Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime Impressions - Loaded With Goodness?

If you can recall, the Galaxy J7 2016 was one of the best selling midrange offering of Samsung for the first half of the year. It was well received due to its premium looks, capable specs, and long battery life.

Meet Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime

The company knows it works so the company followed it up with the Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime. It's an even better handset that's loaded with sleeker curves, and beefier configurations. 

The cool part there is Samsung was able to pull of those upgrades even if it comes with a more affordable SRP.  At just PHP 13,990, J7 Prime is PHP 1K less than the original SRP of the J7 2016. That good pricing also made the J7 Prime one of the most affordable phones with premium build and capable specs in the market today.

The question is, is it really that good? Let's all find out!

Disclaimer: This unit was provided by Samsung Philippines for an honest review

Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime Specs

Display: 5.5 Inch FHD TFT 1920 x 1080 resolution w/ 2.5D curved glass and Gorilla Glass 4 protection at 401 ppi

CPU: 1.6 GHz 64 Bit Exynos 7870 octa core processor

GPU: Mali T830

RAM: 3 GB

ROM: 32 GB expandable via micro SD card slot up to 256 GB

Back Camera: 13 MP f/1.9 w/ AF and LED flash

Selfie Camera: 8 MP f/1.9

Battery: 3,300 mAh

OS: Android 6.0.1 Marshmallow w/ TouchWiz UI

Connectivity: WiFi, 3G, LTE, Bluetooth 4.1, OTG, GPS, A GPS, dual SIM

Sensors: Accelerometer, proximity, sound

Others: Fingerprint sensor, Colors: white gold, black

Dimensions: 151.5 x 74.9 x 8.1 mm

Weight: 167 g

Price: PHP 13,990

Note: We got the handset bare-bones, the pre-order package includes premium accessories such as Level Active earphones and black cover worth PHP 4,099.

Build Quality / Design

View at the back, notice that there's no camera hump and the paint finish looks stunning

For us, this is arguably the best coming from the Galaxy J7 series in terms of style and build yet. The handset flaunts a beautiful and tough all metal unibody design with generous curves all over and right amount of slimness. On top, there's a sleek looking layer of 2.5D curved glass with the tough Gorilla Glass 4 protection.

This phone is the most stylish midrange phone from Samsung today!

Power button and single speaker at right

The phone was constructed in a very good way where it feels solid. Given that it has a Gorilla Glass protection and matte paint job finish, it won't be that prone to scratches unless you force it.

Top view, showing the selfie camera and ear speakers. What's hidden here is the LED notification.

Single mic, micro USB and 3.5 mm standard headphone ports

Volume rocker at left

Micro SIM and dual SIM slots on the lower left side

It reminds me of the regular Samsung Galaxy S7 which is much better than the J7 2016 even if it is thicker by 3 mm. Like what we said above, the paint finish, 2.5D curved glass w/ slim bezels, and the curves of this device looks stunning in person.

We're in love with how Samsung crafted this phone!

Ergonomically, the device is an absolute joy to hold and fits perfectly in the hands. It was well machined, there are no sharp edges, and buttons / port placement were all easy to locate. Only the speakers on the right side has a weird placement, but we find that location so much better than their previous placements at the back.

Note: Just make sure to hold the handset properly as it is slippery for some hands.

Initial findings

The Antutu benchmark of Galaxy J7 Prime

1. The 5.5 inch FHD TFT screen with very slim bezels looks great and doesn't feel like a TFT panel unless you take a closer look at it.
2. The design and build is much better compared with the older Galaxy J7 2016.
3. In our whole day of use, the handset was snappy and doesn't heat up. Battery life is quite good too.
4. The 13 MP main camera of this phone has better color balance which doesn't have the yellow tint compared with other Galaxy J series phones. In front, the 8 MP snapper is decent in daylight, but there's no selfie flash anymore.
5. There's OTG, better speaker placement, 10 points of touch, and LED notification.

Camera teaser

It's a little exposed and soft, but this image looks great for the price

It showed close to proper color accuracy and fine details in this image, promising!

An HDR sample at around 5:45 pm

Selfie test!

As of the moment

We are excited about this product! So far, we think that this is one of the contenders to watch for in the sub PHP 14K range. Given its stunning looks and capable hardware, this is a rare Samsung midrange phone that can take on the very best in its price range.

For our review: Samsung Galaxy J7 Prime Review - The Affordable Premium Machine!