A Budget Galaxy Tops a Blind Selfie Video Test
In a recent Galaxy A37 camera test focused on selfie video, Samsung’s budget handset did what few expected: it beat three Ultra-class flagships in a public blind vote. GSMArena lined up five phones whose selfie videos had already impressed reviewers, then asked followers on TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, and its homepage to choose the best clip without knowing which device shot it. The Galaxy A37, the most affordable phone in the lineup with a street price under €300, emerged as the clear winner, receiving the most positive feedback and the least criticism. Even more striking, the worst-performing selfie videos reportedly came from a top-tier Ultra device, underlining how disconnected price and perceived selfie quality can be. The blind test results highlight a growing reality: affordable smartphone camera performance, at least for front-facing video, is catching up fast to premium territory.
Why the Galaxy A37’s Selfie Video Is So Impressive
The Galaxy A37’s victory is not just about votes; it’s about context. On paper, this is a modest mid-ranger. It relies on a 12MP 1/3.2" front sensor and Samsung’s Exynos 1480 chipset, hardly the kind of hardware spec sheet that usually steals the spotlight from Ultra-branded flagships. Yet in 4K selfie recording, it delivered the most natural, appealing results to viewers, outshining much more expensive competitors. Interestingly, its sibling, the Galaxy A57, which shares the same selfie camera but uses a newer Exynos 1680, only came in second. That suggests Samsung’s tuning and processing pipeline on the A37 is particularly well-optimized, rather than the win being purely about newer silicon. The phone’s performance shows that smart software, not just bigger sensors or faster processors, is now driving budget phone selfie quality into genuinely flagship-competitive territory.
Budget Phones Are Narrowing the Camera Gap
The Galaxy A37’s win illustrates a broader trend: mid-range and budget phones are closing the gap in core experiences that matter most, especially cameras and displays. Even Samsung’s cheaper Galaxy A17 5G, which Android Authority criticizes for its aging processor and limited camera flexibility, still delivers a large Super AMOLED screen with Gorilla Glass Victus and long-term software support. While that device doesn’t shine in photography, it proves how far baseline hardware has come in the affordable segment. Layer on strong image processing, as Samsung clearly did with the A37, and the result is an affordable smartphone camera that can rival—and sometimes surpass—flagship output in specific scenarios like selfie video. For many people, that scenario is exactly what they care about most in daily use: social video, short clips, and video calls shot from the front camera.
Rethinking the Value of Premium Flagships
If a phone costing under €300 can convincingly beat Ultra-class devices in a blind selfie video comparison, the value proposition of premium phones deserves scrutiny. Flagships still offer advantages—more versatile camera arrays, brighter displays, faster chipsets, and higher ingress protection—but the Galaxy A37’s performance shows that paying several times more does not automatically buy better real-world image quality in every use case. Consumers who primarily care about front-facing video may be overpaying for features they rarely use. At the same time, devices like the Galaxy A17 5G remind us that not every budget phone is a hidden gem; corners are still cut in processing power and camera versatility. The key takeaway is that buyers should look beyond labels and price tiers, and pay close attention to targeted tests like this Galaxy A37 camera test when deciding whether a premium phone is truly worth the extra spend.