Chinese smartphone manufacturer Realme announced plans to enter the Australian smartphone market earlier this month, and it sure knows how to make an entrance. The company will kickstart local sales with four aggressively priced smartphones that tend to undercut their closest competition. These include the Realme XT, the Realme 5 Pro, the Realme 5, and the Realme C2.
Before we get into details on each phone, it's worth noting that Realme devices will only be available online initially through retailers including JB Hi-Fi, The Good Guys, Bing Lee, Amazon, eBay, and Mobileciti. You'll also be able to get them direct through Realme's own website.
At this stage, Realme handsets will only be available outright, but the company says it is in discussion with telcos.
Realme was first started as a subsidiary of OPPO, but it is now its own independent company, albeit still part of the BBK Electronics group which also includes Vivo and OnePlus. Despite Realme's separation from OPPO, its smartphones are still powered by OPPO's customised take on Android, ColorOS.
In addition, Australian Realme customers will be able to take their smartphones to OPPO service centres in Sydney and Melbourne if repairs are needed. Customers in Perth and Adelaide will have access to collection points, and Realme says these will be available in Brisbane soon.
Realme XT
The Realme XT is the first smartphone with a 64MP camera, which makes it the highest resolution smartphone camera around. However, the Realme XT doesn't actually take 64MP photos for the most part. Instead, the phone merges four pixels into one, which gets you a brighter 16MP photo. This can help with both lowlight and dynamic range. Essentially, the use of a higher resolution sensor can get around some of the shortcomings typically associated with more affordable smartphones.
The 64MP camera is flanked by an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens, a 2MP macro lens for close-ups, and a 2MP depth lens for improving portrait shots.
Other key specifications for the Realme XT include a 6.4-inch 1080p+ display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 processor, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, and a 4,000mAh battery.
The Realme XT will set you back $499 outright and will be available in a choice of "Pearl White" or "Pearl Blue". You'll be able to grab it from October 22.
Read our full Realme XT review here.
Realme 5 Pro
The Realme 5 Pro is pretty similar to the Realme XT, but there are a few slight differences. The quad rear-facing camera configuration is almost identical, but the 64MP primary lens has been swapped out for a 48MP lens. The screen is 0.1-inches smaller, the battery is 35mAh larger, and the finishes are a little different. Otherwise, the pair are identical.
Other key specifications for the Realme 5 Pro include a 6.3-inch 1080p+ display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 processor, 8GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, and a 4,035mAh battery.
The Realme 5 Pro will set you back $399 outright and will be available in a choice of "Sparkling Blue" or "Crystal Green". You'll be able to grab it from October 30.
Realme 5
While the Realme 5 shares most of its name with the Realme 5 Pro, the differences between the pair are a little more pronounced. The quad rear-facing configuration is once again almost identical, but the 48MP primary lens has been replaced with a 12MP lens. Internals are a little bit more modest (although they punch above the phone's price-tag) while the screen and battery are larger.
Key specifications for the Realme 5 include a 6.5-inch 720p+ display, a Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 processor, 4GB of RAM, 128GB of expandable storage, and 5,000mAh battery.
The Realme 5 will set you back $299 and will be available in a choice of "Crystal Blue" or "Crystal Purple". You'll be able to grab it from October 25.
Realme C2
The Realme C2 is the cheapest phone in the Australian Realme range, coming in at $199. A few trade-offs have been made in order to keep the cost down - such as the use of textured plastic for the back, rather than glass - but the Realme C2 compares favourably to other devices in its category.
The processor is faster than you'd expect in a $199 phone, and there's more storage too. The Realme C2 has 64GB out of the box, whereas similarly priced phones typically have 16GB or 32GB.
Key specifications for the Realme include a 6.1-inch 720p+ display, a MediaTek Helio P22 processor, 3GB of RAM, 64GB of expandable storage, a 13MP + 2MP rear-facing camera, and a 4,000mA battery.
The Realme C2 will be available in a choice of "Diamond Blue" or "Diamond Black". You'll be able to grab it from October 30.
Alex Choros
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