The Samsung Galaxy On8 brings an Infinity Display and dual cameras to Samsung’s mid-range lineup
“The Samsung Galaxy On8 brings an Infinity Display and dual cameras to Samsung’s mid-range lineup”
It’s no secret that Xiaomi is giving a tough competition to the numero uno smartphone maker in India, Samsung. While the Chinese giant was leading the charts in the Q1 this year, market research firms Counterpoint and Canalys reveal that the Korean brand was able to steal the top spot in Q2. This shows that Samsung isn’t backing down and launching smartphones to take the offerings from Xiaomi head on. The brand’s recently-launched Samsung Galaxy On8 is competing squarely against the Redmi Note 5 Pro ( review), and if you are wondering which smartphone is a better buy, then read on ahead.
Both the Galaxy On8 and Redmi Note 5 Pro feature bezel-less displays, minus the notch. While the On8 Pro settles for a 6-inch HD+ Super AMOLED display with an aspect ratio of 18.5:9, Xiaomi’s offering comes equipped with a 5.99-inch, 18:9 LCD display with an FHD+ resolution. Samsung seems to have worked on its fit and finish and this is clearly visible on the brand’s latest. Yet it remains a step behind the Note 5 Pro because of its polycarbonate build in comparison to aluminium construction.
All said and done, the Redmi Note 5 Pro scores a home run when it comes to the design and display resolution (at least on paper). However, there have been cases wherein an AMOLED display has outperformed an LCD display of higher resolution.
The Samsung Galaxy On8 comes powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 SoC. On the storage front, the device offers 4GB of RAM and 64GB of RAM. The microSD card slot is capable of accommodating up to 256GB of additional memory. In contrast, the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro draws power from the more powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 636 paired with Adreno 509 and 4GB / 6GB of RAM. Storage options on the Xiaomi handset include 64GB of internal memory that is further expandable up to 128GB. It’s evident that the Note 5 Pro is the clear winner as far as hardware is concerned.
When it comes to software, the Redmi Note 5 Pro initially came preloaded with Android 7.1.2 Nougat but now Xiaomi has started offering the Android 8.0 Oreo. Meanwhile, the Galaxy On8 runs Samsung Experience 9.0 with Oreo as the base layer. That being said, both the UI are customised to the hilt and it mostly boils down to personal preferences.
On the camera front, the Galaxy On8 offers a dual rear camera setup which is made up of a 16-megapixel primary sensor with f/1.7 aperture and a 5-megapixel sensor with f/1.9 aperture. For selfies, the Galaxy On8 comes equipped with a 16MP shooter. Needless to say, Samsung has baked in the trademark camera features like the Live Focus, Background Blur shape, and portrait mode.
Thze Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro also sports a pair of cameras at the back, comprising a 12MP snapper with an aperture of f/2.2 and a 5MP f/2.0 sensor. Other camera features on the smartphone include a dual-tone LED flash, panorama, and HDR support. The selfie snapper on the Redmi Note 5 Pro is a 20-megapixel unit with an aperture of f/2.2.
It is debatable on which camera is better, but the Galaxy On8 seems to be better on paper as its rear cameras have a wider aperture. In terms of selfies however, the Redmi Note 5 Pro comes out ahead. The Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro is backed by a bigger 4,000mAh battery with Quick Charge 2.0 support. In comparison, the Galaxy On8 ships with a 3,500mAh battery, but doesn’t have any quick charge functionality.
