Review: Apple iPhone SE 3 (2022) v Samsung Galaxy A53
Apple and Samsung have gone head-to-head with new phones that are hundreds of dollars cheaper than premium models. Here’s how they stack up.
Apple and Samsung have gone head-to-head in the mid range phone market with handsets hundreds of dollars cheaper than their premium models. We tested smartphones from both phone makers and found they offered totally different experiences. So which was the best?
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Apple iPhone SE 3 (2022)
Apple’s cheaper iPhone is an old head with a new brain. It has a 2017 design iPhone 8 body with a 2021 Apple A15 processor. It does look antiquated with a tichy 4.7-inch display and big bezels, or borders, top and button. You get just 326 pixel per inch resolution, although to be fair, the technology that’s gone into that little screen means display reproduction is excellent.
It’s fast, having the same A15 bionic chip found on iPhone 13 models.
I did our usual processor and battery tests. The AnTuTu benchmark returned a score of 747433 roughly equivalent to iPhone 12 Pro in terms of processor, graphics, memory and usability performance. This together with the screen’s 60 Hz refresh rate makes it suited to moderate gaming.
Battery life was less than we expected: 9 hours 45 minutes playing 1080p video at 50 per cent brightness, but it’s a case of a smaller frame supporting a smaller battery.
For iPhone SE3, if we take the similarly sized iPhone 8 battery, the capacity was 1821 mAh compared to 3240 mAh on iPhone 13 which ran for 12.5 hours, some 2 hours 45 minutes longer with the same processor.
In keeping with its retro appeal, iPhone SE3 has a home button and fingerprint recognition. It’s an older feature many prefer. Some folks have never warmed to face recognition and gesture operation.
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The camera hardware is basic with a single 12MP back facing camera and 7MP selfie snapper. However you can get quality shots with realistic colour and good texture. I found that Apple’s neural engine offered good colour accuracy and there’s HDR4 for increased dynamic range.
There’s no zoom or ultrawide lens and night time stills are ordinary. But you do get 5x digital zoom, portrait mode, 4K video shooting and optical image stabilisation.
The iPhone SE3 supports 5G and two phone accounts accessed through a physical SIM and eSIM or 2 eSIMs. The phone does not offer the extremely fast form of millimetre wave 5G in Australia.
Despite having good points, I believe that in 2022, the 4.7-inch model is antiquated in looks and too small. The size limits battery life and the small IPS screen with big bezels looks from another era.
There’s a belief that a 4.7-inch iPhone is still popular. That may be so, but it’s another thing to say they are especially popular among people wanting cheaper phones. Where’s the evidence?
Apple should move to a larger iPhone as its budget offering next time. It should also include more back facing lenses. There are plenty of Android phones that manage multiple lenses and cost less.
Having said that, there is an alternative for Apple lovers wanting a cheaper iPhone but a larger screen. Consider an iPhone 11 which Apple still sells, but at a discounted price: $849 for iPhone 11 with 64GB storage and $929 with 128GB.
That’s within range of iPhone SE3 prices – $719 with 64GB storage, $799 (128GB) and $969 (256GB).
Whatever you choose, you’re paying miles less than for an iPhone 13, which starts at $1349.
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Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
Samsung has taken to the mid range phone market with gusto, releasing five new handsets in its A series. In doing so, the Korean electronics manufacturer is competing not only with Apple, but a range of Android phone makers such as Oppo, Motorola, TCL and Google Pixel whose phones also offer value for money.
Three of the five A series phones offer 5G: The A73 ($799), A53 ($699) and A33 ($599). The cheaper A23 ($399) and A13 ($329) are 4G phones. All are much cheaper than the premium Galaxy S22 ($1249) and S22+ ($1549).
I have been testing the A53 5G, which Samsung put forward as its best value for money proposition. These A-series phones are excellent value for money. All 5G models are well kitted with 6GB of memory and 128GB or 256GB of storage, with a swish looking glass finish at front and matt finish at rear. Phones have a bright almost edge-to-edge display. The A53 has a 6.5-inch FHD+ super AMOLED display.
Instead of a single back facing lens with iPhone SE 3, the A53 has a triple lens system: a 64MP main lens with optical stabilisation, with a large F1.8 aperture for lower light photography, a 12MP ultrawide camera and a 5MP macro lens. There’s also a 5MP depth sensor.
The three lenses operate in harmony. Pinch-to-zoom takes you from 0.5x for close-ups to 10x for digital zoom. The largest optical zoom is 2x.
If that’s not impressive enough, there’s a 32MP snapper at the front.
Good specs is one thing, great performance and photos can be another.
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The A53 doesn’t disappoint when it comes to the clarity and crispness of images, but it lacks the depth of colour that Apple offers through its neural engine processing of images.
For example, skin tones are more natural with the iPhone. Pictures I took with the A53 in my local park were overly vivid.
The A53 has a night photography mode which can work well if the available light is even.
It’s hard to fault the ease of use and performance of the A53, and its feel as a modern phone.
I tested the A53 using the same AnTuTu benchmark as with iPhone SE3 and it scored 421894 compared to 747433 for the SE3. That’s around the 2019 Galaxy S10e performance.
While it lags behind the iPhone SE3 with Apple’s latest chip, in pre-pandemic times we thought a result of 421894 was pretty quick. Add a 120
Hertz screen refresh rate, and you should be fine playing action games.
Battery life was outstanding. The A53 managed 19 hours, 48 minutes continuously playing 1080p video at 50 per cent brightness.
You can unlock the phone with face recognition and this works quickly, but I experienced a slight performance lag entering a PIN.
If you’re someone who doesn’t need the latest bells and whistles, the A53 overall is a great choice and at $699, is hard to beat. You won’t wake up each morning cursing that you have a budget phone.
This handset goes on sale on April 1, as does the A23 and A13. The A73 and A33 sell from April 22.
The Verdict
Apple is the leader when it comes to offering a very fast processor in a cheaper mid range phone, and the neural engine produces great daytime shots. Subtle tones are preserved. Apple’s business model isn’t built around garnering your activities for advertising. However the A53 offers a lot for its price: it’s a decent sized phone, has multiple back lenses, shoots night shots, offers more RAM memory and more storage at entry level , supports a microSD card and has great battery life. So it gets the nod. With five model choices, Samsung has worked hard to be successful in the mid range phone market.