After we got our hands on the realme 10 4G late last year, realme completes the lineup with the Pro series in the Philippines. Consisting of the Pro and Pro+, realme has made a better distinction for both phones on the outside–the 10 Pro+ has a curved display and frame, while the 10 Pro has a flat display and frame.
Both phones cater to different market segments, and realme wants to make sure it dominates it so that it can maintain its #1 status here in the Philippines. We used both phones for a week to see if realme is off to a good start this 2023.
How does the realme 10 Pro and Pro+ look and feel?
Both feel more premium than their predecessors despite looking different on the outside. The realme 10 Pro keeps the flat frame sides of its predecessor, with the major changes being the textured back panel finish and the two individual circles for the cameras. Despite having roughly the same dimensions, the realme 10 Pro managed to pack in a larger display, which led to the phone having razor-thin top and size bezels.
Being quite similar to its predecessor, the button and port layout remain the same–and that also means the headphone jack is still there. If that’s not enough, the realme 10 Pro also gets stereo speakers, which slowly becoming a must-have feature for a mid-range phone in 2023.
The realme 10 Pro+ on the other hand embraces a curvier body to accommodate its curved AMOLED display. The new design makes the 10 Pro+ appear to be slimmer than its predecessor despite having a physically larger display. You do lose the headphone jack in the process, but the realme 10 Pro+ svelte body makes it easier to hold in the hand–as long as you don’t mind the glossy back panel attracting fingerprints (or just use the included case).
How good are their displays?’
It’s a step up from last year. The realme 10 Pro has a slightly larger display this time at 6.72 inches. It’s still an IPS panel and has a 120hz refresh rate, but we noticed that it is brighter than the one used on the 9 Pro–which is a solid proof that you are getting a higher-quality IPS panel with the realme 10 Pro.
The realme 10 Pro+, on the other hand, now has a flagship-caliber display. The 6.7-inch AMOLED panel has a 120hz adaptive refresh rate for better power efficiency and natively supports HDR10 content with its 10-bit color range. It’s arguably the most premium display we’ve ever seen on realme’s numbered series.
Are the cameras capable for a mid-range phone?
Yes they are. Both the realme 10 Pro and Pr0+ use a 108-megapixel ISOCELL HM6 for the main camera, with the Pro+ having an additional 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera. While the main camera is an upgrade for the realme 10 Pro, it’s more of a downgrade on the 10 Pro+–last year’s realme 9 Pro+ had a physically larger IMX766 sensor with OIS. Don’t worry too much about that, as the ISOCELL HM6 is a popular choice for mid-range phones for its performance.
Save for the occasional overexposure when shooting in mixed lighting conditions, the 108-megapixel main camera takes good photos, though image quality is better on the realme 10 Pro+ because of its processor. You will need to manage expectations with low-light shooting, as the lack of OIS makes it slightly challenging to take stable low-light shots. Having a steady pair of hands will definitely help to make the most out of the low-light performance of the ISOCELL HM6 sensor used on both phones.
Aside from having an ultra-wide camera that takes generally decent shots, the realme 10 Pro+ can also shoot 4K video, which is a plus for those who are into content creation.
How’s the performance on both the realme 10 Pro and Pro+?
Long story short, it’s basically the same as the realme 9 Pro series: Dimensity 920 on the 10 Pro+, and Snapdragon 695 on the 10 Pro. The Latter now comes with 256GB storage, while the former gets a 12GB RAM option–a first for realme’s numbered series.
Both processors are go-to choices for the 5G mid-range segment, and they performed well after using both phones as our daily driver. The additional physical RAM on the realme 10 Pro+ makes it better when it comes to heavy multitasking, and the Dimensity 920 can handle games better than the realme 10 Pro’s Snapdragon 695.
Speaking of games, we managed to play Genshin Impact comfortably at 30FPS with graphics settings set to high on the realme 10 Pro+. Our experience is better than its predecessor despite using the same processor, and we can attribute it to improved optimization with realmeUI 4.0. The Snapdragon 695 on the realme 10 Pro is no slouch, as it can run the popular open-world RPG at 30FPS with graphics set to medium.
Both phones now come with 5000mAh batteries, with 33w charging on the realme 10 Pro and 67w charging on the realme 10 Pro+. Both lasted us for more than a day with moderate use, though we’re impressed with the realme 10 Pro+–the adaptive refresh rate definitely helped a lot in stretching its battery life to 16.5 hours in PCMark, which is a remarkable score for a Dimensity 920-powered phone.
Should you consider the realme 10 Pro and Pro+?
Despite not being complete upgrades from their predecessors, both the realme 10 Pro and Pro+ are solid mid-range offerings from the brand in 2022. The new camera and bigger display on the realme 10 Pro makes it a good upgrade, while the realme 10 Pro+ proves that it is a worthy upper mid-range offering with that flagship-grade curved display and excellent battery life.
How much is the realme 10 Pro and Pro+?
The realme 10 Pro is priced at Php 16,999 for the 8GB/256GB variant, while the realme 10 Pro+ is priced at Php 19,999 for the 8GB/128GB variant and Php 24,999 for the 12GB/256GB variant.
The realme 10 Pro is available in offline stores from February 15 to 19, where every purchase comes with a DIZO 10000mAh power bank and TechLife Buds Classie. It will have a Shopee (February 15) and Lazada (February 15-17) promo, where it will have a discounted price of Php 14,999 and will come with an additional 1-year warranty and a Globe SIM card with 65GB data. The realme 10 Pro+, on the other hand, will be available for pre-order from February 27 to March 10.
