Realme GT 5G review

Introduction

Realme's 2021 flagship has made it to the Old Continent, and we are thrilled to finally meet the company's first Snapdragon 888-powered handset. It's one of these smartphones that are jam-packed with high-end features yet sold at prices that are hard to ignore. Meet the Realme GT 5G.

The Realme GT 5G is based on the latest Qualcomm flagship chip, but that's only one of its key selling features. It also employs a Samsung-made 120Hz AMOLED screen with 360HZ touch sampling. There are Dolby dual speakers, too, and one large battery with incredibly fast 65W charging. And that 65W SuperDart charger ships with the phone.

Realme has opted for a triple camera on the back and a single selfie snapper. The primary rear shooter is a 64MP Sony IMX682 camera, sitting next to an 8MP ultrawide and 2MP macro snappers. The front cam has a 16MP sensor.

The Realme GT 5G is one of those devices that we are now used to calling 'flagship killers', following that one(plus) completely different company which was first to use the term publicly. And this device has everything to deserve such a title - a flagship screen, flagship performance, flagship camera, flagship battery/charging, and a killer price.

Realme GT 5G specs at a glance:

• Body: 158.5x73.3x8.4mm, 186g; glass front, glass back, plastic frame.
• Display: 6.43" Super AMOLED, 120Hz, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 409ppi.
• Chipset: Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G (5 nm): Octa-core (1x2.84 GHz Kryo 680 & 3x2.42 GHz Kryo 680 & 4x1.80 GHz Kryo 680; Adreno 660.
• Memory: 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM; UFS 3.1.
• OS/Software: Android 11, Realme UI 2.0.
• Rear camera: Wide (main): 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm, 1/1.73", 0.8µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 8 MP, f/2.3, 16mm, 119˚, 1/4.0", 1.12µm; Macro: 2 MP, f/2.4.
• Front camera: 16 MP, f/2.5, 26mm (wide), 1/3.0", 1.0µm.
• Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, gyro-EIS; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
• Battery: 4500mAh; Fast charging 65W, 100% in 35 min (advertised).
• Misc: Fingerprint reader (under display, optical); NFC; 3.5mm jack.

No flagship killer is perfect, and the Realme GT is no exception. Being a high-end mid-ranger means something had to give, and in this case, that's ingress protection and a zoom camera for the Realme GT. Well, we can certainly live without these, especially at that price.

Unboxing the Realme GT 5G

The Realme GT 5G ships within a larger than usual box, and this time, it's not realme yellow; it's black. Inside, you will find a 65W SuperDart Charger with a USB-C port and a 6.5A-rated USB-C cable.

The paper compartment contains a transparent silicone case and some paperwork.

The Realme GT arrives with a thin screen protector that is already applied, but it's a massive smudge magnet and of cheap quality, and we peeled that off immediately.