The Galaxy Ace 2 is an affordable handset that packs a comprehensive set of features. Though its specs are hardly impressive, it will definitely appeal to those on a budget.
The original Samsung Galaxy Ace has been a regular fixture on our list of top 10 mobile phones, thanks to its reasonable price and decent features.
The chaebol is hoping to repeat its success with the Ace 2, another budget Galaxy handset--which has better specs than its predecessor.
Design
The Galaxy Ace 2 is all curves and rounded corners, accentuated by a silver bumper. We liked its compact design, which makes it suited for small hands and one-handed usage, but it's not going to win any awards for looks or originality.
Since it's a budget handset, you'll get what you pay for. The back cover is made of a flimsy plastic, and the phone felt lightweight. It feels like it would fall apart if it takes a drop and build quality isn't as durable as say, the HTC One V.
We liked the back cover that's covered with a texturized design similar to "hyperskin" on the Galaxy Nexus. This helps to add some grip to the phone. The back cover is removable, so that you can replace the 1,500mAh battery when it runs out of juice.
The Ace 2's 3.8-inch WVGA (800 x 480 pixels) PLS screen is sharp and has vibrant colors, and was readable outdoors. However, do note that it has a tendency to attract fingerprints and smudges, so those with oily faces may want to invest in a matter screen protector.
Features
The Galaxy Ace 2 is running on the Android 2.3 Gingerbread OS, which is almost out-of-date considering that Android 4.1 Jelly Bean has already been released. Samsung's TouchWiz UI is heavily skinned over it, so if you're upgrading from the Galaxy Ace, you'll find it familiar-looking.
TouchWiz's predictive text input isn't the most intuitive, so be prepared for lots of typos if you don't plan on using Swype as an option.
Despite it being a budget handset, we found the suite of preinstalled apps pretty comprehensive as you'd find the same ones on higher-end handsets such as the Galaxy S III. We'll probably use Polaris Office and Samsung's ChatON messaging service regularly.
In terms of connectivity, you'll get the standard set of options we'd expect on a budget smartphone: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, GPS, DLNA and FM radio. However, don't expect "luxuries" such as S Voice, near-field communications (NFC) or mobile high-definition link (MHL).
The Ace 2 features a 5-megapixel camera that performs fairly well in daylight, though colors had the tendency to look slightly muted. Plus, it underperformed in low-light conditions, giving extremely grainy photos.
The camera also had a negligible shutter lag, but was slow to autofocus. As a result, we won't recommend it for capturing active subjects, such as children or pets.
There's also a front-facing VGA camera for video calls, which is a nice addition to the budget handset.
Performance
The Galaxy Ace 2 runs on a dual-core 800MHz processor, which enables it to perform better than the single-core Ace. General navigation around the OS was zippy and transitions were especially smooth and fast. The chipset and its 768MB of RAM can handle light tasks--such as email, messaging, calls and Twitter--rather well, but it could start slowing down after you install more apps.
Battery life wasn't fantastic, but sufficient for moderate usage. We lasted a full day on our standard test settings: Wi-Fi turned on, two email accounts set on push and Twitter and Facebook refreshing at 30-minute intervals. If you're a heavy user, you may want to keep a spare battery or portable charger handy.
We didn't have any problems with voice calls and reception, and the speaker was adequately loud when playing music and videos.
Conclusion
If you're in the market for a low-cost Android handset, there are a few other smartphones in the same price range running on Ice Cream Sandwich (ICS). For example, the HTC One V and LG Optimus L5, but these two phones come with single-core processor and less RAM, so they may not give as good an experience as the Ace 2. The Ace 2 would be a more attractive proposition if it's running on Android 4.0, but Samsung has not confirmed an ICS update for it yet.
Compared with the original Galaxy Ace, the Ace 2 has a higher-resolution display, a better processor and more RAM. Similarly, Samsung's strategy to sell the Ace 2 will probably be to retail it at a low price, so with the right telco contract, the Ace 2 should be priced very cheaply or even cost you nothing. Thus, we think that the Ace 2 will appeal to users who don't require the latest OS, such as students and first-time smartphone users.
The Ace 2 is available now at a retail price of S$438 without operator subsidies. Most other Southeast Asia markets should be getting it by end September, so do check with your local carriers for details.
