Realme X7 Max 5G / GT Neo review

The competition

The Realme X7 Max 5G fits nicely in the "flagship killer" category. It has both the high-tier specs and the value MSRP to do so. Perhaps even more so than its Realme GT sibling, which is priced around €449 and €549, depending on the variant.

By essentially doing a nifty chipset swap from the Snapdragon 888 to the MediaTek Dimensity 1200 on the Realme X7 Max 5G, the company managed to further low the entry bar. MSRP for the 8/128GB variant is set at INR 26,999 (about €300 or $360) and INR 29,999 (about €340 or $400) for the 12/256GB trim. As of writing this review, Amazon India mostly confirms these exact prices - INR 27,200 and INR 30,349, respectively. It is admittedly a bit harder to track down pricing for the Realme GT Neo, which is essentially the same phone, just exclusive to China, but there aren't too far off, with prices ranging between €300 and €390 on sites like Aliexpress.

The important bit being - the Realme X7 Max 5G, as well as its Realme GT Neo counterpart are really aggressively priced. So much so, in fact, that finding good direct competitors for them is a tough ask.

The Poco F3 is the first smartphone that comes to mind when we think of flagship features at bargain prices. It has a 120Hz AMOLED screen, flagship-grade Snapdragon 870 5G chipset, good stereo speakers and a similar triple-camera on the back. The F3 will set you back about as much as the Realme GT Neo and can be easily found on international markets, including Europe and the US.

The Xiaomi Black Shark 4 is actually quite similar to the Poco F3, though a bit pricier, in part due to its even faster 144Hz display. That alone could be appealing to the right crowd. And speaking of Poco phones, you could also save quite a few bucks with the Poco X3 Pro, without sacrificing too much of the experience. You still get a 120Hz display, though of the IPS variety and a quite powerful, even if LTE-only Snapdragon 860 chipset.

Xiaomi Poco F3 • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro • OnePlus 9R • ZTE nubia Red Magic 6R

Shifting gears a bit in terms of feature priority, there is the Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro. It comes with a comparable 120Hz AMOLED display, but can't quite match the Dimensity 1200 performance with its Snapdragon 732G chipset. No 5G either. On the flip side, what you do get is a really potent 108MP main camera and a bigger battery, among other things.

Pushing the budget a bit here, there is the OnePlus 9R - another very comparable hardware offer overall. Some of its highlights include a 120Hz, HDR10+ AMOLED panel, Snapdragon 870 5G chipset, a 4,500mAh battery with 65W charging and a quad-camera setup, with a 48MP unit at the helm. It's likely that OxygenOS will provide most of the allure with this phone for many, though. And if its price is indeed a bit too much for you, then the OnePlus Nord CE 5G might also be worth looking into.

Finally, a bit of an "out-there" suggestion would be the nubia Red Magic 6R. In our review, we were impressed with the phone's passive cooling - something Realme may want to explore further. The Red Magic is €100 more expensive, but it offers HRR gaming without throttling, dedicated gaming triggers, 8K video capturing, and outstanding photo and video quality from the main camera. It's not an issue-free phone, but if your budget allows it - you may want to give it a chance.

The verdict

It is hard not to compare the Realme X7 Max 5G to its Realme GT sibling for a number of reasons. Both devices are perfect examples of what we would consider modern "flagship killers", with the X7 Max 5G arguably taking the already tempting value proposition of the Realme GT even further. Realme mostly managed to pull this off by swapping a Snapdragon 888 for the exciting top-dog Dimensity 1200 chip, with practically no major downgrades to the overall experience and a nice reduction in price.

The Realme X7 Max 5G still shines in the same ways the Realme GT does - Its 120Hz AMOLED panel looks great in person and is perfectly smooth when working functioning properly. The stereo speakers on offer here are decent, and so is the main camera setup. Realme UI 2.0 is really fluid and responsive, chock-full of added-value features, yet not too bloated overall. As for the main attraction - the Dimensity 1200 chipset - it managed to meet and exceed all of our expectations in terms of performance and efficiency. And that is on top of the already excellent connectivity and feature set it offers, including things like dual 5G support and Wi-Fi 6.

That being said, there is plenty of room for improvement in almost every aspect of the Realme X7 Max 5G. Our biggest gripe with it is probably the inability to run games at anything beyond 60Hz and hence 60fps, leaving a lot of performance on the table. IP-rated water resistance would have been great, and the same goes for some nifty camera extras, like OIS and lossless zoom or a dedicated telephoto snapper.

Even so, the value proposition here is hard to ignore. If you are familiar with the existing drawbacks and compromises and can live with them, there is no reason not to pick up the Realme X7 Max 5G.

Pros

• Great Super AMOLED, 120Hz, HDR10 and HLG support.
• One of the best in-display fingerprint readers around.
• Dependable battery life, fast to charge, though not blazing.
• Good stereo speakers, Dolby Atmos support.
• MediaTek Dimensity 1200 chipset manages to keep up well with competing chips in both performance and feature set.
• Good, even if not "flagship-grade" photos from all cameras.
• Fast and fluid Realme UI.
• Inexpensive for the feature set.
• 3.5mm jack, NFC, Wi-Fi 6, dual 5G.

Cons

• No IP rated water/dust resistance; oleophobic coating is not great.
• Games capped at 60fps.
• No OIS, lossless zoom or a tele camera.