Smartphone maker RealMe has today announced details and availability for four new phones arriving in Australian stores this month, including the first phone to reach our shores with a massive 64MP Quad-camera array on the rear.

The launch of the new range will be staggered over October with handsets arriving in Australian retailers JB HiFi, The Good Guys, Bing Lee and more, as well as through online retailers including eBay, Amazon, Kogan, Catch and Mobileciti, and their website realme.com/au. 

For those not familiar, realme started as an offshoot of Chinese smartphone maker OPPO, but have branched out on their own recently. The companies still have ties however with realme phones including OPPO’s VOOC fast charging solution, as well as their skinned version of Android 9: Color OS.

realme Australia Managing Director, Andy Yang, said:

“As a young and fearless brand, realme is excited to introduce Australia to the first 64MP camera smartphone in this market, with realme XT. In the four new devices – realme C2, realme 5, realme 5 Pro and realme XT – that we’re bringing to consumers in Australia, we are delivering premium functionality, superior camera technology, power and style at an affordable  price.”

The realme range in Australia starts with the realme C2 which will retail for $199 and arrive in-store on October 30, the realme 5 which sells for $299 and arrives on October 25th, the realme 5 Pro which will sell for $399, arriving in-store October 30 and finally the realme XT which will sell for $499 from October 22nd of October.

realme XT

In terms of specs, the realme XT is the highest end phone, with realme keen to point to the stacked 64MP Quad-Camera array which includes a 64MP sensor behind an f/1.8 lens, an 8MP ultra-wide sensor with 119° field of view and dual 2MP sensors for Macro, and Depth sensing. There’s also a 16MP sensor on the front for those all important selfies. 

The power is there with a Snapdragon 712 processor, a whopping 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage (with microSD card expansion) running the show, and a 6.4-inch Super AMOLED display on the front. A 4,000mAh battery should keep you going all day and is charged using OPPO’s super fast VOOC 3.0 Flash Charge.

Realme are offering the XT in two options, Pearl White & Pearl Blue, but they both look pretty good, so you’ll be better off trying to check them out in-store to get your personal preference.

realme C2
At the other end of the range, the realme C2 offers a great budget option for families, without sacrificing too much performance. Powered by a MediaTek Helio P22 processor, 3GB RAM, 64GB storage (microSD card here too), the phone also includes a dual 13MP + 2MP camera array on the rear and 5MP selfie camera. 

A big 6.1-inch HD+ resolution display will give you plenty of  viewing area for media, or just catching up on social media or the news of the day.

Even with a cheaper price tag the realme C2 looks the business with two colours on offer, Diamond Black and Diamond Blue. 

realme 5

For a little more bang for buck, the realme 5 offers a jump to a Qualcomm Snapdragon 655 processor, 4GB of RAM and 128GB of storage (of course you can expand it with microSD card). A huge 6.5 inch HD+ resolution Dewdrop display should be good for catching up on your Netflix queue.

A quad-camera array on the rear of the phone includes a 12MP main sensor, with an 8MP sensor behind an ultra-wide angle lens again offering a 119° field of view, as well as a 2MP portrait lens and 2MP macro lens – and of course there’s a 13MP selfie camera. 

The realme 5 packs in a whopping 5,000mAh battery which realme says can last for up to 29.9 days in standby – but for us every day users that should definitely equate to all day battery life.

Realme are offering the realme 5 in two colours Crystal Blue and Crystal Purple, with a  diamond-cut design that they say is ‘enhanced with holographic colour and reflective texture’. 

realme 5 Pro
Lastly, the realme 5 Pro offers even more power with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 processor, 7GB RAM and 128GB of storage with up to 256GB microSD cards supported. The screen is slightly smaller than the realme 5 at 6.3-inches however you get a bump to HD+ resolution.

Realme have amped things up on the camera side with another quad-camera array including a 48MP sensor behind a fast f/1.8 lens, an 8MP sensor with ultra-wide angle lens offering up to 119° field of view and 2MP portrait lens and 2MP ultra macro lens. On the front, a 16MP selfie cam will capture your best side. 

The 4,035mAh battery should get you through a full day, but if not the 20W VOOC flash charge will get you back in action in no time.

The phone looks great in a either Sparkling Blue and Crystal Green colour options, and at $399 it’s pretty well placed in the market.  

Our take

It’s exciting to see more players entering the Australian mobile phone market. Competition means better offerings, and at cheaper prices all round. 

Realme has built a decent reputation globally for their devices and services and we’re keen to see how they fare – and we’re taking a couple of these handsets for a test run now so keep an eye out for those reviews.

For those of you based in Sydney, you can head over tonight to Bar M in Rushcutters Bay where the realme team are having a launch party for the realme C2.