The idea, according to Realme, is to democratize 5G. And a big step for the Chinese brand to plant its flag in Brazil and face Xiaomi. And the Realme 7 5G, which goes on pre-sale today, brings a democracy, let's say, class B. The device should cost around R$1.899, in cash, in the Americanas pre-sale, or R$1.999,00 in installments. It is the cheapest 5G in Brazil, as advertised, but not by that much: the Moto G 5G is R$2.069, at Motorola itself. Starting on April 13, when the promotion ends, it will no longer be the cheapest: the standard price is R$2.599. There is still no idea of the discounts that operators can offer for post-paid plans (which range from very little to free).
The product is in hand for testing. Realme provided the Vida Celular with one of them, but it's not fair to give a definitive review of a device that's been on for two days (and still without recharging, mind you). So these are first impressions. The real test will be by swapping my own phone (a LG Velvet; I am one of the LG widows) for him and see if he is missed.
The Realme 7 5G feels comfortably solid in the hands. At 195g, it feels a little heavy for its size, probably because of the battery – but that’s not necessarily bad or uncomfortable; it’s just the right amount of solid. The color, “Baltic Blue”, is a gradient between blue and black and the glossy look is also pleasant, if not jaw-droppingly material. The corners are rounded and the camera platform is noticeably prominent. The selfie camera is perforated and the interface produces colorful effects to disguise the black circle on the screen. Which, at 120Hz, is noticeably more responsive than the 60Hz of the deceased’s phone that I use on a daily basis.
The most interesting part, in terms of these first impressions, is the fingerprint sensor. It is located on the same button as the off button, so it is possible to activate and deactivate the phone very quickly, recognizing the fingerprint and then pressing the button, something that is impossible with a sensor on the screen or on the back. At the very least, it serves to start conversations with visitors (after the pandemic, of course).
Android 11 is coming
The phone is still running Android 10, with the modified Realme UI interface, and the promise of Android 11 coming “very soon”. This interface doesn’t sound significantly different from stock Android.
The bad part I've noticed so far is probably because it's a test model. The phone's location on the setup screen didn't include the Brazil option – for the test phone, I'm officially Argentinian. And, this could happen, Realme pushes a bunch of apps that you probably don't want with the installation. It's optional, so it's easily avoidable: just don't accept it (and I only accepted it for testing purposes).
Initial tests with the cameras yielded good results, possibly due to the AI in post-processing. But we'll talk about that, along with performance, in the full review.
For now, stay with this: the Realme 7 5G is solid, up-to-date, efficient, what you need in a mid-range device, better than those in the same price range. It's an honest phone, in the sense that you would use it for a good traditional restaurant: well-served and at the right price.
The device has a 800nm Dimensity 5U 7G chip and comes equipped with 128GB of storage, 6GB of RAM. It has four cameras, 48MP on the main one, another ultrawide, and a macro one. For the full specifications, see the launch article internationally.