Samsung Galaxy A56 and Galaxy A36 are now on sale in the UK. These affordable new Android handsets boast many of the same Galaxy AI features, including real-time transcriptions or translations for incoming calls and near-instantaneous summaries of lengthy PDFs, emails, and webpages, as the flagship Galaxy S lineup.
Announced earlier this month, Galaxy A56 and Galaxy A36 are now available to order from the Samsung Store, Currys, and Amazon UK. Some of the biggest UK mobile networks like EE, O2, and Vodafone also now offer the latest Galaxy A-branded handsets with pay monthly deals.
Galaxy A36 starts from £399 and ships with 256GB of built-in storage. Meanwhile, the Galaxy A56 starts from £499 and also ships with 256GB of built-in storage. For that, you'll enjoy a faster Exynos chipset, larger 5,000mAh battery cell, and a triple-camera system with some Galaxy AI wizardry to supercharge your edits.
That makes Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56 considerably more affordable than Samsung's top-of-the-line Galaxy S25, S25+, and Galaxy S25 Ultra, which launched back in January and start from £799.
But if that isn't enough to convince you, Samsung will send you 3 gifts worth over £138 when you buy either Galaxy A36 or Galaxy A56 from its online store or any of the retailers or mobile carriers listed above.
Unlock free gifts worth £138 when you switch to latest Galaxy A series
Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56 were already the most affordable new smartphones launched by Samsung this year ...but these Android handsets are now even more appealing, thanks to a Gift Pack worth over £138 bundled with every purchase. It includes a Galaxy Fit3 wearable, protective case, and 45W superfast charger to use witih your brand-new phone. Trade in an existing phone to slash the cost of the Galaxy A series by up to £90 for even more savings
The bundle of freebies includes a Galaxy Fit3 (worth £59) capable of tracking over 100 workouts, everyday activities, and sleep, a 45W superfast charger, and a protective silicone case. Samsung will send a colour that matches the finish of the Galaxy A36 or Galaxy A56 you've picked.
You must head to this webpage on the Samsung Store to start your claim within 30 days of purchase.
If you're willing to part with your current smartphone, Samsung has supercharged its trade-in offers.
You can enjoy a discount between £50 – £90 when you agree to mail your existing handset to the South Korean brand. Both the trade-in price cut and the £138 free gift can be combined for a blockbuster saving at checkout.
Galaxy A36 & Galaxy A36
Samsung's Galaxy A56 and A36 are the latest additions to its mid-range A-series lineup, offering premium features at accessible prices.
Positioned between £200 – £300 below the flagship Galaxy S25 series, these models aim to provide a balance between performance and affordability, competing with devices like Google's Pixel 9a, Nothing Phone 3a, and the iPhone 16e from Apple.
Both new Galaxy handsets showcase significant improvements over their predecessors, the A55 and A35, particularly in design, performance, and AI capabilities. Here's everything you need to know.
Key Features:
- Display:
- 6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED with 120Hz refresh rate
- Camera:
- Galaxy A56: 50MP main sensor, 12MP ultra-wide lens, 5MP macro lens, 12MP front camera
- Galaxy A36: 50MP main sensor, 8MP ultra-wide lens, 5MP macro lens, 12MP front camera
- Enhanced AI capabilities, including Best Face and Object Eraser
- Performance:
- Galaxy A56: Exynos 1580 chipset
- Galaxy A36: Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 processor
- Battery:
- 5,000mAh capacity
- 45W fast wired charging
- Software:
- Android 15 with One UI 7; six years of OS and security updates
Elsewhere, Galaxy A56 and Galaxy A36 arrive with IP67 water and dust resistance ratings, which means both devices can withstand submersion in one meter of freshwater for up to 30 minutes. The screen is protected with Gorilla Glass Victus+ toughened glass, which was only available on flagship phones a few years ago.
Samsung claims its beefier 5,000mAh battery cell should be enough to endure 29 hours of video playback in Samsung's internal tests. When that runs out, there's support for 45W fast wired charging.
Be one of the first to own the Galaxy A56
Samsung will release its all-new Galaxy A56 in the UK on March 19. If you want to be one of the first to pocket this AI-fuelled mid-range Android handset, you can place a preorder so your device is sent out as early as possible. Galaxy A56 offers a faster Exynos chipset, larger 5,000mAh battery cell, and triple-camera system with Galaxy AI features to supercharge your photos
On the front of both Galaxy A handsets, you'll find 6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED displays with brightness levels reaching up to 1,200 nits.
That's an increase from the (slightly) smaller 6.6-inch touchscreens found on its predecessors, which was achieved by shaving the size of the borders around the display, Samsung says.
Mobile chief at Samsung Electronics, TM Roh said: "The new Galaxy A series marks an important step in our mission of AI for all, by opening Galaxy’s incredible mobile AI experiences to even more people around the world. With these awesome new features and capabilities, we are excited to unlock limitless creativity on the Galaxy A series while ensuring a safe, reliable and fun mobile experience."
Out of the box, Galaxy A36 and Galaxy A56 are powered by Samsung's One UI 7, which is based on Android 15. Samsung has extended software support for the next six generations of Android OS upgrades, with a guaranteed six years of security updates too.
Samsung has included faster internals for both mid-range handsets. Its own Exynos 1580 chipset — which boasts double-digit gains for NPU, GPU, and CPU performance — is found inside the Galaxy A56, while the South Korean firm has turned to Qualcomm's Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 to fuel the Galaxy A36.
To make the most of these more powerful chipsets, Samsung has fitted a larger vapour chamber, comparable in size to the one inside the Galaxy S24+, to disperse heat from the silicon and ensure these devices can maintain top-end performance during intensive tasks for longer periods of time.
The Galaxy A series boasts a powerful new triple-camera system with a 50MP main camera, coupled with an ultra-wide lens, and macro sensor for close-up photography.
Both devices sport an improved front-facing 12MP camera capable of 10-bit HDR recording and improved low-light performance for better selfies and video calls.
Coupled with these hardware improvements, Samsung has added a slew of new Artificial Intelligence (AI) tweaks to improve photos. Best Face makes it easier than ever to capture the perfect group shot by selecting and combining the best expressions or features for up to five people from a motion photo. Whether someone blinked or looked away, Best Face ensures everyone looks their best in a single, seamless shot.
Next up, enhancements to Nightography is now included in the 12MP selfie camera and additional wide camera support to capture stunning content in low-light settings without relying on the LED flash.
If you want to remove an unwanted person or object from the background of your perfect shot, Object Eraser is now baked into the Galaxy A56 and Galaxy A36. Whether it's an unexpected passerby or a distracting shadow, these can all be wiped with AI to achieve a cleane final image with just a few taps.
LATEST DEVELOPMENTS
- End of the satellite dish? 'Highly unlikely' Sky will release new Sky Q
- Best Sky Glass deals
- Stream Sky TV and Netflix for £1 when you switch to EE
- Apple just launched its fastest, cheapest new MacBook Air in years
- Best VPN deals
Lastly, Galaxy AI will generate a custom filter specifically for you by extracting colours and styles from existing photos to apply for a unique and personalized effect depending on mood and taste. With these intelligent tools, users can refine and enhance their photos effortlessly, bringing a new level of creativity to every shot.
Despite all of these new improvements, Samsung has managed to shrink the size of these new handsets. At just 7.4mm thick, the Galaxy A56 is significantly slimmer than the Galaxy A55 launched last year (8.2mm). Not only that, but it's also lighter at 198g compared to 213g.
Galaxy A56 is available in four new colours: Awesome Lightgray, Awesome Graphite, Awesome Olive, and Awesome Pink. Meanwhile, the Galaxy A36 ships in Awesome Lavender, Awesome Black, Awesome White, and Awesome Lime.
Find Out More...