As per usual, we’ll kick things off by listing the specs of the two devices, and will then move to other categories. We’ll talk about their designs, displays, performance, battery life, cameras, and the audio aspect. Before we begin, do note that the Pixel 6a has been announced, but it’s not yet available, we’ll get a chance to use it in July. That being said, let’s start the Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53 5G comparison.
Specs
Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Design
These two phones do look somewhat similar from the front, but when you flip them around, things change drastically. Both phones offer fairly sharp corners, though the Pixel 6a’s are more pronounced. Bezels are thin on both smartphones, while both of them have a centered display camera hole. Physical buttons sit on the right-hand side of both phones, but they’re laid out differently. The Pixel 6a’s power/lock button is above the volume rocker keys, while it’s the other way around on the Galaxy A53 5G. The Pixel 6a comes with a frame made out of metal, and a 3D thermoformed composite back (plastic). The Galaxy A53 5G, on the other hand, includes both a plastic frame, and a plastic backplate. Despite that, however, the Galaxy A53 5G is heavier than the Pixel 6a. There’s a simple reason for that, it’s the larger one of the two phones, and it includes a larger battery on top of that. The Galaxy A53 5G is considerably taller and wider than the Pixel 6a, while it’s also thinner. Both phones offer IP67 certification for water and dust resistance, while the Galaxy A53 5G is not particularly grippy, while we’re expecting the same to be the case with the Pixel 6a. The Pixel 6a will likely be easier to use with one hand, though, due to its size. The Pixel 6a has a camera visor on the back, though a smaller one than its siblings. The Galaxy A53 5G has a more regular-looking camera island back there. So, build materials go into the Pixel 6a’s favor, but the Galaxy A53 5G does feel solid in the hand, despite the excessive use of plastic. The two devices are also completely different when it comes to size, so… it’s up to you to decide what you prefer.
Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Display
The Google Pixel 6a includes a 6.1-inch fullHD+ (2400 x 1080) OLED display with a 60Hz refresh rate. So, it doesn’t offer a high refresh rate. This display does support HDR content, though, and we’re looking at a 20:9 aspect ratio here. The Pixel 6a’s panel is protected by the Gorilla Glass 3, which is quite dated at this point, and prone to microscratches. The Pixel 6a’s display is flat, by the way.
On the other hand, the Galaxy A53 5G features a 6.5-inch fullHD+ (2400 x 1080) Super AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate. This display is also flat, but it obviously offers a much higher refresh rate. This panel also offers a 20:9 aspect ratio, and it’s protected by the Gorilla Glass 5. That is a considerable improvement over Gorilla Glass 3 on the Pixel 6a, that’s for sure. It’s hard to deny that the Galaxy A53 5G’s display looks much better on paper. We didn’t get a chance to use the Pixel 6a’s panel just yet. We do believe it will offer good viewing angles and image quality, as does the Galaxy A53 5G, but the fact the Galaxy A53 5G also offers a 120Hz refresh rate, that puts it in a different category entirely. It will be difficult for the Pixel 6a 60Hz display to compete. If you don’t care about the refresh rate, however, well… then it’s a much closer battle.
Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Performance
The Google Pixel 6a comes equipped with the Google Tensor SoC, 6GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and 128GB of UFS 3.1 flash storage. The Galaxy A53 5G, on the other hand, uses the Exynos 1280 SoC, along with 4GB, 6GB, or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 128GB or 256GB of UFS 2.2 flash storage. So, the Pixel 6a definitely has better SoC, RAM, and storage specs on paper. Does that matter in real-life, though? Well, we still don’t know what will the Pixel 6a perform like, as it’s not official yet. We did see a phone with similar specs and software, though, the Pixel 6. It also uses the Google Tensor SoC, LPDDR5 RAM, and UFS 3.1 flash storage. It has a higher refresh rate display, so the Pixel 6a should offer at least comparable performance. That means the Pixel 6a has the potential to offer really great performance, as the Pixel 6 was great in that regard. What about the Galaxy A53 5G? Well, its performance-related specs don’t look great, and that reflects on its performance. We didn’t have a great time with it during our review. As my colleague said, the “performance was mediocre to decent”. Quite a bit of lag was present, though interestingly enough, the gaming experience was good. Samsung should have included more hardware power here, it seems, at the very least.
Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Battery
The Google Pixel 6a comes with a 4,410mAh battery, while the Galaxy A53 5G packs in a 5,000mAh battery. The Galaxy A53 5G does have a larger display which offers a considerably higher refresh rate, so such a batter is needed. Considering that its SoC is not particularly power-hungry, the Galaxy A53 does offer great battery life. We’ve been able to cross the 8-hour screen-on-time mark with the device, without much trouble. That speaks volumes about the battery life you can get here. Your mileage may vary, of course, there are a lot of factors to consider. The Pixel 6a, judging simply by its siblings, and its hardware specs, will likely offer great battery life as well. The Pixel 5a 5G was a true battery monster. It had a larger battery, but also a larger display. When we consider everything the battery performance should even out, so we have high hopes for the Pixel 6a. We cannot say anything for sure at this point, though, as the device hasn’t been released yet, it will be in late July. When it comes to charging, well, neither phone offers wireless charging, nor reverse (wireless) charging. The Pixel 6a does offer 18W wired charging, while the Galaxy A53 5G supports 25W wired charging. Neither phone offer truly blazing fast charging, but considering that the Galaxy A53 5G offers stellar battery life, and the Pixel 6a is expected to do the same, this likely won’t bother many people.
Google Pixel 6a vs Samsung Galaxy A53 5G: Cameras
The Pixel 6a includes two cameras on the back, main (wide) and secondary (ultrawide). The Galaxy A53 5G has four cameras on the back, wide, ultrawide, macro, and depth cameras. Now, the Pixel 6a camera performance will likely be comparable to the Pixel 5a 5G. It may actually offer a bit better results as it will have Google’s very own SoC, but the camera sensors are well-known at this point. In other words, it’s expected to offer really, really good performance in all lighting conditions, despite the fact the camera hardware is quite old.
In regards to the Galaxy A53 5G, on the other hand, we have a lot more information. We’ve reviewed this phone, and it turns out that the main camera performance is good, in good lighting. Details take a hit in low light, but the performance remains good. The ultrawide camera is not that great, to be quite honest, it offers worse sharpness, color saturation, and contrast compared to the main camera. The macro camera is decent, though, to say the least. So, the two phones will be at least comparable in terms of camera performance, though truth be said, we’re expecting better results from the Pixel 6a. Its camera offering may not be as versatile, but based on other Pixel phones, it will offer better pictures in basically all conditions. It remains to be seen if that will be true, though.
Audio
The Galaxy A53 5G does not have a 3.5mm headphone jack, and neither does the Pixel 6a, as Google decided it’s time to remove it. So, you’ll either have to use a Type-C port to connect your headphones, or use Bluetooth. What they both do have is stereo speakers. The Galaxy A53 5G actually has really good stereo speakers. At the very least they’re comparable to the Pixel 6, they even beat the one on the Pixel 6 in some cases. They offer a really full sound, and you’re even getting some bass as a result. We’re expecting the Pixel 6a speakers to trail a bit behind, but not much. We’re only guessing, though, who knows, Google may surprise us.
