Realme has unveiled new gadgets in India, like the Realme 11 5G and 11X 5G. These phones follow a numbering tradition and have caught attention for their design. I examined Realme 11 5G for a week. Realme states it’s a smart choice with great value, and the specs support that. But the big question is, does it truly live up to the promise? You’ll find out in my complete Realme 11 5G review.
Table of Contents
Realme 11 5G Price and Availability
Realme 11 5G comes in various versions, and you can make your purchase of the Realme 11 5G through Flipkart.
Realme 11 5G Key Specifications
- Display: 6.72-inch IPS LCD display with 1080 x 2400 pixels resolution and 120Hz refresh rate
- Processor: MediaTek Dimensity 6100+ octa-core processor.
- RAM: 8GB.
- Storage: 128GB, 256GB.
- Camera: 108-megapixel rear camera with f/1.75 aperture, 2-megapixel rear camera with f/2.4 aperture, and 16-megapixel front camera with f/2.45 aperture.
- Battery: 5000mAh battery with 67W fast charging support.
- Operating system: Android 13, Realme UI 4.
Realme 11 5G Review: Design
Regarding the design, Realme has given the Realme 11 and 11X 5G a new look, especially the 11 5G model. They’ve chosen to bring back a flat screen style similar to last year’s Series 10, stepping away from the curved display. Personally, I prefer the glass sandwich design, but the one they’ve used here is acceptable.
The realme 11 5G boasts a stunning and attractive design, providing a comfortable hold in the hand. The phone’s flat edges make us feel secure using it without a cover. Interestingly, the weight distribution is impressively handled, even with the sizable 5000 mAh main battery.
Realme is famous for picking unique colors for their gadgets. A recent instance is the Hyper Space color option for the 10 Pro+. While these bold choices may not be my personal preference, there’s a group of buyers who love vibrant and eye-catching options. For these fans, the 11 5G offers the Glory Gold color. Fortunately, that’s the color I centered my review on.
Taking a logical approach, I have to acknowledge its excellence. The subtle glow on the back adds a distinctive touch when seen from certain angles. Additionally, the rear texture isn’t as slippery as anticipated. The golden edges contribute to the overall appeal.
However, it’s not my personal favorite color. Thankfully, the 11 5G is also available in a sleek black shade that I find more appealing.
Turning our attention to the rear of the device, Realme has given special focus to the camera module. The circular notch in the top left corner holds the two camera sensors. This design resembles the Realme Narzo 60 series, though here the notch is placed at the top left corner rather than in the center.
The volume controls and power button are located on the right side of the device. These buttons offer responsive touch and a satisfying click when pressed. The power button also doubles as a fingerprint sensor, swiftly registering and unlocking the device. Despite its robust feel, the Realme 11 5G doesn’t come with an official IP rating, which helps keep the price lower. I understand the cost consideration, but many similar devices nowadays include this feature as a standard.
At the bottom of the device, you’ll find the USB Type-C charging port and speaker mesh. On the left side, there’s the SIM tray with room for two micro SIM cards. It’s nice to see a headphone jack included. However, one thing missing is an infrared emitter, a feature that’s making a comeback in mid-budget devices like the Redmi Note 12 and OnePlus Nord CE3 Lite. Although not essential for everyone, its absence is noticeable.
Realme 11 5G Review: Display
Realme 11 5G sports a 6.7-inch IPS LCD screen with a resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels. Before delving deep into the visual characteristics of the screen, it is important to acknowledge that Realme has paid diligent attention to the bezel of the likeness. Recently I reviewed the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, which featured a flat screen with a similar design, in comparison with which, the Realme 11 5G’s bezels are said to be slightly thinner, a subtle detail to be believed. While this may go unnoticed by most users, I as a reviewer find the craft behind the artificiality behind such shades to be commendable.
The screen delivers a maximum refresh rate of 120Hz along with the standard 60Hz. An automatic freshness selection program dynamically selects freshness that adjusts the freshness rate based on the content displayed. During my tests, I preferred the increased refresh rate of 120Hz and felt it provided a more smooth and consistent experience than the automatic refresh selection mode. It doesn’t do the jittery stuff when switching between refresh rates between interfacing phones.
Surpassing my initial expectations, the visual experience on the realme 11 5G is sustainably high. As of late, from a technical point of view, realme devices have never been known for having good screens, the 11 5G challenges this reputation with its superior screen quality.
The brightness of the panel has been optimized well, and so has the color accuracy. Pictures looked sharp and in some cases, the results were sometimes even better than those seen on the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite, even surpassing the Realme 11 5G’s results among its direct replacements. Over the weekend, I consumed content on the 11 5G and had no complaints. The screen showed satisfactory black levels, although there were occasional issues with HDR playback. However, this amazingly small disturbance is likely to have no effect that it won’t affect your visual experience. It is impressive that the phone supports HD content streaming, so you can enjoy the content in perfect quality.
However, the audio setup luckily falls short of expectations. The device incorporates a single speaker setup, which provides a great audio environment. The speaker also includes an Ultra Volume mode, although this could have potential implications for long-term use. While it may not be advisable to maintain such a high volume level regularly, it should not produce a few sudden bursts of sustained volume as needed. My surprise at this small humming feature was that such high volumes could be achieved in such a compact device.
A quick note before concluding: I recommend disabling the automatic brightness feature of the device. On several occasions, the automatic brightness failed to provide accurate brightness settings.
Lastly, I chose to set the brightness manually based on my personal preferences. In addition, the device features a standard always-on screen that can be customized according to your preferences. It’s handy and readable, though it’s not distracting.
Realme 11 5G Review: Software
The Realme 11 5G comes with Android 13 right out of the box, along with Realme UI 4.0, the latest version of Realme’s custom user interface.
Following the familiar trend seen in Realme devices, the phone arrives with a bunch of third-party apps pre-installed. While these apps can be removed, their sheer number might create a negative impression about the device.
Taking the time to uninstall unnecessary apps, I eventually reached the core experience, which turned out to be satisfying. In my view, realme UI manages to find a good balance between a natural and practical approach, and this holds true for the Realme 11 5G model as well.
The user interface is vibrant and filled with lively colors, paired with captivating animations. Android 13 has broadened the device’s customization choices. Personally, I tend to keep my phone’s appearance as it’s shown in advertisements.
However, if you’re into lively colors and different font styles, the device offers a lot of personalization options.
While I do admire Realme UI’s qualities, I’d appreciate if certain views, like dropdown menus, incorporated some of Android’s standard functions, similar to what we see on select Samsung Galaxy devices.
Nonetheless, the realme UI remains quite appealing overall. I’ve introduced this device to numerous individuals, and it has captured their interest.
Android 13 brings along several functions I love, and one of my favorites is the audio dictation feature. Given my fondness for note-taking, I appreciate the professionalism of reliable voice recognition options available in the market. The realme 11 5G shines in this aspect, displaying impressive microphone accuracy while recording audio. It even maintains proper syntax, punctuation, and spelling. This attribute is incredibly valuable, especially during recording of interview segments.
Up to now, I haven’t identified any significant issues with the user interface. Nevertheless, it’s crucial to note that this is a recent device, and acknowledging this fact holds importance.
Realme 11 5G Review: Performance
The realme 11 5G employs the MediaTek Dimensity 6100+ 5G processor, a fresh addition to its price category. Staying true to the device’s theme, this chipset showcased commendable performance across various aspects during my testing. While it doesn’t achieve peak performance right from the start, it consistently offers satisfactory results that enhance the overall user experience, validating its assessment.
To delve deeper into this matter, let’s begin by discussing the gaming capabilities of the Realme 11 5G. Personally, I’m an enthusiastic player of COD: Mobile, dedicating an hour every night to gaming. The smartphone flawlessly handled the game even with high graphics settings and maximum frame rate configuration. Although some compromises were noticeable, the frames per second (fps) did drop to 30-40 during intense moments. Making a shift to medium graphics settings resulted in a significant improvement, maintaining a consistent and respectable 60 fps performance. These numbers may not be extraordinary, but they are competitive enough to rival those found in more gaming-focused smartphones.
A similar situation developed in Genshin Impact, where the smartphone displayed a latency delay when rendering large open world environments. The following graphics setting change resolved this issue.
The Realme 11 5G’s performance meets my expectations, but there’s room for improvement in managing heat. I didn’t encounter any unusual overheating during my gaming sessions, though the back of the device does become warm, particularly after playing for around 50 minutes.
The device lives up to my expectations when it comes to handling demanding tasks, but it really shines during everyday activities. This includes tasks like sending emails, browsing the web, and engaging with social media platforms. Doing these tasks has allowed me to appreciate the device’s screen, as navigating through its content is a delightful experience.
Using standard performance benchmarks, I conducted a Geekbench assessment of the smartphone. The results were commendable, showcasing a single-core score of 728 and a multicore score of 1947. These numbers are slightly better than the OnePlus Nord CE 3 Lite’s scores of 869 and 1920 in a similar flagship segment comparison.
The unit I reviewed boasts 8GB of RAM with the option to expand it by another 8GB. Surprisingly, I haven’t found a practical use for this expansion yet. The initial 8GB of RAM handled lightweight apps like Chrome, Instagram, and Spotify seamlessly, running smoothly even in the background.
My review model is equipped with 256GB of storage, making it suitable for extended use. If you’re considering the realme 11, I would recommend opting for the 256GB variant.
Realme 11 5G Review: Battery and Charging
The battery performance aligns well with my expectations. I managed an average of 5 hours of screen time, which slightly dipped to around 4.5 hours on weekends due to extended gaming and content consumption. Bright days saw battery life extend to about 6 hours, thanks to the 5000 mAh battery.
The device supports 67W SuperVOOC charging, which is quite impressive. While charging speeds aren’t extraordinary, you can anticipate a full charge from 0 to 100 in approximately 50 minutes, even while data connectivity and applications run in the background.
Realme 11 5G Review: Camera
The camera performance of the Realme 11 5G is satisfactory, exhibiting strengths and some areas where brightness lacks. Let me elaborate on the aspects I appreciate, starting with the camera specifications.
The smartphone boasts a 108 MP primary camera paired with a 2 MP depth sensor.
Highlighting the positive aspects, the Realme 11 5G’s 108 MP main camera is truly impressive. It captures images with clarity and intricate details. You can anticipate exceptional photos with accurate colors, particularly in natural lighting conditions. The camera also excels in capturing skin tones accurately, which is a notable feature.
The camera employs AI to enhance scenes, which proves valuable for indoor photography. However, when used outdoors, I noticed occasional decentralization in photos.
When it comes to low-light performance, the camera might leave you a bit disappointed. The low-light mode improves scenes, but sometimes at the cost of losing some detail.
See more camera samples of Realme 11 5G on Google Drive 👉 https://bit.ly/3Pcrfra
Despite this minor setback, the flagship camera shines in terms of video quality. It can record 1080P videos at 30 frames per second. Video colors are notably accurate, especially red tones, and the focus is quick. The built-in microphone records clear audio.
It’s important to note that there’s no dedicated telephoto lens, and digital zoom is the alternative. The camera supports up to 10X zoom, but you might observe a loss of detail at higher levels.
Lastly, the 2MP depth sensor plays its role effectively. It contributes to seamlessly transforming portraits, enhancing the bokeh effect and overall appeal.
The 16MP selfie camera is another strong aspect of the device, delivering respectable image results.
However, a similar issue arises with the selfie camera’s video performance. Improvements are needed in terms of color quality and the speed of autofocus. Therefore, if you intend to capture photos using the Realme 11 5G, sticking with the main camera would be your best bet. Your expectations will certainly be met.
Realme 11 5G Review Videos
Verdict
The Realme 11 stands as an effective mid-range device. Following the brand’s familiar formula, it offers commendable hardware that performs admirably, though adapting to the user interface might require some time. If the user interface isn’t your preference, I’d suggest considering the Nord CE 3 Lite.
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