Realme X2 Professional Has What it Takes to be One of many Finest Telephones of 2019
Andy Boxall/DigitalTrends
I’ve had the pleasure of utilizing the overwhelming majority of recent smartphones launched this yr, together with ones that price about $100 and go all the way in which as much as $2,000. The Realme X2 Professional begins at 400 euros, 330 British kilos, or about $440, and it’s not absolutely the smartphone discount of 2019, however it could be among the finest smartphones you should buy proper now.
“Who?” you’re considering. Realme is an rising model from China, born from the identical mother or father firm as OnePlus, Oppo, and Vivo. I wrote about it as an organization to observe round this time final yr, and though its first few releases have been mediocre, the X2 Professional is lightyears past them, and surpasses a number of big-name telephones launched this yr.
Put together for some heavy reward; I’ve used the Realme X2 Professional for per week or so, and in an uncommon flip of occasions for somebody who evaluations, owns, or has entry to just about each different telephone on sale at present, I’ve not as soon as felt the urge to swap to a different telephone.
Worth makes the X2 Professional so attractive
Earlier than stepping into what makes it so good, it’s vital to level out one of many primary causes I prefer it — the worth. It’s completely astonishing a telephone this technically spectacular and visually attractive can price so little. Keep in mind all of the fuss over the Pocophone F1? It carried out effectively, regarded respectable, and price comparatively little. The Realme X2 Professional is that, solely a lot, significantly better. Whereas the Pocophone F1 had an air of cheapness about it, the X2 Professional feels fairly costly, regardless of the actual fact it’s not.
Excessive efficiency, excessive worth
Trying on the spec sheet, it’s much like the OnePlus 7T, a telephone that’s already an important worth; Realme fees about half the worth for a similar factor. Inside you’ll discover a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 Plus processor (utilized in Asus’ mega gaming telephone the ROG Telephone 2), with as much as 12GB of RAM, a 6.5-inch AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh price, a four,000mAh battery, and a triple-lens digicam with a 64-megapixel primary lens.
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Topping all of it off is the addition of Tremendous VOOC charging (see the place the Oppo lineage helps?), a three.5mm headphone socket, a smooth glass and aluminum physique, stereo audio system, and an in-display fingerprint sensor.
Learn all that once more. I’ll wait. You’re again? Now remind your self that this telephone prices 400 euros, or $440. Barely plausible, isn’t it?
Polished, and remarkably usable
Spec lists are one factor, however what’s it like to make use of? The X2 Professional elevates itself above most discount basement telephones; it’s fairly good. This was a giant shock to me, because it makes use of Oppo’s Coloration OS software program working over Android 9 Pie, which is my least favourite consumer interface on the market. But by some means, the X2 Professional’s immense potential, tiny software program tweaks, and 90Hz display make it far more manageable.
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Sadly, the notifications aren’t at all times fully dependable, and the gesture controls are a bit of finicky — the swipe as much as entry the current apps view is unstable, and often simply flicks to a different open app, whether or not it’s the one I need or not — however I used to be capable of stay with it. With a 90Hz display and spectacular brightness, scrolling is clean and switching on the display very first thing within the morning a harmful transfer. I’ve completed this, and now want new retinas.
The four,000mAh battery lasts me all day even with heavy use. There’s at all times a bit of bit left to maintain the charging nervousness at bay and the 50W Tremendous VOOC charger takes it from zero to 80% in simply 30 minutes. It’s tough to search out fault with this, or the efficiency of the Snapdragon 855 Plus. Even with 8GB of RAM it’s greater than quick sufficient for any process. Plus, it’s one of the best you will get in the mean time, so it’s going to final you for a few years with no downside.
The digicam is a winner
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64 megapixels? That’s fairly an attention-grabber, particularly when paired with a 13-megapixel telephoto lens, an Eight-megapixel ultra-wide lens, and a 2-megapixel depth sensor. Beat that, OnePlus. Excessive-specs don’t at all times imply good images, however the Realme X2 Professional delivers on most fronts.
There’s loads of versatility, as you might have the power to shoot customary and wide-angle images, in addition to photos with 2x and 5x optical zoom. There are few conditions the place the X2 Professional gained’t have the ability to take the photograph you need.
There’s additionally a Night time mode for low gentle, and a full 64-megapixel mode for taking high-resolution images that may be cropped down with out shedding element.
1.
Realme X2 Professional Non-Night time mode
2.
Realme X2 Professional Night time mode
The HDR mode is sweet, however the Night time mode does introduce various noise, and the wide-angle mode does miss out on some element. Most of that is all the way down to software program tuning, and hopefully Realme will proceed tweaking the digicam.
Realme X2 Professional wide-angle
Realme X2 Professional customary
Realme X2 Professional 2x Zoom
Realme X2 Professional 5x zoom
Whereas the Realme X2 Professional can’t match the digicam efficiency of the iPhone 11 Professional, Pixel four, or the Huawei P30 Professional, it holds its personal with shiny, high-contrast footage with stunning colours.
Conclusion
Cheaper than the OnePlus 7T, Pixel 3a XL, and Asus Zenfone 6, however across the similar worth because the equally well-equipped Xiaomi Mi 9T Professional, the Realme X2 Professional is not only a winner on paper, it delivers in actual life too. What are you compromising on? The identify isn’t well-known, the design isn’t excellent, and it’s undoubtedly a chunky factor at 199 grams and eight.7mm thick — hardly the tip of the world, and forgivable given the efficiency it affords.
The Realme X2 Professional is a flagship killer armed with a bazooka, limitless ammunition, and near-perfect intention. In case you are on a good price range however need flagship-grade energy, that is the telephone to purchase. It’s a disgrace it’s not accessible within the U.S.
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