Samsung's 2018 Mid-Ranger with Super AMOLED

A look back at the Samsung Galaxy J8, a 2018 smartphone featuring a vibrant Super AMOLED display and dual rear cameras for its price point.

Samsung Galaxy J8: Overview

Launched in mid-2018, the Samsung Galaxy J8 was positioned as a mid-range offering designed to deliver key Samsung features, most notably its Super AMOLED display, at a more accessible price. It combined a large screen with a dual-camera setup and a capable battery, aiming to compete in a highly crowded segment.

Design & Display

The Galaxy J8 featured a plastic body construction with a glass front, available in several colors including Black, Blue, Gold, and Purple. Its standout feature was the 6.0-inch Super AMOLED display with a resolution of 720 x 1480 pixels and an 18.5:9 aspect ratio. While the resolution was standard HD+, the use of an AMOLED panel provided deeper blacks and more vibrant colors compared to the LCDs typically found in phones at this price at the time.

Performance & Hardware

Powering the device was the Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 chipset, an octa-core processor built on a 14nm process. It was paired with either 3GB or 4GB of RAM (LPDDR3) and 32GB or 64GB of internal storage (eMMC 5.1), which was expandable via a microSD card. This hardware was sufficient for everyday tasks and light multitasking, though it was not designed for intensive gaming or heavy applications.

Camera

The J8 sported a dual-camera system on the rear: a primary 16MP sensor with an f/1.7 aperture for better low-light performance, accompanied by a 5MP depth sensor with an f/1.9 aperture to enable portrait mode effects with bokeh. The front-facing camera was a capable 16MP shooter with an f/1.9 aperture, designed for selfies. Both cameras could record video at 1080p resolution at 30 frames per second.

Battery & Charging

The phone was equipped with a non-removable 3500 mAh Li-Ion battery. Given the power-efficient Snapdragon 450 processor and the AMOLED display (which consumes less power when showing black pixels), the J8 was known to deliver solid all-day battery life for most users. Charging was done via an older Micro-USB 2.0 port.

Software & Features

The Galaxy J8 launched with Android 8.0 (Oreo) and received an update to Android 9.0 (Pie), overlaid with Samsung's Experience UI (the precursor to One UI). It featured a rear-mounted fingerprint sensor for security and supported 4G LTE connectivity, though it lacked NFC for contactless payments.

Pros & Cons

• Pros:
  • Vibrant Super AMOLED display
  • Solid battery life
  • Dedicated microSD card slot for storage expansion
• Cons:
  • Older Micro-USB port
  • Performance could lag with more demanding tasks
  • HD+ resolution on a 6-inch screen lacked sharpness

Tags: Samsung, Galaxy J8, Android, smartphone, specs, camera, battery, mid-range

A look back at the Samsung Galaxy J8, a 2018 smartphone featuring a vibrant Super AMOLED display and dual rear cameras for its price point.