Samsung Galaxy A53 5G Prices & Plans

Samsung Galaxy A53 5G Review

Samsung's Galaxy A series phones aren't flashy in the way its S series or foldable devices are. They're not about unique headlining features or new innovations, and instead take a more pragmatic approach to phone design. Utilitarian, even.

The Galaxy A53 5G specifically feels like a phone made for people who just want a phone. It doesn't need to be the best of the best, but it still needs to be good. And it can't cost an arm-and-a-leg.

Judged by those criteria, the Galaxy A53 5G is a success. It's a $699 phone that's good at everything. Not always great, but at the same time, never subpar.

Samsung has a reputation for excellent displays, and this holds true with the Galaxy A53 5G. While it's not quite the same calibre as what you get on the Galaxy S22 Ultra, for example, the Galaxy A53 5G still has a bright, vibrant screen that's hard to fault. The Galaxy A53 5G display also benefits from a 120Hz refresh rate, which makes all motion - such as scrolling and opening and closing apps - look that little bit smoother.

The battery life on the Galaxy A53 5G is also solid. With 5G on, you should be able to get about four to five hours per charge. That translates to a full day of moderate use in between top-ups with a comfortable buffer, and is quite good for a 5G phone. Many 5G phones - such as Samsung's Galaxy S22 - fail to even hit four hours of screen time consistently.

Battery life becomes even better if you switch off 5G (or you don't have a 5G phone plan). I was getting around seven hours of screen time per charge, which should translate to about a day-and-a-half of usage. If you're less demanding on your phone, two full days shouldn't be out of the question. While Samsung says you can also switch off the phone's high refresh rate display to eek out even more charge time, I found this didn't make too much of a difference.

When it comes to camera quality, the Galaxy A53 5G performed better than I expected for a $699 phone. You can get a pretty good looking photo in most situations, and it's reliable enough that it doesn't actively feel like a compromise.

The camera app itself can be a little slow to shoot, but the results tend to be fairly consistent. You might get a little bit of motion blur when shooting moving subjects, but not as much as you'd expect given the delay between tapping the phone and actually taking the photo.

There's a step down in quality when it comes to taking photos in low light and using night mode. The Galaxy A53 5G can get bright images, but they come across as noisy, and in some cases, a little blurry. For the money, the results are still solid, however.

While the Galaxy A53 5G primary lens is a good shooter, the ultra-wide lens and macro lens are somewhat tokenistic inclusions. There's a clear drop off in photo quality even in well lit environments. Ultra-wide shots will do in a pinch, but the macro mode is largely disappointing.

The Galaxy A53 5G may be a mid-tier phone, but it still delivers when it comes to performance. It doesn't have the flagship chipset you'll find in the new iPhone SE, but the day-to-day experience is mostly smooth. I had a hitch here and a laggy animation there, but no major red flags. The Galaxy A53 5G even held its own when it came to more demanding mobile games, such as Apex Legends.

The Galaxy A53 5G stands out from the crowded mid-tier market thanks to Samsung's rather generous new update policy. Samsung says the Galaxy A53 5G will get four major operating system updates and five years of security updates. That's unrivalled when it comes to Android phones - even Google only promises three years of major operating system updates, and you're lucky to get two on most phones. Apple is the only manufacturer to do better, where you can expect at least six major operating system updates.

In addition to a long software update life, the Galaxy A53 5G also features IP67 water resistance, which means it can survive being dunked in water as deep as 1m for up to half an hour. Water resistance is still pretty rare on mid-tier phones, so it's a very welcome addition here. Samsung has however skipped on wireless charging.

Samsung Galaxy A53 5G - Final Thoughts

The Samsung Galaxy A53 5G may not be the most exciting phone, but it's an easy to recommend mid-tier option for those looking for a new Android handset that won't break the bank. Samsung's extended software life is a nice guarantee, and on top of that, the Galaxy A53 5G is quite simply a good phone for a good price.

Samsung Galaxy A53 5G camera samples