Realme 2 Pro Hands On, Quick Review: The Next Budget Mid-Range King?

Realme 2 Pro Hands On, Quick Review: The Next Budget Mid-Range King?

We check out Realme’s hero phone!

Among the three phones Realme announced in Indonesia, the Realme 2 Pro is their most serious contender. With a Snapdragon 660 processor, up to 8GB RAM, and a Sony IMX398 sensor in the camera and a projected sub-Php 14k price (if Indonesian prices are directly converted), the Realme 2 Pro is certainly poised to become the next budget mid-range king.

We got our hands on the Realme 2 Pro during its SEA debut, and here are our thoughts on it.

That is one small notch.

It is, and it looks more appealing compared to most notch-toting phones today. Up front, you have a 6.3-inch Full HD+ panel that is protected with Gorilla Glass. Bezels on the Realme 2 Pro are kept to a minimum, giving the phone a 90.8% screen-to-body ratio.

The tiny notch houses the 16-megapixel f/2.0 selfie camera that has AI beauty 2.0 built in, with the earpiece and other necessary sensors tucked right above the camera.

The rear looks rather simple.

While it is devoid of fancy detailing like the diamond cut pattern on the Realme 2, the Realme 2 Pro’s back has a glossy, glass-like finish that makes it look more premium than its two other brothers. You still get the metallic Realme branding on the bottom, along with the fingerprint scanner on top and a dual rear camera setup consisting of 16-megapixel f/1.7 and 2-megapixel cameras.

The former sports a Sony IMX398 sensor, which is the same sensor found on the OPPO R11s and R9s and OnePlus 5 and 5T. The sensor boasts EIS for video, though we still have to see if it performs as advertised.

As for the buttons and ports, the Realme 2 Pro has the same layout of the Realme 2 and Realme C1.

What’s powering it?

Under the hood is a Snapdragon 660 processor paired with 64GB or 128GB internal storage and 4GB/6GB/8GB RAM. That’s a pretty broad set of RAM and storage choices, with the 8GB/128GB being the most interesting, and powerful, variant.

There are reports that the Realme 2 Pro uses an underclocked Snapdragon 660 like the Vivo V11, but we have to do our usual tests once we get a review unit to verify this.

Keeping the lights on is a 3500mAh battery. It comes with Android 8.1 out of the box, along with ColorOS 5.2.

How much does it cost?

The Realme 2 Pro is priced at RP 2,899,000(~Php 10.4k) for the 4GB/64GB model, RP 3,299,000(~Php 11.8k) for the 6GB/64GB model, and RP 3,699,000(~Php 13.2k) for the 8GB/128GB model. Regardless of what variant you intend to buy, the Realme 2 Pro has an aggressive pricing. Its price-to-feature ratio is one of the best right now, and it is the most affordable phone with a Snapdragon 660 processor.

Is there a catch with the Realme 2 Pro’s aggressive pricing? We’ll have to see—we’re reserving judgment until we get our hands on a unit to put through our own tests. As it stands, the Realme 2 Pro looks like a winner though, especially if the company follows the pricing in Indonesia.

Realme 2 Pro Specs

  • Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 octa-core processor
  • Adreno 512 GPU
  • 4GB/6GB/8GB RAM
  • 6.3-inch Full HD+ LTPS IPS Dewdrop display, Gorilla Glass protection
  • 64GB/128GB of expandable storage
  • 16-megapixel f/1.7 (Sony IMX398) and 2-megapixel rear cameras with LED flash, EIS and PDAF
  • 16-megapixel f/2.0 front camera
  • Dual SIM
  • 3G, LTE
  • WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS, fingerprint scanner, face unlock
  • 3500mAh battery
  • Android 8.1 Oreo with ColorOS 5.2 UI

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