Realme 12+ Review: Is it Better Than the Pro?

The Realme 12+ is an important point in being the first 'Plus' model in the company's numeric-series collection. The device is carefully placed between the ordinary Realme 12 and the premium Realme 12 Pro, providing to those looking for a blend of performance and price. The Realme 12+ is priced affordably in India at Rs 20,999 and comes with notable characteristics such as an AMOLED display, MediaTek Dimensity 7050 SoC, a flexible 50MP triple back camera configuration, and a powerful 5,000mAh battery. In our detailed Realme 12+ review, we look at its real-world performance, camera capabilities, battery life, and more to help you understand its entire value offer.

If you're looking for a smartphone around Rs 25,000 that combines stylish design, dependable performance, outstanding battery life, and a pleasant display, the Realme 12+ might be the right choice for you. Furthermore, this gadget has a 3.5mm headphone socket, which allows you to easily connect your preferred wired headphones or earbuds for a better audio experience.

Realme 12+
Brand	Realme
Screen Size	6.67 inches
Display Type	AMOLED, HDR10+, 600 nits (typ), 2000 nits (peak)
Refresh Rate	120 Hz
Procesor	Mediatek Dimensity 7050 (6 nm)
CPU	Octa-core (2x2.6 GHz Cortex-A78 & 6x2.0 GHz Cortex-A55)
Graphics	Mali-G68 MC4
Memory	128 GB | 256 GB
RAM	6 GB | 8 GB
Rear Camera	Triple : 50 MP, f/1.9, 26mm (wide), 1/1.95", PDAF, OIS 8 MP, f/2.2, 16mm, 112˚ (ultrawide), 1/4.0", 1.12µm 2 MP, f/2.4, (macro)
Selfie Camera	Single: 16 MP, f/2.5, 24mm (wide), 1/3.0"
Battery	5000 mAh, 67W wired

Name	Product	Price
realme 12+ 5G (Pioneer Green, 128 GB) (8 GB RAM)		Buy Now
realme 12 5G (Twilight Purple, 128 GB) (6 GB RAM)		Buy Now
realme Techlife Buds T100		Buy Now
realme Buds Air 5 with 50dB ANC		Buy Now
realme Buds Q2 with Active Noise Cancellation		Buy Now
realme Buds T300		Buy Now

Realme 12+: Display and Design

The Realme 12+ has the same vegan leather back design as its Pro family members but with a few visible differences. Unlike the Pro variants, it has a flat screen and straight edges, rather than a curved design. Furthermore, the lack of a fluted bezel around the spherical camera module on the rear sets it apart. Nonetheless, the phone keeps its visual appeal, available in two enticing colors: Navigator Beige and Pioneer Green.

If you want to use your smartphone without a cover, the Pioneer Green edition is suggested since it is less prone to staining. Furthermore, the silver seam running vertically across the back panel lends refinement to the color scheme. Despite its shiny borders, the device has a pleasant grip. However, gently curled edges on the rear would have improved comfort by keeping them from pressing into your palm during lengthy use.

The Realme 12+ has an in-display fingerprint scanner that provides constant accuracy, although its positioning may not be ideal. In terms of connectors, the bottom has a USB Type-C port for charging and data transmission, while the top edge has a 3.5mm headphone socket. With twin speakers, the smartphone provides a stereo audio experience.

The Realme 12+ has a 6.67-inch OLED display with FHD+ resolution, a refresh rate of 120Hz, and 100% P3 color gamut compatibility. While its bezels are not as thin as those of its predecessor, the 12 Pro, the Realme 12+ has a greater peak brightness of 2,000 nits compared to 950 nits for the former. This provides exceptional visibility even in harsh sunshine. Colors seem vivid, and deep blacks add to crisp image clarity. Additionally, the device is Widevine L1-certified, allowing users to easily stream FHD video from sites like as Netflix.

Realme 12+: Processor, Software and Battery

The Realme 12+ is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 7050 SoC, which has previously been used in previous smartphones such as the Realme 11 Pro from last year. While the chipset has remained mostly unchanged since its release, it continues to provide stable performance with no crashes or program freezes. Even under heavy loads, the device performs consistently and can handle graphically demanding games like Call of Duty without stuttering. Although the device's temperature may rise somewhat with prolonged use, this is not reason for alarm, especially given that the phone is not mainly built for gaming. Furthermore, the device uses vapor cooling technology to properly regulate its thermals.

Going on, the Realme 12+ is available in two RAM and storage configurations: 8GB + 128GB and 12GB + 256GB. Storage expansion is possible by inserting a microSD card into the secondary hybrids SIM slot. For benchmark aficionados, the Realme 12+ AnTuTu and Geekbench scores are worth looking at to compare its performance to those of competitors.

The Realme 12+ comes pre-installed with Realme UI 5.0 overlaid over Android 14. The user experience is similar to that of the Realme 12 Pro, so see its review for a thorough description. Overall, the software interface is quite clean, with only a few pre-installed third-party applications that may be deleted if desired. While there are advertisements, the gadget has several customization options to personalize it to your preferences. Furthermore, the phone is expected to receive two years of major software upgrades.

The Realme 12+ is powered by a strong 5,000mAh battery, which provides impressive performance. During the PC Mark battery test, it lasted an amazing 17 hours and 24 minutes. Even after streaming a 30-minute 4K video at 50% brightness and volume, the battery level fell by only 2%. This suggests that the gadget can be used for several days with moderate to severe usage.

The device has efficient charging capabilities. With its included 67W fast charger, it takes about 45-50 minutes to fully recharge the battery from virtually empty.

Realme 12+: Camera

The camera setup of the Realme 12+ is very similar with that of the Pro versions, with the exception of the lack of a telephoto lens. Instead, the smartphone comes with a 2MP macro sensor for taking close-up photos. This is supported by a 50MP Sony LYT-600 main sensor and an 8MP ultra-wide lens. The handset includes a 16MP front-facing camera with a punch-hole design for selfies and video chats.

Under good lighting situations, the cameras work excellently. The pixel binning reduces photos taken with the 50MP OIS primary camera to a resolution of 12.5MP. This resolution is ideal for viewing on smartphone displays. However, for bigger displays, such as laptops, a 50MP option is available for shooting photographs at full quality, albeit this may result in a little increase in graininess. Despite this, image quality is much worse than in the normal 12.5MP mode, notably in terms of color accuracy and dynamic range. The sensor also has a 2x digital zoom, which produces similar results to the 1x zoom when photographing in well-lit conditions.

The Realme 12+'s 8MP ultra-wide camera has a 112-degree field of view (FoV) and takes decent photos, while the details and colors may look a little mediocre. The 2MP macro sensor's performance is subpar at best. To acquire good results, ensure that shadows do not conceal the subject and use steady hands while taking close-up photographs. Otherwise, the resultant photographs may appear little fuzzy and grainy.

Moving on, the 16MP selfie camera should have provided finer face details, although the skin tones are typically realistic. Both the front and back cameras use computational talents to create portrait images with decent exposure and resolution, though edge detection may be improved. In low-light circumstances, the Realme 12+ has a night mode that successfully decreases graininess, although at the expense of some finer detail. Nonetheless, the overall outcomes should satisfy your expectations.

The smartphone also has some special movie filters created by Claudio Miranda, an Oscar winner for Best Cinematography, to give a humorous touch to your images.

Sample Images

Conclusion

The Realme 12+ is currently available for less than Rs 19,000, with bank discounts as part of an initial deal. Otherwise, the device is priced at Rs 20,999 for the 128GB storage model and Rs 21,999 for the 256GB variant. This puts it in direct competition with the Realme 12 Pro, which has a curved-edge display and a 2x telephoto lens for better close-up photographs without getting too near to the subject. However, the Realme 12+ falls a little short in terms of performance and screen brightness.

Other smartphones competing with the Realme 12+ include the Motorola Edge 40 Neo, Nothing Phone (2a), and Samsung Galaxy F54 5G. Despite this, the Realme 12+ stands out for its unique design, which has a vegan leather back and a camera module inspired by luxury timepieces. Furthermore, its display provides clear pictures, and performance stays consistent even during strenuous activities and gaming sessions. The large 5,000mAh battery provides exceptional endurance, which is further boosted by quick charging features. Overall, the Realme 12+ provides a compelling package for its price point, giving it a viable option for those looking for a well-rounded mid-range smartphone rather than simply photography skills.