Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit (S367VL) full review. It is comes with a 5 inch TFT screen, 1.35 GHz Octa-core processor, 2 GB RAM and 16 GB internal storage.
Samsung is famous for bringing to the market some of the most eye-catching smartphones. In 2018, the South Korean tech giant launched this Galaxy J3 Orbit. The J3 Orbit is a smaller and cheaper alternative to the pricier models.
Its 5-inch screen makes this phone ideal for those with smaller pockets or hands. As other Samsung Galaxy models, it is more compact.
It sports many of the top features known for Samsung models, and these include sharp vibrant display, plenty of power, high-end build as well as other features. We have tried and tested this phone, and here is our unbiased Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit review.
Key Specs
Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit specifications:
- Weight: 141g
- Dimensions: 147.3 x 69.6 x 8.4mm
- OS: Android 8
- Screen size: 5-inch
- Resolution: 720 x 1280
- CPU: 1.35 Ghz Octa-core, Samsung Exynos 7884A
- RAM: 2GB
- Storage: 16GB
- Battery: 2600mAh
- Rear camera: 8MP
- Front camera: 5MP
Design
If there is one thing we’ve come to know about Samsung Galaxy models, it is that they have a superb design on their exterior. The Galaxy J3 Orbit doesn’t disappoint. It features a sleek exterior and also feels premium on the hand.
Thanks to its 5-inch screen, it can fit perfectly in just one hand. Weighing about 5.0 oz, you can use it comfortably without it pressuring your palm even when using it on one hand.
On the front end of the phone is a 5-inch TFT display. There is camera, proximity sensor and earpiece on the top side of the display. The navigation keys, on the other hand, can be found at the bottom part.
Like most Samsung phones, the Galaxy J3 Orbit also features physical Home button. On the left of the bottom screen is the Recent Apps button, the middle part contains the Home button while the Back button is to the right of the display.
You can remove the back panel to access the battery compartment as well as SIM card and microSD slots. The headset jack and micro USB / charging port are to be found at the bottom edge. Overall, the design is superb, and the phone can easily fit in most hands or pockets.
Display
The Galaxy J3 Orbit features a modest 5 inch screen with high definition resolution (720 x 1280 pixels). While this is quite small if you go by the current standards, the large screen does not necessarily appeal to everyone.
The advantage of the smaller screen is that it fits quite well into smaller hands. Clarity and brightness are quite good.
While the images are gloriously vivid, it still avoids over-saturating brighter shades and displays deepest black. The screen brightness is also more than enough. In fact, I usually keep it at 25% and it will still be visible perfectly indoors.
This is a HD screen that shows every picture and video in remarkable clarity. Also, the indoor brightness is great. When we took it out to the outdoors, the screen brightened so that it’s easier for the eyes to see.
This is all possible because of the ambient light sensor. Also, responsiveness is great as there were no issues zooming by 2-finger pinching or playing multi-touch games.
Camera
Although it has an 8 MP rear camera, it captures perfect pictures in great lighting conditions. For this price range, the camera is pretty solid.
I especially liked the fact that the rear camera features an auto-focus and an LED flash. It also has a front-facing camera for taking selfies.
The camera comes with some filters that once you apply to the screen, will enable you to see how your photo will appear before you take it. Also, it has a camera app that’s pretty easy to use. To switch between the rear and front camera, you only need to swipe the screen up or down.
This camera shoots videos of 1920 x 1080 pixels quality, which is a great resolution considering it’s a budget phone.
I especially liked the special camera features that include Digital Zoom, Face Detection and Touch to Focus.
Other features include Geo Tagging, ISO control, Burst mode, Exposure compensation, Panorama, HDR and Night mode that lets you take great photos even in conditions of low light.
Storage
The Galaxy J3 Orbit isn’t exactly exceptional with regards to storage. With just 16 GB of internal storage, it is not sufficient enough for most users. Out of the 16 GB, around 7.5 GB is already used by pre-installed apps and the operating system.
If you are one of those people who like keeping various media on their phone gadget, you will need to expand the storage.
Thankfully, the Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit sports a microSD slot that lets you expand the storage capacity to 400 GB. Therefore, while the internal storage is limited, you can easily expand it through the microSD slot.
Performance
Performance is no doubt an important factor in this Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit Review. The J3 Orbit includes has upgrades on the Galaxy J3 Luna Pro, and has 2 GB RAM and an internal storage of 16 GB.
Powered by Samsung Exynos 7884A 1.35 GHz Octa-core processor, it delivers pretty well for a budget smartphone. The RAM size coupled with its Octa-core processor, means that the Galaxy J3 Orbit can multitask quite efficiently. You can be having several apps running on the background but won’t experience any significant lag.
The device features the latest Android 8.0 Oreo version, and this can support all Google Play apps. Android 8.0 Oreo offers improved user experience, and this is thanks to smooth animations and fluidity.
This Android version features many graphical design changes which are an upgrade on the previous versions. Also, it includes certain performance upgrades that will help increase your phone’s battery life among other things. Simply put, it makes using this phone a joy.
We were particularly impressed by the high responsiveness of the phone as attested to by its incredibly fast launch speeds. You can look forward to greater video streaming experience and faster browsing. And if you are a gaming enthusiast, the phone will perform quite well.
The graphics are clear which make the experience much more realistic. This is because of its high definition screen as well its powerful graphics processing unit.
Thanks to the 1.35 GHz Octa-core processor and the 2GB RAM, the phone can handle typical daily tasks quite remarkably.
However, it is still not the best suited for those that have to deal with more arduous tasks such as running heavy games. Also, if you have resource-intensive apps, you will be better off looking elsewhere.
Like other Samsung Galaxy phones, the J3 Orbit comes with sensors that measure the physical quantities and then transmit them to application processor. The Galaxy J3’s accelerometer is an internal electronic component which measures motion and tilt.
It also has a proximity that detects when you hold the phone near your face during a call. This turns off the display so that there are no keyboard presses. Also, it saves battery because display is off.
Connectivity
This Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit Review wouldn’t be complete without talking about connectivity. The Galaxy J3 Orbit features 4G LTE connection with Verizon network coverage. This ensures fast internet browsing speeds which really improve your connectivity.
Also, the phone has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth v4.2 as well as GPS (Global Positioning System) for location-based services. It doesn’t have NFC but comes with a built-in FM Radio.
Battery
Another important part of the Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit review is the battery. The J3 Orbit sports a removable, 2600 mAh battery, which is quite good. With a much improved processor and some operating system upgrades, you get 19 hours of talk time from this battery, and it can last for as long as 21 days on standby on just a single charge.
There are also a couple of things you can do to prevent your battery from running out sooner, and instead make it last longer. These include setting your device on airplane mode, turning on the power saving mode and dimming the screen. For this price range, you really can’t complain about the battery.
Wrap-up
The Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit may not be your idea of the Galaxy S9 or S8. However, for its price, it packs more than you bargained for. Featuring Android 8.0 Oreo and a raft of other features, the Galaxy J3 Orbit delivers to the last bit.
Our Samsung Galaxy J3 Orbit review tested a number of parameters like performance, display, connectivity, camera, battery and storage and we are completely satisfied considering it’s a budget phone.
Its 5-inch TFT screen means it fits perfectly in small hands. It also has other features like proximity sensor that detects when you are talking and turns off display to save battery and to avoid pressing keypad into your ears as you make calls.
Pros:
- Bixby Assistant
- Octa-core processor
- Android 8.0 Oreo
Cons:
- No Fingerprint sensor
- Only 16 GB internal storage