Realme 7 series compared with Redmi Note 9 range
Realme 7 was launched in India yesterday
Here's how volatile the mid-range smartphone segment looks, currently
The Realme 7 series was launched in India yesterday as the latest mid-range offerings from the company. The Realme 7 and Realme 7 Pro enter the highly volatile budget segment between Rs 15,000 and Rs 20,000 that is headlined by rival Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 9 series. However, unlike Realme, Xiaomi has three phones in its arsenal, the Redmi Note 9, Note 9 Pro and Note 9 Pro Max.
So, if you’re someone who’s looking to purchase a phone in the sub-Rs 15,000 and sub-Rs 20,000 price segment, which one should you go for? Should you choose a phone with a high refresh rate or faster battery charging? Which phone should you buy if you're looking for just a dependable performer under Rs 20,000? We try to find out in this specifications and feature-based comparison between the Realme 7 series and Redmi Note 9 series.
Realme 7 series vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro series: Pricing
Realme 7 series hits the sweet spot with the Realme 7 priced starting at Rs 14,999 for the base variant with 6GB RAM and 64GB storage and Rs 16,999 for the 8GB+128GB option.
We have Redmi Note 9 and Redmi Note 9 Pro in the competition that was launched in March and July, respectively. The Redmi Note 9 was launched in India at Rs 11,999 for 4GB+64GB, Rs 13,499 for the 4GB+128GB option and Rs 14,999 for the 6GB+128GB option. On the other hand the Redmi Note 9 Pro starts at Rs 13,999 for the 4GB+64GB variant, Rs 15,999 for the 4GB+128GB storage and Rs 16,999 for the 6GB+128GB variant.
Xiaomi offers multiple variants of both the Redmi Note 9 and Note 9 Pro unlike Realme, so users have the option to choose across different price points starting as low as Rs 11,999.
The Realme 7 Pro starts at Rs 19,999 for the 6GB+128GB variant and Rs 21,999 for the 8GB+128GB option. It’s Xiaomi counterpart, the Redmi Note 9 Pro Max is priced starting at Rs 16,999 for the 6GB+64GB variant, Rs 18,499 for 6GB+128GB variant and Rs 19,999 for the 8GB+128GB variant. Here again, Xiaomi can offer the phone at an aggressive price than Realme and it comes in multiple variants which helps consumers in choosing the perfect option.
Realme 7 series vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro series: Design & Display
Realme 7, Realme 7 Pro and Redmi Note 9 are built out of plastic and measure 9.4 millimetres, 8.7 millimetres and 8.9 millimetres respectively. The Redmi Note 9 Pro and Redmi Note 9 Pro Max have a Gorilla Glass 5 layered back glass cover while the chassis is plastic, both measuring 8.8 millimetres in thickness.
The Realme 7 weighs 196 grams, Realme 7 Pro weighs 182 grams, Redmi Note 9 weighs 199 grams, Note 9 Pro and Note 9 Pro Max come in the heftiest at 209 grams.
The Realme 7, Redmi Note 9 Pro and Redmi Note 9 Pro Max have their power buttons doubling up as the fingerprint reader while the Redmi Note 9 has a fingerprint sensor on the back beneath the camera module. Realme 7 Pro is the only contender amongst the five phones to come with an in-screen fingerprint reader.
Realme 7 features a 6.5-inch Full HD+ (2400 x 1080 pixels) resolution screen that has 90Hz high refresh rate and is topped with a layer of Gorilla Glass 3. Realme 7 Pro, however, has a slightly smaller 6.4-inch AMOLED screen but doesn’t support high refresh rate.
The Redmi Note 9 has an LCD screen that measures 6.5-inch while the display on the Note 9 Pro and Note 9 Pro Max is only a bit bigger at 6.6-inch with a Full HD+ (2340 x 1080 pixels) resolution but the screens don’t support high refresh rate. The display of the three phones is topped with a layer of Gorilla Glass 5 for added protection against drops.
All the five phones have a punch-hole cutout for the selfie camera up front. The Realme 7 and Redmi Note 9 each have a cutout on the top-left corner while the Redmi Note 9 Pro and Note 9 Pro Max have the cutout in the top-centre.
Realme 7 series vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro series: Under the hood
Realme 7 is powered by the MediaTek Helio G95 processor with an octa-core CPU running at 2.05GHz maximum clock speeds. This is paired with a Mali-G76 GPU and Realme UI to boot. The Redmi Note 9 is powered by the Helio G85 processor that comes with an octa-core CPU running at upto 2.0GHz along with Mali-G52 graphics.
The Redmi Note 9 Pro, Realme 7 Pro and Redmi Note 9 Pro Max, on the other hand, are powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G processor with an octa-core CPU running at 2.3GHz clock speeds with Adreno 618 GPU.
While the Realme 7 has a newer generation processor than the Redmi Note 9 running at slightly higher clock speeds, the Redmi Note 9 Pro, Note 9 Pro Max and Realme 7 Pro are on a league of their own with the Snapdragon SoC.
Notably, Xiaomi also offers multiple RAM and storage variants for each of its smartphones in the Redmi Note 9 series, but Realme only has two variants for each model.
Realme 7 series vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro series: Cameras
Realme 7 and Realme 7 Pro come with the same set of cameras on the back. This consists of a primary 64MP camera, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle camera, 2MP macro camera and 2MP depth sensor. The rear cameras can record in 4K at 30FPS and is supported by EIS.
The Redmi Note 9 and Redmi Note 9 Pro have a similar camera setup, in that, both the phones come with 48MP primary camera, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle camera, a 2MP depth sensor and a 2MP macro camera (5MP macro on Note 9 Pro). The rear cameras on the Note 9 can record in 1080p at 30FPS while on the Note 9 Pro, it can record in 4K at 30FPS and 1080p at upto 120FPS.
Having said that, Xiaomi’s real contender for the Realme 7 series is the Redmi Note 9 Pro Max that comes with a 64MP primary camera, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle camera, a 5MP macro camera and a 2MP depth sensor. The rear cameras are assisted by EIS and can record in 4K UHD at 30FPS and 1080p at upto 120FPS.
Realme 7 has a 16MP selfie camera housed within the punch-hole cutout while the Redmi Note 9 has a 13MP front-facing camera, followed by Redmi Note 9 Pro with 16MP selfie camera.
Realme 7 series vs Xiaomi Redmi Note 9 Pro series: Battery
The Realme 7 is equipped with a 5,000mAh battery with support for 30W fast charging out-of-the-box. Realme claims that the phone can go from 0-100% in 65 minutes tops.
The Redmi Note 9, Note 9 Pro and Note 9 Pro Max all come with a 5,020mAh battery with support for 22.5W, 18W and 33W fast charging respectively.
However, Realme 7 Pro takes the cake here with its 4,500mAh battery that supports 65W fast charging out-of-the-box. The company claims that the phone can charge fully from 0-100% in 34 minutes tops.
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