Samsung Galaxy J3 is the latest addition to the affordable J series from Samsung. Last year we saw Galaxy J5 and Galaxy J7 doing consistently well in Indian markets, and Samsung has continued the range with the new smartphone. It is priced at INR 8,990.
We have been testing the device much before the launch and here is the quick review and our take on the gaming and performance of the Galaxy J3.
Samsung Galaxy J3 Specifications
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Samsung Galaxy J3 Coverage
Samsung Galaxy J3 Launched At INR 8,990 With S Bike Mode
Samsung Galaxy J3 FAQ, Pros, Cons, user Queries and Answers
Samsung Galaxy J3 Camera Review, Photo Samples
Samsung Galaxy J3 Unboxing, Quick Review, Gaming and Benchmarks
Samsung Galaxy J3 Review [Video]
Samsung Galaxy J3 Unboxing
Samsung has used a very simple and small that it used in the J series and ON series phone earlier. But this time the box is not orange in colour, there are few graphics on all the sides with the picture of the phone on top.
Opening the box, you will find the handset lying on the top shelf. Right below the handset is the kit that contains user manual. Lift out the kit and open the last compartment containing the contents of the box placed nicely under it.
Samsung Galaxy J3 Box Contents
The contents found inside the Galaxy J3 box are: –
- Galaxy J3 Smartphone
- USB cable
- 2-pin charger
- Quick start guide
- In-ear headphones
Physical Overview
The Samsung Galaxy J3 comes packed in a good looking shell that also feels very strong to hold. Samsung has used the same back panel that we have seen in the previous J series phones. It has faux leather back with rounded sides that are made of polycarbonate and feel very solid. For the first time, Samsung has used a multi-coloured pattern to make the device look different from the other Samsung devices. The back looks the same but there is a black border around the display covering the almost half of the front. In terms of feel, it is lightweight and handy for one hand usage.
The front has the 5 inch Super AMOLED display with thin side bezels. You will find the speaker mesh on the top with the front camera and proximity and light sensors.
The home button and navigation buttons are on the chin of the phone and they are not backlit. Home button has chrome borders around it, which look good and it does not feel like plastic.
The volume rocker is on the left side of the phone,
and the Lock/power key is on the right side.
3.5 mm audio jack is located on the top.
At the bottom, there is a USB port and secondary mic.
The back has the square shaped camera ring with shiny chrome finish, and it is placed in the middle. Speaker grill is on the right side of the camera and the LED is on left.
Samsung Galaxy J3 Photo Gallery
User Interface
As we stated in our introduction, the Galaxy J3 has a lot of elements to it that are traditionally Samsung. The UI of the Galaxy J3 majorly symbolises this fact. It remains, a skinned version of Android 5.1 Lollipop with Samsung’s TouchWiz interface atop it. This means that while the phone may seem snappy and animations/transitions are carried out smoothly initially, as time progresses one and you load the J3 with apps, performance is sure to take a dip. This happens due to the fact that the phone has more work to do, more tasks to manage simultaneously as you install apps, games, services or load media onto the phone. That being said, if you like Samsung’s TouchWiz interface, you will feel right at home here.
Gaming Performance
The Samsung Galaxy J3 is a decent performer when it comes to gaming. We did not expect much from its hardware in terms of gaming as it comes with just 1.5 GB of RAM and Spreadtrum SC7731 CPU. It has the same Mali-400 MP GPU that we saw on other budget devices.
We installed Modern Combat 5 and Dead Trigger 2 on this device and changed the default graphic settings to medium. Surprisingly, the handset was not showing up any issues in the game-play while running Dead Trigger 2, even though I noticed slight stutter when there was too much action on screen. It was easily playable and the minor lags did not spoil the game in any way. We decided to play Modern Combat 5 after it, and we were happy to see that this device can easily handle this game as well. Ignoring the minor lags and frame drops, rest of the performance was fair and you can play games at medium graphic settings with ease.
Note: – The gaming tests were done under an atmospheric temperature of 32 degree Celsius.
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As far as the heating is concerned, the device was controlling the temperature pretty nicely.
Samsung Galaxy J3 Gaming Review [Video]
Galaxy J3 Performance and Benchmark Scores
Galaxy J3 is a smartphone that’s designed for those who do not have a lot of heavy tasks to do on their phones. If you are looking for a phone that can go through a long day of work with basic features of a smartphone, it can easily scroll through heavy webpages, keep your social and news feeds up to date, and click decent pictures without creating any fuss. If you expect it to run bunch of apps and heavy games without any issue then you are asking for too much from this phone.
The benchmark scores of the Samsung Galaxy J3 are:
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Conclusion
During the tests, the Galaxy J3 was performing decently in almost every possible area. The heavy TouchWiz UI is something that steals some power and memory but it still manages to keep up with moderate tasks. Gaming on this device is not something that we expect from phones of this category, it is good for games like Modern Combat 5 but it may struggle while playing heavy games like Asphalt 8.
