Realme GT2 Review – Realme GT was the cheapest phone to launch with Snapdragon 888, and it became an instant hit. Now Realme is back with the second iteration of the original formula, which is the Realme GT2. While both the Realme GT and Realme GT2 features the same Qualcomm Snapdragon 888, the GT2 features all-around improvements in design, camera, battery, and even the android experience itself. It’s a worthy upgrade over the original GT and will get you a decent flagship experience.
The Realme GT2 smartphone is just as fast as the Samsung Galaxy S22 series, but does it have all the perks to challenge this Android flagship? The short answer is no. But it does have some perks of its own, and if you consider the fact the GT2 is less than half the cost of the Galaxy S22, we would even say that it has a class of its own. Let’s go in-depth review of Realme GT 2 smartphone to show exactly why we regard the GT2 so highly.
Table of Contents
Realme GT2 Review
Highlights
- The Realme GT2 features 6.62 inches FHD+ AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate and 1300 nits brightness.
- It is powered by the latest flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G processor that is manufactured with a 5nm manufacturing process for improved power and efficiency.
- It has Android 12 OS with the new Realme UI 3.0 user interface.
- The phone has a triple camera with the main rear camera sensor being a 50MP and 16MP selfie camera.
- The battery powering the smartphone has a capacity of Li-Po 5000mAh with 65W of fast charging, which the company claims can fully charge the phone in just 33 minutes.
Design and Display
The Realme GT2 comes with a new design, and while we liked the two-tone vegan leather finish, GT2 has a much better look and feel. It comes in 4 colors: Paper White, Paper Green, Steel Black, and Titanium Blue. The steel black and titanium consist of a matte glass finish. It’s the Paper White and paper Green where the magic happens. Both colors come in an exquisite paper-like finish, and the material is based on a special biopolymer.
The display has a curve on the sides, while the back is chamfered to give it a more curved look and feel. This makes the phone very comfortable to hold, but due to the curve, it is also a bit slippery. At the front, you get a 6.62-inches FHD+ AMOLED display that is supplied by Samsung.
Samsung displays are always very good at colors and brightness levels, and this panel is no different. The panel also features a 120Hz refresh rate and HDR10+ certification. The display is quite bright, and under peak sunlight, it can go as high as 1300 nits brightness and so there won’t be any issue regarding sunlight readability. The display is also protected by the Corning Gorilla Glass 5.
Memory and Internal
The chipset inside the new GT2 is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 5G processor that is manufactured On a 5nm architecture for improved power and efficiency. The processor was designed with a 1+3+4 configuration. So, the main prime core can boost as high as 2.84GHz cloaking speed, while the three more performance cores have a maximum frequency of 2.42Ghz and the efficiency cores at 1.80GHz. The phone is very responsive, and with the latest Android 12 OS with Realme UI 3.0. The animations seem to be very fluid, which is an improvement over the original GT that came with Android 11.
The phone comes in three variants, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage, 8GB of RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage, and the last variant with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 internal storage. A brighter and bigger display along with Android 12 out of the box has an experience that is even better than what we had with the original GT. We could even say that it is just as smooth as the Samsung Galaxy S21.
Camera
The main rear camera sensor in the triple rear camera is a 50MP wide sensor with multi-directional PDAF and OIS. It manages to capture some unique shots with detail levels that are not seen at this price range. There’re good amount details in the highlights and a good dynamic range. The 8 MP ultra-wide shots look a bit on the softer side compared to the main camera but should look better than most others in that price range. The 2MP macroscopic camera is usable but nothing to write about it.
The phone also manages to capture a good amount of light when it comes to night shots. The inclusion of Night mode has clearly helped a lot, and the sensor can capture a decent amount of lights. A similar pattern emerges here, where the main camera takes better night shots than the ultra-wide.
Both the wide and the ultra-wide sensors can shoot videos at 4K at 30fps, but only the main sensor has OIS, and so, the video recording with the main camera has better stability and autofocus when compared to the ultra-wide. The selfie camera has a 16MP sensor that is capable of capturing a good amount of details in a single shot. But it maxes out at 1080p when it came to video recording.
Battery and Others
The battery inside the smartphone has a capacity of Li-Po 5000mAh, which is 500mAh more than the original GT, and so it performs better in the battery department. It will provide you with a full day of battery backup, and when the battery does come to an end, you get the 65W fast charging, which the company claims can fully charge the phone in just 33 minutes.
The 65W Type-C fast charger is included but lacks wireless charging, reverse charging, and water resistance features which you will find in a proper flagship such as the Galaxy s21, and that’s where the difference of price comes in.
The phone starts at a price of $490 (Rs. 39,999 in India) approx and for the top-end model cost more. Apart from these, the device also comes equipped with an under-display fingerprint sensor, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, and a dual-band GPS system for faster position lock-in and better accuracy.
Realme GT2 Specifications Detail
Down below you can see the full specifications of the Realme GT2 smartphone.
| Specifications | Realme GT2 |
| Network | 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G |
| Announced | January 2022 |
| SIM | Dual SIM |
| Dimensions | 6.41 x 2.98 x 0.34 inches |
| Weight | 194.5 / 199.8 grams (depending on color) |
| Size | 6.62 inches |
| Display | AMOLED 120Hz 1300 nits (peak) 20:9 ratio ~398 PPI density |
| Protection | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels |
| OS | Android 12, Realme UI 3.0 |
| Chipset | 5nm – Qualcomm SM8350 Snapdragon 888 5G |
| CPU | Octa-core 1×2.84 GHz Kryo 680 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 680 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 680 |
| GPU | Adreno 660 |
| Card slot | No |
| RAM | 8GB, 12GB |
| Internal | 128GB, 256GB UFS 3.1 |
| Camera | 50 MP (wide), omnidirectional PDAF, OIS 8 MP (119Ëš ultrawide) 2 MP (macro) Dual-LED dual-tone flash, HDR, panorama Max – 4K, gyro-EIS |
| Selfie | 16MP (wide) HDR, panorama Max – 1080p@30fps |
| Loudspeaker | Yes, with stereo speakers |
| 3.5mm jack | No 24-bit/192kHz audio |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot |
| Bluetooth | 5.2, A2DP, LE, aptX HD |
| GPS | Yes, with dual-band A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS |
| NFC | Yes |
| Infrared port | No |
| Radio | No |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, USB On-The-Go |
| Sensors | Under-display fingerprint, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, color spectrum |
| Battery | Li-Po 5000 mAh Fast charging 65W |
| Colors | Paper White, Paper Green, Steel Black, Titanium Blue |
| Expected Price | $490 (Rs. 39,999 in India) approx |
Conclusion
The Realme GT 2 smartphone provides you with a specification that is not possible at this price range. Not to mention the new paper-like design, which is certainly a wow factor of this phone. But it’s also true that not everybody is dependent on high-tech specs and needs a well-balanced phone, then this phone will satisfy them as well.
The phone doesn’t come with wireless charging or an average camera setup. If you’re looking for an alternative option, you can get plenty of options in the same price range as the Oneplus 9RT smartphone.
