For one, the A53s has more storage at 128GB, double the amount that its kin has.

The A53s is available in Fancy Blue, apart from Electric Black, while the A53 has models in Electric Black and Mint Cream.

As the good book says, "Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns."

And there is a difference of $50 in the price, with the A53s retailing for $349 in Australia. Oh yeah, and before I forget, there is an extra "s" in the name of the device featured in this article!

This is the third low-priced device that I have looked at in as many weeks and it underlines the fact that China's smartphone firms are a canny lot. The owners are aware that the names with which Western countries are obsessed — Samsung, Google and Apple — have no models to compete in this price range. They are stuck in the $500+ range and have no offerings to compete in the lower price ranges.

After months of lockdowns there is an acute lack of money for purchases like a smartphone and thus the chances of a cheaper phone being picked up are much greater than if it were a fancy Pixel or Galaxy. People are not awash in funds right now but with Christmas nigh, they would still like to give themselves a little gift.

The colours are bright and natural no matter whether they are close by or far away.

Thus when there are numerous brands for sale at very similar prices with very similar specs, the chances of one being picked up are much better than if only one was on offer. OPPO and vivo, both from the same giant electronics vendor, B.B.K. Electronics, compete among themselves, but the same owner benefits no matter which one you buy.

The A53s has OPPO's first RAM+ Memory Optimisation to increase performance speed and the display has a 90Hz refresh rate. It also has a 5000mAh battery with 18W fast charge. That's not something which will set the Yarra on fire, but it isn't that bad either.

The A53s is also built on Qualcomm's Snapdragon octa-core 460 processor, which is among the first batch of octa-core SoCs announced in 2020, offering impressive mobile performance that's exceptional among its class for its speed and efficiency.

The 3D-curved Iridescent Wave Design, which uses an integrated curved body, is framed by a silver colored metallic coating, while the decorative rings around the camera are vacuum-coated to imitate silver.

No blur despite the distance.

To augment its premium look, the new devices introduce new engraving and plating textures that shimmer with iridescent colour gradients.

The A53s has a multi-purpose AI Triple Camera set-up, consisting of a 13MP main camera, a 2MP depth camera and a 2MP macro camera. The macro lens allows one to zoom into details of objects just four centimetres away.

It also has an 8MP front camera and Intelligent Beautification algorithms, which means you can get natural-looking selfies under any lighting.

It is claimed that even when the battery charge falls to even 5%, one can still play those old melodies for another 6-1/2 hours and make calls for more than 90 minutes. I did not test this myself.

The A53s has Super Dual Speakers, combined with Dirac 2.0, offering app-specific sound effects.There are extremely good headphones that come in the box and a strong case to boot.

The standard security features are all there and the device also has NFC. The A53s has been on sale at Telstra, JB Hi-Fi, Woolworths, Mobileciti, Bing Lee and Amazon from 27 October onwards.

SPECS

Device A53s

Colours Electric Black / Fancy Blue

Chipset (make/ model) Qualcomm SM4250

Dimensions 163.9x75.1x8.4mm

Operating System/ColorOS Android 10 / ColorOS 7.2

DISPLAY

Screen Size (inches)/Pixels 6.5" A-Si, 720x1600

Screen Refresh Rate 90Hz

Max Brightness 480 nit

MEMORY

System Memory (RAM) 4GB

Internal Memory (ROM) 128GB

External Memory Up to 256 GB

CAMERA

Rear Camera Setup 13MP + 2MP +2MP

Rear Camera Sensor 13MP(OV13B10) + 2MP(GC02K0-YA) + 2MP(GC02M1B)

Rear Camera Sensor Size 13MP(1/3.06″) + 2MP(1/5") + 2MP(1/5")

Rear Camera Field of View 13MP(81.3°) + 2MP(88.8°) + 2MP(88.8°)

Rear Camera Zoom Type 10x Digital

Rear Camera Video Mode 1080P/ 720P @ 30fps

Rear Camera Additional Features "PDAF Macro Mode"

Front Camera Setup 8MP

Effects "Normal/ HDR/ Panorama/ Beautify/Time-lapse photo/Potrait"

CONNECTIVITY

NFC Yes

SIM

SIM Lock "Telstra & Optus Yes Others No"

Dual SIM Yes (Open Channel)

POWER MANAGEMENT

Battery Size/ Type 5000mAh

GSM Talk Time 30hrs (Screen off）

GSM Standby Time 500hrs

UMTS Talk Time 30hrs (Screen off）

UMTS Standby Time 500hrs

LTE Talk Time 30hrs (Screen off）

LTE Standby Time 500hrs

Charger details 9V2A, 18W

Packaging (in-box content)

Wall Charger Yes

Data Cable Yes

Headphones Yes

Case Yes

Screen Protector Yes

Warranty Card Yes

Mobile Muster Card Yes