realme C33 Quick Review: A Solid Entry-Level Option?

Overall, the realme C33 is a nice entry-level phone especially if you are into capturing moments and keeping memories.

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Early in October, realme launched yet another entry-level smartphone for the budget-conscious Filipino. The realme C33 boasts its premium design featuring an 8.3mm Ultra Slim Boundless Sea Design allowing the user to easily use the phone in one hand. It is also equipped with a large high resolution 6.5” HD+ LCD Display which gives the user a premium viewing experience with a 720×1600 pixel resolution.

But not only that, but the C33 also comes with good-quality cameras that won’t break the bank. Sporting a 50MP AI Back Camera and a 5MP Selfie Camera, the user can definitely capture special moments crystal clear.

Following the specs sheet, the C33 seems to promise a premium experience packed in a budget-friendly device. But how does it fare in the ever-growing roster of entry-level smartphones in today’s market? Here’s a quick review of the realme C33 review.

Starting off, the C33’s design easily gets the aesthetics points. Its stylish squared-off box-type build with rounded corners makes the phone comfortable to use even with one hand. Yes, even with someone with small hands.

The easy grip and handling also makes it easy for the user to access the Fast Side Fingerprint Sensor. The colorway we got is the Aqua Blue variant, very fit for someone who is fun and on the go, but it is also available in Night Sea for those who are more comfortable with classic and black.

The display of the C33 is also nothing to sleep on. Sporting a 720 x 1600 pixel resolution with a 6.5” HD+ LCD display reaching up to 400 nits, for its price, the phone delivers impressive crisp on-screen images. Watching Youtube, Kdramas, and Music Videos on this phone will not disappoint. The sound quality is also decent; you just have to find that sweet spot in loudness when using its speakers.

Under the hood, the C33 is powered by a 12nm Octa-core, Unisoc Tiger T612 processor and is running on the RealmeUI S. It also houses two Cortex-A75 cores that has a refresh rate of 1.82 GHz allowing smooth app switching. The variant sent to us is the 64GB 4GB memory and storage version, but is expandable with the microSDXC slot. It also sports a Mali-G57 GPU and what better way to test the processor but by playing some games on it.

We fired up Mobile Legends Bang Bang on the phone and we were faced with a couple of laggy moments, these were noticeable. so maybe c33 is not so much for heavy graphics gaming. We were still able to play more casual games like Candy Crush on it though.

While we were underwhelmed when it came to gaming, it impressed us with its cameras. Equipped with a 50MP wide back camera that can shoot 1080p videos at 30fps and a 5MP front cam that can film 720p videos at 30fps, these cameras performed magnificently considering its price. Images came out crisp and detailed even at low light settings. You can even turn on the AI function to further enhance the images’ lighting as you take them. The HDR function on the selfie cam helps improve the colors and lighting of and around the subject. The cameras get even better with proper lighting.

We also took the phone out for a day to test how long the battery will last, and we must say that its 5000MAH battery more than satisfied us. It survived the entire day with photography sessions, gaming sessions, and a couple of Youtube viewing sessions with a fourth of the battery life to spare. We bet that the C33 can even last 2 days without charging with light to normal use. When it was time to charge, the USB type C charger and the powerblock that came with it charged the phone to full in a little over 45 mins from a 20% battery level.

Overall, the realme C33 is a nice entry-level phone especially if you are into capturing moments and keeping memories. It also lives up to its tagline of “Fun and Stylish” as its design and build feels and looks premium. Paired with the powerful battery life, we see the realme C33 as a good everyday phone that gets the job done.

Priced at PHP 7,499, the C33 is a nice budget phone for gift your niece, nephew, or even your elderly folks who love to update their social media with photos and videos of the memories they wish to share. Though if they want something for gaming, the C33 might not have enough power.