Oppo Realme 1 review

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Introduction

The 2018 budget smartphone scene is an unforgiving battlefield. It's a place not too many manufacturers are willing to go to and Oppo, for sure, hasn't gone down so low on the price scale up so far. The Realme 1 is Oppo's first device in a brand new ultra-budget line and it's nothing short of a loud and flamboyant show of power. Potentially even a declaration of war.

Oppo Realme 1 review

The Oppo Realme 1 launched as an Amazon India online exclusive offer. So, expanding on the war metaphor, the fighting doesn't get any more front-line than this. Even the 'Realme' moniker is clearly meant as a direct taunt to one of the main competitors in Oppo's way - Xiaomi and its extremely popular budget 'Redmi' family.

The Realme 1 launched with a mouth-watering starting price of INR 8,990, or just around €110 or $130. Looking at the specs, you do get a lot of phone for the money. Here, take a look for yourselves.

Oppo Realme 1 Specs

  • Body: Plastic body, Glass back; 165.5 x 75.2 x 7.8mm; 155 grams
  • Screen: 6.0-inch, 18:9, FullHD+, IPS LCD
  • Rear Camera: 13MP, f/2.2 lens; LED flash; 1080p@30fps video recording
  • Front Camera: 8MP, f/2.2; 1080p@30fps video recording
  • Chipset: Mediatek MT6771 Helio P60, octa-core 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A73 & 4x2.0 GHz Cortex-A53
  • Memory: 3/4/6GB RAM, 32/64/128GB, dedicated microSD slot for up to 256GB expansion
  • OS: Android 8.1 Oreo; ColorOS 5.0 on top
  • Battery: 3,410mAh
  • Connectivity: Dual SIM (4G), Bluetooth 4.2, GPS/GLONASS, Wi-Fi a/b/g/n, microUSB 2.0

In fact, almost too much. The Realme 1 seems to show all the signs of being an "introductory device." One meant to excite and get the hype going and pave the way for the brands. It's entirely possible that Oppo isn't making much money if any from selling this phone. Not that we object to being subjects to sales tactics like this.

Oppo Realme 1 in official photos - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 in official photos - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo Realme 1 in official photos

Keeping that in mind, we are intrigued to see if the Realme 1 is worth jumping on. Or is the apparent value tainted by some less apparent flaws?

On the following pages, we'll take a deep dive into what makes this handset tick but first, let's take a look at what we get in the box.

Oppo Realme 1 Unboxing

Despite its budget price tag, the Realme 1 comes in what we would describe as an expensive looking retail box.

Sure, it's a standard two-piece box but it's made out of impressively thick cardboard. Plus, the handset even sits into a designated plastic cradle - an increasingly rare sight. On top of that sits a thick layer of leaflets and a case. There is even a small paper cut-out to cover the back and protect it from accidentally bumping into the charger. Shipping damage should be no concern.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Yes, Oppo is considerate enough to throw in a soft plastic transparent case for the Realme 1. While it won't win any style awards, it does feel surprisingly well made. The retail package also includes a standard wall charger, rated at 5V@2A and a microUSB cable.

Oppo Realme 1 360-degree spin

If there's one feature that instantly stands out about the Realme 1, it has to be the back panel design. The somewhat unique and stylish geometric pattern is kind of reminiscent of the one on the Oppo R1x - a handset from way back in 2015. It's a unique its for sure and one that is even more impressive when observed from different angles. Oppo claims the coating consists of 12-layers of "Nanotech," whatever that might mean. Regardless of how it's made, you can expect some gazes form passers-by while you talk.

If you are bold enough to forgo a case, that is. Oppo doesn't mention the specific materials used for the Realme 1, but we are pretty sure the back panel is made of smooth plastic, instead of Glass (Gorilla or otherwise). That would make it pretty prone to scratching in the long run. Plus, it's a real fingerprint magnet, which is still a daily nuisance, even if you manage to avoid scratches and nicks.

While still on the subject of materials, some sources claim the frame is metal, but from our experience this is doubtful.

We do get that Oppo is really trying to stretch budget limits here but we miss the fingerprint reader.

The fingerprint scanner is probably a sore omission for many, but we can only assume Oppo thought it's not that important to the phone's target group.

Speaking of which, Oppo is really playing the localized card hard on the Realme 1. Not only is the phone an Amazon India exclusive and targeted directly at Indian users, as per the PR materials, it is also "Designed for India", which means the UI theme is specially made for the local market. The phone's assembly process is also carried out locally.

Hardware overview

Despite being a budget handset, the Realme 1 feels really solid and well put-together. Despite its modest price tag, it still packs a trendy 18:9 IPS panel. It's fairly sizeable, too, at 6.0-inches in diagonal. Plus, it even has FullHD resolution, which works out to 402ppi.

Front side - Oppo Realme 1 review Front side - Oppo Realme 1 review
Front side

The left and right bezels, around the panel are surprisingly slim for a budget device. The top and bottom chins, on the other hand, aren't exactly thin. But asking anything more would just be nitpicking. Instead, we will appreciate the lack of a notch on the panel.

Around back, the geometric pattern really does make a great first impression. It's made up of what Oppo describes as 15 tangent planes, which make for an impressive light show under the right light. We already mentioned our durability concerns for the surface, so no more dwelling on that part.

Back side - Oppo Realme 1 review Back side - Oppo Realme 1 review Back side - Oppo Realme 1 review
Back side

Instead, we will note that even though the "Realme" logo sits front and center, the Oppo one is still present near the bottom of the phone. It seems the Chinese OEM decided to keep its new sub-brand pretty close to home. At least so far, that is. If various other branching branding projects, scattered around the industry are any indication, this is definitely subject to change.

Left and right side - Oppo Realme 1 review Left and right side - Oppo Realme 1 review
Left and right side

Control-wise, the Realme 1 utilizes a very standard layout. On the left, a pair of volume rockers. Nice and clicky. Positioned at a convenient hight. Nothing to complain about.

On the right - the same can be said about the volume button. Right above it, a triple card tray, housing two nano SIMs and an independent microSD. There really is added value for the user by this approach.

Top and bottom sides - Oppo Realme 1 review Top and bottom sides - Oppo Realme 1 review
Top and bottom sides

On the bottom - a single speaker, followed by a dated, but still perfectly functional microUSB 2.0 port. There is no USB Host support, though. At least not out of the box, that is. The main microphone is also housed on the bottom frame and so is a convenient 3.5mm audio jack.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Overall, nothing too spectacular and nothing really missing. Well, besides a fingerprint reader, that is. We've definitely seen more premium bodywork from other manufacturers, like Xiaomi's Redmi line. Even so, the Realme 1 comes in a solid package, complete with a trendy 2018 look.

Display

Oppo equipped the Realme 1 with a really impressive IPS display. At least, as far as marketable specs are concerned. Few competitors can actually offer FullHD resolutions at this price point. A certain Redmi Note 5 does come to mind, but even so, 1080 x 2160 pixels on a 6-inch diagonal is a veritable achievement, worth noting.

Oppo Realme 1 review

We also appreciate the slightly rounded corners of the panel, as well as the trendy 18:9 aspect ratio. Prospective buyers are likely to feel the same way. It's still a budget screen though - nothing unexpected on an affordable phone.

Brightness and contrast figures, while not terrible, are hardly impressive.

It seems Xiaomi did marginally better with its choice of extra-tall, FullHD+ panel on the Redmi 5 Plus/ Note 5. Still, it's not a substantial difference. The Realme 1 does have auto brightness, but lacks a real max-auto feature, only managing to push a few extra nits, when subjected to a direct light source.

Display test 100% brightness
Black, cd/m2 White, cd/m2 Contrast ratio
Huawei Honor 6X 0.321 579 1804
Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus 0.548 555 1013
Motorola Moto G6 Play (Max Auto) 0.419 554 1321
Xiaomi Mi A1 0.351 551 1570
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A (Y1) 0.315 527 1673
HTC 10 evo 0.387 525 1357
Xiaomi Redmi 5 0.378 503 1331
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017) Max Auto 0 485
Motorola Moto G6 Play 0.339 476 1404
Meizu M5 Note 0.614 463 754
Oppo F7 0.228 446 1956
Oppo Realme 1 0.35 423 1209
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017) 0 326

Contrast figures are also not ideal, but the Realme 1 is still perfectly usable. The same goes for the sunlight legibility.

Sunlight contrast ratio

  • Apple iPhone X
    5.013
  • OnePlus 5T
    4.789
  • Samsung Galaxy S8
    4.768
  • Samsung Galaxy S8+
    4.658
  • Samsung Galaxy S9
    4.63
  • Samsung Galaxy S6 edge+
    4.615
  • Samsung Galaxy S9+
    4.537
  • Motorola Moto Z2 Play
    4.459
  • Oppo R11
    4.454
  • Samsung Galaxy S7 edge
    4.439
  • OnePlus 3
    4.424
  • Samsung Galaxy S7
    4.376
  • HTC One A9
    4.274
  • Oppo R15 Pro
    4.251
  • Samsung Galaxy Note7
    4.247
  • Samsung Galaxy A3
    4.241
  • Nokia 8
    4.239
  • Google Pixel 2 XL (pre-update)
    4.234
  • OnePlus 3T
    4.232
  • Google Pixel XL
    4.164
  • ZTE Axon 7
    4.154
  • Samsung Galaxy Note8
    4.148
  • Meizu Pro 7 Plus
    4.147
  • Samsung Galaxy S6 edge
    4.124
  • Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
    4.124
  • Huawei Mate 10 Pro (normal)
    4.096
  • Samsung Galaxy Note5
    4.09
  • Huawei P20 Pro
    4.087
  • Nokia 6 (2018)
    4.052
  • Google Pixel 2 (pre-update)
    4.023
  • LG V30
    4.022
  • Huawei Nexus 6P
    4.019
  • Samsung Galaxy J7 Pro
    3.998
  • OnePlus X
    3.983
  • Vivo Xplay5 Elite
    3.983
  • Oppo R7s
    3.964
  • Apple iPhone 7
    3.964
  • Apple iPhone 8 (True Tone)
    3.957
  • Huawei P9 Plus
    3.956
  • Meizu Pro 6 Plus
    3.935
  • Lenovo Moto Z
    3.931
  • Samsung Galaxy A7 (2016)
    3.918
  • OnePlus 5
    3.914
  • Samsung Galaxy C5
    3.911
  • Samsung Galaxy C7
    3.896
  • Samsung Galaxy A5
    3.895
  • Samsung Galaxy J7 outdoor
    3.879
  • Samsung Galaxy J2 outdoor
    3.873
  • Motorola Moto G6 Plus
    3.865
  • Samsung Galaxy A8
    3.859
  • Samsung Galaxy A8 (2018)
    3.842
  • Sony Xperia XZs
    3.818
  • Samsung Galaxy A9 (2016)
    3.817
  • Motorola Moto X (2014)
    3.816
  • Samsung Galaxy J7 (2017)
    3.812
  • Samsung Galaxy A5 (2017)
    3.804
  • Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016) outdoor mode
    3.802
  • Xiaomi Redmi Pro
    3.798
  • LG V20 Max auto
    3.798
  • Sony Xperia XZ
    3.795
  • Samsung Galaxy A5 (2016)
    3.789
  • Apple iPhone 6s
    3.783
  • Meizu Pro 5
    3.781
  • Microsoft Lumia 650
    3.772
  • Xiaomi Mi 6
    3.767
  • Sony Xperia XZ1
    3.765
  • Samsung Galaxy J7 (2016)
    3.756
  • Sony Xperia XZ1 Compact
    3.729
  • Apple iPhone 8 Plus (True Tone)
    3.725
  • Oppo F1 Plus
    3.709
  • Vivo X5Pro
    3.706
  • Samsung Galaxy A3 (2017)
    3.688
  • Huawei P20
    3.683
  • Apple iPhone SE
    3.681
  • Huawei Mate 9
    3.68
  • Samsung Galaxy A7
    3.679
  • Sony Xperia XZ2 Compact
    3.675
  • Meizu PRO 6
    3.659
  • BlackBerry Priv
    3.645
  • Sony Xperia XA1 Ultra
    3.597
  • Apple iPhone 7 Plus
    3.588
  • Sony Xperia XZ2
    3.58
  • LG G6
    3.556
  • Apple iPhone 6s Plus
    3.53
  • Motorola Moto Z Play
    3.526
  • Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016)
    3.523
  • Samsung Galaxy J3 (2016) outdoor mode
    3.523
  • Acer Jade Primo
    3.521
  • Microsoft Lumia 950
    3.512
  • Oppo R7 Plus
    3.499
  • Nokia 7 plus
    3.479
  • nubia Z11
    3.466
  • Huawei P10 Plus
    3.456
  • HTC U Ultra
    3.453
  • Sony Xperia XA2 Ultra
    3.445
  • Samsung Galaxy J7
    3.422
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    3.419
  • Meizu MX5
    3.416
  • LG V20
    3.402
  • Huawei P10
    3.379
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2016)
    3.378
  • Oppo R9s
    3.352
  • Honor 8 Pro
    3.341
  • Oppo F7
    3.333
  • Oppo R7
    3.32
  • Lenovo P2
    3.316
  • Archos Diamond Omega
    3.305
  • Honor 9
    3.289
  • Xiaomi Mi 5s
    3.276
  • Nokia 5
    3.261
  • Nokia 6 (Chinese version)
    3.244
  • Nokia 6 (Global version)
    3.238
  • Samsung Galaxy J2
    3.235
  • Sony Xperia X Performance
    3.234
  • Xiaomi Mi Note 2
    3.228
  • Motorola Moto X Play
    3.222
  • Oppo F3 Plus
    3.218
  • Huawei Mate 9 Pro
    3.206
  • Huawei P9
    3.195
  • Xiaomi Mi Mix 2
    3.19
  • ZTE Nubia Z17
    3.159
  • Oppo R11s
    3.153
  • Lenovo Vibe Shot
    3.113
  • HTC U11 Life
    3.108
  • Motorola Moto X Force
    3.105
  • LG Nexus 5X
    3.092
  • HTC U11
    3.089
  • Huawei Mate S
    3.073
  • Microsoft Lumia 640 XL
    3.065
  • Apple iPhone 6 Plus
    3.023
  • Asus Zenfone 4 ZE554KL
    3.019
  • Sony Xperia XA1
    3.012
  • Motorola Moto X4
    3.012
  • Sony Xperia L1
    2.994
  • LG Q6
    2.987
  • Huawei P10 Lite
    2.974
  • Samsung Galaxy Note
    2.97
  • Huawei P20 Lite
    2.952
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    2.951
  • Huawei Mate 8
    2.949
  • Sony Xperia XA2
    2.938
  • Oppo Realme 1
    2.932
  • Xiaomi Redmi 4
    2.92
  • Xiaomi Redmi 3S
    2.913
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    2.913
  • Sony Xperia XA Ultra
    2.906
  • LG G5
    2.905
  • Huawei Honor View 10
    2.896
  • Xiaomi Redmi 3s Prime
    2.893
  • Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
    2.884
  • Sony Xperia XZ Premium (sRGB)
    2.877
  • Sony Xperia XZ Premium
    2.877
  • Sony Xperia Z5
    2.876
  • Nokia 3
    2.871
  • Microsoft Lumia 550
    2.851
  • Lenovo Moto M
    2.813
  • Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro
    2.803
  • Sony Xperia Z5 compact
    2.784
  • Nokia 2
    2.752
  • Meizu MX6
    2.751
  • LG V10
    2.744
  • Huawei Mate 10 (normal)
    2.742
  • Motorola Moto G5S Plus
    2.737
  • Xiaomi Redmi 3
    2.735
  • Huawei Honor 7X
    2.734
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (S625)
    2.714
  • Meizu M5
    2.71
  • Sony Xperia M5
    2.69
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    2.689
  • Huawei P9 Lite
    2.679
  • Xiaomi Redmi 4 Prime
    2.679
  • vivo V7+
    2.671
  • Vivo V3Max
    2.659
  • Xiaomi Mi Mix
    2.658
  • Huawei Mate 10 Lite
    2.654
  • Oppo F5
    2.653
  • Doogee Mix
    2.642
  • Xiaomi Mi 4i
    2.641
  • Xiaomi Redmi 4a
    2.635
  • Xiaomi Mi 5X (Standard)
    2.616
  • Sony Xperia XA
    2.609
  • Motorola Moto G4 Plus
    2.582
  • Motorola Moto G4 Plus (max auto)
    2.582
  • Meizu M5s
    2.58
  • Xiaomi Mi 4c
    2.574
  • LeEco Le Max 2
    2.567
  • Microsoft Lumia 640
    2.563
  • Asus Zenfone 3 ZE552KL
    2.563
  • Huawei P Smart
    2.563
  • Xiaomi Mi Max 2
    2.561
  • HTC U11+
    2.556
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5A (Y1)
    2.556
  • Lenovo Moto G4
    2.544
  • Lenovo K6 Note
    2.544
  • Oppo F1
    2.528
  • Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
    2.525
  • Huawei Honor 7 Lite / Honor 5c
    2.506
  • Sony Xperia M4 Aqua
    2.503
  • BlackBerry Motion
    2.494
  • Oppo F1s
    2.481
  • Motorola Moto G
    2.477
  • Lenovo Vibe K5 Plus
    2.473
  • Huawei G8
    2.471
  • Huawei nova
    2.467
  • Lenovo Vibe K5
    2.459
  • Meizu m3 max
    2.447
  • Xiaomi Mi 4
    2.424
  • Xiaomi Mi 5X (Auto)
    2.417
  • HTC 10 evo
    2.407
  • Huawei Honor 7
    2.406
  • Vivo V7
    2.404
  • Sony Xperia E5
    2.386
  • ZUK Z1 by Lenovo
    2.382
  • HTC 10
    2.378
  • Oppo F3
    2.376
  • vivo V5 Plus
    2.371
  • Meizu m1 note
    2.362
  • Huawei nova plus
    2.329
  • Razer Phone
    2.328
  • HTC One E9+
    2.305
  • Alcatel One Touch Hero
    2.272
  • Sony Xperia L2
    2.266
  • Lenovo Vibe K4 Note
    2.254
  • Sony Xperia C5 Ultra
    2.253
  • HTC U11+ (EU)
    2.253
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (MediaTek)
    2.249
  • Sony Xperia C4 Dual
    2.235
  • Xiaomi Mi Note
    2.234
  • Motorola Moto G (2014)
    2.233
  • LG Nexus 5
    2.228
  • Huawei P8
    2.196
  • Meizu M5 Note
    2.189
  • Huawei Honor 6
    2.169
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 2
    2.166
  • OnePlus Two
    2.165
  • HTC One X
    2.158
  • LG Aka
    2.145
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 4 (X20)
    2.145
  • Archos 50 Diamond
    2.134
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note
    2.119
  • Xiaomi Mi 4S
    2.095
  • Acer Liquid X2
    2.084
  • Huawei P8lite
    2.078
  • vivo V5
    2.059
  • Moto G 3rd gen max manual
    2.026
  • Xiaomi Mi 3
    2.001
  • Xiaomi Mi Max
    1.996
  • Sony Xperia E4g
    1.972
  • OnePlus One
    1.961
  • Sony Xperia Z2
    1.944
  • Meizu m3 note
    1.923
  • BlackBerry Leap
    1.892
  • Meizu m2 note
    1.892
  • HTC Butterfly
    1.873
  • ZTE Nubia Z9 mini
    1.759
  • Sony Xperia U
    1.758
  • Asus Zenfone Selfie
    1.68
  • Motorola Moto E (2nd Gen)
    1.675
  • ZTE Nubia Z9
    1.659
  • Jolla Jolla
    1.605
  • Motorola Moto E
    1.545
  • Sony Xperia M
    1.473
  • Sony Xperia L
    1.351
  • Xiaomi Redmi 2
    1.311
  • HTC Desire C
    1.3
  • Nokia X
    1.291
  • Meizu MX
    1.221
  • Sony Xperia E
    1.215

Color accuracy on the 6-inch IPS can also be best described as adequate. Out of the box, the Realme 1 has an overall blue hue. Color accuracy measurements work out to a maximum deltaE of 11.4 and an average of 6.8.

Oppo has included a custom white point adjustment, or rather a color temperature slider. If you are after the most accurate colors possible, just set it all the way to warm and you should end up with a maximum deltaE of 9.2 and an average of 5.1. Not ideal, but good enough.

Battery life

The Realme 1 packs a sizeable 3,410 mAh battery inside its relatively slim 7.8mm body. It's a decent amount of juice to work with. Plus, there is also the distinct benefit of TSMC's efficient 12nm fabrication process, on which the MediaTek Helio P60 chipset is based.

In our testing, the Realme 1 scored a very respectable 79 hours of total endurance.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Looking at the numbers in more detail, there is nothing really out of line. A little over 20 hours is about what we would expect from a 3,410mAh battery on a 3G network, with a current chipset.

If you look around and try a few third-party video players. You might be able to get a noticeable boost in the local video playback test. The default Oppo browser, on the other hands, seems to fair really well in the battery department.

Unfortunately, despite its frugal approach to battery spending, the Helio P60 doesn't really support any form of modern fast-charging. You can only pump power into it at a maximum of 10W, or the rather standard 5V@2A. That's what the bundled wall charger puts out as well.

Our endurance rating denotes how long a single battery charge will last you if you use the Oppo Realme 1 for an hour each of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. We've established this usage pattern, so our battery results are comparable across devices in the most common day-to-day tasks. The battery testing procedure is described in detail in case you're interested in the nitty-gritties. You can also check out our complete battery test table, where you can see how all of the smartphones we've tested will compare under your own typical use.

Loudspeaker

The Oppo Realme 1 only has a single speaker at its disposal. It is bottom-firing, located right next to the microUSB port. Stereo might be out of the question, but the speaker can still put on a good show, even in the budget segment.

Speakerphone test Voice, dB Pink noise/ Music, dB Ringing phone, dB Overall score
Motorola Moto G6 Play 62.6 68.0 71.0 Average
Motorola Moto G6 Play (Dolby audio) 66.1 70.0 76.2 Good
Xiaomi Redmi 5 66.1 68.4 82.1 Good
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017) 68.0 70.2 82.3 Very Good
HTC 10 evo 65.8 75.4 80.6 Very Good
Oppo Realme 1 64.8 70.5 89.9 Very Good
Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus 71.1 72.7 87.7 Excellent
Xiaomi Mi A1 74.0 73.9 90.4 Excellent

This one delivers nicely on that end. Well, to be less liberal with the praising - it's quite loud. In fact, only a couple of decibels short of the Excellent rating. Regarding sound quality, it's a bit dull, with not much in the way of mids or low. Plenty of highs, though. And by that we mean it likes to really screech and squeal with higher-pitched sounds. That's where most of the volume actually came from in our test.

Still, we can't complain, since you can at least count on hearing the Realme 1 ring even in the noisiest of environments, if you choose an annoying enough ring tone.

Audio quality

Oppo Realme 1 delivered perfectly accurate output in the first part of our audio test and it had impressive loudness too.

Sadly, plugging in a pair of headphones caused the volume to drop to only average, while at the same time introduced moderate amounts of stereo crosstalk and intermodulation distortion. Frequency response was also slightly shaky on this occasion and while none of these issues is a deal breaker, when put together they add up to a rather unspectacular showing. Not a bad one, mind you, but not one worth bragging about.

Test Frequency response Noise level Dynamic range THD IMD + Noise Stereo crosstalk
Oppo Realme 1 +0.06, -0.03 -89.0 86.6 0.0052 0.019 -87.3
Oppo Realme 1 (headphones) +0.06, -0.03 -90.5 87.1 0.0054 0.028 -77.3
Motorola Moto G6 Play +0.06, -0.03 -89.0 86.6 0.0052 0.019 -87.3
Motorola Moto G6 Play (headphones) +0.06, -0.03 -90.5 87.1 0.0054 0.028 -77.3
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 +7.87, -4.89 -92.1 88.6 0.0056 0.044 -89.7
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 (headphones) +0.05, -0.03 -77.8 78.3 0.033 0.055 -41.6
Xiaomi Redmi 5 +2.83, -1.24 -27.7 73.9 0.0024 17.349 -54.7
Xiaomi Redmi 5 (headphones) +0.05, -0.03 -78.8 79.3 0.023 0.035 -41.6
Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus +1.55, -0.61 -29.7 76.6 0.0017 12.493 -91.8
Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus (headphones) +0.06, -0.02 -92.4 92.3 0.0023 0.025 -76.3

Oppo Realme 1 frequency response
Oppo Realme 1 frequency response

You can learn more about the tested parameters and the whole testing process here.

Heavily-modified Oreo

If you're a fan of the vanilla Android user experience, we can tell you the Realme 1 is probably not for you. Just like Oppo's other recent devices, like the F7 or the R15, the Realme 1 runs on a heavily-modified Android 8.1 Oreo core, with Color OS 5 on top. The Chinese OEM hasn't really extended any effort to customize the UI to differentiate the Realme sub-brand. Instead, Oppo fans will find a familiar sight and should feel right at home.

Oppo Realme 1 review

The new v5.0 launcher introduces an enhanced AI engine with real-time translation, faster Face Unlock, new navigation gestures, better gallery, split-screen multi-tasking. There are also new app shortcuts (long tap), redesigned icons and themes, improved call history, new security features including safe, and better gaming mode with WeChat integration.

Overall, it's got more added features than ever. ColorOS customizations run deep, making it far off from the standard Google-developed mobile experience. Units sold outside of China still come with the full Google suite, which has resulted in having a few apps with similar functionality - one by Oppo, and another one by Google.

Oppo Realme 1 review

As for the new-found AI part, it builds on-device user behavior models for faster app startups and better resource management. It also uses this behavior to show relevant information on the left-most homescreen pane - calendar appointments, quick shortcuts, weather, world clock, package tracking, flight info, among others. You can configure those, or just leave them to the "AI".

The user interface is very familiar. There's no app drawer on the default launcher. Instead, every app you install gets dumped onto the homescreen.

Lock screen *Lockscreen Magazine - Oppo Realme 1 review Home screens - Oppo Realme 1 review Home screens - Oppo Realme 1 review Home screens - Oppo Realme 1 review Home screens - Oppo Realme 1 review
Lock screen *Lockscreen Magazine • Home screens

The Lockscreen features a continually changing slideshow of images - the Lockscreen Magazine. You can subscribe to several different channels (e.g., photos of nature or cars or others) and automatically download images or provide your own.

One rather obvious omission from the Realme 1 is a fingerprint reader. While many will likely miss the particular biometric authentication, there is also a case to be made for the Face Recognition, Oppo offers as an alternative.

Facial Recognition works surprisingly well. Like, really, really, surprisingly well. Especially at this price point.

It's very accurate and blazing fast. And while it's hard to properly validate Oppo's claims of 0.1s unlock times, we can safely say that we had a seamless experience with the system. While trying to trick it, we discovered it has a slight tolerance for looking at a slight angle - just enough to make it functional in most cases, when you are lying or looking down at the phone.

Face Recognition - Oppo Realme 1 review Face Recognition - Oppo Realme 1 review
Face Recognition

However, it would also work with your eyes closed, so Oppo is apparently not paying too much attention to that particular security aspect of the face unlocking. Which could be part of the reason glasses don't throw it off at all. Fortunately, it's not that easy to fool it with a picture of your face.

Color OS 5 has extensive theme support. The Theme Store features whole themes and just wallpapers, sorted into categories (including free and paid ones). Themes change the icon pack, the lockscreen wallpaper, and even the system font.

Themes - Oppo Realme 1 review Themes - Oppo Realme 1 review Themes - Oppo Realme 1 review Themes - Oppo Realme 1 review
Themes

The notification shade features notifications, quick toggles, and a brightness scrubber. Oppo is still sticking to a non-standard dismiss procedure for notifications. Simply swiping them away does not work. Instead, you have to swipe to the left to reveal a delete button. An extra step we doubt anybody really appreciates.

Notification shade - Oppo Realme 1 review

href="https://www.gsmarena.com/oppo_realme_1-review-1769.php#">Notification shade - Oppo Realme 1 review Notification shade - Oppo Realme 1 review
Notification shade

While on the subject of notifications, ColorOS has a really in-depth management system set in place. Not only can you manage notifications per app and per app notification channel, there are also a few different notification areas and types the UI differentiates between and can control independently. IT might take some tinkering, but you can definitely set up everything just the way you like it.

Notification management - Oppo Realme 1 review Notification management - Oppo Realme 1 review Notification management - Oppo Realme 1 review
Notification management

The recent apps interface is a pretty familiar ColorOS affair. You just get a horizontal list, complete with pinning and split-screen options. Speaking of which, this is just one of the few ways you can trigger the split-screen feature on the phone, including a three-finger swipe up.

Recent apps - Oppo Realme 1 review Split screen - Oppo Realme 1 review Split screen - Oppo Realme 1 review Split screen - Oppo Realme 1 review
Recent apps • Split screen

Speaking of gestures, one of the most notable additions to Oppo's custom ROM has to be the Full-Screen Gesture model. Bigger display and diminishing bezels and chins tend to pose some ergonomic concerns beyond a certain point.

Navigation options - Oppo Realme 1 review Navigation options - Oppo Realme 1 review Navigation options - Oppo Realme 1 review Navigation options - Oppo Realme 1 review
Navigation options

Oppo's implementation is actually one of the more robust and flexible ones we have seen to date. Not only does it offer a fallback to regular controls, but there are also quite a few gesture navigation themes to choose from. Hiding the navigation buttons/bar is also a readily available toggle.

And that's far from the only options ColorOS has for navigation or general gesture input. There is also an "Assistive Ball" for floating controls iOS-style. Not to mention a whole platform for defining and tweaking screen off gestures.

Assistive Ball - Oppo Realme 1 review Call gestures - Oppo Realme 1 review Other gestures - Oppo Realme 1 review Other gestures - Oppo Realme 1 review Other gestures - Oppo Realme 1 review
Assistive Ball • Call gestures • Other gestures

Frankly, the amount of extra options and the way they are spread throughout the ColorOs UI is a bit confusing and overwhelming. There is even an entire dedicated entry in the settings menu for handling Security. Everything from permissions to fraud protection.

Security - Oppo Realme 1 review Security - Oppo Realme 1 review Security - Oppo Realme 1 review Security - Oppo Realme 1 review
Security

The same is true for battery management. It gets an entire menu structure of its own, where you can easily lose hours. Detailed per-app statistics and timelines are great, but will likely fly over most users' heads. Not ideal, since this is where you need to dig in order to disable the default background management options for certain apps that won't function properly otherwise.

Phone Manager - Oppo Realme 1 review Battery settings - Oppo Realme 1 review Battery settings - Oppo Realme 1 review Battery settings - Oppo Realme 1 review
Phone Manager • Battery settings

All the while, there is a centralized Phone Manager app on one of the home-screens as well. It looks a lot more user-friendly, but doesn't really give access to all the options ColorOS is hiding away behind the scenes.

And the added feature and organizational confusion does not stop there. Oppo has also sprinkled in extra features, like Clone Apps and Game Acceleration. Both great, but also surely confusing for many remedial users.

Then there is the fact that Oppo still insists on keeping certain default app settings in the Settings menu, rather than within the apps themselves. Something pretty unorthodox within the Android ecosystem. This way, unless you know where to look for It, you might not be able to toggle location tags or watermarks for the camera as well as many other options.

App settings, iOS style - Oppo Realme 1 review App settings, iOS style - Oppo Realme 1 review
App settings, iOS style

What we are trying to drive across here is that ColorOS is clearly a pro user environment. What long-term fans might see as a great selection of extra features, a newcomer will likely perceive as an offputting chaos.

Also, there is the small matter of app over-saturation. We don't want to necessarily call it bloat, since Oppo doesn't really pre-load many actual third-party apps. What it does do, however, is leave you with a full set of Google apps, as well as its own alternatives on international models. The existence of a second app store and its insistence to start installing a "curated" selection of apps at first launch can get particularly annoying and confusing, if you don't know what you're doing.

Oppo store - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo store - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo store - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo store

Other than that, we can't say anything bad about the core Oppo apps. All the basics, like a phone app, messenger, calculator and the sort are well covered. These also comply to theme colors and styles, so they always remain in-tune with the rest of a skinned UI.

Phone app - Oppo Realme 1 review Messages - Oppo Realme 1 review Tools - Oppo Realme 1 review
Phone app • Messages • Tools

The Gallery and Video apps are functional, even if not necessarily feature-rich. At least not to the level of the rest of ColorOS. We do enjoy the simplicity of operation, though.

Gallery and Video player - Oppo Realme 1 review Gallery and Video player - Oppo Realme 1 review Gallery and Video player - Oppo Realme 1 review Gallery and Video player - Oppo Realme 1 review
Gallery and Video player

The Music app seems particularly empty, since we are now so accustomed to getting advanced features with our multimedia, like online libraries, lyrics, fancy visualizations and the likes. There is a custom equalizer, though, but like many other options, it's not accessible through the Music app, but rather has its own entry in the phone's settings menu.

Music app - Oppo Realme 1 review Music app - Oppo Realme 1 review Music app - Oppo Realme 1 review
Music app

The browser and file manager are particularly nifty. The former has some really advanced features, like a built-in ad blocker. The same can be said about the latter, as well. It comes bundled with a small FTP server, for really easy wireless access to your files.

Browser and File manager - Oppo Realme 1 review Browser and File manager - Oppo Realme 1 review Browser and File manager - Oppo Realme 1 review Browser and File manager - Oppo Realme 1 review Browser and File manager - Oppo Realme 1 review
Browser and File manager

Benchmarks and performance

If you thought finding suitable 18:9 budget competitors to pit against the Realme 1 was hard in itself, adding performance criteria to the mix makes in nearly impossible. Despite the handset's budget market standing, Oppo fitted it with a MediaTek MT6771 Helio P60 chipset - a distinctly mid-range chip.

Oppo Realme 1 review

But it's a pretty decent one at that. Not only does it utilize TSMC's efficient 12nm fabrication process, but it also has a cluster of four high-performance Cortex-A73 chips, coupled with another four Cortex-A53 ones, all clocked at 2.0 GHz. Pretty much every other competitor in this price segment is stuck only using the less powerful Cortex-A53 cores.

In fact, even the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus - the closest, really viable rival we could find to the Realme 1, only has a Snadpragon 625 chipset at its disposal. While still a good performer and quite battery efficient, it's starting to show its age and clearly lacks behind the Helio P60 in most every respect.

Just to spice things up and to provide a better basis for comparison, we threw some over-budget devices into the charts as well. Most of these are considered very affordable, but still cost as much as twice the asking price of the Realme 1 and often offer less potent internals. We even threw in the older and rapidly depreciating in value HTC 10 Evo, just to see how the ex-flagship Snapdragon 810 fits into a modern ultra-budget crowd.

It is worth noting that our review unit is the top of the line 6GB RAM, plus 128GB storage variant of the Realme 1. The extra memory and potentially faster flash chip could contribute a few points towards some compound benchmark scores. But, overall, the effect shouldn't be that major and you can expect roughly the same levels of performance even in the 3GB, plus 32GB variant.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Starting with GeekBench and a straight CPU performance test, the Helio P60, inside the Realme 1 clearly crushes the competition. Not only does it have the benefit of a pretty high 2.0GHz clock speed, but the Cortex-A73 cores clearly offer an edge as well.

GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)

Higher is better

  • Oppo Realme 1
    1511
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
    1327
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    877
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    874
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    766
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    731
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    639

Multi-core loads, as well as the general computational test tell the very same story.

GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)

Higher is better

  • Oppo Realme 1
    5741
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
    4696
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    4309
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    4292
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    4018
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    3667
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    2328

Geekbench 4 Compute

Higher is better

  • Oppo Realme 1
    3564
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    2180
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    1910
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    1528

GeekBench results aren't really that much different. On the surface, it might appear that Xiaomi is gaining back some ground, but it should be noted that the Redmi Note 5 Pro, breathing down the neck of the Realme 1 is actually a Snapdragon 636 device that costs about as twice as the new budget Oppo. The more comparable Redmi 5 Plus is still left in the dust.

AnTuTu 6

Higher is better

  • Oppo Realme 1
    92775
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
    90642
  • HTC 10 Evo
    82841
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    63019
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    61762
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    57012
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    56136
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    46400
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    40735

Before you ask, we ran AnTuTu 7 as well (AnTuTu 5 also, for that matter), but there just weren't enough really low-end budget devices in out AnTuTu 7 database to compare the Realme 1 with. Still, the overall results are consistent - the Realme 1 easily crushes devices twice its current market price.

BaseMark OS 2.0 appears to be a bit more favourable towards Xiaomi's devices. But again, we only see the Realme 1 lose out to the much more expensive Redmi Note 5 Pro. The Redmi 5 Plus is still left in the dust.

Basemark OS 2.0

Higher is better

  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
    2030
  • Oppo Realme 1
    1940
  • HTC 10 Evo
    1913
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    1309
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    1262
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    1226
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    1222
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    1038
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    922

Earlier, we mentioned the HTC 10 Evo, with its Snapdragon 810 chip. Looking at the charts so far, offers a really interesting practical perspective on just how much mobile silicon performance has improved in just a few months.

So, it's pretty obvious the Helio P60 is a strong performer in the CPU department, but what about graphics? That spacious 6-inch display looks like a perfect match for gaming. Luckily, the Mali-G72 MP3 delivers is this department as well. Well, relative to the competition, that is.

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

  • Oppo Realme 1
    20
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    18
  • HTC 10 Evo
    16
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    13
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    10
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    9.7
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    9.4
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    7.9

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

  • HTC 10 Evo
    20
  • Oppo Realme 1
    12
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    6.5
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    6.4
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    6.1
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    4.8
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    4.6
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    3.3

Compared to something like the HTC 10 Evo, we already touched upon, briefly, the Realme 1 has the benefit of FullHD+ resolution. That is to say, the GPU has less work to do while pushing pixels in on-screen tests. In contrast, the playing field is pretty level with the Redmi 5 Plus, which also has the same resolution to work with. Then there are devices like the regular Redmi 5, the Moto G6 Play or the Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017), which have native HD+ panels.

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    13
  • Oppo Realme 1
    12
  • HTC 10 Evo
    11
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    10
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    7.4
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    6.3
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    6.2
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    4.6

GFX 3.1 Car scene (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

  • HTC 10 Evo
    12
  • Oppo Realme 1
    7.5
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    4.6
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    3.5
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    3.5
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    3.4
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    2.6
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    1.9

That's clearly the reason behind the comparable on-screen frame rates between the Realme 1 and the Redmi 5. Naturally, once we get to OpenGL ES 3.1 synthetic loads and test, the observable frame rates drop way beyond playable levels on practically every device on the list.

Like we've said on numerous occasions, this does not correlate directly to the fluidity of real-world gaming experiences. Modern titles tend to scale back graphics quite gracefully and efficiently. We had no issue gaming on the Realme 1 and neither will you, unless you are trying to reign supreme in serious competitive mobile moba or battle royal games.

Basemark X

Higher is better

  • HTC 10 Evo
    28736
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
    14897
  • Oppo Realme 1
    10880
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    10484
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    10472
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    9953
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    8458
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    7620
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    5258

Basemark OS 2.0

Higher is better

  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 Pro
    2030
  • Oppo Realme 1
    1940
  • HTC 10 Evo
    1913
  • Huawei Honor 6X
    1309
  • Xiaomi Mi A1
    1262
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus
    1226
  • Xiaomi Redmi 5
    1222
  • Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017)
    1038
  • Motorola Moto G6 Play
    922

Basemark X provides a pretty concise overall picture of how the Oppo Realme 1 performs in graphics tasks, compared to its closest rivals. Clearly, the Helio P60 punches way above its weight, or in this case, price class.

If you are after the highest level of raw performance for the least amount of money, at current price levels it seems nearly impossible to beat the Oppo Realme 1 in this respect.

Xiaomi's Redmi 5 Plus comes close, but still clearly looses out. The latter still has a few benefits of its own to offer, however, like a metal build and a fingerprint reader. So, there is still plenty of room for personal preference to weigh in on the purchasing decision. That being said, we have to give credit where credit is due and crown the Realme 1 the current budget performance champion.

13MP snapper

The Realme 1 is equipped with a single 13MP camera on the back, along with a simple LED flash. There is phase detection autofocus on board, but that's about it for the extras. It's nothing too fancy. But, then again, can we really expect it to be at such a low price?

Anyway, Oppo is understandably keeping a tight lip regarding any camera particulars. Not even the aperture is officially published in the specs sheet. Luckily, the photo EXIF data was generous enough to reveal that it is f/2.2. Quite dim by today's standards, but also on par with what the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus has to offer.

Oppo Realme 1 review

After some snooping around, we have a sneaky suspicion that Oppo is reusing the rather old, but still decent Samsung sensor from the Oppo F3. Not that it really matters all that much.

Just like the rest of the Realme UI, the camera app is directly lifted from the Oppo software branches, without any changes or special re-branding. It recently got the so-called AI-boost, which is a fancy name for scene recognition. You'll see a small icon when a scene is successfully recognized, and the software will tweak all settings accordingly. Food, snow, pets (dogs and cats), sunsets, grass, among other scenes, are caught mostly correctly.

The interface of the camera app has borrowed a lot from the iOS app, of course. Most settings are on the left (or top, depending on the orientation), while different modes are selected on the right next to the shutter key.

The app offers two trendy modes - 2x telephoto zoom and blurred background. Those have dedicated shortcuts on the viewfinder, but as you can imagine, these are simulated as there is no secondary snapper to help with the scene depth recognition.

Zoom: 1x *2x - f/2.2, ISO 39, 1/1587s - Oppo Realme 1 review Zoom: 1x - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1414s - Oppo Realme 1 review Zoom: 2x - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1159s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Zoom: 1x - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1111s - Oppo Realme 1 review Zoom: 2x - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/111s - Oppo Realme 1 review Zoom: 2x - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/119s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Zoom: 1x *2x • 1x • 2x • 1x • 2x

The telephoto zoom is basic digital zoom, but the blurred background works rather well for not-so-complicated subjects. There is also a Super Vivid mode, but more on that in a bit.

Camera UI - Oppo Realme 1 review Camera UI - Oppo Realme 1 review Camera UI - Oppo Realme 1 review Camera UI - Oppo Realme 1 review
Camera UI

Expert mode is available for those seeking more manual controls. It comes with a handy horizon level and can change most settings on the primary camera (this mode doesn't work with the selfie cam). Oppo finally addressed the lack of precise shutter speed controls in manual. Now the slider goes all the way from 1/8000s to 16s and not only in full stops. Manual focus adjustment is present as well.

Image quality

We can't exactly praise the Oppo Realme 1 for any sort of real camera prowess. However, we have thankfully come to a point in time when "potato-quality" mobile snappers seem to almost entirely eradicated. The Realme 1 captures perfectly serviceable stills. Especially if their purpose is to get compressed and end up on a social media feed.

Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 39, 1/1527s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1335s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 39, 1/1764s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1416s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1195s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1012s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo Realme 1 camera samples

Detail is plenty, colors are nice and noise-suppression seems to work well. You do still get your typical set of issues, though, like general softness around the corners, over-sharpening and a low dynamic range.

Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 168, 1/50s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 68, 1/50s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 camera samples - f/2.2, ISO 204, 1/50s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo Realme 1 camera samples

The HDR mode works pretty well on the Realme 1. You also get auto mode, which does a good job of jumping in, when the conditions call for it. HDR processing is not too extreme and generally helps rescue some details in shadows and highlights. You should be good just leaving HDR on auto.

HDR: On - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/2004s - Oppo Realme 1 review HDR: Off - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1887s - Oppo Realme 1 review HDR: On - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1416s - Oppo Realme 1 review
HDR: Off - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1414s - Oppo Realme 1 review HDR: On - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1012s - Oppo Realme 1 review HDR: Off - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1012s - Oppo Realme 1 review
HDR: On • Off • On • Off • On • Off

The toggle for Super Vivid mode is positioned right next to the HDR one. It works slightly differently, though. Best we can tell, it goes through the standard HDR procedure and then boosts colors. You can especially see the effect in blue shades. There also seems to be a slight shadow effect added to the edge of the photo, to top the aesthetic off.

Normal mode - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1195s - Oppo Realme 1 review HDR - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/943s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid mode - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/903s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Normal mode • HDR • Super Vivid mode

Super Vivid mode samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1887s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid mode samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1277s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid mode samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1709s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Super Vivid mode samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/1634s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid mode samples - f/2.2, ISO 39, 1/1414s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid mode samples - f/2.2, ISO 38, 1/943s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Super Vivid mode samples

Feel free to pixel peep in our Photo compare tool - we've pre-selected a couple of phones we found relevant, but those can easily be replaced in the drop-down menus.

Photo Compare Tool Photo Compare Tool Photo Compare Tool
Oppo Realme1 against the Oppo F3 and the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus in our Photo compare tool

Panorama

The Oppo Realme 1 captures nice and detailed panoramas. There is plenty of resolution and resolved detail and practically no signs of stitching.

Oppo Realme 1 panorama sample - f/1.8, - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo Realme 1 panorama sample

Blurred Background

The Realme 1 has just one camera on its back, but it can simulate blurred background for some portrait shots. Unfortunately, the samples are nothing to talk about, and what's worse - the front camera seems to do a better job of blurring the background than the main one.

Blurred background samples - f/2.2, ISO 255, 1/33s - Oppo Realme 1 review Blurred background samples - f/2.2, ISO 256, 1/33s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Blurred background samples

Selfies

Oppo has constructed quite the reputation for itself over the years, based on a strong selfie game. However, that is mostly limited to the F-series of devices. The Realme 1 shares no such aspirations, with its rather modest 8MP, f/2.2 selfie camera.

Oppo Realme 1 selfie samples - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/113s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 selfie samples - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/125s - Oppo Realme 1 review Oppo Realme 1 selfie samples - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/121s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Oppo Realme 1 selfie samples

It's a fixed-focus unit, with no dedicated flash or anything else fancy of the sorts. Still, it does a decent enough job. Despite the unimpressive dynamic range, there is really not much to complain about. Just like the main camera, the selfie also offers the simulated bokeh and Super Vivid modes.

Normal - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/125s - Oppo Realme 1 review Blur - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/134s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/125s - Oppo Realme 1 review Super Vivid and blur - f/2.2, ISO 111, 1/129s - Oppo Realme 1 review
Normal • Blur • Super Vivid • Super Vivid and blur

There is a beauty mode=, complete with an automatic "AI" setting, to play around with as well. And a pretty extensive animated sticker collection.

Stickers - Oppo Realme 1 review Beauty mode - Oppo Realme 1 review
Stickers • Beauty mode

Video recording

Like we mentioned earlier, the Helio P60 is a really potent chipset. It fact, it powers, among others, both the F7 and R15 - both more expensive and higher-end Oppo devices. Its three-core ISP offers pretty high performance and support for up to a 24MP+16MP dual-camera setup or 32MP single-camera with ultra-fast speeds.

For such a powerful chipset, it's odd that the Realme 1 is limited to video capture in 1080p@30fps and 720@30fps.

The Helio P60 is perfectly capable of handling 4K@30fps. We have clearly seen the Oppo R15 do it. Still, as disappointing as it might be, Oppo can't exactly throw market segmentation under the bus and enable 4K on its ultra-budget device.

Still, at 1080p, the Realme 1 does a good job, picking up plenty of detail. Colors come off a bit too washed-out and the dynamic range could use some improvement. Still, the 18Mb/s, or so AVC/AAC, MP4 videos, with stereo sound are perfectly usable. Nothing to rave about, but usable.

As usual, we also provide an unedited sample, straight from the camera for you to download - 1080p@30fps (10s, 21MB)

You can also head over to our Video compare tool and see how the Oppo Realme1 stacks up against the competition. It is worth noting that the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus does offer 4K video recording.

Video Compare Tool Video Compare Tool Video Compare Tool
>Oppo Realme1 against the Oppo F3 and the Xiaomi Redmi 5 Plus in our Video compare tool

The Competition

With a budget around €110 or $130, you can't expect to find a great offer for a smartphone. If you follow our buyer's guide articles, then you probably know that even in 2018, you don't really want to spend anything less than EUR 200 on a smartphone to ensure acceptable user experience. However, the Oppo Realme 1 is really redefining what's possible in this price bracket.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Oppo is seriously pushing the envelope with the Realme 1. So much so that even budget champions, like Xiaomi, can't quite keep up. Oppo's intentions here are pretty transparent, to be honest. Aside from the obvious play on words, the Realme 1 seems deliberately priced just aggressively enough to take on the likes of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 5. Also known as the Redmi 5 Plus, it is an incredibly competitive offer, as well, that costs about the same.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 (Redmi 5 Plus) Xiaomi Mi A1
Xiaomi Redmi Note 5 (Redmi 5 Plus) • Xiaomi Mi A1

With the Redmi Note 5, you get an aluminum frame, a bigger 4,000 mAh battery, 4K video recording and an IR blaster. On the flip side, you lose the fancy back design of the Realme 1 and you have to live with a slightly thicker profile. That could be a fair trade-off for many. If you don't really care about the larger battery or the 4K video recording, you can also save a few bucks and get the Redmi 5. You will be sacrificing some screen resolution and real estate as well and plenty of raw performance, however, making this a less viable option. At EUR 140, or so, the slightly older Xiaomi Mi A1 could cater to another crowd entirely, with its classic 16:9 aspect ratio display, capacitive navigation keys, impressive dual-camera setup and pure Vanilla Android OS. Plus, the Snapdragon 625 falls just a bit short of the Helio P60 in most performance tests.

That's probably the most interesting thing about the Realme 1 - it offers mid-range levels of performance, at an extremely budget price point. Just to illustrate our point, at this price point, Motorola has the Moto E4 Plus, with a smaller display and noticeably weaker MT6737 chipset. The same can be said about the Honor 6A - an even smaller 5-inch display and a Snapdragon 430 chipset. Even the Moto G6 Play can't compete. It offers the same Snapdragon 430 chips, with a 5.7-inch display for EUR 200. Quite the price difference.

Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017) ZTE nubia Z17 mini
Samsung Galaxy J5 (2017) • ZTE nubia Z17 mini

That being said, we did pick out a few viable alternatives for you to consider. If you don't mind a smaller display, you can get an excellent Super AMOLED one, courtesy of Samsung, with the Galaxy J5 (2017). The Exynos 7870 does not disappoint in terms of performance and efficiency either. The budget galaxy J series has bigger devices as well, but even the J5 is a bit out of the Realme 1 budget. Some slightly more creative options, include the ZTE Nubia Z17 mini, which is also quite compact at 5.2-inches, but does pack a Snapdragon 652 chipset - a little better equipped to do up against the Helio P60.

Last and probably least, if you really can't stretch your budget and want to get the most performance possible for your buck, the HTC 10 evo could be the right type of gamble for you. You are pretty much stuck on Android 7 Nougat and have to deal with a pretty subpar battery life. Still, for EUR 130, you are getting the ex-flagship Snapdragon 810, a QHD display and an OIS-enabled main camera. Think carefully before you decide to go down this road and start exploring 2-year-old devices, though. It's a slippery slope.

Verdict

We still believe Oppo isn't really making any money on the Realme 1. Not at the current price, anyway. Even with exclusive online sales and distribution, you are still getting mostly mid-ranger specs and performance at an extremely budget price point.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Market policies, PR battles and strategies seem to be working in the users favour quite nicely, this time around. And we're only saying this with confidence, since we already tested the Realme 1 thoroughly and can confirm it's not writing any checks it can't cash.

Pros

  • Eye-catching design on back and convincing glass feel.
  • There's a dedicated MicroSD cars slot on the Dual SIM tray.
  • The large 6-inch display has decent brightness, contrast and sunlight legibility along with the trendy 18:9 aspect ratio, rounded corners and even FullHD+ resolution.
  • Color OS 5 is chuck-full of added features, some rarely found on budget devices.
  • The MediaTek MT6771 Helio P60 chipset punches above its weight. It allows for mid-ranger levels of performance on a tight budget. You can't really do much better, performance-wise, in this price bracket.

Cons

  • No fingerprint reader
  • Plastic all around. No official info on any protective glass finish for the display. It feels well put together, but could be prone to scratches.
  • No quick charging support.
  • Color OS 5 might be feature-rich, but its menu and settings structure is very confusing and messy.
  • Video capture is limited to 1080p@30fps. Kind of annoying, since the Helio P60 should be capable of 4K.

Naturally, some compromises had to be made. The lack of 4K video recording on a chipset, perfectly capable of doing so, makes us particularly sore. Then again, shopping for a budget smartphone has always been a balancing act between your wants and needs and your budget.

Oppo Realme 1 review

Just like the original Moto G, the Realme 1 is meant to shake things up, to challenge and mostly to leave a lasting impression on users. Whether or not such marketing is sustainable and can be effective on today's overcrowded smartphone scene is a worthwhile discussion, but one for a different time altogether.

Right now, the Realme 1 is a really great deal and definitely worth recommending.

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