Realme continuously updates its product portfolio from time to time, and even though the gap between releases of devices that belong to the same series is relatively short, the young mobile brand still able to find success with every outing.
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| Realme 7 Review; Sharper. Faster. |
For this review, we have the realme 7, the successor of the realme 6 launched about five months ago. Yes, we know it is quite fast for a follow-up. That is why we have this article to discuss thoroughly what are the changes are and what those that remained the same. Let's all find out!
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PHYSICAL:
The realme 7 aesthetics belong to the new series. It has a similar Mirror Space back design as the realme 7 Pro, which is less bold than the previous generation, yet still elegant. Color-wise, the one we have is the Mist Blue, and the other option is Mist White.
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| 6.5-inch 90Hz FHD+ Display |
However, aside from the physical appearance, it is still mostly tied to its predecessor, the realme 6. Both the realme 7 and the realme 6 have the same 6.5-inch IPS punch-hole display with FHD+ resolution, 90Hz refresh rate, and topped with Corning Gorilla Glass 3 for protection. This means that users will have a similar immersive viewing experience.
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| Mirror Space Back Design |
In addition, the positions of the ports and buttons are the same, including the side-mounted fingerprint sensor that also doubles as the power key.
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| Side-Mounted Fingerprint Sensor/Power Button |
In terms of footprint, the realme 7 is slightly bulkier and heavier than the realme 6 at 162.3mm x 75.4mm x 9.4mm and 196.5 grams versus the latter's 162.1mm x 74.8mm x 8.9mm and 191 grams. But that's understandable because it has a bigger battery capacity; we will get to that later on.
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| Retail Package |
As for the retail package, realme is consistent with its yellow box as well as the contents inside. Of course, we have the unit, the usual documents, a SIM ejector tool, the 30W DartCharge power adaptor, USB Type-C cable, and a free clear case.
See Also: Realme C15 Review; The Incredible
SOFTWARE:
The realme 7 runs on the realme UI 1.0, which is based on Android 10. It is the young mobile brand's "own" system that veers away from previous ColorOS, which is tied to OPPO devices. It was released earlier this 2020 and has been realme's software for their devices from that point onwards. We have discussed it several times in our past reviews, like the one we did with realme C3.
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| Software |
By the way, there's already realme UI 2.0 that is based on Android 11, but that is still months ahead to be implemented on the current line up.
To learn more about Realme UI, you can visit https://www.realme.com/in/realme-ui.
PERFORMANCE:
Under the hood, the realme 7 is powered by the latest MediaTek Helio G95 gaming chipset with a 2.05GHz octa-core CPU and ARM Mali-G57MC4 graphics. In fact, it is the world's first device to yield the said silicon chip. It is then paired with 8GB of RAM to ensure multitasking and 128GB of internal storage with an option to expand using the dedicated MicroSD card to provide more than enough space for apps, games, and files.
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| CPU-Z Info |
Technically speaking, the G95 is basically the same as the Helio G90T found inside its predecessor. The only difference and lone advantage of G95 over the older G90T is the slightly overclocked GPU - 900MHz versus 800MHz. The rest is the same. The 100MHz difference in GPU speed will bump up about 5% of the previous generation's performance.
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| Benchmark Scores |
| Benchmark | realme 6 | realme 6 Pro | realme 7 |
| Antutu | 288,975 | 283,206 | 297,705 |
| Geekbench 5 (Single-Core) | 539 | 567 | 515 |
| Geekbench 5 (Multi-Core) | 1,686 | 1,678 | 1,657 |
| Geekbench 5 (RenderScript) | 2048 | 1,195 | 2,234 |
| PC Mark | 10,562 | 10,350 | 9,716 |
| 3D Mark Sling Shot | 3,154 | 3,547 | 3,190 |
| 3D Mark Sling Shot (Vulcan) | 2,600 | 2,328 | 2,615 |
| 3D Mark Sling Shot (OpenGL) | 2,550 | 2,527 | 2,629 |
| 3D Mark Wild Life | Not Tested | Not Tested | 1,452 |
| 3D Mark Wild Life (Best Loop) | Not Tested | Not Tested | 1,459 |
| 3D Mark Wild Life (Lowest) | Not Tested | Not Tested | 1,453 |
| 3D Mark Wild Life (Stability) | Not Tested | Not Tested | 99.6% |
As you can see from the above table, the differences in scores of realme 7 to realme 6 are that far. In fact, it even fell short in PC Mark, Geekbench 5 Single-Core, and Geekbench 5 Multi-core tests.
That said, real-life performance is expected to be only slightly better than the realme 6. Moreover, as you can above, the Helio G90T performs at par with Snapdragon 720G. Therefore, the realme 7 performance would be similar, if not better, than the realme 7 Pro.
As our daily driver for more than a month, we did not encounter any hiccups when using it for web browsing, checking social media accounts, calls, texts, and even when playing games. Speaking of which, popular titles Mobile Legends, PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty Mobile, Genshin Impact, and LOL Wild Rift are all playable at high settings with minimally noticeable lags. Sadly for ML fans, it still has no Ultra High graphics settings. For Wild Rift fans, rejoice as it has Ultra High Definition graphics.
CAMERA:
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| 64MP AI Quad Camera |
Camera-wise, the realme 7 and realme 6 have the same rear set-up, at least on paper. That's four modules at the back composed of 64MP f/1.8 primary, 8MP f/2.4 119-degree ultrawide, 2MP f/2.4 macro, and 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor. However, the primary module sensor used is different. The realme 7 uses the Sony IMX682, while the realme 6 uses the Samsung GW1.
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| 16MP Front Camera |
In the front, both also have a single 16MP selfie snapper, albeit the 7 has an f/2.1 aperture while the 6 has an f/2.0 opening.
Camera Samples:
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| Playground, Night, Ultrawide |
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| Playground, Night, Primary |
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| Slide, Night, Ultrawide |
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| Slide, Night, Primary |
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| Snowmen, Night, Ultrawide |
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| Snowmen, Night, Primary |
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| Night, Selfie, Normal |
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| Night, Selfie, Portrait |
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| Playground, Ultrawide, Normal |
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| Playground, Ultrawide, HDR |
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| Playground, Ultrawide, Chroma |
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| Slide, Ultrawide, Normal |
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| Slide, Ultrawide, HDR |
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| Slide, Ultrawide, Chroma |
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| Pool, Ultrawide |
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| Pool, Primary |
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| Flower, Close-up, Primary |
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| Flower, Close-up, Macro |
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| Selfie, Normal |
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| Selfie, Portrait |
Just like the realme 6, realme 6 Pro, and realme 7 Pro, the regular realme 7 variant offers the same versatility and similar image quality. One thing we noticed, though, is that the primary rear shooter of the realme 7 produces slightly sharper images than its predecessor. For the ultrawide module, the quality is just about the same.
By the way, if you prefer punchy colors, we suggest to turn on HDR. It not just saturate the picture but also helps improve details. However, if saturated colors are not your thing, just enable Chroma Boost; it still enhances images without saturating them.
As for the dedicated macro module, it can capture a subject with clear details at a very close range. However, the color isn't as great when using the primary lens. That is an expected trade-off since it only has a 2MP resolution.
Moving on to the front camera, the outputs are good. However, when we compared our shots with the realme 6, we noticed that the 6's have better color accuracy. In addition, the 6 also give slightly brighter images at night. I guess the 0.1 difference in aperture opening makes a difference.
Speaking of night, the 64MP main rear camera offers great outputs when in dark environments, even without using the dedicated night mode. However, like other realme smartphones that we reviewed in the past, the ultrawide mode is less commendable.
CONNECTIVITY:
The realme 7 has a triple-slot card tray that can cater to 2 Nano-SIM cards and 1 MicroSD card for storage expansion. It has multiple LTE bands, including the popular 700MHz frequency. Based on our test using the Smart Communications network, the connection is fast and stable, at least in our place.
At home, consumers can easily connect to their router as it has dual-band WiFi; both 2.4GHz and 5GHz are part of the system. Other wireless connections are Bluetooth v5.0 and RM Radio receiver. For location-based applications, it can utilize GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, and BDS. For wired connection, it has a reversible USB Type-C port and a 3.5mm audio jack.
BATTERY:
The realme 7 has a 5,000mAh battery capacity, 700mAh bigger than the 4,300mAh battery of the realme 6. It supports 30W DartCharge technology, which, according to realme, can fully charge the phone in just 65 minutes.
Based on our test, it achieved 22% charge at 10 minutes, 41% at 20 minutes, 60% at 30 minutes, 87% at 45 minutes, 94% at 50 minutes, 98% at 55 minutes, and fully-charged from 0 to 100% at 56 minutes. Yes, that's right, the actual charging time from 0 to 100 percent is only 56 minutes, which is 9 minutes faster than realme advertised. Isn't that amazing?!
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| PC Mark Battery Test Score |
In PC Mark Battery Test, I was a bit surprised that it didn't even reach 10 hours. It only scored 9 hours and 36 minutes. This is 1 hour 37 minutes lesser than the realme 6 and 4 hours 36 minutes lower than the realme 6 Pro, both of which only have 4,300mAh battery. Nonetheless, in real-life usage, it is still able to last through the day of moderate use with still a little bit of juice left for the next day.
FINAL WORDS:
The realme 7 offers features that we have seen before. Features that are already proven to give an overall smooth user experience - the immersive 90Hz display, very capable Helio G95 chipset with 8GB of RAM, 64MP quad AI cameras, and big battery capacity with fast charging support.
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| Realme 7 |
It is indeed a value-for-money smartphone within its price range. However, if you are coming off from realme 6, we honestly don't recommend upgrading. But, if you are currently using an entry-level device and looking for an upgrade, then the realme 7 is something you can consider.
Realme 7 Specs Philippines:
- Dual Nano-SIM, dual-standby, supports 4G LTE connectivity
- 6.5-inch IPS LCD FHD+ (2400 x 1080) capacitive touchscreen, Corning Gorilla Glass 3 protection
- Dimensions: 162.3mm x 75.4mm x 9.4mm
- Weight: 196.5 grams
- Realme UI v1.0 based on Android 10
- 2.05GHz 64-bit octa-core CPU, 900MHz ARM Mali-G76MC4 GPU, MediaTek Helio G95 chipset
- 8GB of RAM
- 128GB internal storage, expandable up to 512GB via MicroSD card, uses a dedicated slot
- 64MP f/1.8 PDAF + 8MP f/2.3 ultra-wide + 2MP f/2.4 macro + 2MP f/2.4 depth quad rear cameras; 2160 at 30fps, 1080p at 120fps video recording, gyro-EIS
- 16MP f/2.1 front camera, 1080p video recording at 30fps
- Multimedia Player
- 3.5mm audio jack
- WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band 2.4GHz, 5GHz
- Bluetooth v5.0
- GPS with A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BDS
- USB Type-C with OTG function
- Sensors: fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic
- Battery: 5,000mAh Li-Ion, non-removable, supports 30W DartCharge fast charging
- Colors: Mist Blue, Mist White
- Price: Php14,990
