Samsung Galaxy M12 vs Galaxy A12
38
out of 100
VS
37
out of 100
Here we compared two budget smartphones: the 6.5-inch Samsung Galaxy M12 (with Exynos 850) that was released on November 24, 2020, against the Samsung Galaxy A12, which is powered by MediaTek Helio P35. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
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Key differences
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy M12
- Higher display refresh rate – 90 Hz
- 25% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (255K versus 204K)
- Uses a faster type of memory: LPDDR4X 1866 MHz
- More energy-efficient CPU – Exynos 850
- Has 50% more RAM: 3GB versus 2GB
- 60% faster in single-core GeekBench 6 test: 481 and 300 points
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy A12
- Shows 12% longer battery life (26:02 vs 23:12 hours)
- Delivers 10% higher peak brightness (474 against 429 nits)
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Scores with a red asterisk (*) are approximate and may change in the future as we gather more data.
Select your primary usage scenario to get a more accurate NanoReview Score
Value for money (Beta)
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | PLS TFT | PLS TFT |
| Size | 6.5 inches | 6.5 inches |
| Resolution | 720 x 1600 pixels | 720 x 1600 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 20:9 | 20:9 |
| PPI | 270 ppi | 270 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 90 Hz | 60 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | No | No |
| Max rated brightness | 450 nits | 450 nits |
| HDR support | No | No |
| Screen protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 3 | Tempered glass |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 82% | 82.1% |
| RGB color space | 93.3% | 96.3% |
| PWM | - | 337 Hz |
| Response time | 39 ms | 52 ms |
| Contrast | 926:1 | 864:1 |
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 164 mm (6.46 inches) | 164 mm (6.46 inches) |
| Width | 75.9 mm (2.99 inches) | 75.8 mm (2.98 inches) |
| Thickness | 9.7 mm (0.38 inches) | 8.9 mm (0.35 inches) |
| Weight | 214 g (7.55 oz) | 205 g (7.23 oz) |
| Waterproof | No | No |
| Rear material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Frame material | Plastic | Plastic |
| Colors | Black, Blue, Green | White, Black, Blue, Red |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-button | Yes, in-button |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | Samsung Exynos 850 | MediaTek Helio P35 |
| Max clock | 2000 MHz | 2300 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (8) | 8 (4 + 4) |
| Architecture | - 8 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A55 | - 4 cores at 1.8 GHz: Cortex-A53 - 4 cores at 2.3 GHz: Cortex-A53 |
| Manufacturing | Samsung | TSMC |
| Lithography process | 8 nanometers | 12 nanometers |
| Neural processor (NPU) | No | No |
| Graphics | Mali-G52 | IMG PowerVR GE8320 |
| GPU shading units | 16 | 32 |
| GPU clock | 1001 MHz | 680 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~48 GFLOPS | ~43.5 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
| Single-core score | 481 | 300 |
| Multi-core score | 1522 | 824 |
AnTuTu Benchmark 11
| CPU | 102962 | 98355 |
| GPU | 18064 | 9461 |
| Memory | 78853 | 57623 |
| UX | 55507 | 38722 |
| Total score | 255386 | 204161 |
| Samples | Less than 3 | [2 tests] |
PCMark 3.0
| Web score | 5973 | - |
| Video editing | 5745 | - |
| Photo editing | 9202 | - |
| Data manipulation | 4789 | - |
| Writing score | 5649 | - |
Recent User Tests
Samsung Galaxy M12
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 📘 2026-02-10 (evgn) | AnTuTu 11 | 255386 |
Samsung Galaxy A12
| Date | Benchmark | Result |
|---|---|---|
| 📘 2026-08-09 (Fintex) | AnTuTu 11 | 193141 |
| 📘 2026-06-12 -> Karlue392007 | CPU Throttle | 78% |
| 📘 2026-06-03 (Renzs) | AnTuTu 11 | 204161 |
Memory
| RAM size | 3 GB | 2 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR4X | LPDDR4 |
| Memory clock | 1866 MHz | 1866 MHz |
| Channels | 2 | 2 |
| Storage size | 32 GB | 32 GB |
| Storage type | eMMC 5.1 | eMMC 5.1 |
| Memory card | MicroSD | MicroSD |
| Memory card max size | Up to 1024 GB | Up to 1024 GB |
Software
| Operating system | Android 11 (Can be upgraded to Android 13) | Android 10.0 (Can be upgraded to Android 13) |
| ROM | One UI Core 5.0 | One UI Core 5.1 |
| OS size | 14 GB | 13 GB |
| OS updates | 2 years | 2 years |
| Security updates | 4 years | 4 years |
Battery
| Capacity | 5000 mAh | 5000 mAh |
| Max charge power | 15 W | 15 W |
| Battery type | Li-Ion | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | No | No |
| Reverse charging | No | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (40% in 60 min) | Yes (20% in 30 min) |
| Full charging time | 2:30 hr | 3:03 hr |
| Web browsing | 08:56 hr | 11:00 hr |
| Watching video | 12:59 hr | 13:25 hr |
| Gaming | 05:13 hr | 06:03 hr |
| Standby | 121 hr | 133 hr |
General battery life
Smartphones With Long Battery Life (#138th place)
Main camera
| Matrix | 48 megapixels | 48 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 8000 x 6000 | 8000 x 6000 |
| Zoom | Digital | Digital |
| Flash | LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| 8K video recording | No | No |
| 4K video recording | No | No |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 30FPS | Up to 30FPS |
| Slow motion | No | No |
| Angle of widest lens | 123° | 123° |
| Lenses | 1) Standard: 48 MP 2) Ultrawide: 5 MP 3) Macro: 2 MP 4) Depth: 2 MP |
1) Standard: 48 MP 2) Ultrawide: 5 MP 3) Macro: 2 MP 4) Depth: 2 MP |
| Camera features | - Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
- Bokeh mode - Pro mode |
| Image resolution | 48 MP | 48 MP |
| Aperture | f/2.0 | f/2.0 |
| Focal length | - | 26 mm |
| Sensor | Samsung S5KGM2 | Samsung S5KGM2 |
| Sensor size | 1/2" (≈ 0.5 inch) | 1/2" (≈ 0.5 inch) |
| Pixel size | 0.8 micron | 0.8 micron |
| Autofocus | Phase autofocus | Phase autofocus |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Image resolution | 5 MP | 5 MP |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.2 |
| Sensor size | 1/5.0" (≈ 0.2 inch) | - |
| Pixel size | 1.12 micron | - |
| Stabilization | Digital | Digital |
| Image resolution | 2 MP | 2 MP |
| Aperture | f/2.4 | f/2.4 |
| Stabilization | No | No |
DxOMark main camera tests
Photo quality
Video quality
Generic main camera score
| Samples | - | Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy A12 from DxOMark |
Selfie camera
| Megapixels | 8 megapixels | 8 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 3264 x 2448 | 3264 x 2448 |
| Aperture | f/2.0 | f/2.0 |
| Sensor | CMOS | CMOS |
| Autofocus | No | No |
| Stabilization | No | Digital |
| Video resolution | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS | 1080p (Full HD) at 30 FPS |
| Depth sensor (TOF 3D) | No | No |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 4 (802.11 b/g/n) | Wi-Fi 4 (802.11 b/g/n) |
| Wi-Fi features | - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot |
- Dual Band - Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot |
| Bluetooth version | 5 | 5 |
| Bluetooth features | PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP | PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 2 | 2 |
| USB features | - Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging - USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| DisplayPort | No | - |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo |
| NFC* | Depends on the region | Yes |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM* | 2 | 2 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | Standby |
| eSIM support* | No | No |
| Hybrid slot | No | No |
| LTE Cat* | 7 | 7 |
| 5G support | No | No |
Sound
| Speakers | Mono | Mono |
| Headphone audio jack | Yes | Yes |
| FM radio | Yes | Yes |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes |
Speakers test
Max loudness
Other
| Category | Budget | Budget |
| Announced | November 2020 | November 2020 |
| Release date | April 2021 | December 2020 |
| Launch price (MSRP) | $180 | $180 |
| Successor | - Samsung Galaxy M16 5G | - Samsung Galaxy A17 4G |
| SAR (head) | 0.54 W/kg | 0.67 W/kg |
| SAR (body) | 1.39 W/kg | 1.38 W/kg |
| Sensors | - Proximity sensor - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Fingerprint |
- Proximity sensor - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Fingerprint |
*Disclaimer! NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
If the display, performance, and gaming are more important to you, then choose the Samsung Galaxy M12. But if the camera and battery life are more of a priority – go for the Samsung Galaxy A12.
Cast your vote
Total votes: 5852
