Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra vs A53 5G
Here we compared two smartphones: the 6.9-inch Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra (with Exynos 990) that was released on August 5, 2020, against the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G, which is powered by Exynos 1280 and came out 20 months after. On this page, you will find tests, full specs, strengths, and weaknesses of each of the devices.
Key differences
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra
- The rear camera has a 5x optical zoom
- Better camera quality (According to DxOMark rating)
- 75% better performance in AnTuTu Benchmark (753K versus 431K)
- Handles wireless charging up to 15W
- Waterproof body (IP68 classification)
- Has a 0.4 inch larger screen size
- Slow-motion recording at 960FPS
- Uses a faster type of memory: LPDDR5 2750 MHz
- Compatible with Wi-Fi 6 wireless networks
- Delivers 22% higher peak brightness (1025 against 837 nits)
- 22% higher pixel density (496 vs 405 PPI)
- Thinner bezels – 6.3% more screen real estate
Reasons to consider the Samsung Galaxy A53 5G
- Shows 28% longer battery life (33:59 vs 26:27 hours)
- Comes with 500 mAh larger battery capacity: 5000 vs 4500 mAh
- The phone is 1-year and 8-months newer
- More energy-efficient CPU – Exynos 1280
- Weighs 19 grams less
Review
Display
Screen quality, color accuracy, brightness
Camera
Photo and video recording quality
Performance
CPU and memory performance (apps, system)
Gaming
Capabilities for playing modern games
Battery
Battery life, charging type and speed
Connectivity
Networks, ports, data transmission
Value for money
Tests and specifications
Comparison table of technical specifications and testsDisplay
| Type | Dynamic AMOLED | Super AMOLED |
| Size | 6.9 inches | 6.5 inches |
| Resolution | 1440 x 3088 pixels | 1080 x 2400 pixels |
| Aspect ratio | 19.5:9 | 20:9 |
| PPI | 496 ppi | 405 ppi |
| Refresh rate | 120 Hz | 120 Hz |
| Adaptive refresh rate | Yes | No |
| Max rated brightness | 600 nits | 500 nits |
| Max rated brightness in HDR | - | 830 nits |
| HDR support | Yes, HDR10+ | Yes, HDR10 |
| Screen protection | Gorilla Glass Victus | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 |
| Screen-to-body ratio | 91.7% | 85.4% |
| Display features |
- DCI-P3
- Always-On Display |
- DCI-P3
- Always-On Display |
| RGB color space | 96.9% | 97.6% |
| PWM | 245 Hz | 250 Hz |
| Response time | 6 ms | 9 ms |
| Contrast | ∞ Infinity | ∞ Infinity |
Peak brightness test (auto)
Design and build
| Height | 164.8 mm (6.49 inches) | 159.6 mm (6.28 inches) |
| Width | 77.2 mm (3.04 inches) | 74.8 mm (2.94 inches) |
| Thickness | 8.1 mm (0.32 inches) | 8.1 mm (0.32 inches) |
| Weight | 208 g (7.34 oz) | 189 g (6.67 oz) |
| Waterproof | IP68 | IP67 |
| Advanced cooling | Vapor chamber | - |
| Rear material | Glass | Plastic |
| Frame material | Metal | Plastic |
| Colors | White, Black, Brown | White, Black, Blue, Yellow |
| Fingerprint scanner | Yes, in-display | Yes, in-display |
Screen-to-body ratio
Performance
| Chipset | Samsung Exynos 990 | Samsung Exynos 1280 |
| Max clock | 2730 MHz | 2400 MHz |
| CPU cores | 8 (2 + 2 + 4) | 8 (2 + 6) |
| Architecture |
- 4 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A55
- 2 cores at 2.5 GHz: Cortex-A76 - 2 cores at 2.73 GHz: Exynos M5 |
- 6 cores at 2 GHz: Cortex-A55
- 2 cores at 2.4 GHz: Cortex-A78 |
| L3 cache | 2 MB | - |
| Lithography process | 7 nanometers | 5 nanometers |
| Graphics | Mali-G77 MP11 | Mali-G68 MP4 |
| GPU shading units | 704 | - |
| GPU clock | 800 MHz | 1000 MHz |
| FLOPS | ~1126 GFLOPS | ~487 GFLOPS |
Benchmarks
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
AnTuTu Benchmark 10
| CPU | 211637 | 112133 |
| GPU | 216705 | 130492 |
| Memory | 152008 | 77548 |
| UX | 169293 | 107735 |
| Total score | 753550 | 431745 |
3DMark Wild Life Performance
| Max surface temperature | 37.3 °C | 45.2 °C |
| Stability | 49% | 99% |
| Graphics test | 25 FPS | 13 FPS |
| Graphics score | 4249 | 2287 |
PCMark 3.0
| Web score | 8916 | 9497 |
| Video editing | 6869 | 7594 |
| Photo editing | 28845 | 21637 |
| Data manipulation | 8839 | 9220 |
| Writing score | 10870 | 14992 |
Memory
| RAM size | 8, 12 GB | 6, 8 GB |
| Memory type | LPDDR5 | LPDDR4X |
| Memory clock | 2750 MHz | 2133 MHz |
| Channels | - | 2 |
| Storage size | 256, 512 GB | 128, 256 GB |
| Storage type | UFS 3.1 | UFS 2.2 |
| Memory card | MicroSD | MicroSD |
| Memory card max size | Up to 1000 GB | Up to 1024 GB |
Software
| Operating system | Android 10 (Can be upgraded to Android 13) | Android 12 (Can be upgraded to Android 13) |
| ROM | One UI 5.0 | One UI 5.1 |
| OS size | 34.7 GB | 36 GB |
Battery
| Capacity | 4500 mAh | 5000 mAh |
| Max charge power | 25 W | 25 W |
| Battery type | Li-Po | Li-Po |
| Replaceable | No | No |
| Wireless charging | Yes (15 W) | No |
| Reverse charging | Yes, (wireless) | No |
| Fast charging | Yes (43% in 30 min) | Yes (45% in 30 min) |
| Full charging time | 1:20 hr | 1:24 hr |
| Web browsing | 08:59 hr | 10:38 hr |
| Watching video | 13:52 hr | 15:55 hr |
| Gaming | 04:58 hr | 05:01 hr |
| Standby | 74 hr | 120 hr |
General battery life
Camera
| Matrix | 108 megapixels | 64 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 12000 x 9000 | 9000 x 7000 |
| Zoom | Optical, 5x | Digital |
| Flash | LED | LED |
| Stabilization | Optical | Optical |
| 8K video recording | Up to 24FPS | No |
| 4K video recording | Up to 60FPS | Up to 30FPS |
| 1080p video recording | Up to 240FPS | Up to 60FPS |
| Slow motion | 960 FPS (720p) | 240 FPS (720p) |
| Angle of widest lens | 120° | 123° |
| Lenses | 4 (108 MP + 12 MP + 12 MP + 0.3 MP) | 4 (64 MP + 12 MP + 5 MP + 5 MP) |
| Wide (main) lens |
- 108 MP
- Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.33", Samsung Bright S5KHM1 (ISOCELL Plus CMOS) - Laser autofocus - Optical stabilization |
- 64 MP
- Aperture: f/1.8 - Focal length: 26 mm - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/1.72", Samsung S5KGW1P (ISOCELL CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization |
| Telephoto lens |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/3.0 - Focal length: 103 mm - Pixel size: 1 micron - Sensor: 1/3.4", Samsung S5K3M5 (ISOCELL CMOS) - Phase autofocus - Optical stabilization |
- |
| Ultra-wide lens |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.4 micron - Sensor: 1/2.55", Samsung S5K2L3 (ISOCELL CMOS) - Phase autofocus |
- 12 MP
- Aperture: f/2.2 - Focal length: 13 mm - Pixel size: 1.12 micron - Sensor: 1/4.0" (CMOS) |
| Macro lens | - |
- 5 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4 |
| Depth lens |
- 0.3 MP
|
- 5 MP
- Aperture: f/2.4 - Pixel size: 0.8 micron - Sensor: 1/2.8", Sony IMX616 (Exmor-RS CMOS) |
| Camera features |
- Bokeh mode
- Pro mode - RAW support |
- Bokeh mode
- Pro mode |
| Samples | Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra from DxOMark | Photo samples of Samsung Galaxy A53 5G from DxOMark |
| Megapixels | 10 megapixels | 32 megapixels |
| Image resolution | 3872 x 2592 | 6464 x 4864 |
| Aperture | f/2.2 | f/2.2 |
| Focal length | 26 mm | 26 mm |
| Pixel size | 1.22 microns | 0.8 microns |
| Sensor type | CMOS | CMOS |
| Sensor size | 1/3.2" | 1/2.8" |
| Video resolution | 2160p (4K) at 60 FPS | 2160p (4K) at 30 FPS |
DxOMark camera tests
Photo quality
Video quality
Generic camera score
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi standard | Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax) | Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) |
| Wi-Fi features |
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct - Wi-Fi Hotspot - Wi-Fi Display |
| Bluetooth version | 5.1 | 5.1 |
| Bluetooth features | PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, LE, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP | PBAP/PAB, PAN, OPP, MAP, HSP, HID, HFP, DIP, AVRCP, A2DP |
| USB type | USB Type-C | USB Type-C |
| USB version | 3.2 | 2 |
| USB features |
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode - OTG |
- Charging
- USB-Storage mode - OTG |
| GPS | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo, NAVIC | GPS, GLONASS, Beidou, Galileo |
| NFC * | Yes | Depends on the region |
| Infrared port | No | No |
| Number of SIM * | 2 | 2 |
| Type of SIM card | Nano | Nano |
| Multi SIM mode | Standby | Standby |
| eSIM support * | Yes | No |
| Hybrid slot | Yes | Yes |
| LTE Cat * | 20 | 18 |
| 5G support | Yes | Yes |
Sound
| Speakers | Stereo | Stereo |
| Headphone audio jack | No | No |
| FM radio | Yes | - |
| Dolby Atmos | Yes | Yes |
Speakers test
Max loudness
Other
| Category | Flagship | Mid-range |
| Announced | August 2020 | March 2022 |
| Release date | August 2020 | April 2022 |
| SAR (head) | 0.319 W/kg | - |
| SAR (body) | 1.557 W/kg | - |
| Sensors |
- Hall-effect sensor
- Barometer - Proximity sensor - Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
- Hall-effect sensor
- Gyroscope - Accelerometer - Ambient light sensor - Compass - Fingerprint |
| Bundled charger | - | Not included |
*
Disclaimer!
NFC, GSM network support, and some other specs can be different depending on the country.
Conclusion
After analyzing all the data, we think that the Samsung Galaxy Note 20 Ultra is definitely a better buy.