Realme GT3 vs Realme GT2: How good is the new GT-series phone?

Realme has launched its new GT series smartphone called Realme GT3 (First Impression). It is the world’s first smartphone with 240W fast charging solution. The handset comes with a pulse interface that can light up in different colors for notifications, low battery, and more. That said, the Realme GT3 feels like an iterative upgrade to last year’s GT, which is one of the cheapest Snapdragon 888 SoC phones in India. Here’s a quick comparison of the Realme GT3 and Realme GT2:

Realme GT3 vs Realme GT2: Price and availability

Realme GT3 price in India hasn’t been announced, but globally it is selling with a price tag of USD 649 (roughly Rs. 53,700) for the base 8GB RAM and 128GB storage option. The price of the phone is expected to be anywhere in India, its price in India is expected to be between Rs 45,000 to Rs 55,000.

If so, then the Realme GT 3 will be significantly more expensive than the Realme GT 2. The latter is retailing in India for Rs 34,999 for the 8GB RAM and 128GB storage model in India. If the 8GB RAM and 128GB storage model isn’t enough for your needs, there’s also a 12GB RAM and 256GB storage option that costs Rs 38,999.

Realme GT 3 vs Realme GT 2

Specifications

design

Like many premium phones, both the realme GT3 and GT2 have glass front and back with plastic frames. Unlike most premium smartphones, however, none of these devices come with any IP rating, which means no protection against water.

For those who prefer a curved back panel instead of a flat, boxy design, both the realme GT3 and GT2 have curved rears with rounded corners, making them easier to handle despite their huge footprint. That said, the Realme GT3 is slightly bigger than the Realme GT2. The former measures 163.9 x 75.8 x 8.9mm and weighs 199 grams, while the Realme GT2 weighs 194.5 grams and measures 162.9 x 75.8 x 8.6mm.

While the Realme GT2 has minimalist aesthetics with an almost simple back design apart from the Realme branding and designer’s initials, the Realme GT3 has a different approach. Its rectangular camera island houses a square bump housing a triple camera setup in two circular cutouts and a rectangular RGB light system that the brand calls the Pulse Interface. This light flashes white, blue, or orange depending on the information to which the colorway is assigned.

Show

The all-new Realme GT3 features a slightly better display configuration than the GT2. You get a 6.74-inch AMOLED panel that supports 144Hz high refresh rate, 1400 nits peak brightness, custom 2772×1240 pixels FHD+ resolution, and 451PPI. Unfortunately, it lacks performance protection. The device features a centre-aligned punch-hole cutout at the top for a selfie shooter and flaunts symmetrical thin bezels.

On the other hand, the realme GT2 sports a 6.62-inch AMOLED panel that supports 120Hz high refresh rate, 1300nits peak brightness, 2400×1080 pixels FHD+ resolution, and 398ppi. There is Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection on top of the display. It has a left-aligned punch-hole cutout for the front-facing camera and a thick chin bezel at the bottom.

Both smartphones have an optical under-display fingerprint scanner.

software

Realme has packed the GT2 with Android 12-based Realme UI 3.0 out of the box, but you can upgrade the software to the latest Android 13-based Realme UI 4.0 OS. The company promised three years of major OS updates and four years of security patches. This means that Realme GT 2 will only get support till Android 15.

The Realme GT 3 runs on Android 13-based Realme UI 4.0 out of the box and will get three years of major OS updates and four years of security patches. You will get OS update till Android 16 on Realme GT 3. Realme’s latest flagship will offer an additional Android OS upgrade compared to the GT 2.

Display and Connectivity

The Realme GT2 is powered by Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 888 SoC built on a 5nm process. It comes with Adreno 660 GPU, 8GB/12GB RAM and 128GB/256GB storage. The device has a stainless steel vapor cooling system and 4129mm² Super VC area. With this arsenal at its disposal, the GT 2 scored 8,12,162 points in the AnTuTu benchmark test and 1,130 and 3,047 points in Geekbench’s single-core and multi-core tests respectively.

While we are yet to test the performance of the Realme GT3, we do know that it packs a better hardware configuration than its predecessor and that should – at least on paper – result in better performance. The device is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC built on 4nm process and features a 6580mm²-large VC liquid cooling system, up to 12GB of RAM with up to 1TB storage option, and Adreno 730 GPU.

Battery and Charging

The Realme GT2 packs an impressive 5,000mAh battery that supports 65W fast charging. During our testing, we got a score of about 6 hours of screen-on time on less processor-intensive tasks and 14 hours 35 minutes on PCMark’s battery test. The device packs enough juice to last a whole day easily, and if you do run out of power, the 65W charger will refuel the Realme GT2 in around 35 minutes.

While we are yet to test the battery life of the Realme GT3’s 4,600mAh cell, the capacity looks promising, and the charging speed is more than you really need! It comes bundled with a 210W charger, which Realme claims fully charges the device (from 0% to 100%) in just nine and a half minutes. Stay tuned to our review to know how fast Realme’s 210W charger is and how true is its claim of fully charging a 4,600mAh battery in less than 10 minutes.

camera

The colors of the pictures clicked on the Realme phone are slightly oversaturated in typical Realme fashion. However, during our testing, the Realme GT2 offered impressive camera performance, clear details, and a wide dynamic range. See camera samples below.

The realme GT 2 has good low-light capabilities, thanks to Sony’s flagship 50MP IMX766 shooter paired with the Snapdragon 888’s ISP. Despite having only street lighting in very dark environments, Night Mode on the GT2 kept landscapes relatively well-lit, with added sharpness, more defined shadows, and negligible noise.

The 8MP ultrawide lens is just as good as the main sensor, with excellent detail and color temperature results we saw with the primary snapper. However, the 2MP macro shooter struggles a bit in low-light conditions. You can capture video at up to 4K resolution at 60fps.

Apart from the new 50MP Sony IMX890 sensor, Realme hasn’t completely refreshed the camera setup on the GT 3. It will be interesting to see how the cameras of the device will perform in real life. Both the smartphones support OIS and have a 16MP front-facing camera for selfies and video calling needs.

Realme GT3 vs Realme GT2: Verdict

The realme GT3 offers Pulse interface, faster charging speeds, more powerful SoC and better camera sensor than the realme GT2. However, the company is yet to announce the Indian pricing and availability details of the GT3. As per the global pricing, the device could retail in India between Rs 45,000 to Rs 55,000 for the base model.

The upgrade decision comes from your phone to your needs. If you need 240W fast charging, new Sony camera sensors, a capable Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 SoC, and a Pule interface, you should wait for the GT 3.