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Camera Samples

Performance

The Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G is a superb all-around chipset that I think has more than enough power for the vast majority of users. If anything, most flagship chipsets are overpowered, and this year we have seen the incredible performance of these chipsets have a negative impact on the battery.

So, if you are not a gamer, one of the lower specced chipsets is likely a superior choice in many regards.

The day to day experience of this phone is identical to the more powerful Realme GT; everything runs incredibly smooth with no performance glitches at all.

It can handle gaming perfectly well, too. Maybe because I am not a massive mobile gamer, but I can’t say I had any performance issues with games like Genshin Impact or Call of Duty (about the only two games I play).

Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G vs Snapdragon 888 & 765G Benchmarks

Looking at the benchmarks, the SD778G offers a similar level of performance as the MediaTek Dimensity 1000 for both CPU specific benchmarks and gaming.

It then has a huge leap in performance vs the previous generation Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G. The 3DMark Wild Life score is 48% higher. It is then four times higher than the Snapdragon 720G used on the Realme 8 Pro.

As you would expect, it then fails to compete with the Snapdragon 888, or even the SD870. Gaming benchmarks are where it suffers a little, scoring less than half of what the Snapdragon 888 can achieve in 3DMark Wild Life and about 40% less than the SD870, which is used on the GT Explorer Master.

The AndroBench storage speed benchmarks looked a little low at first, but they are actually excellent, it is just the sequential read that falls behind the SD888 equipped GT but the random read/write are almost the same.

Battery

The upper-midrange chipset offers a significant advantage over the SD888 when it comes to battery life. The difference is significant enough that it is a serious consideration when choosing between this phone and the more powerful Realme GT.

The PC Mark Work 3.0 Battery Life test shows slightly misleading results when looking at the two phones.

The Realme GT scores an incredible 13h 58, higher than any other SD888 phone I have reviewed. The GT Master edition is only 4 mins ahead.

However, if you look at the monitoring data, the Realme GT throttles the performance, dropping by almost 30% after a few runs, while the Realme GT Master retains almost the same performance throughout the entirety of the test.

The real-world difference means that I can get to the end of the day with the GT Master without ever getting tempted to put it on charge. However, the Realme GT, and every other SD888 phone before it, ends up with me getting a little twitchy about the battery in the late afternoon.

Software

Just like the Realme GT, the GT Master uses Realme UI 2.0, which is based on Android 11 and it is effectively identical. Pre-installed software is fractionally different, there is no longer Booking.com or Agoda, but there is now PUBG and Heyfun.

Price and Alternative Options

UPDATE: Official pricing is:

  • The price of realme GT Master Edition starts from 399 USD. The 6GB + 128GB prices on 399 USD, and 8GB + 256GB prices on 449 USD.
  • The price of realme GT Explorer Master Edition starts from 499 USD. The 8GB + 128GB prices on 499 USD, and 12GB + 256GB prices on 549 USD.
  • No word on EU prices
  • Realme GT Master Edition will come to the United Kingdom

At the time of writing, I have not been told the official price for the Realme GT Master Edition. An early Realme store listing suggests this will launch for €399 for the 8GB/256GB model, which works out as £340

For the Realme GT, there is still no official UK availability or pricing. However, it is available to buy from Amazon.ES. If you import to the UK, the price you see on the listing is more or less the same you pay (they adjust the prices to factor in import tax at checkout)

The Realme GT 8GB/128GB variant price is €499, which works out at roughly £438 and this is one of the two cheapest SD888 phones on the market (Redmagic 6R is the other). The 12GB/256GB model is €599 or £510

The Realme GT Master Edition is expected to land for €499 (£425) for 12GB/256GB, the same price as the base GT. If that price is correct, I’d say that is the best phone out of the three (in my opinion), you don’t sacrifice too much performance, the battery should be better and the camera significantly better.

For alternative brands, the OnePlus Nord 2 is at £399 for the 8GB/128GB model or £469 for the 12GB/256GB model. This is closer in spec, so the Realme Master Edition looks better overall on paper.

The Xiaomi Poco F3 is the best option at the same price point as the GT Master. The 6GB/128GB model is about £300, or the 8GB/256GB model is £350. The Snapdragon 870 has superior performance, but the phone has a lower spec camera and slower charging. The Realme also has a 3.5mm headphone jack.

Overall

Assuming the leaked prices are accurate, then the Realme GT Master is another superb phone from Realme. Though perhaps not quite as impressive as the GT was.

While the Realme GT had little to no competition at launch, the GT Master sits dangerously close in price to the superior OnePlus Nord 2. It is then the same price as the Poco F3, which I would say is at least equal to the GT Master, depending on your specific requirements.

However, if you can stretch your budget, the Realme GT Explorer Master is well worth the investment and the best option of all the GT phones. The SD870 has superb performance without the battery issues of the SD888, and this should be the best camera on a Realme phone to date. I would also say that the Realme GT Master Edition is a better choice than the OnePlus Nord 2.

It is also worth remembering that Realme always launch their phones with early bird pricing options. I wouldn’t be surprised if the GT Master ends up being around £325, perhaps lower, and that would make it an incredible buy.

Realme GT Master Edition Review Rating

Summary

The Realme GT Master is an excellent affordable general use phone offering an exceptional battery life and superb performance.

Overall
80%
80%
  • Overall - 80%
    80%

Pros

  • Good balance of performance/power efficiency/price

Cons

  • Camera could be a bit better
  • Very competitive price point making it hard for this to stand out

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