Is the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G a Worthy Upgrade Over the A52s 5G?
Samsung’s Galaxy A52s 5G, launched a little over six months ago, remains a strong contender in the premium mid-range segment, particularly for those seeking a device with an IP rating under Rs. 40,000. However, Samsung has now introduced the Galaxy A53 5G, a refresh of the A52s 5G, featuring a new Exynos SoC instead of the previous Qualcomm chip. This change inevitably brings about performance differences, leading to a crucial question: Is the Galaxy A53 5G truly an upgrade worth considering? This in-depth review delves into the design, performance, camera capabilities, and overall value of the Galaxy A53 5G, comparing it to its predecessor and other formidable contenders in the market.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Price and Availability
The Samsung Galaxy A53 5G is available in India in two variants, both with 128GB of internal storage. The 6GB RAM variant is priced at Rs. 34,499, while the 8GB RAM variant is available for Rs. 35,999. For optimal value, the 8GB RAM variant emerges as the more desirable choice. It comes in four stylish finishes: Light Blue, Awesome Black, White, and Orange.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Design and Build
The Samsung Galaxy A53 5G refines the design of the A52s 5G, incorporating subtle cues from the Galaxy S22 series. Its overall design exudes a contemporary and refreshing appeal. While the mid-frame remains constructed from polycarbonate, it boasts a wider profile with flatter sides, mirroring the sleek lines of the Galaxy S22 series. The rear panel, reminiscent of the A52s 5G, features a matte-finished polycarbonate back that feels premium and smooth, effectively resisting fingerprints and smudges.
The rear camera module seamlessly blends into the back panel, with minimal protrusion. This slight increase in thickness compared to the predecessor is noticeable. The blacked-out inserts for the camera lenses add a touch of visual sophistication.
The Galaxy A53 5G retains the 6.5-inch full-HD+ Super AMOLED display of the A52s 5G, offering a vibrant viewing experience. Protected by Gorilla Glass 5 for scratch resistance, the flat display features relatively slim left and right bezels, although the top and bottom bezels remain slightly thicker. A fingerprint reader seamlessly integrated into the display ensures rapid and reliable unlock. Samsung has ingeniously concealed the slit for the earpiece between the display and the frame, making it virtually invisible. Like its predecessor, the Galaxy A53 5G boasts an IP67 rating for protection against dust and water ingress.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Specifications and Software
The Samsung Galaxy A53 5G borrows extensively from the A52s 5G in terms of hardware, with some key differences. Interestingly, Samsung has opted to equip the more expensive Galaxy A73 5G with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G SoC, leaving the Galaxy A53 5G to utilize a new in-house Samsung SoC dubbed the Exynos 1280. This same SoC also powers the lower-priced Galaxy A33 5G.
The Galaxy A53 5G supports a wide range of connectivity options, including 5G, Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 5.1, NFC, and the standard satellite navigation systems. However, the Galaxy A53 5G forgoes the 3.5mm headphone jack present in its predecessor, and sadly, doesn’t include a USB Type-C audio adapter in the box. The dual-SIM tray, compatible with dual-5G standby, can accommodate a microSD card up to 1TB in size.
Samsung’s refined One UI 3.1 software graces the Galaxy A53 5G, built on Android 12. This custom Android 12 experience stands out as one of the most polished and feature-rich available. The theme engine allows users to personalize the interface and app icons based on their chosen home screen wallpaper. However, notably absent is the Conversations widget prevalent in other Android 12 devices, which enables pinning important chats and conversations to the home screen. The phone unfortunately comes pre-loaded with an abundance of bloatware, including a vast collection of Samsung apps, along with contributions from Microsoft and other third-party developers. Thankfully, the majority of these apps can be uninstalled.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Performance
Samsung’s decision to reserve the Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G SoC exclusively for the Galaxy A73 5G seems questionable. The Galaxy A53 5G’s Exynos 1280 SoC, though capable of delivering a smooth user experience for everyday tasks, falls short in benchmark tests, failing to reflect a substantial performance upgrade. The Galaxy A53 5G recorded scores of 498 and 1,806 in Geekbench’s single and multi-core tests respectively, while scoring 3,72,582 points in AnTuTu. These scores align more closely with budget smartphones, indicating that the Galaxy A53 5G is underpowered for its price segment. In contrast, the previous generation Samsung Galaxy A52s achieved scores of 739 and 2,733 points in Geekbench, highlighting its superior processing power.
In gaming performance, Call of Duty: Mobile achieved a maximum setting of ‘Medium’ with the ‘Max’ frame rate, playable but experiencing occasional lag during matches. The display’s touch sampling rate, though not ideal, didn’t significantly hamper gameplay.
Asphalt 9: Legends ran seamlessly at the default (medium) graphics settings. After approximately 10 minutes of Call of Duty: Mobile gameplay, the phone did exhibit some heating, but without any noticeable performance degradation.
The display’s refresh rate dynamically switches between 120Hz and 60Hz. During testing, the refresh rate stayed at 120Hz even while browsing web pages, Instagram feeds, or streaming YouTube videos, only dropping to 60Hz during gaming or camera app usage. The Super AMOLED display shines with its characteristic punchy colors and impressive readability even under bright sunlight. Though lacking HDR support, video streaming content looked exceptional with deep blacks, showcasing the display’s quality. The stereo speakers delivered a balanced audio experience with impressive volume.
Battery life is a notable area where the Galaxy A53 5G surpasses its predecessor. Its larger 5,000mAh battery extended the runtime in our HD video loop test by an impressive four hours, achieving a remarkable 19 hours and 44 minutes. With everyday usage, the phone easily lasted for two full days, a testament to its robust battery performance. Although Samsung omits a charger from the box, I connected the Galaxy A53 5G to my own 61W USB PD charger. The phone supports 25W charging, reaching a full charge from empty in 1 hour and 51 minutes, a respectable time, though not as rapid as some competing devices.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Cameras
The camera setup on the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G mirrors that of its predecessor, featuring a quad-camera system on the rear: a 64-megapixel primary camera, a 12-megapixel ultra-wide camera, a 5-megapixel macro camera, and a 5-megapixel depth camera. A 32-megapixel front-facing camera takes care of selfies. The camera app’s layout is customizable, offering numerous shortcuts within the viewfinder.
Photos captured in daylight exhibited impressive detail and excellent dynamic range. Similar to the A52s 5G, the colors in photos displayed a slight oversaturation and a subtle bluish tint. The macro camera proved quite useful, as images showcased impressive sharpness. Portrait photos taken with the selfie camera displayed crispness, clarity, and good detail and dynamic range. Edge detection in these portraits was also accurate.
Shooting in Auto mode under low light conditions, the camera performed decently, maintaining decent dynamic range, although some noise was noticeable. Details experienced a slight reduction. Activating Night Shot mode, the camera required an additional second for capturing shots, producing brighter images at the cost of slightly decreased detail. The standard Night mode also took a few seconds to capture low-light landscapes, but delivered the highest quality. Selfies taken in low light, even with Night mode enabled, appeared blurry and noisy.
The ultra-wide-angle camera captured decent images in daylight, but objects near the edges appeared somewhat blurry and stretched. Low-light shots exhibited a noticeable drop in quality, appearing soft at best.
Daylight videos recorded at 1080p 30fps displayed good stabilization and dynamic range. However, footage captured at 1080p 60fps looked shaky. 4K videos, while boasting excellent detail, lacked any stabilization. In low light, video quality suffered significantly. The video recorded at 1080p 30fps appeared blurry and exhibited a distracting shimmering effect. The primary camera displayed a noticeable focus hunting issue when recording video at night, causing the autofocus system to struggle, especially when panning.
Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Verdict
The Samsung Galaxy A53 5G, while a capable premium smartphone, falls short of expectations in terms of raw performance. This shortcoming can mainly be attributed to the new Exynos 1280 SoC, which seems more suited for the budget Galaxy M33 5G than a phone priced at Rs. 35,000. Daytime camera performance is commendable, and the Galaxy A53 5G is the only phone we’ve reviewed in this segment with an IP67 rating, offering robust protection. However, the Galaxy A53 5G loses out to its predecessor, the Galaxy A52s 5G, which offers better gaming performance, features a headphone jack, and includes a charger in the box, all for a marginally lower price (around Rs. 32,499).
Among competitors from other manufacturers, the iQoo 9 SE (starting at Rs. 33,990) emerges as the Galaxy A53 5G’s most formidable rival. While we haven’t reviewed the iQoo 9 SE yet, its superior Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 SoC and 66W charger included in the box make it a serious contender. The base variant also comes equipped with 8GB of RAM, further bolstering its appeal. For those seeking a leaner Android experience, Motorola’s Moto Edge 20 Pro, featuring the Snapdragon 870 SoC and a 108-megapixel primary rear camera, represents a compelling alternative.
In conclusion, the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G is a solid phone with some strong points, but its underwhelming performance, especially for the price, coupled with the strong competition from other manufacturers, make it a difficult recommendation. The Galaxy A52s 5G, a phone with a superior price-performance ratio, remains a more compelling choice in the mid-range market. However, if you prioritize a sleek design, the IP67 rating, and a long-lasting battery, the Galaxy A53 5G might appeal to you.
