realme 10 Pro 5G Full Review
In a live stream event held this Valentine’s Day, realme Philippines officially launched the realme 10 Pro Series 5G which comprises the realme 10 Pro+ 5G and the realme 10 Pro 5G.
The display is now the critical area that realme focused on with the realme 10 Pro Series 5G smartphones. Owing to the success of last year’s camera-focused realme 9 Pro Series, this time around, the brand is determined to provide flagship-level displays whilst staying within a mid-range price point.
I will be reviewing the latter, which is the realme 10 Pro 5G. It boasts a 6.7-inch FHD+ IPS display with a 120Hz refresh rate, and a 108MP dual rear camera, and is backed up by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G processor. In terms of memory and battery, the device is equipped with 8GB RAM that can expand up to 16GB with up to 8GB Dynamic RAM Expansion and a 5,000mAh battery with 33W SUPERVOOC Charge.
With that, this review will further explore the capabilities offered by this smartphone to help you in deciding whether this is the one you are looking for.
Design and Walk Around
Like its predecessors in the entire Number Series lineup, the realme 10 Pro 5G sports a design that can turn heads. The realme 10 Pro 5G will come in three color options: Dark Matter, Hyperspace Gold, and Nebula Blue. The Nebula Blue color of my phone was inspired by the elements in outer space. I like this kind of finish which is brushed and matte because it is less susceptible to fingerprint smudges.
In addition to its design, the realme 10 Pro 5G comes in a polycarbonate body and frame. Additionally, the Nebula Blue variant weighs 190g having a thickness of 8.1mm.
On the front, the realme 10 Pro 5G is equipped with a 6.7-inch FHD+ (1080x2400) IPS display with a 120Hz refresh rate. It also comes with a pre-installed screen protector. Additionally, there’s a centered hole-punch 16MP camera on the top, and the earpiece which doubles as a speaker is quite thin and discretely etched above the display.
Found at the back are two protruding camera modules that house a dual-camera set-up along with a single LED flash. The two cameras are the 108MP main and the 2MP depth.
On the left side of the phone is the hybrid SIM tray. A hybrid SIM tray can hold either a second SIM card or a microSD card for expandable storage.
Found on the right are the standard volume rocker button and the side-mounted fingerprint sensor that is embedded in the power button.
The top is clean with only the secondary noise-canceling microphone present.
At the bottom, you can find the USB Type-C charging port, downward-firing speaker, primary microphone, and a 3.5mm audio jack.
Display and Multimedia
The realme 10 Pro 5G comes with a 6.7-inch FHD+ (1080x2400) IPS display with a 120Hz refresh rate and a touch sampling rate of up to 240Hz, making it an ideal device for those who like to multitask.
What makes the realme 10 Pro 5G stand out compared to its competition is that it is packed in a nearly bezel-less display with a screen-to-body ratio of 93.76%. Its bezels are as thin as 1mm on both sides, with 1.15mm on the top and 4.2mm when it comes to the chin. It also makes use of double-reinforced glass for added durability.
The IPS display panel produces great colors; viewing angles are good and the screen can be adjusted to 600 nits of brightness which could also go up to 680 nits when used under direct sunlight, with support for 6 levels of refresh rates that adapt according to the current activity at hand.
For those who are wary about too much exposure to smartphone screens, especially during nighttime, the realme 10 Pro 5G has TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light Certification. This means that users are guaranteed reduced blue light emission without compromising visual image quality.
The audio quality of the realme 10 Pro 5G stereo speakers is average. It can get loud. However, the sound at the maximum volume may be distorted. I recommend using headphones or an external speaker via Bluetooth and the 3.5 mm jack for better audio quality.
Camera
Rear Cameras
As for the camera, the realme 10 Pro 5G is packed with a dual-camera set-up—consisting of the 108MP F1.8 primary camera with Pixel Phase Detection autofocus (PDAF) and uses a Samsung HM6 sensor with 0.64µm pixels. There's also a 2MP F2.4 depth lens.
Quality from the rear cameras under bright lighting conditions is pretty decent with good colors, sharpness, and details, though the dynamic range needs a little improvement in some scenarios.
Under low light, the camera shoots good low-light photos and performs well in certain situations with the Night Mode feature turned on.
Front Selfie Camera
The front camera houses the lone 16MP F2.5 in-display selfie camera and is fine-tuned with realme’s imaging algorithms for a clear shot.
The realme 10 Pro 5G’s front camera produces good photos with accurate skin tones, especially in bright conditions. Background blurring for portrait selfies isn’t that perfect but good enough.
Video
For video, the realme 10 Pro 5G captures videos up to 1080p@30fps with its main and front-facing cameras. There is no 4K mode, but there is an electronic image stabilization (EIS) called Ultra Steady.
The recorded video from the main camera produces good colors, contrast, and dynamic range.
realme UI, Apps, and Security
The realme 10 Pro 5G is one of the first smartphones from realme to come with realme UI 4.0 based on Android 13.
realme UI 4.0 brings enhanced performance, more seamless animation effects, greater privacy protection, and other cool features. Pre-installed are the standard realme and Google suite of apps, as well as some bloatware apps.
In terms of security, realme 10 Pro 5G is equipped with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor that is embedded in the power button. It also comes with facial recognition for unlocking the device.
Both work well---the side-mounted fingerprint sensor is fast and accurate. However, the face unlock feature can slow down in situations where there isn’t much light.
Hardware and Performance
The realme 10 Pro 5G boasts a very capable and battery-efficient Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G processor. This processor is made using a 6nm process and houses two Cortex-A78 cores that clock at up to 2.2GHz and six Cortex-A55 cores that clock up to 1.8GHz. Another thing to note is that this processor comes with Adreno 619 GPU.
The performance of the realme 10 Pro 5G is buttery smooth, and resource-intensive apps have no problem at all. When it comes to gaming, it brings a smooth gaming experience and seamlessly supports a wide variety of games like Asphalt 9: Legends, Mobile Legends: Bang Bang, and many more.
The realme 10 Pro 5G also supports Dynamic RAM Expansion technology. Dynamic RAM Expansion lets you expand your phone's RAM virtually by using the phone's internal storage. The device can make use of up to 8GB of its internal storage, giving it up to 16GB of total RAM.
The realme 10 Pro 5G is available in the Philippines in one storage variant - 256GB. If you need additional storage, you can further expand the storage up to 1TB (microSD) via its hybrid card slot.
Note: The demo unit provided to me is the realme 10 Pro 5G 8GB+128GB variant which is not for sale here in the Philippines.
Below are the benchmark scores from this device:
- AnTuTu v9.5.5 – 416,492
- AnTuTu Storage Test v9.5.5 – 25,833 (528.8 MB/s Seq. Read, 502.1 MB/s Seq. Write)
- Geekbench 5.4.6 – 688 (Single-core), 2,017 (Multi-core)
- PCMark – 9,456 (Work 3.0)
- 3DMark – 2,904 (SSE – OpenGL ES 3.1), 2,728 (SSE – Vulkan)
Battery Life, Charging, and Connectivity
The 5,000mAh battery of the realme10 Pro 5G can easily last you a whole day of moderate usage without an additional charge. In the PCMark Work 3.0 Battery Life Test, the unit yielded a score of around 14 hours and 15 minutes.
Deep software optimization like App Quick Freeze, Optimized standby, Optimized Night Charging, Power Saving Mode, and Super Power Saving Mode are also available in realme 10 Pro 5G which could make a big difference in battery life.
With realme 10 Pro 5G’s 33W SUPERVOOC Charge, the 5,000mAh battery can be charged up to 50% in 29 minutes or up to 100% in just 74 minutes.
In addition, realme 10 Pro 5G also supports 5G connectivity with Smart 5G Power Saving. In Smart 5G Power Saving, the phone intelligently switches between 4G and 5G depending on the usage scenario to save battery.
Aside from the 5G connectivity, the realme 10 Pro 5G has your usual connectivity features, including dual-band WiFi 5, Bluetooth 5.1, GPS, a 3.5mm audio jack, and USB Type-C 2.0.
realme 10 Pro 5G Specifications
6.7-inch FHD+ (2400 x 1080) IPS display, 391ppi
120Hz refresh rate, 240Hz touch sampling rate
Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G processor (6nm)
Adreno 619 GPU
8GB LPDDR4X RAM with Dynamic RAM Expansion
256GB of internal storage (UFS 2.2)
microSD up to 1TB (hybrid slot)
Dual-rear cameras (108MP F1.8 main + 2MP F2.4 depth)
16MP F2.5 front camera
Dual-SIM / 5G
WiFi 5 / Bluetooth 5.1
GPS, A-GPS, GALILEO, GLONASS, BDS
USB Type-C / 3.5mm audio jack
Fingerprint scanner (side)
Dual stereo speakers
realme UI 4.0 (Android 13)
5,000mAh Battery with 33W SUPERVOOC Charge
Dimension and Weight:
- 163.7 x 74.2 x 8.3mm ; 192g (Hyperspace Gold)
- 163.7 x 74.2 x 8.1mm ; 190g (Dark Matter & Nebula Blue)
Colors: Dark Matter, Hyperspace Gold, and Nebula Blue
What’s inside the box
If you haven't seen the unboxing of the realme 10 Pro 5G yet, the signature yellow-colored box contains the smartphone itself, USB type-C to USB-A charging cable, 33W SUPERVOOC Charger, a SIM card ejector tool, a protective silicone case, a quick start guide, and important product information (including the Warranty Card).
Price and Availability
The realme 10 Pro 5G will be available in 8GB+256GB variant retailing for Php16,999.
It will be available in offline stores from February 15-19 and comes with a free DIZO Power Bank (10000mAh) and a pair of TechLife Buds Classic, worth Php1,198.
Online it will be available on Shopee on February 15 only, and February 15-17 on Lazada. Both Shopee and Lazada offer at Php2,000 off at a discounted price of Php14,999. It will also come with an added FREE 1-year warranty, granting a total of two years, and paired with a FREE Globe SIM Card having 65GB of FREE data.
Verdict
The realme 10 Pro 5G offers a balanced set of features for its price, such as its Snapdragon 695 5G processor, decent 108MP camera, 6.7-inch IPS display with slimmer bezels, latest Android OS, stereo speakers, and excellent battery life.
Is this the smartphone you are looking for? I recommend that you shortlist realme 10 Pro 5G. Compared to its competition, the mentioned set of features may not be enough to tackle the fierce competition where there are alternatives.
No comments: