Samsung Galaxy A16 Review: Great Battery Life

Price When Reviewed

$149.99

Best Prices Today: Samsung Galaxy A16

$149.49

$149.49

Samsung’s Galaxy A16 is a minor upgrade over last year’s A15, offering a larger 6.7-inch AMOLED display, basic IP54 water and dust resistance, and a solid battery life.

However, despite these small refinements, the core hardware remains largely unchanged. It still runs on the MediaTek Helio G99 chipset, which struggles when compared to newer budget processors. The cameras remain basic, with a weak 5Mp ultrawide and an unnecessary 2Mp macro sensor.

The lack of stereo speakers, 4K video recording, and proper video stabilization puts it at a disadvantage against rivals like the Redmi Note 13, Poco X6, and even Samsung’s slightly higher specced Galaxy A16 5G, which are among the best budget phones.

Ultimately, while the A16 offers a polished software experience and great battery life, it feels like a phone from last year that hasn’t kept up with the competition.

Design & Build

• Larger design with IP54-rated splash resistance
• Matt plastic back feels sturdy and resists fingerprints
• No stereo speakers or premium materials

Samsung hasn’t dramatically changed the design from last year’s A15, but the Galaxy A16 is slightly bigger thanks to its larger 6.7-inch screen. The matt plastic back feels well-built and resists fingerprints better than glossy finishes. I particularly liked the Light Green colorway my unit came in. It looks almost like mint, and there’s a slight shimmer when you hold the device under certain lights. There are also darker blue and gray color options to pick from.

Connor Jewiss/Foundry

The phone retains Samsung’s signature floating camera design, where the three rear lenses are stacked vertically with no camera island. The frame is flat and minimalistic, with the power and volume buttons raised for easy access. I don’t particularly care for this side notch for the buttons. There’s no real functional reason for it, and it doesn’t look great.

Connor Jewiss/Foundry

The biggest new addition is IP54 splash resistance, which means the A16 can handle light rain and dust exposure. However, this does not mean it’s waterproof – so don’t expect it to survive a dunk in water.

At 200g, the phone is reasonably heavy, but its weight distribution is well-balanced, making it comfortable to hold for extended periods.

However, there’s no stereo speaker set-up – a major omission in 2025. Phones like the Redmi Note 13 and Poco X6 offer dual speakers, making them better for media consumption.

Screen & Sound

• 6.7-inch Super AMOLED display delivers vibrant colors and deep blacks
• 800-nit peak brightness ensures good outdoor visibility
• No HDR support and only a single bottom-firing speaker

The A16’s display is its second strongest feature, behind the excellent battery life. The 6.7-inch Super AMOLED panel offers great color reproduction, deep blacks, and excellent contrast. With a Full HD+ (1080 x 2340) resolution, the display is crisp and sharp – perfect for streaming, gaming, and reading.

Connor Jewiss/Foundry

The 90Hz refresh rate makes scrolling feel smooth, but unlike some rivals, there’s no adaptive refresh rate, meaning it stays at 90Hz all the time, slightly impacting battery efficiency.

Brightness is impressive for a budget phone, with a measured 808-nit peak brightness, making it usable outdoors even in bright sunlight. However, HDR support is missing, meaning services like Netflix and YouTube won’t offer the highest-quality playback.

The biggest letdown is audio. With only a single bottom-firing speaker, the sound lacks depth, bass, and stereo separation. In contrast, similarly priced Xiaomi and Poco rivals offer dual speakers, making them better for watching videos and gaming.

Specs & Performance

• Chipsets are power-efficient and handle basic tasks well, but are old
• Expandable storage via microSD card
• Slower than similarly priced phones like the Poco X6

Samsung has taken an unusual approach with the Galaxy A16, equipping the phone with two different chipsets, depending on the region. Some models come with the MediaTek Helio G99, while others feature Samsung’s in-house Exynos 1280. While both are mid-range processors, their performance varies significantly in real-world use.

The Helio G99 is a 6nm chip with an octa-core CPU (2x Cortex-A76 at 2.2GHz and 6x Cortex-A55 at 2.0GHz), paired with a Mali-G57 MC2 GPU. It performs well for everyday tasks like messaging, web browsing, and social media, but it struggles under heavy multitasking.

The Exynos 1280, on the other hand, is a 5nm processor with a more power-efficient design and a slightly stronger Mali-G68 MP4 GPU, giving it a modest edge in graphics performance and battery efficiency.

In benchmarks, the Exynos 1280 consistently scores higher than the Helio G99 in CPU-heavy tasks but still falls behind modern mid-range processors like the Snapdragon 7s Gen 2. The Mali-G68 GPU also outperforms the Mali-G57 MC2, offering smoother gameplay in some cases. However, both chipsets are not ideal for gaming, with frequent frame drops in demanding titles.

Memory and storage further limit the phone’s potential. The base model ships with 4GB RAM and 128GB of UFS 2.2 storage, which feels sluggish compared to UFS 3.1 found in some competitors. There is a 6GB RAM variant, which helps with multitasking, but Samsung’s RAM Plus feature (virtual RAM) does little to improve performance.

A16 battery Galaxy great life Review Samsung