Budget smartphones are evolving nowadays in terms of ease of use, quick photo taking, and enjoyable scrolling. Thus, making it more competitive in the market as well as in the reviewer’s hand. The Galaxy M14 (4G) misses out on most of these, except for basic usability. It’s a modern phone that can do most tasks, but slowly, maybe.
Recently launched in Nepal, the 4G Galaxy M14 starts at Rs. 16,999 for the 4/64GB model, which I’ve used for a week. The 6/128GB version costs Rs. 21,999.
Table of Contents
Samsung Galaxy M14 Full Review: Detailed Analysis, Pros and Cons
Design and Build
Let’s start with the overall appearance and feel of the M14. It’s essentially a repackaged Galaxy A05s, so I didn’t expect anything new or surprising. Despite this, the Galaxy M14 looks decent for a budget phone.
The back features Samsung’s typical triple camera cutout, making the M14 look very similar to many other models. But looking at the front, it’s clear this is a budget Samsung phone. The waterdrop notch and large bezels are telltale signs—no other brand would release a phone with these features in 2024, even in the budget category. Despite these design choices, the phone doesn’t feel cheaply made. It’s all plastic, but the weight distribution is good enough to not feel overly heavy.
Display
The display on the M14 is a 90Hz LCD panel, which is pretty standard for phones under 20,000 in Nepal. However, if you go for the 6/128 model priced at 22,000, you can find phones with better screens. The resolution and viewing angles are decent for the price, but the brightness is a major downside. Using the phone in direct sunlight is difficult, and although there’s no official number, it seems the maximum brightness is below 500 nits.
Since it’s an LCD, you won’t get deep blacks or very vibrant colors. Additionally, you can’t adjust the color modes or lock the refresh rate to 90Hz, which is disappointing as these features are generally expected. There’s no HDR support, but surprisingly, the Galaxy M14 does support Widevine L1. This means you can watch Full HD content on streaming platforms like Netflix.
Performance
Although the Galaxy M14 looks decent on paper, the user experience is very slow. Everything, from opening apps to scrolling through Instagram or using the camera, requires patience. This might be due to the 4GB of LPDDR4x RAM in my unit or because I don’t often close apps. However, the M14 seemed to get slower the more I used it. This could be because of the slow Snapdragon chipset or Samsung’s EMMC memory for this phone. I have tested with Geek Bench 6 for its benchmarks, and here are the results.
In benchmarks, it scores similarly to other smartphones with the same chipset, but the EMMC storage makes everyday use feel sluggish. Gaming on the M14 is possible but not impressive. It’s a budget phone and performs like one. You can play PUBG Mobile at 30 fps, but the experience is not very enjoyable. Call of Duty runs with fewer frame drops, managing around 40 fps on low settings. I also tested Mech Arena on the ‘Good + 60’ preset, where it performed fairly well, averaging 56 fps. However, you will encounter frame drops and stutters in almost all games.
OS and UI
The Galaxy M14 comes with Android 13, and you can upgrade it to OneUI 6. It has the simplified ‘Core’ version of OneUI, but apart from the missing secure folder and edge panel, I didn’t miss other features. However, using the phone made me wonder if even the Core version of OneUI is too heavy for budget smartphones. The sluggish performance I mentioned earlier might be partly due to this heavier Android skin. I didn’t get the stability or reliability I usually expect from Samsung phones.
Sometimes, system apps like the camera would freeze, and there were a few crashes as well. Normally, I praise Samsung’s software, but in this case, I have to deduct some points. Despite this, it’s important to remember that this is a budget phone. So, getting a user interface with no ads, minimal bloatware, and decent support (2 years of OS updates and 4 years of security updates) isn’t a bad deal at all.
Camera
Moving on to the camera section, I have mixed feelings. The Galaxy M14 delivers decent everyday shots with the typical Samsung colors that look good at first glance. However, the camera app’s usability and overall experience could be much better. Everything feels super slow. Being a budget phone, I didn’t expect super-fast shots, but I didn’t think using the app would feel like a chore.
The slow shutter and operation teach patience, as every preview requires a wait before seeing the actual image. Sometimes, the shoot button (the white one) doesn’t respond, leaving me wondering if anything happened. If you’re considering this device, be prepared for a slow and steady shooting experience.
The images themselves are more pleasing than you’d expect from a budget phone. The colors are vibrant, and the shots have that Samsung look. On closer inspection, you’ll notice a lack of detail and dynamic range, but that’s expected at this price point. I expected better detail from the high-res 50MP sensor, but it’s just okay.
The Galaxy M14 punches above its weight when it comes to portraits. It’s not always consistent with skin tones, but if you can overlook that, there’s little to complain about. The depth is nice, the colors are vibrant, and the overall look of the portraits is very aesthetic.
Selfies, however, aren’t as good. You can get decent shots, but the M14 struggles with all skin tones, making some people look too pale or yellowish. The details are decent, but in low light, such as indoors, you’ll notice visible softness.
For video, Samsung offers more options than most budget phones in this range, with up to 1080p 60 fps recording from both front and back cameras. However, the overall quality, including audio pickup and stabilization, is nothing special. It’s fine for capturing quick moments, but if you’re aiming for high-quality footage, you’ll be disappointed.
Battery and Charging
The LTE version of the Galaxy M14 has a smaller 5,000 mAh battery. However, this isn’t a big issue for budget phones with less powerful chips and screens that don’t use much power. During my review, I was able to use the Samsung Galaxy M14 for two days on average. It did drop below 20% once when I was testing games and playing a lot of media, but I think the battery life will be sufficient for most users even with the smaller capacity.
The charging is decent too, with support for fast charging. Samsung Nepal includes a 25W adapter, which is a nice touch. I didn’t have the exact charger, but using a compatible USB PD charger, I found the Galaxy M14 charged to 45% in half an hour, 80% in an hour, and 100% in about an hour and a half.
Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
| Lightweight and decent design | The phone is somehow slower |
| The Main Camera is good enough | Audio Quality is Moderate |
| Some camera features are not as expected |
Verdict
As a budget device, the M14 performs decently with good photos, a clean UI, and a long battery life. However, it lacks smoothness and responsiveness, similar to other budget phones from different brands.
If you have the patience, the base 4/64GB model is good for the price. But if you can spend over 20,000 rupees, there are better options available. Under 25,000 NPR, the Redmi Note 13 or the cheaper Honor X7b offer a better overall experience. If you can stretch your budget to 27-30k, Samsung’s A15 provides a good balance of smooth performance, good cameras, and overall decent features.
For a budget of 15 to 20,000 rupees, the Redmi 12 and POCO M5 offer better memory and faster performance. Many alternatives are depending on your budget and needs. However, if you prefer Samsung’s photos, dislike Chinese software with ads, and have patience, the Galaxy M14 LTE could be a good choice.
