Realme 3 Smartphone Review: What You Need to Know

The Realme 3 is a budget-friendly smartphone that packs a punch. It's powered by a 1.7 GHz octa-core processor, which ensures smooth performance and efficient multitasking.

One of the standout features of the Realme 3 is its impressive battery life, lasting up to 30 hours on a single charge. This is thanks to its 4230 mAh battery, which is a significant upgrade over previous models.

The Realme 3 also boasts a 13 megapixel primary camera and a 2 megapixel secondary camera, perfect for capturing high-quality photos and videos.

The Realme 3's design is quite interesting. It has a unibody manufacturing process, but it still feels very plastic and light to hold. The notch is small and nice, but the edges are tapered, giving it a wide appearance.

The phone's color gradient on the back is quite attractive, with a nice curve that gives it a premium look. The Dynamic Black variant has a beautiful gradient that's a mix of black and blue with a slight tinge of purple.

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The Realme 3 is available in three color options: Dynamic Black, Radiant Blue, and Regular Black. The Radiant Blue variant has a coating of a silver layer on the back cover, making it extremely reflective.

The phone's display is a 6.22-inch HD+ panel with a 19:9 aspect ratio and 88.30% screen-to-body ratio. It's topped with Gorilla Glass 3 and has decent viewing angles, but with a slight blue tint running throughout the panel.

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The realme 3 has a unibody design, but it doesn't quite feel like it's a single piece of plastic. The phone feels very light and very much like it has been molded from separate pieces and then stuck together.

The notch on the realme 3 is nice and small, but the edges are somewhat tapered giving it a wide appearance. This helps achieve an 88.3 percent screen-to-body ratio.

The color gradient on the back of the device is quite attractive, with a nice curve that gives it a premium look. The black top fades to blue at the bottom, making it a step up over the realme 1 and 2.

However, the presence of a Micro-USB slot is a bit of a letdown, especially in 2019. It's still here, despite feeling dated.

The phone also has a headphone jack, which is a nice touch. The buttons feel a little cheap, particularly the volume buttons.

The realme 3 is available in three color options: Dynamic Black, Radiant Blue, and Regular Black. The Dynamic Black color variant has a beautiful gradient that's a mix of black and blue with a slight tinge of purple.

The phone's back is made of a polycarbonate shell, giving it a thickness of 8.3mm and a weight of 175g. The unibody design allows for a comfortable grip when using the phone.

The Radiant Blue variant of the realme 3 has a coating of a silver layer on the back cover, making it extremely reflective.

The Realme 3 features a 6.22-inch HD+ display that's topped with Gorilla Glass 3 for added protection.

This display has a 19:9 aspect ratio and makes for 88.30% screen-to-body ratio, which is quite impressive.

The waterdrop-style notch on the front gives the display a sleek and modern look, and it also adds to the inclusiveness of the display making it appear as a part of the phone.

The display produces rich colours and has decent viewing angles, but it does have a slight blue tint running throughout the panel.

It's worth noting that the display is an HD+ panel, which means it doesn't allow for much clarity, so comparing it with AMOLED is just not fair enough.

For its asking price, the display on the Realme 3 is at par with what's being offered in the market, making it a great value for the price.

The performance of the Realme 3 is solid, with one or two odd glitches in my time with the phone.

The ColorOS version 6, based on Android Pie, has a lot of visual customization, but it doesn't bring much in terms of additional features.

By default, navigation is handled by two on-screen keys and a swipe gesture for multitasking, although this can be changed in the settings menu.

Performance is a critical aspect of software development. It directly affects the user experience and can make or break the success of an application.

A slow performing application can lead to frustration and decreased user engagement. This is evident in the example of a database query that takes an average of 2 seconds to execute, resulting in a 15% decrease in user satisfaction.

Optimizing performance requires a thorough understanding of the system's architecture. This includes identifying performance bottlenecks, such as a poorly optimized algorithm that slows down the application by 30%.

For another approach, see: Sony Xperia X Performance

Android Pie has OPPO's ColorOS version 6 on top, which brings a lot of visual customization to the table.

The notifications shade is heavily modified with a grey gradient and large colored icons, giving it a unique look.

By default, navigation is handled by two on-screen keys and a swipe gesture for multitasking, which can be a strange combination.

Some users may experience odd glitches, such as blank spaces in the app drawer and home screen, or the phone restarting on its own.

Settings can be a hassle to find if you're used to regular Android, but you'll adapt soon enough once you start using the phone regularly.

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The Realme 3 camera is a pleasant surprise, delivering better-than-expected results. It has a capable camera with a dual-lens setup, featuring a 13-megapixel main lens and a secondary 2-megapixel lens with an f/1.8 aperture.

The camera app offers various modes, including Standard Photo mode, Chroma Boost mode, Nightscape mode, and a Pro manual mode. You can also use the A.I.-driven scene recognition mode and an extensive beauty mode.

One of the standout features is the Chroma Boost mode, which enhances colors and contrast, bringing out more detail in shaded areas of a photo. It's very effective, but keep in mind that some photos may not benefit from it.

The Nightscape mode is another useful feature, allowing you to capture decent low-light photos. While it's not as good as high-end phones, it's impressive for a sub-$150 smartphone.

The front-facing camera is also worth mentioning, with a 13MP resolution that's just as detailed as the primary lens. It's an upgrade from the Realme 2 and is suitable for taking photos of yourself.

Here are some key camera features of the Realme 3:

Overall, the Realme 3 camera is a pleasant surprise, offering more than you'd expect from a budget-friendly smartphone.

The realme 3 has some notable downsides. It's a step back from the realme 1, where the camera and battery improved but the chipset slowed down.

The realme 2 Pro attempted to fix this by upgrading the chipset and adding a new design, but it also downgraded the battery. It looks like the realme 3 is following a similar pattern.

Realme's history of offering decent performance and features for a low price is being disrupted by the realme 3's design choices. The phone's glossy design might not be to everyone's taste.

The realme 3's battery life is a concern, as it's a step back from the realme 2's battery. This could be a major issue for users who rely on their phone's battery to last throughout the day.

The Realme 3 has some impressive features. One of its main advantages is its lustrous design and solid built, making it a durable phone. This is evident from a user review that mentions the phone has been running for 6 years with no major issues.

The Realme 3 also has decent cameras on a budget, which is a significant plus point. The camera is good, capable of capturing computer pixels, making it suitable for those who want to take cinematic photos.

Here are some of the key pros of the Realme 3:

However, it's not without its drawbacks. The display is not the best in its budget, and the phone has bloatware, which can be frustrating to deal with. Additionally, the ColorOS 6.0 needs more polishing to make it a seamless user experience.

Some users have had a surprisingly long lifespan with their Realme 3, with one user mentioning it has been running for 6 years despite frequent throwing.

The phone's camera is a notable highlight, with one user praising its ability to capture "computer pixels" and take good cinematic photos.

However, users have experienced lag issues, particularly with more demanding games. One user notes that the Helio P60 processor is "a bit too weak" for gaming.

The phone's speaker is also praised for being loud, but its display is not considered the best in its budget.

Here are some specific cons mentioned by users:

This budget-friendly device stands out with its lustrous design and solid built. It's clear that the manufacturer has paid attention to detail.

The cameras on this device are surprisingly decent, especially considering the price point. You get a lot of bang for your buck.

Here are some of the key pros of this device:

The Realme 3 has got its fair share of hits and misses, but at the end of the day, its competitive pricing makes it a better alternative to the other phones in this segment.

The phone's pricing is a major selling point, with the base variant starting at Rs 8,999 for 3GB RAM and 32GB storage.

Realme 3 will go on sale in India starting March 12 on Flipkart, giving you a chance to get your hands on this affordable device.

The phone's price increases to Rs 10,990 for the variant with 4GB of RAM and 64GB storage, which is still a great value considering its features.