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Till lately, I did not have the very best expectations for Realme cameras, however that is one thing that has been shortly altering. The previous few fashions I examined actually impressed me, and after asserting a partnership with Ricoh, it might appear Realme is lastly getting severe about digital camera efficiency.
The primary product to profit from this new partnership is the GT8 Professional, and it comes full with a devoted Ricoh GR mode within the digital camera app, in addition to some spectacular {hardware}, like a 200MP periscope telephoto digital camera.
The cellphone additionally incorporates a distinctive design with swappable digital camera islands, an enormous battery, and the quickest chip round – the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. On paper, it seems like an distinctive handset, however what’s it like to make use of? I have been utilizing it for the previous week to seek out out.
Specs
|
Processor |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 |
|
RAM / Storage |
12GB+156GB / 16GB+512GB |
|
Display screen |
6.79-inch 144Hz OLED 3136×1440 |
|
Huge Digital camera |
50MP f/1.8 (1/1.56-inch) |
|
Ultrawide Digital camera |
50MP f/2 (1/2.88-inch) |
|
Telephoto Digital camera |
200MP f/2.6 (1/1.56-inch) |
|
Entrance Digital camera |
32MP f/2.4 (1/3.1-inch) |
|
Video |
As much as 8K30 / 4K120 |
|
Battery |
7000 mAh / 120W charging, 50W wi-fi |
|
Working System |
RealmeUI 7, primarily based on Android 16 |
|
Dimension |
161.8 × 76.87 × 8.2 mm |
|
Weight |
218g |
Value
The Realme GT8 Professional is on the market in two variants for the worldwide market. The bottom mannequin comes with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and there is a extra premium mannequin with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.
As ordinary, it will not be out there within the States, and at this stage, it is unclear if it’s going to get a correct UK launch – although we’ve got seen sure fashions seem on Amazon UK, once in a while.
On the time of writing, solely the pricing for India has been introduced, and that normally differs fairly dramatically from EU costs. In India, the 13+256GB base mannequin will price you ₹67999 (€665) and the 16+512GB mannequin is ₹73999 (€724).
The particular version Aston Martin Aramco model is just out there in choose markets. It comes with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, that is priced at ₹79999 (€782).
A Realme consultant instructed us the European pricing is more likely to be revealed on November 24. Leaks recommend the pricing shall be a lot greater in Europe, presumably beginning at €1,099 / £999 for the bottom mannequin, however time will inform how correct that’s.
Design & Dealing with
The Realme GT8 Professional has a really distinctive design, whereby you possibly can swap between a sq. digital camera island or a round one, as you see match. The digital camera island is created from steel and affixed with two small Torx screws. So, should you ever get uninterested in the look, or should you simply cannot determine which one you like, you possibly can swap to your coronary heart’s content material.
You possibly can even use it with out the face plate hooked up, and while you achieve this, the digital camera array appears to be like like a robotic head. It’s kind of of a bizarre look, however I like bizarre, and a part of me is tempted to depart the quirky undercarriage uncovered.
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These modules are purely for aesthetic functions, however they’re novel and fairly enjoyable, so I am on board. If you would like one thing a little bit extra practical, although, I stumbled throughout a contest that Realme is operating on MakerWorld, encouraging customers to design their very own face plates for the GT8 Professional. There’s already a ton of attention-grabbing tasks on there, so you probably have a 3D printer, you possibly can add something from filter threads to kickstands or perhaps a bottle opener.
As normal, the cellphone is on the market in both Diary White or City Blue. I’ve the white model in for testing, which has the tried and true mixture of a matte glass rear panel and a matte aluminium body. The blue model, in the meantime, options what Realme calls a “paper-like leather-based end” created from recycled plastics.
There’s additionally a restricted version variant made in collaboration with the Aston Martin Aramco F1 workforce. This one is a little bit bolder, coming in a turquoise shade with a outstanding Aston Martin brand and neon yellow accents. There’s even an F1 car-shaped SIM ejector instrument included within the field.
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In any other case, the cellphone is a reasonably typical flagship slab. It has a very flat entrance and rear, and the 6.79-inch show means it is only a hair smaller than the iPhone 17 Professional Max. Nonetheless, in contrast to loads of this 12 months’s high telephones, this mannequin forgoes further buttons. It is the basic energy key and quantity rocker combo, with no Motion Button or Digital camera Management equivalents to be discovered.
The display screen is beautiful, full with the correct colors and excessive distinction ranges that you just’d anticipate from a high-end OLED panel. It is faster than most, too, supporting as much as a 144Hz refresh charge. Whether or not you’ll discover the distinction in comparison with 120Hz is debatable, however it’ll provide you with some gaming road cred nonetheless.
The display screen maxes out at 7000 nits in HDR, or 2000 nits in excessive brightness mode, so you may by no means have hassle seeing it within the daylight. It additionally helps full DC dimming, so your eyes ought to really feel higher after late-night scrolling periods.
You additionally get a speedy and dependable ultrasonic under-display fingerprint scanner, some stable haptic motors, and a formidable set of audio system. Certain, they are not about to switch your headphones, however for watching movies round the home, these get the job completed properly.
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Digital camera Efficiency
The Realme GT8 Professional has a triple digital camera array on the rear. There is a 50MP principal snapper with a 24mm equal focal size, an f/1.8 aperture and a 1/1.55-inch sensor. It is joined by a 200MP 72mm equal telephoto, which has an f/2.6 aperture and an identical sensor measurement of 1/1.55-inch. Lastly, you get a 50MP 16mm equal ultrawide, with an f/2 aperture and a smaller 1/2.88-inch sensor.
Across the entrance, there is a 32MP f/2.4 punch-hole selfie digital camera. Total, it is a formidable lineup of lenses, however I will get my principal frustration out of the best way instantly: there is no autofocus on the ultrawide or selfie digital camera, so their usability is severely restricted in comparison with the competitors.
Fortunately, the minimal focus distance is kind of good on each the principle and telephoto cameras, so you will get some good close-ups with both lens. I would not fairly name it macro, however with the help of some digital zoom, you will get some very tight photographs.
In fact, one of many defining options of this digital camera system is the brand new Ricoh GR mode. When you enter this mode, you are greeted with a barely totally different interface, together with an elongated shutter button, identical to you’d see on the GR IV.
This mode makes use of a very totally different picture processing course of, developed in collaboration with Ricoh. There are 5 image kinds to select from: Customary, Constructive movie, Damaging movie, Black and white and Excessive-contrast black and white. Every model may be customised, and you’ll tweak issues just like the hue, saturation, sharpness and extra. Then, you can even save your customised model as a preset for fast entry sooner or later.
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The mode additionally options Ricoh’s signature Snap focus mode, so you possibly can seize candid road photographs with no need to attend for the autofocus to catch up. However, for the reason that autofocus is already lightning fast on this cellphone, I did not discover that too needed.
The image kinds are good. In comparison with the usual picture processing, it is a much less poppy and saturated look. There’s much less of an HDR impact, and a few refined movie grain is utilized, which makes pictures look a little bit extra like they have been shot on a digital camera, reasonably than a smartphone. It is not at all times the precise selection; at occasions, I discovered that pictures have been too darkish utilizing the usual Ricoh profile, however should you discover that is the case, you possibly can shortly swap again to the common photograph mode.
The GR mode solely lets you choose a 28mm or 40mm focal size (each digital crops of the first digital camera). I completely perceive the logic right here, because it matches what you’d shoot with an actual Ricoh GR, however I could not assist however want the telephoto digital camera have been out there on this mode. There is not any approach to apply these image kinds after taking pictures, both.
Talking of the telephoto, it is a formidable displaying. The 72mm equal lens supplies some good compression with close-up photographs, and the excessive decision sensor permits for big digital zooms while you want some further attain.
It is not fairly as completed because the bigger 1/1.4-inch 200MP sensor on telephones just like the Oppo Discover X9 Professional and Vivo X300 Professional, however it is not far off, and the outcomes are sometimes comparable.
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Actually, it is solely the ultrawide and selfie cameras that allow the workforce down a little bit. That is to not say they’re unhealthy, removed from it, however they don’t seem to be more likely to impress as a lot. The ultrawide performs properly with structure and large landscapes, however since there is no autofocus, that is all it is good for. The comparatively small sensor typically struggles in low-light circumstances, too.
The selfie digital camera, in the meantime, is simply very middle-of-the-road. You possibly can anticipate good outcomes when the lighting is in your facet, however it’s not nice at nighttime, and the shortage of autofocus means it isn’t supreme for group pictures. On the upside, the portrait mode results and cutouts are very dependable.
On the subject of video taking pictures, the Relame GT8 Professional hangs with the very best of them. You possibly can shoot at as much as 4K 120fps on the principle and telephoto digital camera, and even 8K 30fps, should you fancy. Nonetheless, each of those modes lack EIS. It is not such an issue with 4K120 footage, as that’ll look okay when slowed down, however 8K taking pictures would require a tripod or a gimbal.
You can even report in 10-bit LOG or Dolby Imaginative and prescient HDR, and the standard appears to be like to be on par with the Oppo Discover X9 Professional (it even works with the identical conversion LUT). What’s actually spectacular, although, is you can nonetheless use both LOG or Dolby Imaginative and prescient when recording at 4K 120fps.
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Cellphone Efficiency
The Realme GT8 Professional is powered by Qualcomm’s latest and strongest silicon, the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. This implies it is an absolute velocity demon, and it will deal with any sport you possibly can throw at it with ease, in addition to rushing by duties like video enhancing.
It is out there in two configurations in Europe. The bottom mannequin comes with 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, whereas the extra premium mannequin nets you 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. In both case, it needs to be ample for some heavy multitasking and provide you with loads of area for all of your pictures and movies.
The cellphone runs Realme UI 7.0, the model’s customized flavour of Android 16. It is nearly equivalent to Oppo’s Colour OS, and since that is already my favorite Android pores and skin, I’ve no complaints about seeing it once more right here.
There is a distinct Apple affect on the newest iteration of this OS. You may discover every thing from a Dynamic Island clone to Liquid Glass components and a few very Apple-y lock display screen themes. It will not be probably the most authentic design language, however hey, it appears to be like and feels nice, so I am actually not complaining.
My favorite Colour OS characteristic is current on this mannequin, too. You should utilize AI to learn any webpage aloud in a particularly natural-sounding voice. I like to have the ability to compensate for the newest tech information whereas I am doing my chores, and whereas another telephones can do that, few provide the pliability to work throughout a number of apps and browsers. I am not usually bought on AI productiveness options, however this one is legitimately useful.
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The efficiency of this cellphone has been rock stable all through my testing. Irrespective of if I am operating Wuthering Waves at most settings or chopping up 4K footage in Luma Fusion, the GT8 Professional breezes by it.
One other spotlight is the battery. It is a 7000 mAh cell, so bigger than most, however not fairly matching the gargantuan battery of the Discover X9 Professional. I discovered I might make it about two days on a cost with out a lot problem, however in fact, your mileage could differ, relying on how a lot you utilize the digital camera or play video games.
It additionally fees in a flash. It helps as much as 120W speeds, and that speedy charger is generously included within the field. That’ll take you from absolutely useless to about 50% charged in simply quarter-hour. If you happen to favor wi-fi charging, the GT8 Professional may be juiced up at as much as 50W with a suitable SuperVOOC charging pad.
Verdict
There’s so much to like concerning the Realme GT8 Professional, and it doesn’t matter what you need out of your cellphone, you are certain to seek out one thing to take pleasure in right here. The efficiency is top-notch, the software program is among the many finest, the battery life is nice, and it fees tremendous shortly. The modular design is a bit gimmicky, however it does imply you can adapt it to your preferences, so I suppose there’s some utility there.
On the subject of the cameras, it is a stable displaying. I used to be actually happy with the photographs and movies I used to be capable of seize with the GT8 Professional in a wide range of circumstances. My solely main criticism is the shortage of autofocus on the ultrawide and selfie cameras, which actually holds this method again from competing with the very best within the enterprise.
Whether or not I can suggest the Realme GT8 Professional or probably not comes right down to the pricing. If you happen to’re in India, this cellphone could be very competitively priced, however rumours say European pricing shall be a lot greater.
Whereas the efficiency could also be simply as highly effective, the digital camera {hardware} merely does not compete with the likes of the Oppo Discover X9 Professional. So, if this cellphone is considerably cheaper, it is properly price contemplating, but when it is priced equally, you would be higher off with a full-fledged flagship.
