Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Table Of Contents
The Korean tech giant Samsung has released a new, feature-packed, and affordable 5G handset priced under Rs. 20,000: the Galaxy M36 5G. With a Super AMOLED screen, an octa-core processor, and a triple-camera setup, the M36 5G is an easy recommendation at its price.
However, there’s one contender that the Galaxy M36 5G needs to prove its mettle against, and that’s the Oppo K13 5G, which features a massive 7,000 mAh battery. If you’re in the market for a 5G smartphone under Rs. 20,000, you can’t ignore these two smartphones. However, exactly which one suits your needs better? Let’s find out.
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Tech Specs
| Galaxy M36 5G | Oppo K13 5G | |
| Dimensions | 164.4 x 77.9 x 7.7 mm | 163.2 x 76.1 x 8.5 mm |
| Weight | 197 grams | 208 grams |
| Colors | Orange Haze, Velvet Black, Serene Green | Icy Purple, Prism Black |
| IP Rating | IP65, MIL-STD-810H | |
| Display | 6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED, 120Hz | 6.67-inch AMOLED screen, 120Hz |
| Processor | Exynos 1380 (5nm) | Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 (4nm) |
| Software | One UI 7 | ColorOS 15 |
| Camera | Rear: 50MP + 8MP + 2MP Front: 13MP | Rear: 50MP + 2MP Front: 16MP |
| Battery Capacity | 5,000 mAh | 7,000 mAh |
| Charging Speed | 25W | 80W |
| Starting Price | Rs. 16,499 | Rs. 17,369 |
Also Read: Exynos 2500 vs. Snapdragon 8 Elite vs. Dimensity 9400: The Flagship Processors Comparison
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Design
Dimensions & Weight
- Galaxy M36 5G: 164.4 x 77.9 x 7.7 mm; 197 grams
- Oppo K13 5G: 163.2 x 76.1 x 8.5 mm; 208 grams
Between the two phones, the Galaxy M36 5G is both slimmer and lighter. In fact, Samsung’s affordable 5G handset is about 10% thinner than Oppo’s K13 5G.
Materials
Samsung’s Galaxy M36 5G features the Corning Gorilla Glass Victus+ on the front, a plastic frame on the side, and a matte-glass back.
The Oppo K13 (review) 5G features an AGC DT STAR2 cover glass and has a plastic frame/back. It’s worth mentioning that the phone comes with a pre-applied screen protector.
Design
The Samsung Galaxy M36 5G features a U-shaped notch at the top with thin bezels (but a thick bottom chin). While the volume rockers and power buttons are located on the right side of the frame, the USB-C port and the primary speaker are located at the bottom.
On the back, the phone houses a pill-shaped camera module (placed vertically) that contains three camera sensors: two of them are located in a cutout, while one resides separately (within the module). The flash module is to the right of the camera island.
The Oppo K13 5G, on the other hand, features a punch-hole screen at the front with minimal bezels but a thicker bottom chin. While the power button and the volume rockers are located on the right side, the USB-C port, SIM tray, and the primary speaker are at the bottom.
The phone also features an IR blaster (located at the top). On the back, the phone has a square-shaped camera module with rounded edges. The module houses two camera sensors in a raised platform (with a shiny border), another circular cutout that looks like a camera but is solely there for design, and a cutout for the LED flash module.
Colors
- Galaxy M36 5G: Orange Haze, Velvet Black, Serene Green
- Oppo K13 5G: Icy Purple, Prism Black
IP Ratings
While Samsung doesn’t mention anything about an IP rating in its official press release for the Galaxy M36 5G, the Oppo K13 5G features an official IP65 dust and water resistance rating. In addition, the K13 5G also complies with MIL-STD-810H standards for usage in harsh environmental conditions.
Also Read: POCO F7 vs. iQOO Neo 10: Which is THE Ultimate Performer Under 35K?
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Display
The Samsung Galaxy M36 5G sports a 6.7-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED screen that supports a 120Hz refresh rate and has a pixel density of 385 ppi. Though we usually mention a phone’s peak brightness, we couldn’t find it mentioned on the official website or any of the releases just yet.
Given that the M36 5G features a Super AMOLED screen, we’re speculating that it would support a peak brightness of around 800 to 1,000 nits or higher.
In comparison, the Oppo K13 5G features a 6.67-inch AMOLED screen that supports a 120Hz refresh rate, has a pixel density of 395 ppi, and can reach a peak brightness of 1,200 nits. While these are pretty standard specifications per the segment, the K13 5G also supports 1,920Hz PWM dimming, making the display easier on the eyes.
Between the two screens, the Galaxy M36 5G’s Super AMOLED panel might produce more vibrant colors. However, the Oppo K13 5G’s screen should be more comfortable for the eyes (along with being a tad sharper).
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Performance
Under the hood, the Galaxy M36 5G runs on the Exynos 1380 (5nm) SoC, a chipset that came out in February 2023 (making it over two years old). The chipset comprises four 2.4GHz Cortex-A78 performance cores and four 2.0GHz Cortex-A55 balanced cores, along with the Mali-G68 MP5 GPU.
Regarding synthetic benchmarks, the Exynos 1380 scores approximately 600,000 points on AnTuTu 10 and 990/2,750 points in the single/multi-core Geekbench 6 CPU test. While the Exynos 1380 SoC might make the most financial sense for the affordable 5G handset, including a two-year-old processor doesn’t sound very good to a smartphone enthusiast.
The Samsung Galaxy M36 5G features up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.
Also Read: vivo T4 Ultra vs. realme GT 7: Which Flagship Killer Offers More Value For Your Money?
The Oppo K13 5G features the Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 (4nm) processor, which was released in February 2025. The chipset comprises one 2.3GHz Cortex-A720 prime core, three 2.2GHz Cortex-A720 balanced cores, and four Cortex-A520 1.8GHz efficient cores. Additionally, it features an Adreno GPU.
In our testing, the Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 scores around 711K points in AnTuTu 10 and 986/2,873 points in the single/multi-core Geekbench 6 CPU test. The phone delivered an average frame rate of 58.7 while playing BGMI on Smooth + Extreme settings. Moreover, the Snapdragon chip on the K13 5G is slightly more powerful than the Exynos 1380 chipset on the Galaxy M36 5G.
This should reflect (as a minor difference) while performing day-to-day tasks, capturing photos, or playing video games. The Oppo K13 5G features up to 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage.
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Software
Out of the box, the Galaxy M36 5G runs on One UI 7 based on Android 15. It includes a redesigned home screen, customizable widgets and icons, enhanced quick settings and notifications section, a new camera layout, and multiple AI-powered tools. The M36 5G also offers Google’s Circle to Search and Gemini AI assistant.
Like the other mid-range Galaxy smartphones, Samsung has promised to offer up to six years of operating system updates and six years of security updates, which gives the phone an edge over most of its competitors.
In contrast, the Oppo K13 5G runs on ColorOS 15 based on Android 15. It brings features like Flux Themes, split-screen view, floating windows, a smart sidebar, and live alerts. The phone also offers several AI features, including AI Unblur, AI 4K Upscaler, AI Reflection Remover, AI Eraser, AI Summary, and AI Speak.
With the K13 5G, Oppo has committed to providing two years of major Android operating system updates and three years of security patches (which doesn’t stand up to the Galaxy M36 5G).
Also Read: Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 vs. Dimensity 9400e: Which One is Better?
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Cameras
Galaxy M36 5G Camera Configuration
- Primary Camera: 50MP (f/1.8) primary sensor with optical image stabilization
- Secondary Camera: 8MP (f/2.2) ultrawide camera
- Tertiary Camera: 2MP (f/2.4) macro sensor
- Front Camera: 13MP (f/2.2) selfie shooter
While the phone can record 4K videos, the company hasn’t specified the frame rate, indicating that the recording could be limited to 30 fps. The primary camera and selfie camera can also record 10-bit HDR video.
Oppo K13 5G Camera Configuration
- Primary Camera: 50MP (f/1.9) primary sensor with electronic image stabilization
- Secondary Camera: 2MP depth sensor
- Front Camera: 16MP (f/2.4) selfie shooter
Right off the bat, the K13 5G’s camera setup loses to the Galaxy M36 5G’s due to the lack of optical image stabilization. The video recording is capped at 4K30. Moreover, it looks like the Galaxy M36 5G’s cameras have an edge over the K13 5G’s.
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Battery
Samsung’s Galaxy M36 5G sports a 5,000 mAh battery that supports 25W wired charging. However, the phone doesn’t come with a charger in the box, which might not work in favor of Samsung, especially since most brands in the segment provide one.
The Oppo K13 5G, on the other hand, shines in this aspect. It features a 7,000 mAh graphite dual-cell battery, which is among the largest in the segment. With moderate usage, the device offers up to 12 hours of screen-on time.
The 80W fast-wired charging brick in the box is an absolute icing on the cake. It charges the massive 7,000 mAh battery in under an hour. Moreover, the battery life is undoubtedly the strongest aspect of the Oppo K13 5G.
Also Read: CMF Phone 2 Pro vs. Competition: How Does The New Handset Compare To Others In The Segment?
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Connectivity
With regards to connectivity, the Galaxy M36 5G features 5G, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi (dual-band), Bluetooth v5.3, GPS + GLONASS, and a USB Type-C port.
The Oppo K13 5G also supports 5G, 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth v5.2 (SBC, AAC, aptX, aptX HD, LDAC), GPS + GLONASS, and a USB Type-C port.
Galaxy M36 5G vs. Oppo K13 5G: Price & Conclusion
Samsung Galaxy M36 5G Price
The Galaxy M36 5G is one of the better handsets in the segment. It is easily recommendable at the introductory price of Rs. 16,499 (available from July 12, 2025). Buyers receive the reliable One UI 7 operating system, which comes with six years of updates, ensuring the phone has excellent longevity.
The phone can also capture pictures in an ultrawide perspective (something that the Oppo K13 5G can’t). The Super AMOLED screen could be yet another reason to get the handset. However, it doesn’t come with a charger in the box, which could be an additional expense for buyers who don’t have a compatible charger with them.
Also Read: vivo T4 vs. Edge 60 Fusion vs. Phone (3a): Which Is The Right Mid-Ranger For You At Rs. 25,000?
Oppo K13 5G Price
While the Galaxy M36 5G excels in cameras and operating systems, the Oppo K13 5G excels in battery life (a feature that more and more users are willing to pay a premium for). Strictly with regards to the battery life, the Galaxy M36 5G doesn’t stand a chance in front of the K13 5G.
Hence, if how long your phone lasts between charges is a priority for you, you can’t go wrong with the K13 5G. Additionally, a charger is included in the box, saving you the expense of purchasing one separately. Even otherwise, the phone features a more modern punch-hole screen and a slightly more powerful chipset.
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