realme GT 2 Pro review: eco-friendly flagship smartphone

Today, realme Indonesia has just unveiled its best smartphone in early 2022. Shortly after being introduced at the MWC 2022 event, the realme GT 2 Pro is now launched.

The smartphone is ready to compete with other flagships released by Samsung and Apple. In the future, realme will play more in the premium smartphone segment through their GT Series line.

In Indonesia, previously there were two options that played in a more affordable price class. Well, this one is the most expensive, even though it’s not as expensive as the Realme X50 Pro 5G, which was officially present as well.

Overall, after trying it for about three weeks, I feel that realme has succeeded in using the right “concoction”. Give a flagship offering that really feels premium, even though the price is relatively cheaper.

Features are not the most complete, but essential things such as performance, screen, camera, and battery are quite satisfactory. Here’s a full review of the realme GT 2 Pro.

Design

When it was first launched, I was personally a bit confused by the mention of paper-based materials on the realme GT 2 Pro. Whether it would be as vulnerable as a full paper and some other concerns.

In fact not, because the body of this smartphone feels quite rigid, aka sturdy, giving the impression that you are holding a premium flagship.

The back body material is designed using a bio-based polymer, designed to replicate a paper-like pattern. When gripped, it feels a little rough but still smooth overall.

Makes it non-slip, and free from fingerprints—at least in the Paper White color option that I used this time.

Through Paper Tech Master Design, which was designed with Naoto Fukasawa, realme also makes the production process more environmentally friendly.

The use of special materials in the realme GT 2 Pro is able to reduce carbon emotions by up to 35.5% during production, or 63% less per kilogram. Then the other thing that scares the white smartphone, “doesn’t it get dirty quickly?”

Surprisingly, not really. Using it in full without a case does not necessarily make the white color darker. When exposed to dirt, simply cleaned with a little water.

You can even scribble on the body with a pencil and erase it cleanly. Well, there is a slight drawback in the absence of IP rating certification. Making it unable to be completely brought into the water.

Display

The dimensions of the realme GT 2 Pro screen are quite wide at 6.7 inches. Even so, the device doesn’t feel bulky in the hand, thanks to a relatively thin body of only 8.2mm with four almost symmetrical thin bezels. The panel is the best from realme: AMOLED LTPO 2.0, 2K resolution, 1 billion colors support, 120Hz, up to 1400 nits, and HDR10+ support.

In terms of specifications, it’s the best, complete with Gorilla Glass Victus protection and an in-display fingerprint sensor that can read heart rate.

With LTPO 2.0, this smartphone screen can work adaptively, from 120Hz down to 1Hz when displaying static images, it is claimed to save battery power by up to 50%. The screen resolution can be lowered to full HD + if you want to be more efficient.

What I like is, realme provides a number of interesting additional options regarding color reproduction. There is a Natural tone display feature to adjust the white balance depending on the ambient lighting, as well as the O1 Ultra Vision Engine which can improve the color in videos and sharpness in photos. The brightness of the screen itself is very enough for outdoor use.

Compensating for its superior screen, realme embeds the best vibration motor or at least one of the best I’ve tried on today’s flagship smartphones. The vibration is precise and strong (can be changed according to taste too), it feels very comfortable when used when typing via the virtual keyboard. It’s the little things that make a good contribution to daily use.

Camera

Efficient and effective. These two words seem appropriate to describe the rear camera setup of the realme GT 2 Pro. There are only three, but each sensor uses a different type that can provide the most flexible shooting experience today. I will discuss a little about each of the specifications.

The realme GT 2 Pro camera is supported by two 50MP resolution sensors. The main sensor uses a Sony IMX766 with OIS—yes, the same as the realme 9 Pro+, but the results can of course be different thanks to better ISP support from the chipset.

The second sensor is the Samsung JN1, providing a very wide viewing angle of up to 150 degrees, aka the widest in today’s flagship class. The third sensor is a microscope with a magnification of up to 40x, for details on the closest and smallest objects.

realme GT 2 Pro is not equipped with a telephoto sensor. But, when taking photos with 2x zoom (digital), I am quite satisfied with the results, providing details that are not much different from 1x zoom.

Overall, the capture from the main sensor is very satisfying, with color tones that are quite accurate. Like other realme series, you can activate AI scene enhancement if you want richer colors.

The HDR effect is able to balance exposure in various challenging lighting conditions, while the ultra-wide sensor is also able to balance the photos from the main sensor with close colors. Including the quality of night photos or indoors, above the average flagship class, although there is no autofocus on this sensor yet.

Want to take photos with an ultra-wide sensor but don’t want objects to change shape? Don’t worry, the camera’s distortion correction feature works really well.

But if you want to use your full potential, you can use the special 150-degree mode. In it, there is even a fish-eye mode that can be produced in one instant snap.

AI Color Portrait mode

Also to photo quality, the video quality of the realme GT 2 Pro is also worthy of thumbs up. Not only up to 4K 60fps resolution, there is also an 8K 24fps option which is still equipped with optical-based stabilization. You can move seamlessly from the main sensor to the ultra-wide (4K maximum), plus take advantage of the Dual View Video feature for two simultaneous viewing angles.

What I think can be improved is the quality of the front camera, as well as the option to take portrait photos with 2x digital zoom. The rest can be said to be on par with flagships, both in terms of quality and the number of options provided.

Features

realme GT 2 Pro has been paired with realme UI 3.0 based on Android 12. The appearance has not changed much from the previous generation and is practically close to pure Android. But with quite a lot of customization, from changing fonts to black levels in a dark mode that can be changed.

realme GT 2 Pro has a stereo speaker setup that is supported by Dolby Atmos. The quality is okay, giving a loud output even though details such as musical instruments are a bit lost.

When you look around the devices, each one is equipped with a dedicated line of antennae. It is part of the matrix array antenna system.

The result? realme GT 2 Pro has the ability to capture wireless signals above average. Not only that but the NFC sensor is also made 360 ​​degrees. That way, you don’t have to point the e-money card at a special angle.

As long as it’s in the upper half of the smartphone body, it will still be successful for checking or topping up card balances, or pairing to a supported device.

Performance

Although this offer also features design and cameras, realme still carries the DNA brought by the first GT series, namely the best performance. The latest Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chipset is embedded in this smartphone, using 4nm fabrication complete with 12GB RAM (which can be increased up to 19GB via the RAM Expansion feature).

You will be able to feel fast performance from the first time you set up this smartphone, where the application installation process will occur very briefly.

Likewise, when playing games like Genshin Impact or Pokemon UNITE, you will feel comfortable supported by the touch sampling rate of the screen up to 1000Hz. Well, the hot temperature is actually more pronounced on the frame, instead of the rear body.

How come? My guess for two things; rear body material that effectively absorbs heat from within, and of course a hardware-based cooling system embedded in it.

realme GT 2 Pro brings the Stainless Steel Vapor Cooling Max system which is claimed to have the largest surface area on a smartphone, it can lower the temperature to 19 degrees Celsius.

I only feel the hot temperature when I run the benchmark test application via GT mode or run heavy games while only accessing cellular data.

Also, accessing everyday applications or accessing the camera does not bring about overheating. There’s no need to worry and feel like I have to turn off the device like the flagship that I tried last year.

Battery

In terms of capacity, it might be standard, and generally, when using a flagship, I can’t really be free so that the battery can last until midnight. But with a capacity of 5,000 mAh on the realme GT 2 Pro, I can use it until the next morning with a similar intensity of use.

The use of the LTPO 2.0 screen and 4nm chipset seems to have a high enough share, making power consumption more efficient. Well, when the battery runs out, the 65W SuperDart adapter can charge from 5% to full in about 35 minutes. This combination of all-day battery life and instant charging is a real treat.

Indeed, the realme GT 2 Pro is not yet supported by wireless charging. But it doesn’t matter to me, because; Wireless charging takes longer, and if realme embeds the module, the battery capacity will have to be reduced. Given the body of this smartphone is still relatively thin.

Conclusion

Even though it is present as a premium flagship, realme Indonesia can still present its best smartphone at a lower price than most of the current flagship options.

Look stylish and different, while carrying a positive message to contribute to environmental sustainability. Price? Cheaper than last year’s flagship.

Fast performance, superior screen, long battery life with fast charging, and a camera that can take a variety of different angles. realme GT 2 Pro can be one of the flagships with the best value that is present at the beginning of 2022. Being a device that I highly recommend.

realme GT 2 Pro tech specs

 

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The Indonesian version of this article can be read in Gizmologi.ID