Realme 8 Pro review

Introduction

If the previous Realme series are anything to go by, we should not expect direct sequels with fully-fledged upgrades. More often, we'd get a slightly different take on the previous generation with a new highlight feature - a few nip and tucks here, a few cuts there, and probably the same price. And that's what the Realme 8 Pro is all about.

The new Realme 8 Pro's most notable upgrade over the Realme 7 Pro is the new 108MP main camera, which not only promises high-quality photos and videos day and night, but it should also give us 3x lossless zoom thanks to some new binning and processing algorithms. The rest of the snappers stay the same - an 8MP ultrawide, a 2MP macro, and a 2MP depth sensor.

The Realme 8 Pro also introduces a new grippy design with a cool sandblasted rear panel.

The rest is pretty much the same. It keeps the same 6.4" 1080p Super AMOLED screen, the same Snapdragon 720G chip, as well as the same 4,500mAh battery.

There are a couple of cuts, too. The Realme 8 Pro has only one speaker, it charges a bit slower at 50W, and the selfie camera resolution was halved. Oddly, the water-repellent coating is gone, too.

Well, we are not sure how the thought processes went when making the Realme 8 Pro, but we aren't big fans of such downgrades. Here is hoping the new camera and its 3x lossless zoom would make up for the omissions, and the new design is an improvement, too.

Realme 8 Pro specs at a glance:

• Body: 160.6x73.9x8.1mm, 176g; Glass front, plastic frame, plastic back.
• Display: 6.40" Super AMOLED, 430 nits (typ), 1000 nits (peak), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 411ppi; Always-on display.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM7125 Snapdragon 720G (8 nm): Octa-core (2x2.3 GHz Kryo 465 Gold & 6x1.8 GHz Kryo 465 Silver); Adreno 618.
• Memory: 128GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM; UFS 2.1; microSDXC (dedicated slot).
• OS/Software: Android 11, Realme UI 2.0.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 108 MP, f/1.9, 26mm, 1/1.52", 0.7µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.3, 119˚, 16mm, 1/4.0", 1.12µm; Macro: 2 MP, f/2.4; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.4.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.5, (wide), 1/3.0", 1.0µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120/480fps, 720p@960fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30/120fps, gyro-EIS.
• Battery: 4500mAh; Fast charging 50W, 50% in 17 min, 100% in 47 min (advertised).
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); 3.5mm jack.

The Realme 8 Pro offers many value-adding features such as a 3.5mm jack, NFC, and even a dedicated microSD slot in addition to the dual-SIM support.

The Realme 8 Pro doesn't seem like an upgrade over the Realme 7 Pro, not even over the Realme 6 Pro. But it does offer a good pick of features at a reasonable price, which should be enough to make it a good competitor in the currently over-saturated market.

Unboxing the Realme 8 Pro

The Realme 8 Pro arrives in a familiar yellow box and has the usual contents. There is a SuperDart 65W-rated charger and a USB-A-to-C cable that can handle charging at 6.5A. The power adapter is a bit overqualified for the job as the Realme 8 Pro supports up to 50W charging, but we guess to bundle the chargers you have in stock rather than manufacture newer inferior ones.

Inside the box, you'll also find a transparent silicone case that'll provide extra protection and grip if you need it. It will make the thin Realme 8 Pro thicker and take some of its coolness, though.