After launching its flagship smartphone at the tail end of 2024, Realme has kicked off the new year with its segment-disrupting midrange series. The Realme 14 Pro Series comprises 2 variants, with the top-spec ‘Plus’ model fetching Rs 29,999. It is powered by the Snapdragon 7 Gen 3 SoC and is rated IP69 for dust and water resistance. It is one of the few smartphones in its segment to feature a telephoto lens in its rear camera array. These specs alone were enough to gain our attention when the smartphone crossed our desk a week ago. We’ve been daily driving it since then. Here is our review of the Realme 14 Pro+.
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Realme 14 Pro+ Review: Design and Display
Here’s what you get inside Realme 14 Pro+’s retail box:
- Smartphone
- 80W SUPERVOOC power adapter
- USB Type-A to Type-C cable
- Silicone phone cover
- SIM ejector
- Phone hole seal stickers
- Quick guide
Realme 14 Pro+ looks similar to its predecessor but it gets a few interesting design tweaks. For starters, its white variant has a temperature-sensitive back panel. The veiny pattern on the panel turns blue when the surrounding temperature drops below 15°C. However, the Suede Grey variant which we used for this review is our favourite of the lot. Its soft-touch matte finish lends it an excellent in-hand feel. The dark grey shade looks tasteful and matches the overall aesthetic of the smartphone.
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The outer ring covering the circular camera cutout has been stripped of its ridge texture. The smooth surface of the ring is engraved with the aperture, focal length, and maximum zoom limit of the primary shooter along with the ‘Hyperimage+’ branding. The 3 lenses in the camera cutout are arranged in a triangular layout resembling a fidget spinner. The spaces between juxtaposing lenses are occupied by the 3 MagicGlow Triple Flash segments.
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The curved form factor of Realme 14 Pro+ sets it apart from the flat-edged smartphones in its category. Its display and back panel are curved along the sides and merge seamlessly into the frame. This frame has curved edges and rounded corners. As a result, the smartphone has a great grip and a phenomenal in-hand feel. The volume rocker keys and the side button are positioned on the right edge of the frame. The bottom edge houses the SIM tray, primary microphone, USB port, and primary speaker grille. The secondary speaker and microphone find their way to the top edge of the frame.
The 6.83-inch curved AMOLED display is slightly larger than the panel on the previous model but peaks at 1,500 nits which is 500 nits fewer than its predecessor. Since AMOLED panels rarely reach their peak brightness in general use, this isn’t a big deal. Interestingly, this display can hit 1,500 nits in High Brightness Mode as well. We used it extensively under direct sunlight and were pleased to see that it retained its legibility. Surrounding the display are very slim bezels. The smooth touch response offered by the 120Hz screen makes the browsing experience fun and seamless.
During the review period, we used the Realme 14 Pro+ to stream content across major OTT platforms. The smartphone delivered an immersive experience with a wide range of viewing angles and no obstructive bezels to get in the way. The images showcased rich, vibrant colours with deep dark shades. The dual speaker arrangement produces a well-rounded audio output that is loud enough to overpower the ambient noises in an indoor setting. The only downside to the viewing experience is that the Netflix app lacks HDR support for this smartphone.
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Realme 14 Pro+ is rated IP69 for dust and water resistance, which is a big upgrade over its predecessor’s IP65 rating. This smartphone is completely waterproof and can handle being submerged up to 1.5m for 60 minutes.
Realme 14 Pro+ Review: Performance and Cameras
The Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 SoC lies at the heart of Realme 14 Pro+. There are 3 RAM + Storage configurations on offer — 8GB + 128GB (Rs 29,999), 8GB + 256GB (Rs 31,999), and 12GB + 256GB (Rs 34,999). Here’s how the smartphone performed in Geekbench and AnTuTu benchmarks.
Geekbench 6: 1,191 (Single-core) | 3,249 (Multi-core)
AnTuTu: 826,288
Daily driving the Realme 14 Pro+ was a pleasant experience as the smartphone helped us stay on top of routine tasks like instant messaging, video calling, media streaming, web browsing, navigation, and more. Apps take minimal time to load and the smartphone intelligently shelves them in the background when they’re not in use. We did not hit any roadblocks while juggling multiple apps on the device. The haptic motor within the phone is tuned nicely and offers satisfying feedback.
Although the smartphone’s gaming performance isn’t segment-defining, we had a nice time playing titles like Call of Duty Mobile and BGMI on the device. The gameplay is free of jitters and frame drops in medium graphics. The frame rate is capped at 60fps. However, Realme says that the software update scheduled for February will unlock 90fps gameplay in BGMI. When it comes to thermal management, the Realme 14 Pro+ does a decent job of keeping its internals cool. The device starts warming up after 40 minutes of gaming.
Handling the OS duties on the Realme 14 Pro+ is the Android 15-based Realme UI 6.0. If you’re not familiar with Realme’s Android skin, it is nearly identical to Oppo’s ColorOS. Realme UI’s strengths lie in its vibrant aesthetic and snappy optimisation. We also like the customisation options for the app icons, fingerprint animation, Always On Display, and more. There are some AI features baked into the software, like Google’s Circle to Search. The native photo editor is equipped with an AI object eraser.
The Realme 14 Pro+ puts any kind of battery anxiety to rest with its massive 6,000mAh Si/C battery pack. On heavy usage days, we racked up almost 6 hours of screen time and were left with a 20-25% charge in the tank. If you’re more conservative with your usage, you can push the battery life to 2 days. The smartphone supports 80W wired charging. After plugging in the charger at 20%, it took us 40 minutes to fully charge the device.
Realme 14 Pro+’s rear camera array features a 50MP Sony IMX896 primary sensor, an 8-megapixel ultrawide shooter, and a 50MP Sony IMX882 sensor for the periscope telephoto lens. This telephoto lens has 3x optical zoom. The smartphone can zoom up to 120x, which is something we rarely see in midrange devices.
The 50MP primary shooter takes great pictures in outdoor daylight conditions. The images pack a lot of details and showcase rich, punchy colours. We also like how it exposes the sky and assigns it accurate colours. The images look sharp and have a good dynamic range. In limited lighting conditions, this camera relies on the Night Mode to brighten up the subject and clear the noise. While the images are smooth and mostly grain-free, the subjects often appear over-brightened.
Images taken with the 8MP ultrawide camera are less warm but have a good colour profile. They pack the important details and have a decent dynamic range. While the colour shift from the primary shooter is noticeable, we don’t mind it too much. In limited lighting conditions, this camera relies heavily on Night Mode. The results are a bit grainy but the colour profile is decent.
The 50MP telephoto lens captures good pictures at 3x optical zoom. The images are sharp and detailed, flaunting deep colours. Like the primary shooter, this lens is equipped with OIS. You can zoom up to 120x, but the image quality takes a hit after the 20x mark. The smartphone relies heavily on photoprocessing and image smoothening to make the results presentable beyond this point. This comes in handy while zooming into distant billboards and signs.
Apart from taking zoomed-in images, the telephoto lens comes in clutch while taking portrait shots. We prefer this camera to the primary shooter for taking portraits. The images are focused and have just the right amount of background blur. The smartphone does a good job of separating the subject from the background and ensuring that its borders don’t get blurred out.
The 32MP front-facing camera takes good selfies while keeping the skin smoothening and brightening effects to a minimum. This camera can record 4K videos at 30fps. The primary shooter and telephoto lens are also capable of shooting in 4K at 30fps.
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Verdict
The Realme 14 Pro+ is one of the most complete smartphones in its price segment. The Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor makes it an incredible device for rigorous everyday use. The soft-touch back panel, along with the curved back panel, lends the device a very premium in-hand feel. The 3x telephoto lens is the highlight of the smartphone’s versatile rear camera system and snaps some of the most beautiful portrait shots we’ve seen in this category. To top things off, the new 6,000mAh Si/C battery pack on this smartphone can power it for 2 days on moderate usage.
Realme 14 Pro+: Pros
- Clean design
- Great in-hand feel
- Excellent cameras
- Versatile battery life
