With this model, Samsung ushers in a new era of budget smartphones

The Samsung Galaxy A13 is slightly more expensive than its predecessor. A price increase of 10 USD is a much bigger deal for a budget smartphone that it would be for a more expensive phone.

However, the Samsung device also offers many improvements compared to the predecessor: There is now a bright, high-resolution Full HD screen, fast Wi-Fi, and also NFC support for mobile payment services and other applications, which is not a given in this particular price segment.

Of course, the case is rather plain and unlikely to truly impress anyone, particularly since the glossy surface is fairly susceptible to fingerprints. Furthermore, only the most common 4G frequencies are supported, although other devices in this price category do not tend to offer much more, either.

Then why do we see the Samsung Galaxy A13 as such an important mileston for the manufacturer? Well, Samsung had fallen behind, since competitors were offering better and better features at ever-decreasing prices. Thus, it became important for Samsung to not just polish the details of the Galaxy A13, but instead offer at least one big improvement, which it accomplished with the display and the fast Wi-Fi.

There is still one main drawback, however: The Galaxy A13 still relies on Samsung's own Exynos 850 chip, which does it no favors. In terms of the performance, it struggles to compete with other phones in its price category and stuttering during day-to-day use is not uncommon.

More information and benchmarks can be found in our in-depth review of the Samsung Galaxy A13 4G. In the article, we also explore some of the current alternatives to the Galaxy smartphone.