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.
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Realme X3 Superzoom -
Realme X2 Pro -
Realme X50 Pro
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 |