Realme GT Master Edition India
With the sub-Rs 30,000 phone segment getting interesting and competitive, Realme has added a new phone to the segment with the launch of the Realme GT Master Edition. It is one of the most unique looking devices we’ve seen as Realme has gone for out of the box design. The suitcase-inspired design of the GT Master Edition does stand out from the crowd, but that’s just one of the key features of the device.
Powered by the Snapdragon 778, the Realme GT Master Edition is the second phone in India to do so, after the Moto Edge 20. The performance is smooth and we are also happy with the 120Hz AMOLED display on the device. The Realme GT Master Edition comes in three variants with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.
Further, you get super-fast 65W fast charging which can charge the device in just 35 minutes. But, the device disappoints when it comes to battery life as it could last only up to 5 hours in our initial testing. You also get a 3.5mm headphone jack, but it lacks a dual stereo speaker setup.
The Realme GT Master Edition is a design-first approach and we are impressed with it as of now. While the Realme X7 Max is available for Rs 24,999 now in India, the Realme GT Master Edition is for those who wanted a Realme mid-range phone under Rs 30,000 with a Snapdragon chipset.
Realme GT Master Edition release date, price, and availability
Check out Realme GT Master Edition on Flipkart
6GB+128GB: Rs 25,999
8GB+128GB: Rs 27,999
8GB+256GB: Rs 29,999
Launched in India on August 18 alongside the Realme GT and Realme Book, the Realme GT Master Edition comes in three variants 一6GB+128GB for Rs 25,999, 8GB+128GB variant priced at Rs 27,999, 8GB+256GB variant priced at Rs 29,999. The 6GB variant will go on sale later. The other two variants will be available via Flipkart starting from August 26.
The Realme GT Master Edition is available in Voyager Grey, Luna White and Cosmos Black. More on the colour options in a minute. With the sub Rs 30,000 price tag and the new Snapdragon 778 chipset in tow, the Realme GT Master Edition will take on the OnePlus Nord 2, Mi 11X, Moto Edge 20, Poco F3 GT, and more. The Realme X7 Max launched a few months ago is now available for Rs 24,999 leaving the Rs 25,000 to Rs 30,000 segment to the Realme GT Master Edition.
| Realme GT ME | Realme X7 Max | |
|---|---|---|
| Processor | Snapdragon 778 | Dimensity 1200 |
| Display | 6.43" FHD+, 120Hz | 6.43" FHD+, 120Hz |
| RAM | 6/8GB | 8/12GB |
| Storage | 128/256GB | 128/256GB |
| Rear camera | 64+8+2MP | 64+8+2MP |
| Front camera | 32MP | 16MP |
| Battery | 4300mAh, 65W | 4500mAh, 50W |
| Headphone jack | Yes | Yes |
| Weight | 174/180g | 179g |
| Thickness | 8/8.7mm | 8.4mm |
| Price | Rs 25,999 | Rs 27,999 | Rs 29,999 | Rs 26,999 | Rs 29,999 |
Design
Most phones in the sub Rs 30,000 segment now offer excellent specs for the price. The segment is now more competitive than ever with plenty of great options. However, one area where most of the phone manufacturers have settled currently is in the design department. Realme has grabbed the opportunity here and made an excellent looking phone, especially with the Voyager Grey variant which we are using in the review.
The device is available in three colour options 一 Voyager Grey, Luna White and Cosmos Black. The Luna White comes with a Matte finish and the Cosmos Black comes with a dark copper tint. The Voyager Grey is a special variant and its back panel design is inspired by a travel suitcase, which is designed by Naoto Fukasawa.
In simple terms, the phone looks premium, feels premium, and is great to hold in the hand. The back is made up of 100% vegan leather and Realme has used the first concave vegan leather in the industry. The horizontal grid of the suitcase replicates an actual travel suitcase. The in-hand feel is something we have not felt before and it definitely feels great and unique. The leather also curves neatly on the sides as well giving a comfortable look and feel.
Next to the camera module, this variant also comes with the signature of Naoto Fukasawa, the designer along with subtle Realme branding. We really liked the design on the Realme GT Master Edition and this is certainly a good trend to see in the sub Rs 30,000 segment where a brand is trying to do something different in terms of design and materials.
The phone weighs 174 grams (180g for Grey) and is 8mm thin (8.7mm for Grey). The phone does not feel too heavy and is light enough to use single-handedly.
Display
Just like the Realme X7 Max, the Realme GT Master Edition also comes with a 6.43-inch Samsung-made Super AMOLED display with a Full HD+ resolution. You can select 60Hz, 120Hz or select auto, where the phone will decide the refresh rate based on the app you are interacting with. The 120Hz refresh rate on the AMOLED screen is smooth and enjoyable.
The phone also comes with a 360Hz touch sampling rate, 91.7% screen to body ratio, 100% DCI-P3 colour gamut coverage, and up to 1000nits of peak brightness. You also get support for HDR10, HLG, and Widevine L1 content.
The display gets bright enough to read under the sunlight and it offers punchy colours and deep blacks. Like we have said previously, we still think the Mi 11X has the best display in the segment with an E4 AMOLED panel.
Performance
One of the first phones with a Snapdragon 778 powered phone, the Realme GT Master Edition packs in Kryo 670 Prime core clocked at 2.4GHz, three Cortex A78 cores at 2.2GHz and four Cortex A55 cores clocked at 1.9GHz. For graphics and gaming, there is an Adreno 642L GPU. The phone comes with up to 8GB of RAM and you get up to 256GB of storage. The phone also comes with up to 5GB of virtual RAM which Realme calls dynamic RAM expansion.
The performance of the Realme GT Master Edition has been excellent during our initial review period and we did not face any lags and jitters in the middle. We did try gaming for a few minutes and the phone did perform well. There is also a dedicated ‘GT mode’ that can be switched on during gameplay to bring peak performance by utilizing max CPU and GPU performance, taking screen refresh rate to 120Hz, turning on Ultra-HD Visual Effects and 4D gaming vibration. On top of that, the phone also comes with a vapour chamber that has an area of up to 1729.8mm² and is rated to bring down the temperature by up to 15%.
While the performance has been super smooth so far, we will hold our final verdict on the performance and gaming for our full review.
The phone runs on Realme UI 2.0 based on Android 11 一 but we did notice that Realme has added a lot of pre-installed third-party apps. While most of them can be uninstalled, we’d have liked to see fewer pre-installed apps. Other features include dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, GPS, superlinear speaker, Hi-Res Audio certification, etc.
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The speaker gets loud, but it is not a dual speaker setup which makes it less ideal to watch content without earphones. With the competition catching up with the dual speaker setup, Realme should have offered the same here. As a bonus, the GT Master Edition also comes with a 3.5mm headphone jack.
Camera
This is also one area where the company is trying to separate itself from the crowd. The GT Master Edition comes with three cameras on the back. A 64MP f/1.8 main camera, an 8MP f/2.3 ultra-wide-angle camera, and a 2MP macro shooter with f/2.4. For selfies, there is a 32MP Sony IMX615 snapper 一 same as the Nord 2.
The phone is packed with a bunch of AI filters and camera features. It also comes with a new Street Photography mode which brings Kodak-inspired filters, instant focus with mm-level control, focus peaking, and more. Realme has added a bunch of features for the camera including the slow-mo, 64MP mode, dual-view, movie, starry mode, time-lapse, and pano.
We would like to reserve our final verdict on the optics as we are still testing the device.
Battery
The Master Edition phone runs off a 4,300mAh battery unit backed by a 65W fast charger. The battery capacity has gone down compared to the Realme X7 Max, but you do get a faster 65W fast charger in the box. The phone goes from 0 to 100% in under 35 minutes. While that is impressive, the battery life has been sub-standard. In our initial testing, we have managed to get only four to five hours of screen time.
We will test the device further for a few more days but are not keeping very high hopes on the same.
Early Verdict
The Realme GT Master Edition has turned out to be a solid device in our testing. The phone offers an excellent and eye-catching design that looks and feels premium. The 120Hz AMOLED display is of good quality and does get the job done. The star of the show is the new Snapdragon 778 5G chipset which has super-smooth performance. For now, the battery life and lack of a dual speaker setup seem to be the two major concerns. We will be coming with our full review and final verdict in the coming days.
- Best phones under Rs 30,000 in India
- OnePlus Nord 2 review | Poco F3 GT review
- Xiaomi Mi 11X review |Realme X7 Max review
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