Among the many Android flagship phones with the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 this year, the realme GT7 Pro stands out to me as a unique model. Although it has excellent configurations in all aspects, it only costs 3,599 yuan. Considering the rumors of price increases for the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chip, it does make one wonder where realme's cost control reaches its limit.

As the annual flagship of the realme series, the realme GT7 Pro boasts distinctive features in both its design and hardware configuration. Although it may not match up to mainstream flagships like the Xiaomi 15 or vivo X200 in terms of specifications, my brief experience with it shows that it performs quite well in all aspects. It can be said that under strict cost control, realme has pushed the limits.

This splash of red is truly unforgettable

In the editorial department of Leitech, everyone who gets their hands on this phone is drawn to the unique rear cover design of the realme GT7 Pro. It can even be said that among this year's special edition designs, the Mars Exploration Edition of the realme GT7 Pro is my favorite. It eschews gaudy craftsmanship in favor of design and color use alone.

Mars is a planet that fascinates many science fiction fans. Elon Musk, well-known to all, even has landing on Mars as his lifelong dream. Perhaps it is precisely because of Mars' unique charm that realme chose it as the special design inspiration for its annual flagship.

According to realme's introduction, the Mars Exploration Edition adopts a new Red Star Quicksand AG process. Simply put, it achieves a texture similar to the flow of Martian canals and unique colors through the superposition of multiple coatings. Moreover, under different angles and intensities of light, the color and texture details of the realme GT7 Pro's rear cover will change slightly, making it even more charming.

Source: Leitech

Moreover, the realme GT7 Pro's rear cover feels quite good to the touch. It's not made of a smooth or deliberately textured material but rather a matte glass with a skin-like texture, so it feels quite nice. The only drawback is that the seam between the frame and the rear cover is not well-made, and the palm can still feel the change in texture at the connection.

Source: Leitech

To complement the "cosmic feel" of the rear cover design, the realme GT7 Pro's camera module also adopts a design element similar to a space capsule porthole. You can see that the connection between the module and the rear cover uses a micro-arc metal transition to create a star ladder design, which enhances the recognizability of the realme GT7 Pro's appearance and also integrates the pure black camera module with the rear cover's "fiery red" color.

Source: Leitech

Many flagship phones this year have put effort into the color design of their rear covers, with examples like the 20 custom colors of the Xiaomi 15 and the sapphire blue of the vivo X200. However, when it comes to brands that present us with a pursuit and exploration of the future in their designs, realme is currently the only one.

Full-frame gaming, can it really be done?

In the official promotions for the realme GT7 Pro, gaming performance has always been a focus. Considering that today's mobile games are getting better and better in terms of special effects and modeling, it is not easy for ordinary phones to achieve stable 60 fps gameplay with high special effects. However, the realme GT7 Pro aims to go a step further by pushing the frame rate directly to 120 fps. Is this really possible?

Source: Leitech

In terms of hardware configuration, the realme GT7 Pro adopts the latest Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 mobile platform, built using TSMC's second-generation 3nm process. It features Qualcomm's newly self-developed Oryon CPU architecture with two ultra-large cores running at up to 4.32 GHz, and is equipped with realme's largest-ever dual-layer vapor chamber cooling system with a total area of 11,480 mm². In other words, its performance is terrifyingly powerful.

First, let's look at the classic AnTuTu benchmark. After enabling performance mode, the realme GT7 Pro scored 2.83 million in the first round with a temperature of only 40°C. Although many manufacturers advertise scores exceeding 3 million at their launches, in actual benchmarking, scores between 2.8 and 2.9 million are more common if environmental temperature factors are not deliberately controlled.

Source: Leitech

Compared to its predecessor, the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 does indeed perform much better, and its heat control has also been significantly improved. The realme GT7 Pro's performance in our tested Android flagships is quite impressive. However, benchmark scores are one thing, and actual experience can be another. In gaming tests, can the realme GT7 Pro deliver on its full-frame promise?

The first game I tested was "Honkai: Star Rail." As one of the most demanding mobile games currently available, "Honkai: Star Rail" was set to very high graphics, and I enabled the performance mode (GT mode) and high frame rate/high graphics mode in the realme GT7 Pro's game toolbox.

Source: Leitech

As you can see, except for loading scenes and entering/exiting battles, the frame rate remained quite stable during normal gameplay and combat. Although it didn't stay locked at exactly 120 FPS, the fluctuations were very minor. Moreover, throughout the 15-minute test, there was basically no significant change in the phone's temperature. It can be foreseen that even for ultra-long gaming sessions of half an hour or even two to three hours, the realme GT7 Pro's performance release and thermal management are more than capable of handling the load.

After testing "Honkai: Star Rail," the second game I tested was the recently released and highly popular "Delta Force." As a game released simultaneously on both PC and mobile platforms, "Delta Force" boasts excellent graphics and special effects, making it a standout among current FPS mobile games. To be honest, I was a bit concerned about whether the realme GT7 Pro could run "Delta Force" at full frame rates. After all, as a newly released game, it's difficult to optimize it specifically.

Source: Leitech

However, the actual test results were quite impressive. With both graphics and frame rate set to the maximum, "Delta Force" maintained a nearly perfect 90 FPS frame rate for most of the time, with only minor fluctuations, such as dropping to 24 FPS during the entrance animation. The fluctuations were so minor that it was my first time experiencing what "full frame rates" truly meant. Throughout the game, whether throwing smoke grenades, engaging in gunfights, or quickly moving around, the screen remained as stable as an old dog. It has to be said that the realme GT7 Pro does have some tricks up its sleeve when it comes to gaming.

In the past two years, mobile phones have made rapid progress in gaming performance. Previously, 60 fps in "Genshin Impact" was considered "superb," but now it's easily pushing "Honkai: Star Rail" to 120 fps. It's truly remarkable how quickly technology has advanced (in just two or three years).

Of course, the improvement in gaming performance is not solely due to the upgrade in processor performance. AI also plays a significant role. For example, the 120 fps mode of the realme GT7 Pro is achieved through AI frame interpolation, and the interpolation effect and smoothness far exceed previous methods, demonstrating the powerful AI capabilities of this new flagship platform.

Imaging that rivals flagships

Imaging is a topic that cannot be avoided when discussing flagship phones. Even though the realme GT7 Pro is positioned as a performance flagship, its imaging performance has not been downgraded and has even seen some improvements in telephoto capabilities. Let's start with the specifications:

Main Camera: IMX906, 50 MP, 1/1.56", f/1.8

Telephoto: IMX882, 50 MP, 1/2", f/2.65

Ultra-wide Angle: IMX355, 112°, 8 MP, f/2.2

The telephoto lens adopts a periscope design with a triple-refraction periscope module, enabling 3x optical zoom, 6x lossless zoom, and up to 120x digital zoom. It is indeed a rare telephoto capability for a phone in this price range. So, how does it perform in actual use? Let's take a look at some sample photos.

Source: Leitech

With proper tuning and supported by decent hardware specifications, the telephoto lens is unlikely to disappoint. As you can see, even at high zoom levels, the image details are well-preserved. Even the fine roots between the wall and the sky can be clearly identified.

However, it's not without issues. When switching from the main camera to the telephoto lens, the color of buildings changes quite noticeably, and some details in the sky are lost. Nevertheless, these flaws do not detract from the overall excellent performance, which is still top-tier for a phone in this price range.

Let's take a look at its performance in daily shooting. When capturing water surfaces, the realme GT7 Pro handles reflections and textures very well, and the color processing is also natural, making good use of the main camera's hardware capabilities. However, some details are lost due to the weaker dynamic range.

Source: Leitech

In photos with many buildings and plants, it is not difficult to see that the realme GT7 Pro handles details in dark areas and plant details quite well. It can be said that the resolution of this main camera is somewhat surprising.

Source: Leitech

However, there is still room for improvement in the realme GT7 Pro's handling of the sky. Slight overexposure makes the sky's layers look a bit unnatural. Ultimately, it's still an issue with dynamic range. It can only be said that due to hardware limitations, there are limits to what can be achieved through algorithmic adjustments in post-processing.

Source: Leitech

Additionally, one drawback of the realme GT7 Pro is that it does not support telephoto macro photography. Therefore, when capturing close-up objects, one can only rely on the main camera's resolution to salvage the shot. Fortunately, the overall performance is not bad, and it can be considered "adequate" without macro capabilities.

Source: Leitech

To be honest, as a flagship phone with a starting price of only 3,599 yuan for the 12GB+256GB version, the realme GT7 Pro's performance has exceeded my expectations. Among the series of Android phones we tested, there are indeed many that perform better than the realme GT7 Pro. However, considering the price, the realme GT7 Pro is still one of the most competitive options.

Source: Leitech