Realme is a brand better known as a manufacturer of affordable devices but with offerings that make it worth it. After a long time of only reviewing their affordable devices, I am now given the opportunity to review their flagship device also offered at a more affordable price which is the Realme GT 6. Can Realme provide good competition in the category of affordable flagship devices? Continue reading this review.
SPECIFICATIONS
Realme GT 6
6.78″ LTPO AMOLED screen, FHD+, 120Hz
HDR10, Dolby Vision
Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 processor (4nm)
1x 3.0 GHz Cortex-X4
4x 2.8 GHz Cortex-A720
3x 2.0 GHz Cortex-A520
Adreno 735 Graphics Chip
RAM 12/16 GB LPDDR5X
12 GB Virtual
256/512 GB UFS 4.0 storage
Primary Camera 50MP, f/1.69, OIS (Wide Angle)
8MP, f/2.2 (Ultra Wide Angle)
50MP, f/2.0 (Telephoto)
Front Camera 32MP, f/2.74
5500mAh battery
120W (Wired)
5G Dual-SIM Sim/Telephony
Stereo Speaker Audio
WiFi network 6,
Bluetooth 5.4
NFC
Infrared Yes
Waterproof IP65
Fingerprint Scan System under the screen
Face scan
Pulse scan
Sale Price RM2599 (12/256 GB)
RM2899 (16/512GB)
SCREEN
The screen of the device is large with it being 6.78″ LTPO AMOLED with a refresh rate of 120Hz. It feels fast with every touch detected well. In terms of color display, the screen displays it well with HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support. Under the hot sun, the content can still be read clearly.
Realme advertises the GT6 to have a brightness level of up to 6000 nits. However HDR10+ display is only supported on Prime Video and YouTube. At the time of writing, there is still no official HDR Dolby Vision support through Netflix.
Although the screen displays beautiful visuals and is responsive, it is of the curved type on both sides. When watching videos in full screen mode and using the camera app, the content overflows to the side. I'm less fond of the curved screen because it doesn't provide any advantages but only creates the two issues I mentioned earlier.
BIOMETRIC
The under-screen fingerprint scanner system is supported with it being of the optical type. Fingerprint scanning can be done quickly as long as the finger is not dirty or wet. The fingerprint scanner on the GT6 also has the ability to perform a pulse scan which is not enabled by default. It can only be turned on through Realme Labs settings.
I am less fond of the position of the scanner sensor which is somewhat down. As far as I know this is what happens on all devices under BBK Electronics except OnePlus. If the scanner is placed a little higher, the unlocking process will be easier. In addition, there is also a face scan system that also works quickly.
DESIGN
The design of the GT 6 is very similar to the Poco F6. Both have metal sides and panels with three camera bumps on the back. Two are large and the other is quite small in size. The GT 6's tri-camera system consists of a 50MP wide-angle lens, a 50MP zoom lens and an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens. Meanwhile on the front there is a 32MP camera placed in the camera hole.
The position of the lens is also very similar to that of the Poco F6 which makes me wonder if these two devices are manufactured by the same ODM factory. The hump is medium in size but still makes it difficult for it to lay flat on a table surface.
The device feels comfortable in the hand, but the shiny back panel gets dirty easily. This is especially so on the rear stripes which are given a mirror-like finish. The audio and power buttons are placed on the right side. Above there is an infrared emitter and a hole for stereo speakers. Finally below is the audio jack, SIM tray and USB-C charging port. Realme provides a plastic frame that solves the issue of bumps and panels that get dirty too quickly.
Included is an NFC system and also IP65 waterproof capability. This allows it to not be damaged in the event of water splashes but cannot be taken diving. So users need to be careful to distinguish IP65 from IP68 used on other flagship devices.
USAGE – RealmeUI 5.0
Realme UI 5.0 is based on Android 14 so it supports various standard features included such as multi window, child mode, gestures and one hand mode. With the combination of a powerful processor and memory of up to 16GB of RAM, I did not experience any issues during the review period of more than two weeks. The experience is also the same as using OxygenOS, ColorOS and Funtouch OS. There are many common features in all these operating systems.
If the included memory is not enough, the additional memory feature of up to 12GB RAM can be added virtually. If activated, the GT 6 can have up to 28GB of RAM which is huge. Controlling the device without touching the screen can also be done through the Air Gesture feature.
But the focus of the series is artificial intelligence (AI) features such as AI Removal that can remove elements in pictures. Users only need to mark the part they want to remove and it will be deleted by AI Removal in a few seconds.
Then there is also AI Smart Loop that shortens the process of doing some tasks on GT 6. For example, the edited picture can be directly shared to WhatsApp or Gmail by simply pressing it in the Photos application and then pulling it to the side to enter the AI Smart Loop interface. The process of sharing images is as simple as dragging & dropping.
Then if the text of the address is received, press the received text and drag it to the Google Maps icon in the AI Smart Loop. There are slots for five favorite apps in the AI Smart Loop. If other applications want to be used, there is a wheel that rotates allowing all applications installed on the phone to be used in the AI Smart Loop.
BENCH MARK
Let's see the performance of Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chip in Realme GT 6 when compared to the same chip in Poco F6, Dimensity 8200 Ultimate (Infinix GT 20 Pro), Dimensity 7200 Ultra (Redmi Note 13 Pro+), Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 (Xiaomi 14) and Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 (OnePlus 12R) to show the performance difference between these chips.
Geekbench 6
Realme GT 6 – 1860/4614
Poco F6 – 1685/4776
Infinix GT 20 Pro – 1244/3516
Redmi Note 13 Pro+ – 1127/2658
OnePlus 12R – 1081/4204
Xiaomi 14 – 1741/6313
Antutu 3D
Realme GT 6 – 1,490,495
Poco F6 – 1,331,937
Infinix GT 20 Pro – 933,015
Redmi Note 13 Pro+ – 757,180
OnePlus 12R – 1,431,444
Xiaomi 14 – 1,773,520
3DMark Wildlife Extreme
Realme GT 6 – 3083
Poco F6 – 3094
Infinix GT 20 Pro – 1736
Redmi Note 13 Pro+ – Unable to test
OnePlus 12R – 3712
Xiaomi 14 – 4499
The GT 6 is a device that can run the majority of apps and apps just fine. This is aided by a large cooling chamber on the inside ensuring that the device can run for long periods of time without chronic heating issues. No issues running COD Mobile and Diablo Immortals on high settings.
The issue only exists when running Genshin Impact and COD Warzone Mobile. The frame rate is not very stable and the device will heat up a bit. These two apps can cause devices with Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 and iPhone 15 Pro Max to heat up, so it's no surprise that the GT 6 also has the same problem.
CAMERA
The camera consists of a 50MP Sony LYT 808 wide-angle lens, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens and a 50MP Samsung JN5 telephoto. Only the wide-angle lens is equipped with the OIS system. Overall the photos taken look sharp, have bright colors and can take satisfactory night mode photos. The OIS system on the wide-angle lens ensures that shots in night mode remain sharp.
The issue only appears when using night mode on ultra wide angle and telephoto lenses as there is no OIS. Zoom is also satisfactory up to 10X during the day but drops to only around 4X at night.
Wide angle auto mode
Daytime portrait mode
Night mode with AI enabled
Ultra wide angle lens
Wide angle lens indoors.
Portrait mode with animals
Food mode
1X zoom
2X zoom
4X zoom
10X zoom
I have not included a video recording sample on this device because it is often problematic. Because of the very hot weather in Dubai, every time I record a video there will be a notification that the application is stopped due to extreme heat. All I can say is that the video capabilities are like Poco F5 again, still not satisfactory.
TELEPHONE, WiFi and GPS
There is 5G dual-SIM support but no 5G support. Cellular performance is excellent with still network bars when in the elevator. WiFi is also very fast if you have a WiFi 6 modem. GPS performance is also satisfactory with the location being tracked in less than two seconds when using the Waze or Google Maps application.
AUDIO
With both speakers firing to the sides, the audio is more balanced than on other devices that use a configuration of one firing to the front and one to the side. There is no Dolby Atmos system but it is replaced with an OReality Audio and spatial system. Overall the speaker produces satisfactory audio. Loud but not shattering which I feel is the minimum requirement in a smartphone.
BATTERY
With a 5500mAh battery, the GT 6 has no issues getting through the day in moderate use. I can get an average SOT of up to 11 hours a day with 15% battery left before going to bed around 10pm. The good battery capacity of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 can also be enjoyed on the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3.
The supplied 120W charger can recharge this large battery in around 40 minutes which is fast. Realme says the battery will still have 80% capacity after 1600 charge cycles.
WHAT'S IN THE BOX?
Here are the components included with each purchase.
1x Realme GT 6
1x Plastic protective frame
1x USB-A to USB-C Cable.
1x USB-A 120W Charger
1x Handbook and safety.
1x SIM Pin
CONCLUSION
Realme GT 6 is a good smartphone with many extra features at a competitive price. It is powerful enough to run common applications as well as popular ones. Camera capabilities are satisfactory without gimmicky lenses. The mainstay of strength is the long-lasting battery life supported by a 120W fast charger. The included AI software helps make the device easier to use, but we hope Circle to Search support can be offered as promised by Google.
The downside lies in the curved screen which makes the content overflow to the sides. The body also gets dirty quickly because of the metal finish used. When the article was written there was no information about operating system support and it is hoped that it will be explained by Realme later.
At a starting price of RM2599 I feel it is still a worthwhile device in the class of affordable flagship devices. Another alternative on the market is the Poco F6 with the same processor but no telephoto lens and slower charging. The Honor 200 Pro uses the same processor and larger RAM but charging is slower.
PRO
Beautiful screen, bright and fast.
The Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chip offers good performance.
Long-lasting battery and supports 120W fast charging.
IP65 waterproof protection.
Satisfactory camera performance in most performance.
Underscreen pulse scanner.
CONS
The camera is not very sharp in night mode on telephoto and ultra wide angle lenses.
The body traps dirt easily.
Curved screen that makes content overflow to the edges.