While the likes of Samsung, LG and Motorola all managed to push out 5G handsets before the close of 2019, it’s only now that the technology is really poised to take off and with this shift comes a new wave of more affordable devices from known names and newcomers alike. Names like Realme.
Outside of its home market of China, there’s every chance you’ve never heard of Realme. The brand (which has ties to Chinese tech giant Oppo) only appeared on the scene in 2018 and has wasted no time in releasing a robust line of powerful but affordable Android smartphones that have quickly elevated it to become one of the biggest brands in influential phone markets like India.
The company’s newly-unveiled flagship, the Realme X50 Pro 5G, was likely set to debut at Mobile World Congress, but following the tradeshow’s cancellation, the phone endured a softer launch that muffled its fanfare somewhat.
Despite the rug being pulled out from under the company’s original launch plans, it doesn’t detract from the fact that on-paper and in-person, the X50 Pro has the makings of a sleeper hit for 2020 – offering true 5G specifications at a markedly reduced price tag compared to some of the bigger players already in the 5G space.
Check out our Best 5G Phones of 2020 roundup to see which super-fast handsets you can pick up right now.
Unlike the X50 5G which Realme launched in China recently, the Pro model sports internals set to rival everything from the new Samsung Galaxy S20 line, to the forthcoming Sony Xperia 1 II.
Beyond its price, standout features include a top-tier Snapdragon 865 chipset with an X55 5G modem and up to 12GB of RAM, a 90Hz display (with a 180Hz touch response rate) and outlandish 65W ‘SuperDart’ fast charging.
The quad-camera that Realme already embraced with many of the entrants from its 2019 handset lineup, like the Realme 5, makes a return here. There’s a primary 64Mp sensor, paired to an 8Mp ultrawide, a 12Mp telephoto and a 2Mp monochrome sensor. Why Realme didn’t grace the phone with the standard X50 5G’s macro sensor instead of that monochrome unit is unknown but the phone should at least deliver decent portrait shots as a result.
Now to the important bit. Whereas Samsung’s base 5G-capable Galaxy S20 and the like cost upwards of £900, if the Realme X50 Pro lands in the UK with pricing even remotely close to that of its Indian and European equivalents, it’ll instantly become the most power and affordable 5G handset of 2020.
In India, where the phone is already available, it comes in at a base price of ₹37,999 for 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, which directly correlates to approximately £400 (even the 12GB, 256GB SKU still equates to only £475).
Converting European pricing renders it a little pricier, but the phone is still almost half of what you might expect to pay for a 5G-capable Snapdragon 865-powered device at this point in the year. The base 8GB, 128GB model costs €599 (approximately £520), while that top-spec 12GB, 256GB SKU costs €749 or roughly £650.
If UK pricing even comes close to this, the Realme X50 Pro 5G will be one device to shout about.