Realme 9 5G Review: A New MidRange Contender Emerges
Realme 9 5G is arguably one of the best mid-range 5G smartphones available globally. A few weeks ago, AndroidHeadlines reviewed some cool and unique devices like Realme GT2 Explorer Master and Realme GT Neo 3 Naruto Edition. So when Realme asked for a review of its entry-level 5G device, the Series 9, it agreed. Also, I wanted to see how the Realme 9 5G compares to the Realme 7 from two years ago.
The Realme 9 5G will sell for €260 for the 4GB / 64GB base model. At this price, there is plenty of competition from POCO, Xiaomi, and Motorola. So let's unleash the Realme 9 5G and see how it fits in with the competition.
Realme 9 5G UnboxingInside the classic yellow and black retail box you will find the Realme 9 5G smartphone, 18W charging brick, USB-C cable, SIM eject tool and documentation. The case comes with a high-quality smoke gray TPU case which is a great addition. And as usual, a film has been applied at the phone's factory.
Realme 9 5G hardware design is very intuitive.
Our Meteor Black Realme 9 5G review unit has excellent ergonomics in the hand. And at first glance, it can easily be replaced by a great device that costs several hundred euros more. The only indication that this is not a premium device is the headphone jack on the bottom panel And I'm very happy that Realme has a headphone jack in the works for 5G devices for 2022.
Apart from the headphone jack, the bottom rail houses a microphone, a USB-C port and a speaker grill. The right panel houses a power button along with a fingerprint scanner. At the top is the second microphone. Finally, on the left side guide we find the dual SIM/microSD slot and the volume key.
The front has a large 6.6-inch screen with a hole for the selfie camera in the upper left corner. The edges are a little thicker at the top and sides, but the size is the same. The only sign that this device isn't premium is the lower chin, which is prominent but not as flashy as Motorola or POCO devices.
The Realme 9 5G has a 6.6-inch screen with a 120Hz refresh rate.
The Realme 9 5G has a large 6.6-inch IPS LCD screen. While we all love an AMOLED screen, this is probably one of the best LCD panels I've seen in 2022 It's bright, vibrant colors and a 120Hz refresh rate with a 240Hz touch sample rate gives you an exceptional visual experience. .
The screen resolution is 2412 x 1080 with a pixel density of 400 ppi. With relatively thin bezels, the Realme 9 5G has an excellent screen-to-body ratio of 90.8%. You'll find there's plenty of space for watching videos or browsing social media.
Realme 9 5G is Android 12.
Realme 9 5G runs Realme UI 3.0 based on Android 12. Get all the benefits of Android 12 with tons of customized features from Realme. Overall, I like the user interface and think it's very similar to what you get from Google.
Google has a wide set of apps and there are no duplicates for the same features Few viruses, only 6 programs available. And you can delete them all. So, kudos to Realme for providing a concise program right from the start. And unlike Xiaomi or POCO devices, ads aren't plastered all over the interface, which is great.
However, there are some disturbing points. First, swiping left from the home screen does nothing, Google Discover isn't available for some inexplicable reason. Second, at the time of writing this review, it is August. However, our review team is still stuck on the March 2022 security patch. This is definitely not good news from a security/software update perspective.
Performance is excellent for everyday tasks including gaming.
Realme 9 5G uses Snapdragon 695 5G (6nm) processor. It has an octa-core processor (2 x 2.2 GHz Kryo 660 Gold and 6 x 1.7 GHz Kryo 660 Silver) and an Adreno 619 GPU. Geekbench scores are excellent. Currently my daily driver is the Pixel 5, which runs on the Snapdragon 765. The Realme 9 5G benchmark score is high, so from a performance point of view, it shouldn't be a problem in daily tasks.
Realme 9 5G is available in two variants 4GB/64GB and 8GB/128GB. The larger storage option is only €20, so I'd recommend getting it even though it has a built-in microSD card slot.
There is no special mode for the game. But to boost game performance you can go to Battery Settings > Advanced Settings > Performance Mode. I doubt users will face any problem while playing games or performing daily tasks. The main RAM is only 4 GB and there is an option to add 3 GB of RAM using the Dynamic RAM feature in the settings menu.
Battery life is great, though charging speed could be better.
With Realme 9 5G, you don't have to worry about battery. The Snapdragon 695 is very power efficient and with a large 5,000mAh battery, this device will last from morning till night. Average users can get up to two days of battery life.
My main issue is that previous versions had a 30W charging brick, so I was a bit surprised to see an 18W charging brick in the box with the Realme 9 5G. A 30-minute reload will only get you up to 50% off, compared to 0-50% in 5 minutes on the Realme GT Neo 3 Naruto Edition. A full charge takes about an hour and 20 minutes, so I think it's best to charge the phone overnight. Thus, adaptive charging helps keep the battery healthy.
Sound performance is adequate.
Since this is not a flagship device, there is only one speaker running on the bottom. Audio output is fine for a single speaker and yes it gets a little short when the speaker grill is closed at the bottom.
There's a headphone jack on the back, and audio output from this port is excellent, especially if you have well-wired headphones. Fortunately, the True Sound Technology option in the Sound and Vibration menu is enabled by default when headphones are connected. Bluetooth audio output is excellent, I used a pair of Realme TWS earbuds for the review.
Realme 9 5G camera performance is mostly good.
There is a triple camera at the back. Unfortunately, the 50MP main camera is the only one you'll use often. Because both have 2 megapixels for depth sensing and macro. responsibilities. There's a 16MP selfie camera on the front, which is good enough for casual social media posts.
Realme 9 5G Camera Example - Flickr Gallery
The main rear camera produces good quality results (photos and videos) in daylight and on cloudy/rainy days. He also manages to take good pictures at night, but it takes some practice. In general, photos are good for sharing on social networks, although they are a little soft, color composition, white balance and contrast are very good. Check out sample photos in our Flickr gallery and decide for yourself.
Realme 9 5G has many connectivity options
So despite having a Snapdragon 5G processor, I couldn't get 5G on T-Mobile in Southern California with the Realme 9. But I think in some parts of the world where you can get this device it shouldn't be a problem really.
However, I was able to connect directly to the 4G network, and 4G speeds were similar to other 4G devices I've reviewed. There are no issues with the device in terms of actual usage. In fact, I've used this phone in Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, and Arizona without issue.
Phone calls on a mobile device or speakerphone were fine Pairing Bluetooth with the car or headset was also easy. Built-in NFC technology works well with Google Pay for contactless payments. You also have screen recording and nearby sharing options to watch media or share files. Although there seem to be fewer options than older Realme devices, you shouldn't have connectivity issues in most cases.
Should you buy the Realme 9 5G?
The Realme 9 5G checks a lot of boxes for what a great smartphone should be. It has an excellent hardware design language, excellent battery life, decent performance, clean software without bloat and a 120Hz refresh rate. It also has NFC, a headphone jack and a responsive fingerprint scanner.
Camera performance is excellent, there is an expandable storage option and built-in 5G connectivity. Sure, the touch engine could be more powerful and two speakers would be useful, but considering the overall price, these are minor issues.
For the price, this is definitely a great smartphone. But if 5G connectivity is not good in your area, then the regular Realme 9 is a great option to consider as it has a good AMOLED display.
