Realme 12 Pro+ review

Competition

The Realme 12 Pro+ stands out from the crowd with a competent camera setup, mostly thanks to its 3x periscope telephoto and considerably longer battery life. The slick, comfortable and IP65-certified design is also something to consider, especially in this price bracket.

However, in most other aspects, the Realme 12 Pro+ is just about average, or below, for its price. You can find brighter displays and more powerful chipsets as well as more potent main cameras. We kind of miss the 200MP from last year's Realme 11 Pro+. The latter also had faster charging, not that the 12 Pro+ is sluggish, but it's a step back.

As of writing this review, we don't have the European pricing of the 12 Pro+, so the Indian launch price of INR 30,000 should do for now. Competitors across countries don't differ by much.

One of the first options we could think of is the Poco X6 Pro. It's a slightly more affordable handset, and yet it runs on a more powerful Dimensity 8300 chipset, packs an objectively better display, and offers twice the storage by default. On the other hand, Realme's competitor has the upper hand in the battery department and is far superior when it comes to photography.

Xiaomi Poco X6 Pro • Motorola Edge 40 • OnePlus Nord 3 • Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+

Another more affordable alternative worth mentioning is the Motorola Edge 40. It sells for about INR 3,000 less and has a slightly brighter display, better ingress protection, a more powerful chip and nicer ultrawide, although it skips the telephoto camera entirely. The Edge 40 will be a better fit if you prefer close-to-stock Android and a more compact size.

The OnePlus Nord 3 can be considered as an in-house competition to some extent as both of these devices run the same software, but the Nord has a few technical advantages. The display, for example, is brighter, has higher resolution, has the better SoC and a tad faster charging. The Realme is still the more versatile photographer, although these two share the same main sensor.

Going up the price ladder, we find the Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 Pro+ 5G. What a mouthful. The handset sells for around INR 32,000, and despite its shorter battery life, it offers a few compelling reasons to consider. It has a superior display, twice the storage, faster charging, and a more competent main camera. It's a tough choice, we admit. On the one hand, you get a cheaper device with a telephoto camera and longer battery life, and on the other, you get a better viewing experience, better photos and videos with the main camera and faster charging too.

Verdict

Clearly, Realme bets on design and camera experience with the 12 Pro+. Battery life is considerably above average too, but it may be a bit hard to justify the higher price tag compared to its predecessor. The latter had faster charging and a better main camera.

The display is largely unimpressive too. It's good enough, but falls behind the competition in terms of max brightness. Some more powerful chipsets are also available.

Do we recommend the 12 Pro+? It depends. Suppose you want long battery life with decently fast charging - yes. You also get а very competent 3x periscope telephoto camera and premium design. However, better all-rounders can be had for the same price, so if you are after the best value for your money, you might want to shop around.

Pros

• Standout design and IP65 ingress protection.
• Class-leading battery life.
• Versatile camera hardware, great 3x telephoto camera.

Cons

• Better main cameras out there.
• Competition has better displays and sometimes faster SoCs too.
• Last year's model had faster charging.
• No EIS at 4K video recording.