And for those who assume Realme has needed to compromise in different areas to be able to promote it at such a low value, you’d be flawed. The 12 Professional Plus 5G packs a flagship-grade primary digicam, a curved-edge 120Hz AMOLED show, IP65 ranking, and an enormous battery with very quick charging. So, is there a catch or may this be the perfect discount in its section? Time to search out out.
Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G: Value and availability
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The Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G begins at ₹29,999 (round $360) in India, but it surely’s additionally obtainable in different markets like Malaysia and Philippines. The bottom mannequin comes with 8GB RAM and 128GB storage. The upper storage variant with 256GB is priced at ₹31,999 ($383), whereas the top-variant comes with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage for ₹33,999 ($407).
Realme tends to have perpetual reductions for the higher tier variants for those who purchase it from its web site, so it makes good sense to purpose for both the highest or second-top variant. It additionally has loads of cashback and banking gives, and is even bundling the Realme Buds 2 Neo TWS earphones with any buy.
This high mannequin within the 12 collection additionally has a extra thrilling selection of colours, in comparison with the Realme 12 Plus 5G
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Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G specs
Class
Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G
OS
Realme UI 5.0 (Android 14)
Show
6.7-inch Curved AMOLED, FHD+ (2,412×1,080), 120Hz refresh fee
Chipset
Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2
RAM
8GB, 12GB
Storage
128GB, 256GB
Audio
Stereo audio system, Dolby Atmos
Connectivity
5G (dual-5G standby), Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2
Safety
In-display fingerprint sensor
Safety
IP65 water and dirt resistance
Battery
5,000mAh, 67W SUPERVOOC charging
Cameras
Rear: 50MP Sony IMX890 with OIS main + 8MP ultrawide + 64MP OmniVision OV64B 3x telephoto with OIS; Entrance: 32MP Sony sensor
Dimensions
161.47 x 74.02 x 8.75mm
Weight
196g
Colours
Submarine Blue, Navigator Beige, Explorer Crimson
Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G: What I like
(Picture credit score: Roydon Cerejo/ Android Central)
When you favored the design language of the 12 Plus 5G, then you definately’ll definitely love 12 Professional Plus 5G too. The truth is, this mannequin feels a bit extra premium due to a sturdier body, and curved edges on the again and the show. The faux-leather end feels nice to carry, and it provides to the grip whereas maintaining fingerprints at bay. The round digicam module embodies a luxurious watch design, which is a working theme with the 12 collection. The Professional mannequin has an added ornamental gold ring across the rear digicam dial, for a little bit of aptitude.
The telephone feels slim to carry at 8.75mm, and has simply the appropriate heft so it doesn’t really feel toy-like. The buttons are clicky, speaker grills are positioned effectively so your palms don’t by chance block them, and also you get a dual-SIM slot. There’s no microSD help, so storage just isn’t extendable. The 12 Professional Plus 5G will get a nifty IP65 ranking for mud and water resistance.
(Picture credit score: Roydon Cerejo/ Android Central)
The opposite beauty of the Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G is the show. It’s a big 6.7-inch AMOLED panel with a Full HD+ decision. It produces wealthy colours and may get very vivid. Viewing content material even beneath direct arduous daylight was not a difficulty. You get an in-display fingerprint sensor too which is fast, however the face unlock is the quickest technique to get to your apps.
The curved edges on both facet of the show provides you the sensation of utilizing a way more costly telephone. The show additionally will get a 120Hz refresh fee, which scales to 90Hz or 60Hz primarily based on the app or your interplay with the display screen.
(Picture credit score: Roydon Cerejo/ Android Central)
The Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2, which is peppy and does a very good job of dealing with all of your typical social and productiveness apps. Multitasking was a breeze on the 12GB mannequin that I examined, and I really feel it ought to be an analogous expertise on the decrease variants too. HDR movies seemed good on this show and the stereo audio system offered an attractive expertise.
Battery life is very good due to the 5,000mAh capability, which simply lasts for a few day and half on medium to heavy workloads. There’s no wi-fi charging, however wired charging is a fast 67W with the bundled adapter.
(Picture credit score: Roydon Cerejo/ Android Central)
One of many primary causes you need to take into account this telephone is for the cameras. The 12 Professional Plus options the 50MP Sony IMX890 sensor for the primary digicam, which can be discovered within the OnePlus 12 , whereas the telephoto is the OmniVision OV64B 64MP sensor as seen within the OnePlus Open . Each sensors are optically stabilized and provide excellent readability, colours, and particulars in each daylight and evening time photographs.
The first digicam’s broad f/1.8 aperture ensures a creamy bokeh impact in close-up photographs, whereas in low mild, the app routinely takes a long-exposure shot. The telephoto or Portrait digicam as Realme calls it, is equally spectacular. It has a 3x optical zoom, which has good stabilization if you’re framing. Picture high quality is sort of spectacular even at 10x magnification. Nonetheless, there are diminishing returns as you transcend 20x zoom. On the most 120x degree, massive textual content on distant objects is nearly recognizable but it surely’s clear that the digicam is effectively past its consolation zone.
Video recording maxes out at 4K30 on the Realme 12 Professional Plus. Picture high quality is sort of good throughout the day and you’ve got the flexibility to change between the ultra-wide, main, and telephoto cameras when recording at 1080p. The first and tele can shoot at 4K, however you need to select which sensor you need earlier than you hit report.
The 32MP selfie digicam is equally spectacular, capturing sharp and detailed photos in daylight and indoor lighting. The post-processing works effectively in cleansing up noise, and the default pores and skin smoothing filter isn’t too aggressive and produces pleasing portraits.
Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G: What I do not like
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The Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G doesn’t have a macro digicam or perhaps a macro taking pictures mode, which some may miss. Realme may have accomplished the trifecta through the use of a extra substantial ultrawide digicam with autofocus. This is able to have helped in getting sharper photographs in addition to enabled macro pictures. That is the one rear digicam that may’t report at 4K decision, which I really feel was a missed alternative.
The opposite space which may have used a greater improve is the SoC itself. Don’t get me flawed, it really works simply wonderful in day-to-day use but it surely’s not as highly effective as a few of the others on this section. Going by benchmark numbers, it put out almost the identical scores or simply barely higher numbers than the MediaTek Dimensity 7050 SoC, which sits in Realme’s less expensive 12 Plus 5G. We additionally may have gotten higher options like 4K at 60fps video recording on the 12 Professional Plus 5G, had Realme used a stronger processor.
The final criticism with this telephone has been a recurring one on most Realme telephones, and that’s the software program. Realme UI 5.0 relies on Android 14 , and my unit acquired a number of updates for Android safety patches and bug fixes, which is nice to see. However there’s no getting round how pointless bloated it feels, with tons of useless apps and plenty of first-party ones that bombard you with unsolicited notifications. You’ll be able to work round this by being cautious throughout setup and never giving permission to sure apps, but it surely’s nonetheless a trouble which we shouldn’t should take care of.
Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G: Competitors
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The Realme 12 Professional Plus’s largest competitor is the Redmi Observe 13 Professional Plus . It sits in an analogous value vary, and boasts of higher water resistance, a higher-resolution AMOLED show, and faster charging. Between the 2, I’d nonetheless put my cash on the 12 Professional Plus 5G merely due to the higher auxiliary cameras and because of the truth that it comes with Android 14 out of the field.
The Vivo V30 is one other telephone that competes on this section, that includes an equally eye-catching design as its dearer sibling , good high quality rear cameras, 80W charging, and a extra highly effective SoC. It does miss out on a telephoto digicam although, which is the large spotlight of the Realme 12 Professional Plus.
For these within the U.S., it is nonetheless arduous to beat the Pixel 7a at its present value. The Pixel 8a could be very new, and can ultimately substitute the 7a as our go-to advice as soon as it will get an honest deal.
Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G: Do you have to purchase it?
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You can purchase this if…
You want a flexible telephoto digicam with good zoom vary
You need a trendy mid-range telephone
You need long-lasting battery life
You should not purchase this if…
You need clutter-free consumer interface
You need robust gaming efficiency
You want wi-fi charging
Realme continues to ship nice worth even with its mid-range choices, and the 12 Professional Plus 5G is an efficient instance. For what it prices, the telephone really excels within the digicam division due to a robust main sensor, versatile telephoto digicam, and a strong selfie digicam. Realme would not cease there although, because it delivers an equally premium utilization expertise due to a faux-leather again panel and the luxury-watch impressed rear modules. Efficiency can be respectable, the telephone is water and dustproof, and the battery simply lasts greater than a day. The vivid curved-edge AMOLED show is superb for binge-watching on the transfer.
The everyday software program hurdles proceed to hang-out Realme telephones, because the interface is just too cluttered and bloated with useless apps. The ultrawide digicam can be nothing particular, when in comparison with how good the opposite cameras are. Lastly, there’s the processor itself, which might have been completely respectable on a telephone at round $300, however not at this value. If the 12 Professional Plus 5G is not obtainable the place you reside, this is a listing of nice alternate options that ought to work simply as effectively.
An awesome telephoto digicam beneath $400
For a telephone priced round $400, the Realme 12 Professional Plus 5G boasts of excellent primary and telephoto digicam sensors, and is again by a premium vegan-leather end. You additionally get a curved-edge show, 67W charging, and a strong Snapdragon platform. All these options collectively makes it good worth.
