Samsung Galaxy A53 5G Camera test

The Samsung Galaxy A53 5G competes in the high-end segment Cons devices such as the Realme GT Neo 2 5G, the Oppo Find X5 Lite and the Xiaomi 11T. It features an octa-core processor, 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage and the device is controlled via a 6.5-inch AMOLED touchscreen with FHD + resolution.

In the rear camera cluster, you can find an ultra-wide module next to the main lens. There are also dedicated modules for macro shooting and depth sensing. Let’s see how the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G fared in our SBMARK camera test.

Key Camera Specifications:

• Main: 64MP sensor, f / 1.8 aperture lens, OIS
• Ultra-wide: 12MP sensor, f / 2.2 aperture lens
• Macro: 5MP sensor, f / 2.4 aperture lens
• Depth: 5MP sensor, f / 2.4 aperture lens
• 4K at 30fps, 1080p at 30 / 60fps (1080p / 30fps tested)

About SBMARK Camera Tests: For scoring and analysis in our smartphone camera reviews, SBMARK engineers capture and evaluate over 3000 test images and more than 2.5 hours of video in both controlled laboratory environments and indoor and outdoor natural scenes, using the default camera settings. This article aims to highlight the most important results of our tests. For more information on SBMARK Camera Test Protocol, please click here. More details on how we rate smartphone cameras can be found here.

Test summary

With a SBMARK Camera score of 105, the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G was far from the top performer in the high-end segment, delivering rather average performance than its direct competitors.

In photo mode, the camera is capable of capturing images with good target exposure and a wide dynamic range. Howeverr, HDR processing can sometimes produce a halo effect that makes the subject unnatural in the scene. Details are quite good in bright light and indoors, but noise is often noticeable as well. The colors are overall nice, but our testers noticed a slight green cast in some scenes.

In this outdoor scene, the camera produces good exposure and a wide dynamic range. Detail is good on the subject, but there is a slight greenish white balance cast.

In the detail retention chart, we can see that the A53 5G is better than the comparison devices in low light, but lags slightly behind the Realme GT Neo 2 in bright light.

This graph shows detail retention versus light level (in lux) for manual and tripod-mounted shooting.

At 13.4mm (measured) the ultra-wide A53 5G offers a very wide field of view, especially for this class of device. In use, the ultra-wide-angle camera captures images with accurate exposure and white balance, as well as a wide dynamic range and beautiful colors. The details are acceptable, with some of the smallest details being lost. Image noise is often noticeable, especially indoors.

Samsung Galaxy A53 5G, outdoor scene

Samsung Galaxy A53 5G, crop: some loss of detail, noise is more visible than reference devices

Samsung Galaxy A12, outdoor scene

Samsung Galaxy A12, crop: loss of detail

RealMe GT Neo 2 5G, outdoor scene

Realme GT Neo 2 5G, some loss of detail

The lack of a dedicated telephoto lens means that images captured at telephoto zoom settings are lacking in detail and exhibit high noise levels. This is especially true for long range telephoto settings. On the plus side, the exposure and color are generally good.

For videos, we tested the device with a resolution of 1080p and 30 fps as video stabilization with a 4K resolution is very ineffective. In video mode, the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G records well exposed video clips in vivid colors. Video stabilization is good enough for the A53 segment, but unfortunately, unstable autofocus means outdoor and low-light videos are often not usable. When the autofocus does its job, the level of detail in 1080p mode is generally quite low. Dynamic range is also limited, and white balance often turns orange in low light conditions. Video artifacts such as color quantization, ringing or ghosting are often visible.