Samsung Galaxy M40 review: A worthy alternative to Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro

Brand: Samsung
Product: Samsung Galaxy M40
Key specifications: 6.3-inch Full HD+ Infinity O display, Snapdragon 675 Pro, 3,500mAh battery, 6GB RAM, 32-megapixel, 5-megapixel and 8-megapixel wide-angle lens, Android Pie, 16-megapixel front camera, fingerprint sensor.
Price: ₹19,990
Rating: 3.5/5

Samsung has continued to deliver near excellent phones under its Galaxy M series. From Galaxy M10 to Galaxy M30, Samsung has covered all major price points in the budget and mid-range segments. Its latest offering Samsung Galaxy M40 covers the upper tier of the mid-range segment. At ₹19,990, it's the most expensive Galaxy M smartphone thus far.

Samsung Galaxy M40 is more expensive than Xiaomi's Redmi Note 7 Pro, which is priced at ₹16,999 for the 6GB variant. For around ₹20,000, there are barely any new smartphone, even the popular Poco F1 is now a generation old. Samsung has a big opportunity to tap this gap with Galaxy M40.

As explained in our Galaxy M40 first impressions, Samsung's new phone bets big on design. With a glossy back panel, Galaxy M40 has more refined design than Galaxy M30 and older. It's incredibly light compared to the likes of OnePlus 7 Pro. Samsung Galaxy M40 boasts of full HD+ display with punch-hole camera (Infinity O) and 91.8% screen-to-body ratio. The placement of punch-hole, which is on the top left corner, makes it convenient to watch movies in landscape mode. While any notch is a permanent distraction, Galaxy M40 is no exception. The display quality, however, is far superior to any of phones in this segment. It's bright and vibrant. The Widevine L1 support brings HD experience from apps like Netflix and Amazon Prime.

While Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro offers 48-megapixel camera, Samsung steps up the camera game with a triple-camera setup of 32-megapixel, 5-megapixel and 8-megapixel wide-angle lens with 123-degrees field of view. The camera is generally good, especially in daylight conditions.

The Live Focus mode gives you adjustable depth mode. The bokeh shots are also quite impressive as they retain the sharpness of the subject. The wide-angle mode, however, still needs work. You will notice a fish-eye like effect in some of the images. This is something we've noticed in the older Samsung phones as well. The slo-mo and other camera modes are average if not better.

Galaxy M40 is the first phone to run on Qualcomm Snapdragon 675 processor - also the same chipset that powers the Redmi Note 7 Pro. The chipset helps the Samsung phone deliver a much smoother performance, especially when you're in power usage mode. Graphic intensive games or apps run like a breeze. There's a fair bit of battery of drain in power usage mode.

The phone is powered by 3,500mAh battery which is surprisingly smaller than the 5,000mAh battery on the Galaxy M20. The smaller battery does affect the phone's backup overall. On power usage which includes longer sessions of gaming and video streaming Galaxy M40 may last less than a day.

Samsung Galaxy M40 doesn't come with 3.5mm headphone jack. While the company bundles USB Type-C headphones, you may prefer newer headphones for better audio experience. Probably, you can invest in a connector to continue using your existing headphones.

Verdict

Samsung Galaxy M40 ticks all the boxes for a premium mid-range phone. From smooth performance, UI to an impressive camera, Galaxy M40 gets almost everything right. At ₹19,990, it's still more expensive than rest of Galaxy M phones and the competition. If you're looking for a good looking phone that doesn't compromise on performance, Galaxy M40 is worth considering. But if performance is the main criteria, Poco F1 with one-year-old Snapdragon 845 is still a good option. You can also consider Xiaomi Redmi Note 7 Pro which is much cheaper than Galaxy M40.

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