in perfect condition for success

Samsung has a new batch of Galaxy A smartphones ready every year. This year includes the Samsung Galaxy A53. Previous models in the A5X series have been very successful; will the Galaxy A53 also succeed? And can we see this device as the brother of the Galaxy S22?

Samsung Galaxy A53 review

Mid-end smartphones are increasingly proving that you really don’t have to spend that much money on a new device to take advantage of many great features. The predecessor of the Galaxy A53, the A52, already proved this in our Samsung Galaxy A52 review published last year. The smartphone market has now expanded with the Galaxy A53 and we have been testing how good the new model is in recent weeks.

Sales package

What is striking when receiving the Samsung Galaxy A53 is that the sales package is relatively small. This is because not all things that may come in handy are included with the phone. Some paperwork, a sim needle and of course the device itself is all that is supplied. This means that a cable and an adapter do not come with the device. You can of course purchase this separately.

Design and interface

The Samsung Galaxy A53 is the successor to the Galaxy A52, a smartphone that we tested last year in our Galaxy A52 review. That was already a great device without any real drawbacks. Samsung seems to have made a relatively safe choice with the successor; because the design is almost identical to that of the previous model. It is a few millimeters difference, with the A53 being a very small fraction less.

The smartphone from the South Korean manufacturer lies well in the hand, feels solid and is well finished. The camera module on the back is a bump that slightly protrudes from the rest of the back. Inside the camera module is the 64MP main camera, a 12MP wide-angle lens, 5MP macro lens and 5MP depth sensor, along with the LED flash.

At the bottom of the smartphone we see the USB-C connection with the port for the SIM card next to it. You can use the SIM card slot for a second SIM card or a memory card. The top and left sides are left blank. We find the power button and the volume button on the right.

Where it all happens is of course on the front of the smartphone. Samsung once again provides the Galaxy A53 with a 6.5-inch Super AMOLED screen. The refresh rate has increased from 90Hz to 120Hz compared to the predecessor, although it is questionable whether you will really notice this difference in daily use. The screen delivers a Full HD+ resolution and we are certainly pleased with the display. Reading is no problem on sunny days; in a dark environment, the brightness can be dimmed sufficiently, which is nice. Colors splash off the screen and the details are also completely fine. At the top of the screen is space for the front camera.

Interface

If you are familiar with the Galaxy smartphones, the interface of the Samsung will not completely surprise you. The Galaxy A53 is also equipped with One UI, which runs on Android 12. And that’s fine, because this skin can be operated automatically, works nicely and allows you to personalize various things. So smooth as with OnePlus, for example, it is not. You sometimes notice very slight delays, but I have not experienced them as disturbing in recent weeks.

The applications are mixed up in the menu, but luckily you can easily sort them in alphabetical order. Furthermore, you can of course go directly to your notifications and there are the widgets to adjust the home screen to your own liking. It is a pity that the Smart Widgets, as we see those of other devices with One UI 4.1, are not reflected in the Galaxy A53. This allows several widgets to be placed in one widget and these are then displayed alternately.

Communication: calling, surfing the internet and networking

Calling, surfing the internet, texting, WhatsApp… it’s all no problem with the Samsung Galaxy A53. Obviously, because those are the things you buy a smartphone for. Of course, the device is equipped with 5G support and you can place a second SIM card thanks to the support for dual SIM. This lock is at the expense of the memory card that you could otherwise place there. So calling is fine; the call quality is high and we don’t notice anything crazy.

You can use Edge Lighting for new notifications and messages. With this you can adjust the display of a notification with a new message. Think of different animations in the bar; so that your attention is triggered towards this. You can also indicate which color you want to use, and of course there is the Always On Display.

By default, you can type your messages via the Samsung Keyboard, which is included as standard in the One UI software. Thanks to Android, other keyboards can also be downloaded from the Google Play Store. Internet is also smooth and as you would expect. For WiFi there is both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz support. We also see things like Bluetooth, NFC and GPS on board the Galaxy A53.

Multimedia: music and film

The Samsung Galaxy A53 is also a nice companion when it comes to multimedia. First of all for the music. The sound quality that the device manages to realize is of good quality. No crazy features, but just as you would expect from a (mid-end) smartphone. It is a pity that where the Galaxy A52 still had a 3.5 millimeter connection for a headset, this has been cut back on the Galaxy A53. Of course it is possible to connect a headset to the smartphone via Bluetooth.

The Galaxy A53 is also a great choice for watching a movie. As we already wrote; the resolution is high; just like the brightness which is just fine. This means a bright screen on sunny days and a sufficiently dimmed screen in the evenings. Thanks to the support for the refresh rate of 120Hz, everything runs nice and smooth. Samsung gives you two options for the screen refresh; 60Hz or 120Hz.

Camera: photo and video

Samsung has a reputation in the field of photography to uphold with its Galaxy smartphones. Especially with the Galaxy S series, Samsung usually works well with possibilities, but now the A series can also measure itself well. The camera of the Galaxy A53 also has to deliver beautiful photos, and for this you have three lenses at your disposal as a user.

And the Samsung Galaxy A53 certainly does deliver good photos. Colors are richly present, sometimes a bit too exaggerated, as we are used to from Samsung. In terms of details, the camera of the A53 is also good. What is sometimes noticeable is that with greater contrast differences, some parts are overexposed, which is at the expense of the photo itself. You can also use the wide-angle lens with the Galaxy A53 and get started with 2x zoom. The Galaxy A53 is admittedly not a high-end smartphone; the camera comes pretty close, even in the evenings when photos in the dark are of good quality. You can use the night mode for this, for example, although you do have to keep the device still.

The photos taken with the device can be found in the digital photo album.

front camera

The front camera of the Samsung Galaxy A53 has 32 megapixels. The quality of the photos is good. Taking a selfie is certainly no problem with this device. Details are well captured and colors correspond well to reality.

Performance: battery, speed and memory

A mid-end smartphone nowadays does not have to be much less than a high-end device in normal use. Samsung has opted for an Exynos 1280 chipset from the manufacturer with the Galaxy A53. This while the predecessors, such as the A52 and Galaxy A52s were still supplied with a Qualcomm chipset. An Exynos processor is usually received more critically. We have to say, in recent weeks we have not noticed any crazy things with the device. Tasks are performed fairly smoothly, as you would expect for the price of this device.

The battery of the Samsung Galaxy A53 has a capacity of 5000 mAh. That is a nice capacity, but capacity does not always say something about the performance in practice. With the Galaxy A53, however, that is good. At the end of the day, the phone still has a 25 percent battery at the end of the day, and we note a screen-on-time of 3.5-4 hours. An excellent score.

The device achieves a less excellent score with the charging speed. This is possible with 25W, and although that is not terribly slow, several competitors such as OnePlus and Xiaomi do this faster. A charger is not included, so if you want to take advantage of the 25W speed, you have to spend a few euros extra and purchase this charger separately.

Update Policy

Samsung has a good reputation when it comes to the manufacturer’s update policy. The phone manufacturer also applies a good update policy to the Galaxy A53. The smartphone comes with Android 12. Like the Galaxy S22 series, which are a considerable price category higher, the A53 can count on four Android updates and five years of security updates. This means that the device will receive Android updates up to and including Android 16. You won’t find it better, especially in this price category.

Rating

The Samsung Galaxy A53 is a very nice smartphone. As with its predecessor, it remains a somewhat meager package with what is present. No charger and no silicone case as we see with several brands. That does not alter the fact that the device itself is nothing, on the contrary.

I myself use the Samsung Galaxy S22+ as a ‘daily driver’ and actually I did not miss that device when I used the Galaxy A53. The average user will hardly notice any differences. The battery life is even better with the A53; although you will want the performance of the S22 for the really heavy work. With the Galaxy A53 you can go forward for years; not just because of the updates; the rest of the specifications are also perfectly fine, despite the fact that they do not differ much from those of the predecessor, the Galaxy A52.

You can buy the Samsung Galaxy A53 from Samsung itself, Belsimpel, Mobiel, Coolblue, Bol.com, Amazon and MediaMarkt. You can also contact the providers; Ben, Hollandsnieuwe, Simyo, KPN, T-Mobile, Tele2 and Vodafone.

Thank you Dominick Viëtor from SmartphoneMan
for the photos of the Galaxy A53 for this review!