Realme Narzo N53 review: Budget device with a sleek design

• Realme has launched the Narzo N53, India’s latest budget smartphone.
• The device is priced at ₹8,999 and is available in two variants.
• Here’s my review of the Narzo N53 to help you decide whether to buy the device.

Realme’s newly launched Narzo N53 is its latest budget smartphone in India, priced under ₹10,000, making it one of the most affordable devices in its Narzo lineup. It has been placed below the company’s recently launched Narzo N55 smartphone.

The Narzo N53 is aimed at entry-level buyers and offers decent features. The main highlights of the device include its sleek design, the mini capsule and the battery life.

I have been using the Narzo N53 for a few days now, and here is my review of the latest budget offering from the smartphone maker.

Realme Narzo N53 price and availability

The Realme Narzo N53 is priced at ₹8,999 for the 4GB RAM + 64GB internal storage variant and ₹10,999 for the 6GB RAM + 128GB internal storage variant. The device will go on sale from Amazon India, Realme online store, and authorised offline stores across the country from May 24.

Realme Narzo N53 specifications

Realme Narzo N53 pros and cons

Pros

• Affordable price
• Good battery life

Cons

• Feather Gold colour is flashy
• Average camera performance

Design and display

The Narzo N53 features a sleek design and comes in an all-plastic body. I got the Feather Gold colour variant, which was too flashy for my liking, and I used it with a case on. The company also has a Feather Black colour option, which looks better.


At the back, the device comes with the Narzo branding and a large rear camera module identical to the Apple iPhone. The Feather Gold variant features a shiny back that has shades of gold, pink and blue colours. Thanks to the shiny plastic back, the device is smudge-free.

The device has volume rockers and a power button on the right side, doubling as a fingerprint sensor. You get the SIM tray on the left side.

At the bottom, you get the USB Type-C port, a 3.5mm audio jack, a microphone, and the speaker.


Coming to the display, the device features a 6.74-inch HD+ IPS LCD with a 90Hz refresh rate and 450 nits of peak brightness. The display is bright enough indoors but struggles a bit in direct sunlight.


It comes with a water drop notch and uses the mini capsule features that were earlier seen on the Realme C55. It can be turned on or off based on your preference. It shows information such as charging, data consumption, and steps covered. I found it interesting, and while there is some room for improvement, it is a nifty feature.

Software and performance

The Realme Narzo N53 runs on Android 13 out of the box with the company’s Realme UI T Edition, a toned-down version of its UI. As it is a budget device, there is a lot of bloatware on the device, even higher than what is usually found on Realme smartphones.

The device has dynamic ads throughout the UI and has many preinstalled apps, including Moj, IIFL, Paytm, Snapchat, Spotify, and more. It also comes with folders such as “Hot Apps” and “Hot Games” which cannot be removed.

The UNISOC T612 powers the Narzo N53 with up to 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage. We found the device can handle day-to-day tasks, but there are occasional stutters while launching applications.

If you are a gamer and play many games, there may be better devices than the Narzo N53. I played Call of Duty: Mobile on the device and found that the device struggled to handle the game, and there were a lot of stutters.

A 5,000mAh battery with 33W fast charging support powers the device. The device easily offers over a day of battery life. With light gaming, streaming, and browsing, the device lasted a day with around 25% of the battery remaining. The device can be fully charged in around 100 minutes.

Camera

The Realme Narzo N53 has a 50MP primary camera at the back and an unspecified camera. It comes with an LED flash that is housed in the third cutout.

Being a budget smartphone, I do not expect the device to perform extraordinarily.


In daylight and normal lighting conditions, the camera performs decently and can capture great detail. The performance deteriorates in low light conditions, and the device struggles to capture all details.


On the front, it features an 8MP selfie camera decent enough for occasional selfies and video calling.

Verdict

At the end of the day, the Realme Narzo N53 is a budget device and can perform day-to-day tasks properly. The device is worth considering if you are looking for an entry-level or a secondary smartphone. If you are a gamer or a photography enthusiast, the Narzo N53 may not be the best option.

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