Samsung Galaxy M53 review

One UI 4.1 on top of Android 12

The Galaxy M53 runs the latest Android 12 with One UI 4.1 - a combo we've seen on the A53 and A33, as well as retrofitted on the flagship S22 series. It is still missing the occasional feature here and there compared to the S models, but nothing unexpected or too major for most users.

An always-on display is available and you can choose between a few clock styles or opt for an Image Clock. Music info is also supported. The feature can be always-off, always-on, scheduled, shown only when new notifications are available, or you can opt for tap-to-show for 10s.

The lock screen looks the same as before with two monochrome shortcuts - dialer and camera. A bunch of customization options are available.

Always-on display options

The fingerprint reader on the right side of the frame will likely be the primary method of unlocking for most, but you can still use face unlock - either instead of or alongside it. It can be more convenient in certain situations, but it generally is less secure since it's just using the selfie camera.

Biometrics and security

One UI 4.1 looks even cleaner than v.3.x, but its logic remains the same - there are homescreens with app shortcuts and widgets, an app drawer, a notification center with quick toggles, and a task switcher.

Among the One UI 4.1 features missing on the M53 are Samsung's new Smart Widgets. We've only seen them on the high-models though - neither the A53, nor the A33 have them, so maybe they are limited to more expensive Galaxies. They are really convenient since they allow joining data from a few widgets into a single one - not on the M53 though.

Homescreen • Folder view • App drawer • Notifications • Task switcher • No smart widgets

One of the new One UI 4 features is Color Palettes. This is the implementation of the vanilla Android 12's Wallpaper colors. There are usually four Color Palette suggestions in addition to the default One UI Blue/Black one. Those are picked automatically by the software, depending on your current wallpaper. The color you choose will become the main one in the newly created theme (think Windows' "accent color").

These accent colors are applied on the dialer, the quick toggles, and other tiny UI bits. You can choose to apply them to the app icons as well, though non-Samsung apps won't comply and you can get an inconsistent look.

Color palettes

One UI has always offered great customization. You can use one of a few wallpaper services to automatically change your lockscreen or homescreen. The powerful Theme engine is here as well.

Wallpaper services • Galaxy Themes

The dialer allows you to pick between two layouts for the in-call screen. You can also set up a background image or video for that screen, though it's going to be all the same for all of your calls - you can't have a different one on a per-person basis.

Navigation is highly-customizable. You can go with gestures and tweak them to your liking or revert back to old-school buttons and even swap the home and back buttons for a truly retro navigation scheme.

Dialer customization • Dialer customization • Dialer customization • Navigation

The Settings menu contains a new Privacy Dashboard. Here, you can easily see which apps use some of the most important permissions (for privacy). You can control the camera and control access across apps, opt for clipboard access alerts (useful if you copy passwords, social security numbers, IBANs, among others), and a full-blown permission manager if you like to dig deeper.

Privacy Dashboard

You get a whole bunch of options for using your Galaxy with other devices to enable various use cases. Wireless display is the most obvious one. You can just do display mirroring this way though since the Galaxy M53 lacks Samsung DeX. It is still reserved for Samsung's flagship devices and hasn't made its way down the chain.

The Link to Windows feature provides you with an interface to your phone from your computer so you can exchange images, manage notifications on your PC or even make calls from it.

Another option along those lines but with more limited potential is Continue apps on other devices. This requires you to be logged in to your Samsung account on both devices, hook them up to the same Wi-Fi network with Bluetooth enabled and use the Samsung Internet browser or Samsung Notes. You'll then be able to copy and paste text and images across and open the same tabs in the browser.

No DeX • Continue apps on other devices • Link to Windows • Android Auto

Other staples of proprietary Samsung software include the Edge panels - the panes that show up when you swipe in from the side and provide tools and shortcuts to apps and contacts. Game launcher, the hub for all your games, which also provides options for limiting distraction when gaming, is here to stay as well.

Otherwise, the software package is similar to other Samsung phones, with an in-house Gallery app and a proprietary file manager. Naturally, Samsung's Internet web browser is also available.

Gallery • File manager • Edge panels

Beyond all of this, the Galaxy M53 comes loaded with a standard set of apps from Samsung, Microsoft and Google - some of these you can choose not install in the first place, at the initial setup stage. Granted, the list has gotten a bit extensive, but there is nothing here that we would consider bloat in the traditional sense. Anything that's slipped through during setup that you don't personally like or appreciate having on your device can be easily uninstalled or, failing that - disabled.

Synthetic benchmarks

The Galaxy M53 is equipped with the Dimensity 900 - a 5G capable chipset from Mediatek. Manufactured on a 6nm process, it features an octa-core CPU in a 2+6 configuration (2x2.4 GHz Cortex-A78 & 6x2.0 GHz Cortex-A55). That's a downgrade compared to the 4 A78s in the Snapdragon 778 of the Galaxy M52 5G, which will quickly show in GeekBench. Similarly, the Mali-G68 MC4 GPU will prove to be a step down from the Adreno 642L of last year's model.

At least three RAM and storage versions exist, starting from our review unit's 6GB/128GB spec, through 8GB/128GB, and peaking at 8GB/256GB. You may not get all versions in all markets, as usual.

In the single-core test in GeekBench, the Galaxy M53 does outscore the M52 5G, and is roughly on par with the A53 and A52s. In the multi-core test, however, the M53 drops behind both of last year's models, though it manages to pull ahead of the A53. 2022 is a weird year for midrange SoCs, no two ways about it.

GeekBench 5 (single-core)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  1095
• iQOO Neo 6
  984
• Realme 9 Pro+
  814
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  787
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  771
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  743
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  742
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  738
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  736
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  730
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  728
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  694
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  676
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  666
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  662
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  603

GeekBench 5 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  3442
• iQOO Neo 6
  3076
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  2832
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  2801
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  2796
• Realme 9 Pro+
  2335
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  2276
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  2225
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  2157
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  2037
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  1956
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  1945
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  1908
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  1906
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  1900
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  1891

The M53 is also the highest-scoring midrange Galaxy we've seen this year (A73 should top it, but we haven't been graced with its presence) - the A53 and the A33 don't quite cut it. Then again, the A52s and the M52 from 2021 are way higher up the chart.

AnTuTu 9

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  846231
• iQOO Neo 6
  730223
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  527663
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  506432
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  504424
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  479608
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  437872
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  436640
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  436197
• Realme 9 Pro+
  416031
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  399306
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  396008
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  394918
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  387218
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  380672
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  379313

The M53's GPU is roughly on par with the ones that the A53 and A33 get - perhaps that's some consolation, but we're still kind of sour about the downgrade from the 52 generation.

GFX Aztek ES 3.1 High (onscreen)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  42
• iQOO Neo 6
  32
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  19
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  19
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  18
• Realme 9 Pro+
  17
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  16
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  15
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  12
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  12
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  11
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  11

GFX Aztek ES 3.1 High (offscreen 1440p)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  29
• iQOO Neo 6
  22
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  13
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  13
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  13
• Realme 9 Pro+
  11
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  10
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  10
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  10
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  10
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  7.9
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  7.8
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  7.8
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  7.8

GFX Aztek Vulkan High (onscreen)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  43
• iQOO Neo 6
  34
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  20
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  20
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  19
• Realme 9 Pro+
  16
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  15
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  14
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  12
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  12
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  12
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  11

GFX Aztek Vulkan High (offscreen 1440p)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  30
• iQOO Neo 6
  24
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  14
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  14
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  14
• Realme 9 Pro+
  10
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  10
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  10
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  9.8
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  9.4
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  8.2
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  8.2
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  8.2
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  8.1

GFX Car Chase ES 3.1 (onscreen)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  64
• iQOO Neo 6
  50
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  28
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  28
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  28
• Realme 9 Pro+
  23
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  22
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  21
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  20
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  20
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  19
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  19
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  17
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  17
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  16
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  16

GFX Car Chase ES 3.1 (offscreen 1080p)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  73
• iQOO Neo 6
  58
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  33
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  33
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  33
• Realme 9 Pro+
  27
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  26
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  25
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  24
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  24
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  23
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  23
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  21
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  20
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  20
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  20

GFX Manhattan ES 3.1 (onscreen)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  103
• iQOO Neo 6
  84
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  49
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  49
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  47
• Realme 9 Pro+
  41
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  38
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  38
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  36
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  35
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  35
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  35
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  30
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  29
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  29
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  28

GFX Manhattan ES 3.1 (offscreen 1080p)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  117
• iQOO Neo 6
  95
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  56
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  56
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  56
• Realme 9 Pro+
  45
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  43
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  42
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  42
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  40
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  38
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  38
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  35
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  35
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  35
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  35

3DMark Wild Life Vulkan 1.1 (offscreen 1440p)

Higher is better

• iQOO 9 SE
  5463
• iQOO Neo 6
  4225
• Samsung Galaxy A52s 5G
  2491
• Xiaomi 11 Lite 5G NE
  2477
• Samsung Galaxy M52 5G
  2470
• Realme 9 Pro+
  2296
• Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
  2292
• Samsung Galaxy A33 5G
  2260
• Samsung Galaxy M53
  2203
• Oppo Reno7 5G
  2037
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 5G
  2036
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 Pro+ 5G
  2014
• Sony Xperia 10 IV
  1213
• Honor Magic4 Lite
  1211
• OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite 5G
  1209
• OnePlus Nord N20 5G
  1205

Sustained CPU load revealed an oddly choppy behavior from the Galaxy M53 - other implementations of the Dimensity 900 have been a lot more stable. On a positive note, the result in the 3DMark Wild Life test was rock solid.

CPU throttling test • 3DMark Wild Life stress test

In summary, the Galaxy M53 is a decently capable performer. Its GPU is about as potent as the ones on other mid-tier Galaxies, while the CPU numbers were a bit more inconsistent. In any case, however, the chipset is a downgrade from last year's model.