realme Note 50 Review
realme Philippines breaks into the budget smartphone market with the launch of its first-ever Note series device, the realme Note 50. Priced at an affordable PhP3,599, the Note 50 packs some impressive features and specs that make it a compelling option for budget-conscious buyers looking for a capable daily driver.
Design and Build
Sporting a slim and lightweight profile, the Note 50 features a 7.99mm chassis that weighs just 186 grams. The glossy plastic back comes in two color options – Sky Blue and Midnight Black. The unit we received for review is Sky Blue, which looks great especially when light bounces on its plastic panel.
With its rounded corners and smooth, curved edges, the Note 50 feels comfortable to hold in one hand. The rear panel has a dual-tone design, with a glittery smooth finish on the top half and a matte texture on the bottom.
The Note 50 retains a 3.5mm audio jack and has a USB-C charging port at the bottom. Volume and power buttons are located on the right spine, with the latter doubling as a fast and accurate fingerprint sensor for biometric authentication.
Display
At the front lies a tall 6.74-inch LCD display with minimal bezels surrounding it. The HD+ resolution of 720×1600 pixels is decent for everyday usage. Colors appear punchy and texts are crisp enough. While not the sharpest, the screen gets adequately bright for outdoor visibility.
The LCD panel has a fast 90Hz refresh rate that makes scrolling and navigations smoother compared to 60Hz displays. Touch sampling rate is equally quick at 180Hz. Watching videos and playing games feel fairly fluid on this panel.
Performance and Battery Life
Powering the Note 50 is a Unisoc T612 chipset fabricated on a power-efficient 12nm process. The octa-core processor is plenty capable of handling basic smartphone tasks. It can load apps quickly and switch between them with minimal lag or stutter. For moderate gaming, the T612 holds up alright as long as graphics settings are kept modest.
Our review unit came equipped with 4GB RAM and 64GB onboard storage, which is decent but quickly fillable given the ample built-in storage expansion via microSD card support up to 2TB. realme also utilizes up to 4GB of unused internal storage as virtual RAM using its Dynamic RAM Expansion technology for improved multitasking capabilities.
Fueling the Note 50 is a chunky 5,000mAh battery. Thanks to the power-efficient SoC, the battery life is impressive – easily lasting over a day even with heavy use. The phone supports 10W USB-C fast charging to quickly juice up the big battery.
Cameras
For photography, the Note 50 has a single 13MP main camera paired with a B&W portrait lens. As expected, image quality is just average but fair given the price bracket. Colors are decent but noise starts to creep in once lighting gets dimmer.
There are ample shooting modes to utilize, along with some AI scene enhancements that tries to optimize shots on the fly. Users won’t find jaw-dropping performance here, but the dual cameras can reliably snap usable, social media-ready stills and portraits.
On the front is a simple 5MP selfie camera that captures passable shots for video calls and occasional vanity snaps.
The camera would definitely pass for the premium it asks, but I hope they addressed the following things:
- better background separation of foreground and background on portrait photos
- less grainy/noisy shots at low light
Software and Other Features
The Note 50 boots the company’s customized realme UI T interface based on Android 13. As usual, it’s packed with customization options and helpful software features. Things like system shortcuts, navigation gestures, personalized themes, and other UI tweaks enable users to fine tune the phone to their liking.
Security is handled by a responsive side-mounted fingerprint reader as well as face unlock using the selfie camera. The dedicated microSD slot means you won’t have to sacrifice a SIM card for storage expansion. Other handy additions include an IP54 splash resistance rating and the fun Mini Capsule, which cleverly utilizes the camera holepunch cutout to provide useful notifications and alerts.
Verdict
Priced very aggressively, the realme Note 50 brings a lot to the table for budget smartphone buyers. The metal and glass construction provides a premium hand-feel that easily masks its low cost nature. Inside, the capable chipset proves enough muscle for essential daily workloads while the healthy 5,000mAh batt provides marathon-like stamina.
Of course, there are expected compromises given the bargain pricing but none that truly dampen the overall experience. The realme Note 50 reliably handles fundamentals like calling, messaging, social media, and light gaming. For those seeking an affordable workhorse phone that looks great while getting everyday jobs done, the feature-packed realme Note 50 is easy to recommend.
Giancarlo Viterbo is a Filipino Technology Journalist, blogger and Editor of gadgetpilipinas.net, He is also a Geek, Dad and a Husband. He knows a lot about washing the dishes, doing some errands and following instructions from his boss on his day job. Follow him on twitter: @gianviterbo and @gadgetpilipinas.
