Samsung Galaxy A34 vs. A33

The Samsung Galaxy A34 vs. A33 sounds like a simple decision: the A34 must be a step up from the A33. But this isn’t necessarily the case, despite the nomenclature that suggests otherwise. Yes, the Galaxy A34 was released earlier this year, and the Galaxy A33 in 2022. And there are some step-up features. But the decision between them isn’t so cut and dry. Here, we’ll try to break it down for you.

Samsung Galaxy A34 vs. Samsung Galaxy A33: On the outside

In terms of how they look, the Samsung Galaxy A34 has a larger, 6.6-inch Super AMOLED screen with a 2,340 x 1,080 resolution. But most notably, it offers an impressive 120Hz refresh rate, which will make the difference for those who use their phones to play games, stream videos, and multitask with plenty of heavy bandwidth applications. 

Available in Awesome Violet, Awesome Graphite, Awesome Lime, and Awesome Silver, the Samsung Galaxy A34 comes in Samsung’s own “glasstic” finish, which involves a thin layer of glass between two layers of plastic. This allows the phone to be lightweight while also looking more expensive than it really is. That said, the phone has a notch at the top of the screen, so the look isn’t completely clean. 

The phone comes equipped with a 5,000 mAh battery to last up to two days per charge, an Adaptive Battery feature to help optimize battery life, and support for fast charging. With an IP67 water-resistant rating, it comes in 128GB or 256GB capacities, which can be expanded up to 1TB.

Available in more pastel-like colors, including Awesome Blue, Awesome Black, Awesome White, and Awesome Peach, the Samsung Galaxy A33 has a 6.4-inch Infinity-U FHD+ SAMOLED that offers a slightly higher resolution at 2,400 x 1,080. 

Overall, while you can see well in bright and low light with the screen of the Galaxy A33, the A34 has both a bigger and brighter screen, according to most reviewers. It’s also faster since the A33 screen offers just a 90Hz refresh rate. This will do for most, but if you’re a big gamer or watch a lot of fast-motion videos, you might prefer the A34. 

The Galaxy A33 has the same notch at the top of the screen and the same 5,000 mAh battery with support for Super Fast Charging when using an optional 25W charger. It also has the same IP67 rating for both water and dust resistance. It only comes in a 128GB variant but it’s also expandable up to 1TB via an optional microSD card.

Samsung Galaxy A34 vs A33: The specs

Before getting into the performance differences between these two phones, let’s run down the core specifications.

There are a lot of similarities between these two phones when it comes to specs but a few notable differences that we’ll discuss further.

Samsung Galaxy A34 vs. Samsung Galaxy A33: The performance

When it comes to performance, there are some differences between these two phones. The Samsung Galaxy A34 runs on the MediaTek Dimensity 1080 chip and offers either 6GB or 8GB RAM, depending on the variant. It comes with either 128GB or 256GB storage along with a microSD card slot to accommodate an optional card up to 1TB in size. 

Stereo speakers with support for Dolby Atmos accompany the high-res screen and the 5,000 mAh battery is rated to last up to two days, depending on how you use it. The large screen is also conducive to tons of activities, from gaming to capturing video, multitasking, and more. 

You’ll get an almost identical experience with the Samsung Galaxy A33, including 6GB or 8GB RAM, though with an Exynos processor, only 128GB storage (also expandable up to 1TB), stereo speakers with support for Dolby Atmos, and 5,000mAh battery. One thing to note, however, is that this phone does support wireless charging, which the Samsung Galaxy A34 does not. 

With regards to the cameras, the Samsung Galaxy A34 and Galaxy A33 have almost identical camera systems, except that the Galaxy A33 adds a 2MP Depth camera. However, most would note that this camera doesn’t make much of a difference: you could use the main camera, zoom in, and get a similar result anyway. There are also the usual enhanced Samsung photography features, like auto framing, photo remaster to reduce blur and noise object eraser, and an AI tool with both of them. The Galaxy A33, however, adds some additional fun features, including something literally called Fun mode with built-in Snapchat lenses that are updated regularly. 

Both offer access to Samsung Knox Security and allow you to create secure folders to store encrypted files. If you own other compatible Samsung devices, Quick Share makes it easy to share content among them.

Samsung Galaxy A34 vs. Samsung Galaxy A33: Which should you buy?

It’s decision time. When looking at the Samsung Galaxy A34 vs. Samsung Galaxy A33, which should you buy? The Samsung Galaxy A34 is the newer phone of the two with a bigger, brighter, and, most important, faster display. But there are no other huge performance improvements. 

The Samsung Galaxy A34 is more rounded in design with lenses that protrude from the back. It’s also slightly taller, wider, and heavier thanks to the bigger screen, though it’s the same thickness. You get the addition of the depth camera with the Samsung Galaxy A33, though as noted, this isn’t a dealbreaker. 

The better, newer overall phone is the Samsung Galaxy A34, so you’re better off opting for this model to future-proof the investment, especially if you’re a gamer or plan to push the screen to the max. The Samsung Galaxy A33 doesn’t offer any compelling features that make it worth choosing instead unless you prefer the colors and more compact size. Plus, you get the option of 256GB built-in storage with the A34 while the A33 is limited to 128GB. 

If budget is really your concern, explore some of the best Android phones under $300 which include additional models in the Samsung Galaxy line as well as options from other brands if you aren’t set on a Galaxy phone.