Samsung is being ambitious with its new smartphones and the recent launches in the various series are proof of that. Joining the expansive Galaxy lineup, Samsung recently launched its Galaxy F41 smartphone, which marks the beginning of yet another mid-range series in the company's portfolio. It is not to be mistaken with the existing M-series though.
Samsung Galaxy F41 comes in two models, 64GB and 128GB, priced at Rs 15,499 and Rs 16,499, respectively. Both models get 6GB RAM supported by an ageing Exynos 9611 chipset on an OneUI platform. We'll talk about this more here, but let's start with design.
Design
Samsung Galaxy F41 has a signature design akin to the Galaxy M-series. It packs a plastic build, which isn't high-grade material and attacks a lot of smudges. A silcone case could fix that, but if you use without one, there's no fear of breaking the back panel as easily as you would in a glass back phone.
Read: Samsung Galaxy S20 FE Review
The gradient finish looks trendy on the Galaxy F41, which is attractive and the overall design isn't too bad at all. The rear-mounted fingerprint scanner gets a prominent position on the back panel, close to the camera, which has a rectangular module much like modern Samsung phones.
The power button, volume rocker, USB Type-C port, speaker grille take the usual spots on the sides and the bottom. The SIM card tray has a dedicated microSD card slot along with dual SIM card slots. Overall, Samsung Galaxy F41 doesn't stand out in the crowd, but won't get any criticism either in terms of design. While the phone is compact to hold and carry, it sure has a weight - courtesy of the 6,000mAh battery inside.
Display
Displays are Samsung's strengths. All Galaxy phones tend to have great displays consistently in their respective price range. Samsung Galaxy F41 upholds that legacy in offering a bright, big display, which is ideal for binge-watching your favourite TV shows.
Samsung Galaxy F41 has a 6.4-inch Full HD+ AMOLED screen with a tiny notch on the top and a considerably big chin at the bottom. After using the phone for a while, you won't feel its presence bother you. Using the phone in dark rooms and under direct sunlight did not pose any problems. The decision to stick with 60Hz display is purely budget restraint. But if there was 90Hz, Samsung would have an edge.
Performance
From the brief time we spent with the phone, the Galaxy F41 did quite alright on day-to-day tasks. The chipset might be old, but it is still one of the most efficient ones for taking care of your daily activities such as calls, social media browsing, video streaming, internet browsing, messaging and video calling. But the Galaxy F41 is not made for high-end gaming, but you can always be a part of your friend's Ludo gang.
We noticed occasional stutters while running too many online apps in the background, and corrected it by clearing them. The OneUI 2.0 is as refined as it is on other Samsung phones. The fingerprint scanner works efficiently if you're not bothered by its rear position.
Cameras
Samsung Galaxy F41 have a triple camera setup, with 64MP+8MP+5MP sensors on the back and a 32MP front shooter. The cameras bring out some sharp, detailed images in outdoor lighting with the primary sensor. The 8MP ultra-wide sensor isn't the best one out there and the results can have slight distortion around the corners. The depth sensor, however, makes for good portraits and we found them working better on objects than on humans. Low light photography tends to suffer, but it is still capable of not letting you hanging dry when you really need that shot.
The selfies on the Galaxy M41 were quite impressive, capturing good amount of details, colours and skin tones. Overall, the Galaxy F41 cameras won't disappoint you after all.
Read: Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra review
Battery
The sizeable 6,000mAh battery isn't the one to disappoint. Since we did not do any gaming on the phone, it easily lasted close to two days on a single charge. However, binge-watching shows on the Galaxy F41 will deplete that battery sooner. But you won't have to cut short your binge-watching session because your phone's juice is running out.
But what we found really annoying is the charging speed. It takes over 3 hours to fully charge the phone. If you're in the habit of leaving the phone to charge overnight, you won't feel much of an issue, but getting those bars up when you have to rush to a meeting, things can be annoying. The 15W fast charging is not quite as fast as it shows on the phone's screen.
Verdict
Samsung Galaxy F41 has the design, display and cameras going its way. The performance is not the best, but gets the job done. The battery will go on and on, but so will its charging pace, which can truly test your patience. Given this is the first smartphone in the F-series, Samsung could be just assessing the demand and its next phone could well be worth a look, but the Galaxy F41 is not at all a bad phone to go for in 2020 if your brand loyalty lies with Samsung.
