Realme X3 SuperZoom vs Realme X2 Pro vs Realme X50 Pro 5G – Does the periscope zoom justify the price?

With the launch of the Realme X3 SuperZoom, Realme have some amazing phone options all with a reasonable small price difference.

While the SuperZoom is not a flagship phone, it offers the best camera specification Realme has ever offered but is that zoom lens worth the extra over the incredible affordable X2 Pro?

Chipset, RAM, Storage

Both the X3 SuperZoom and X2 Pro have the same Snapdragon 855+ chipset. At the time of writing, I am only aware of a 12GB/256GB model for the X3 Superzoom.

The X2 Pro came in models from 6GB/64GB up to 12GB/256GB. The lowest model had the slower UFS2.1 storage, and because it lacks a microSD slot, it is something I would avoid buying if possible.

The X50 Pro starts at 6GB/128GB and also goes up to 12GB/256GB

Display

The X2 Pro and X50 Pro have very similar display specs, both running at 1080 x 2400 pixels with a 90Hz refresh rate on an AMOLED panel. The X2 Pro is a touch larger at 6.5 inches while the X50 is 6.44 inches.

The X2 Pro has a single dewdrop notch, while the X50 Pro has a pill-shaped cut-out. I can’t say for sure, which is better/worse. The pill cut out is quite large.

The Realme X3 SuperZoom uses an 6.6-inch 120Hz IPS display running 1080 x 2400 pixels which also has a pill-shaped cut out. Normally I am not too fussed about IPS displays, but in this case, the screen brightness is far less than the other two phones.

Camera

All three phones have a similar specification each using the same 64 MP primary lens.

The 5x zoom of this phone definitely gives it more versatility than the others, I found the zoom lens can keep up, if not beat the Huawei P30 Pro in some cases.

Low light performance has improved considerably since the X2 Pro, and the overall camera quality does seem to be better.

Realme X3 Superzoom

  • Rear:
    • 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.76″, 1.8µm, PDAF
    • 8 MP, f/3.4, 122mm (periscope telephoto), PDAF, OIS, 5x optical zoom
    • 8 MP, f/2.3, 119˚ (ultrawide), 1/4.0″, 1.12µm
    • 2 MP, f/2.4, (macro)
  • Front:
    • 32 MP, f/2.2, (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.8µm, PDAF
    • 8 MP, f/2.4, (ultrawide)

Realme X2 Pro

  • Rear:
    • 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF
    • 13 MP, f/2.5, 52mm (telephoto), 1/3.4″, 1.0µm, PDAF, 2x optical zoom
    • 8 MP, f/2.2, 16mm (ultrawide)
    • 2 MP, f/2.4, (depth)
  • Front:
    • 16 MP, f/2.0, 25mm (wide), 1/3″, 1.0µm

Realme X50 Pro 5G

  • Rear:
    • 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF
    • 12 MP, f/2.5, 54mm (telephoto), 2x optical zoom, PDAF
    • 8 MP, f/2.3, 13mm (ultrawide), PDAF
    • 2 MP B/W, f/2.4, (depth)
  • Front:
    • 32 MP, f/2.2, (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.8µm, PDAF
    • 8 MP, f/2.4, (ultrawide)

Battery

The Realme X3 SuperZoom and X50 Pro have the same battery size, during my synthetic benchmark tests, the SuperZoom outperformed the X50 with an impressive 15 hours in the PC Mark battery test.

The X2 Pro isn’t far behind with a 4000 mAh battery, and all three phones will easily last over a day with moderate to heavy use (unless you play games all day).

Benchmarks

My review sample of the Realme X3 SuperZoom actually scores higher than the same spec Realme X2 Pro, but real-world usage will be almost identical.

The Realme X50 Pro does comfortably outperform both the SD855+ based phones, typically by around 20% in many benchmarks, including Antutu

Price

At the time of writing, I am not sure of the Realme X3 SuperZoom and will update this during the livestream. It is claimed to be €499 which is an €80 premium on the X2 Pro but only €100 behind the Realme X50 Pro.

So it is a tough call. The improved camera performance justifies the extra money, but the display is not as good, and it has slower charging. Then, of course, it is not that big of a jump to the flagship X50 Pro, with that you don’t get the superzoom, but it is better in every other department.

Specification Comparison Table

  Realme X3 SuperZoom Realme X2 Pro Realme X50 Pro 5G
Announced Exp. announcement 2020, May 26 2019, October 15 2020, February 24
Status Rumored. Exp. release 2020, May Available. Released 2019, October Available. Released 2020, March 05
Network 4G 4G 5G
Dimensions 164×75.8×8.9mm 161 x 75.7 x 8.7 mm (6.34 x 2.98 x 0.34 in) 159 x 74.2 x 8.9 mm (6.26 x 2.92 x 0.35 in)
Weight 202g 199 g (7.02 oz) 205 g (7.23 oz)
Build Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frame Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frame Glass front (Gorilla Glass 5), glass back (Gorilla Glass 5), aluminum frame
SIM Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by)
Type IPS LCD capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors Super AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
Size 6.57 inches, 104.2 cm2 90.5% screen to body 6.5 inches, 103.5 cm2 (~84.9% screen-to-body ratio) 6.44 inches, 100.1 cm2 (~84.9% screen-to-body ratio)
Resolution 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~401 ppi density) 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~402 ppi density) 1080 x 2400 pixels, 20:9 ratio (~409 ppi density)
Protection Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Corning Gorilla Glass 5 Corning Gorilla Glass 5
120Hz refresh rate 1000 nits max brightness (advertised) 90Hz refresh rate
90Hz refresh rate HDR10+
HDR10+
OS Android 10, Realme UI Android 9.0 (Pie), upgradable to Android 10, realme UI Android 10, realme UI 1.0
Chipset Qualcomm SM8150 Snapdragon 855+ (7 nm) Qualcomm SM8150 Snapdragon 855+ (7 nm) Qualcomm SM8250 Snapdragon 865 (7 nm+)
CPU Octa-core (1×2.96 GHz Kryo 485 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 485 & 4×1.78 GHz Kryo 485) Octa-core (1×2.96 GHz Kryo 485 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 485 & 4×1.8 GHz Kryo 485) Octa-core (1×2.84 GHz Kryo 585 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4×1.8 GHz Kryo 585)
GPU Adreno 640 (700 MHz) Adreno 640 (700 MHz) Adreno 650
Card slot No No No
Internal 256GB 12GB RAM 64GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM 128GB 6GB RAM, 128GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM
UFS 3.0 64GB UFS 2.1, 128/256GB UFS 3.0 UFS 3.0
Modules 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.76″, 1.8µm, PDAF 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF 64 MP, f/1.8, 26mm (wide), 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF
8 MP, f/3.4, 122mm (periscope telephoto), PDAF, OIS, 5x optical zoom 13 MP, f/2.5, 52mm (telephoto), 1/3.4″, 1.0µm, PDAF, 2x optical zoom 12 MP, f/2.5, 54mm (telephoto), 2x optical zoom, PDAF
8 MP, f/2.3, 119˚ (ultrawide), 1/4.0″, 1.12µm 8 MP, f/2.2, 16mm (ultrawide) 8 MP, f/2.3, 13mm (ultrawide), PDAF
2 MP, f/2.4, (macro) 2 MP, f/2.4, (depth) 2 MP B/W, f/2.4, (depth)
Features LED flash, HDR, panorama Dual-LED flash, HDR, panorama LED flash, HDR, panorama
Video 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60fps; gyro-EIS 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/120fps, 720p@960fps, gyro-EIS 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60fps; gyro-EIS
Modules 32 MP, f/2.2, (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.8µm, PDAF 16 MP, f/2.0, 25mm (wide), 1/3″, 1.0µm 32 MP, f/2.5, 26mm (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.8µm
8 MP, f/2.4, (ultrawide) 8 MP, f/2.2, 17mm (ultrawide), 1/4.0″, 1.12µm
Features HDR HDR HDR
Video 1080p@30fps 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS 1080p@30/120fps, gyro-EIS
Loudspeaker Yes, with stereo speakers Yes, with Dolby Atmos stereo speakers (2 dedicated amplifiers) Yes, with dual speakers
3.5mm jack No Yes No
24-bit/192kHz audio (incl. speakers) 24-bit/192kHz audio (incl. speakers) 24-bit/192kHz audio
WLAN Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot
Bluetooth 5.0, A2DP, LE 5.0, A2DP, LE 5.1, A2DP, LE, aptX HD
GPS Yes, with dual-band A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO Yes, with dual-band A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO Yes, with dual-band A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, NavIC
NFC Yes Yes Yes
Infrared port No No No
Radio No FM radio No
USB 2.0, Type-C 1.0 reversible connector 2.0, Type-C 1.0 reversible connector 2.0, Type-C 1.0 reversible connector
Sensors Fingerprint (side-mounted), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass Fingerprint (under display, optical), accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass
Battery Non-removable Li-Po 4200 mAh battery Non-removable Li-Po 4000 mAh battery Non-removable Li-Po 4200 mAh battery
Charging Fast charging 30W Fast charging 50W, 100% in 35 min (advertised) Fast charging 65W, 100% in 35 min (advertised)
Colors White, Blue Lunar White, Neptune Blue, Red Master Edition, Gray Master Edition Moss Green, Rust Red
Price 499 419 599

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