REALME C30 review… WHAT A DISAPPOINTMENT !!!
In this particular historical moment, technology no longer seems to amaze, except in rare cases, such as the debut on the scene of the new entry level Realme C30. It amazes because of a decidedly simple hardware, indeed we could define it as "poor", but we are confident in the brand that in these months / years has been able to demonstrate that its products have a lot to offer and little to envy to the models of more famous competitors. Today I will tell you whether to choose it, compared to the many models on the market, even if as you may have guessed from the title, there will be surprises, but all negative.
Nothing particular as regards the look of the sales package, a classic yellow hardcover with sliding opening, but on the other hand what interests us is the content that specifically provides the following equipment:
- Realm C30;
- Pin for removing the SIM tray;
- Manuals (Italian is also present);
- Wall power supply with 5V / 2A - 10W output;
- MicroUSB charging and data transfer cable;
- Plastic film to protect the display pre-applied.
The Realme C30 stands out from the first contact, compared to the mass, due to a design that takes inspiration from the past while being modern and captivating, net of materials defined vulgarly poor.
In fact, the entire body is made of polycarbonate, with a matte paint, but above all a sort of relief texture stands out with vertical stripes that help the grip with the smartphone, considering dimensions equal to 164,1 x 75,5 x 8,5, 182 mm thick and a weight of XNUMX grams. On the rear we find the photographic module as the only disturbing element, which integrates a single optic and the single tone LED flash, therefore appreciable that the brand has not inserted additional optics only for marketing strategies.
The side frame is also made of plastic and considering the economic nature of the device, the step between it and the display, typical of low-end devices, should be reported, but in any case (at least in the color we tested) the result at a glance the eye is still pleasant. On the profiles we then find in the lower part the 3,5 mm jack input to take advantage of wired earphones and a grid that hides the speaker, as well as a main microphone and micro USB input for charging, data transfer and OTG support.
Oh yes, a real blast from the past is the presence of the micro USB port, a counter-trend in this period where a single charging standard is rumored for the various brands of mobile telephony and electronics. The upper profile appears completely smooth and therefore we do not even have the second microphone for noise reduction in calls, albeit in advance already that the audio in conversation is quite good.
Speaking of sound, I must point out that the audio coming out of the single speaker is unbalanced, because the sound spectrum results with a dominant medium-high frequencies. This "defect" however translates into an advantage if we are in noisy environments and still want to listen to multimedia content without using headphones, while the audio in the ear capsule is crystal clear and the microphone does its job very well.
On the right edge, the volume rocker and the power button stand out, but up until now I have not mentioned the fingerprint sensor, because this is absent, opting for unlocking via face unlock or with classic PIN/pattern, so in this area Realme C30 is not very oriented towards security.
Finally, on the left profile, alone, there is the SIM tray capable of hosting 2 SIMs in nano format but also micro SD with support up to 1 TB, all without giving up the functionality of the Dual SIM Dual Standby. In this regard, I have always benefited from the 4G signal with excellent navigation performance and signal stability.
Realme C30 is not a compact smartphone but still pleasant to handle even with a single hand, but what is particularly surprising is the display, at least in size, offering a 6,5-inch diagonal with IPS LCD technology and HD + resolution (1600 x 720 pixel) with 60 Hz refresh rate.
We have no other specification that positively highlights this panel, where Widevine DRM L1 support is absent, but above all the color fidelity is not the best, often returning content with washed out colors and with low contrasts. The brightness of the display also disappoints, although it allows viewing of content on the screen even under direct sunlight, but with low peak levels. I also point out that the proximity and brightness sensor are real and their operation is academic while in terms of shortcomings, mention should be made of the notification LED.
A note of merit for Realme C30 goes to the presence of a large 5000 mAh battery with max charging at 10W, which allows the device to perform in terms of autonomy even two full days with medium-intense use. On the other hand, at the hardware level we have little to rejoice about, considering a UNISOC T612 processor, an octa-core solution with a 12nm production process and a maximum clock of 1.8 GHz, a SoC comparable to a MediaTek G88, at least on paper. In fact, if the brand has always been able to be appreciated for squeezing the most out of MediaTek processors, with this UNISOC T612 it has not got one right.
The processor mentioned is flanked by 4 GB of RAM of the LPDDR4X type and 64 GB of internal storage of the UFS 2.2 type expandable via microSD. Oh yes, from this point of view Realme did the best, considering the range of belonging of the device, but in all honesty my experience of use was a nightmare, due to continuous clicks and slowdowns of the system, poor fluidity and fluency in general, with opening blocks for certain apps.
So are you right to turn up your nose for this processor or maybe the problem is Realme's choice to equip this C30 with a sort of experimental Android Go? In fact, at the firmware level we find the presence of Android 11 with April patch customized by the Realme UI R Edition graphic interface, a name that suggests who knows what features, but in reality it is a very basic version of the customization of the brand to which we are. get used to it.
In terms of connectivity Realme C30 is very basic, offering for example a 2.4 GHz mono band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, GPS and nothing else, therefore absent both NFC and FM radio.
On a photographic level, Realme C30 does not sport an infinite number of optics just to fill the data sheet with various specifications, but relies on a single 8 MP main sensor with f / 2.0 aperture, while on the front we have a 5 MP selfie camera . We know very well that it is not the number of megapixels that makes the quality of a shot or video, but in this case, we cannot really speak of quality.
The shots taken with Realme C30 are poor even in good lighting conditions, with colors sometimes muddy and unrealistic. The videos, which can be made at a maximum resolution of 1080p at 30 fps, are unstable and with poor audio. The zoom is digital and reaches a maximum of 4X and then the software is really lacking in functions. In short, I will not add anything else, moreover, more than saying that I would not entrust any memory of my life to the Realme C30 camera, I do not know what else to add.
PROJECTED IMPACT
To date, unfortunately, I still don't know how to reveal the price of Realme C30, but in all honesty I don't know if I would recommend it even with a price of 50 euros. If the problem is of a software type, I hope that the company will repair it soon with the release of an update otherwise, this time Realme has messed up big time. If you still want to try the thrill of this terminal, I leave you in the offers boxes, the link to the "different twin" of the Realme brand.
