galaxy S10 line. And although the A80's cameras almost assuredly won't be able to capture the same quality of images as the S10 family, it does give Samsung an opportunity to experiment in terms of design and packaging. MORE: Galaxy S10 Plus vs. S10 vs. S10e: Which Should You Buy? Cameras aside, the Galaxy A80 boasts a gigantic 6.7-inch, full-HD+ AMOLED display with a 20:9 aspect ratio. That panel is backed by a generous 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, along with a respectably-sized 3,700-mAh battery. The A80 is scheduled to launch May 29, alongside the Galaxy A10, A20, A30, A50 and A70 (told you the A-series was a big family). At this moment, it's still unclear how much the device will cost or where it will be sold. Credit: Samsung<doc-sep>
The Samsung Galaxy A80 is the perfect embodiment of the new “Era of Live” design philosophy for the revamped A-series. It does that with a motorized pop-up and a spring-loaded rotate mechanism that turn the rear camera to face forward for your selfie needs. This phone promises to deliver the best quality selfie photos and videos. To do that, the Galaxy A80 brings the highest resolution sensor of any Galaxy phone – a 48MP module with an f/2.0 lens. It features the Super Steady mode from the Galaxy S10 for videos. You see, the “Era of Live” leaves static selfie photos behind and moves towards videos, which could be streamed to a global crowd. Samsung Galaxy A80 in Angel Gold This module is joined by an 8MP ultra-wide angle camera with 123° field of video. It allows you to get more of your friends into the shot (even at arm’s length). The third module is a 3D ToF sensor, which enables Live Focus for shots and even videos (it simulates a shallow depth of field, which you control with a single tap). Samsung Galaxy A80 in Ghost White The way that the camera tucks behind the back means that there’s no need for a notch or a hole. The roomy 6.7” Super AMOLED screen is completely unblemished. It has 1,080 x 2,400px resolution and an in-display fingerprint reader. Samsung Galaxy A80 in Phantom Black The Samsung Galaxy A80 is built on a metal frame with curved glass on either side. It packs a 3,700mAh battery with 25W Super Fast Charging (like the A70 there’s no wireless charging). The phone comes with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. There are no higher capacity options and no microSD slot either. The phone will run Android 9 Pie with One UI out of the box. The Galaxy A80 will be available in three colors; Phantom Black, Angel Gold and Ghost White. The latter two change slightly depending on how light reflects off them, bringing in a touch of pink and blue, respectively. Samsung Galaxy A80 color options The Samsung Galaxy A80 will cost €649 ($730) and will go on sale starting May 29.