As a former Samsung J-series user, moving up alphabetically to the M-series made me nostalgic. The budget smartphone segment is the hardest to crack, with multiple manufacturers trying to offer the best possible feature set at the lowest possible price. The Samsung M17 is a strong contender in this space, delivering exactly what users typically look for: a budget-friendly device with a large display.
Samsung’s M17 has travelled around a little, and here is what I think stands out from its competitors. While the gadget does pack a decent amount of firepower, it does have some features that can be called into question. From the camera to its performance, here is a rundown of how the device held up.
Design and display
The M17 is sleek and slender, with a huge 16.91 cm display, and yet it features a teardrop camera bezel and a beefy bezel. This seems a little too outdated for 2025. Edges on the smartphone seem to be smoother than Michael Jackson’s moves. And this heap of metal has a matte finish which looks very minimalist, giving it a very simplistic appearance.
The large 16.91 cm display gets 1000nits of brightness, which is visible in broad daylight (Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
While the device has its idiosyncrasies, beginning with the unsymmetrical USB-C port that might bug you a little, the display will get you back. The display is an AMOLED screen that might take the user by surprise, as a budget-segment phone with such a crisp screen is a steal. As the phone was provided without a screen guard, and Samsung claims it has Gorilla Glass, it sure seems to hold up pretty well against sand, textured surfaces, and a few questionable surfaces. And the smartphone being economically priced, the display seems to stand out and is even comfortably visible under harsh sunlight.
Battery
The question with any budget phone is simple: does the battery last? In this case, yes. Samsung claims 18 hours of video playback. I binge-watched the whole season of The Sopranos and a few YouTube videos, yes, which lasted about 15 hours of video playback and made me miss a few chores; do not tell my roommate about it.
Now, when it comes to charging, the smartphone is not provided with a charging brick and charges at a decent speed.
Performance
Impressive for a budget segment phone is that it performs adequately under conditions of gaming, or rather, binge-watching, as the device features the Exynos 1330 chipset. The device comes pre-installed with OneUI 7, which seemed very smooth and with good animations. The Google AI-powered function also seemed to function without any hiccup.
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Here is a closer look at the asymmetric charging port on the Samsung M17(Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Well, as a person fond of games, I tried to play some games that might stress the chipset, and it did affect the performance of the game, getting a little choppy or even lagging a little. Nonetheless, if this is the phone I must connect with nostalgia, I should try playing Hill Climb Racing, which, without any effort, was playing like a dream.
For Rs 16,499, I can’t expect speakers from Bang & Olufsen, but they had only provided a single speaker, which didn’t make it quite loud or with enough bass to play rock. Samsung makes sure that it is not just any other device; the South Korean company provides the device with 6 years of OS updates and security updates.
Camera
The M17 features a 50 MP OIS main camera, a 5 MP ultrawide, and a 2 MP macro. The primary camera performs well for the price, capturing colour and depth effectively. Samsung claims improved stability, and my test footage—shot while running on a beach—looked smooth and balanced.
The 50 MP camera that features a OIS to help user record sturdier videos (Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
The other camera lens might not be the appealing aspect of the device, but Samsung has provided a pocket-friendly device with a fairly good camera for the day. While the night mode for photography is not that great, the device makes up for it in capturing the colour during the day. I am not exactly Ryan Reynolds, but the front didn’t quite capture all the details and seemed pretty grainy.
Here are some camera samples:
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Camera Sample 1(Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Camera Sample 2(Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Camera Sample 3(Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Camera Sample for Zoom reference (Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Camera Sample at 10x Zoom (Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Camera Sample for night mode(Image: The Indian Express/ Ajay Hanje)
Verdict
I speak nostalgically when I say that this South Korean smartphone would be a fantastic first smartphone for teenagers or the elderly, since the relatively wide display may help them read more clearly and utilise the device more effectively. This device might potentially be useful as a backup smartphone. It is one of the well-balanced phones you can purchase for less than Rs 20,000 because of its attractive design, pleasant software, and respectable primary camera.
