The sub-20K INR price segment (~$250) continues to be the hottest category in the Indian smartphone market in terms of sales. However, the products aren’t as interesting to tech enthusiasts as they used to be earlier.
The Redmi Notes were once the de facto option for no matter who. While the Realme numbers were an alternative.
With an increase in prices, these product lineups left a big shoe to fill in for others. But that never happened until now
Recently, Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G went official in India. Historically, Narzo phones have offered better value than their cousin Realme number series.
That’s no different this time either. In fact, I would say the Narzo series has one-upped its game.
In my opinion, Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G is the first interesting sub-20K INR smartphone after the hugely popular Redmi Note 10 Pro from 2021. Here’s why I think this way.
1. What made Redmi Note 10 Pro special?
Most premium smartphones are best at everything the brand can offer. On the other hand, in the budget category, phones shine in one or a few categories.
Therefore, you get lots of options as each device caters to a different audience. But once in a while, there are some products that excel in almost everything in their segment. The Redmi Note 10 Pro was one of those handsets.
It not only just had an AMOLED display but one with a 120Hz refresh rate, 1200 nits peak brightness level, and HDR10+ support. The device was powered by the most powerful 4G-only Qualcomm mid-range chipset — Snapdragon 732G.
Further, it came with a 108MP primary camera and a 5MP telemacro camera. Both these sensors were unheard of in this segment. It also housed Doldby Atmo-supported dual stereo speakers and a large 5,020mAh battery with support for 33W wired charging.
Finally, it had a premium look and feel with a frosted glass back build.
2. Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G is similar to Redmi Note 10 Pro in many ways
What we said about the Redmi Note 10 Pro also applies to Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G to a great extent. Simply put, we can consider Narzo as the 5G version of Note.
The Narzo 70 Pro 5G has the brightest display in its segment with 2000 nits local peak brightness level. The screen-to-body ratio is not the best but not so far behind at 92.65% compared to Redmi Note 13’s 93.3%.
The handset’s primary highlights are its design and cameras. It is one of the few phones in the segment with a glass back and that too with a dual-tone finish (matte and glossy).
Most importantly, it has a flagship-grade Sony IMX890 primary camera with OIS. It is the first and the only device in its segment to feature this sensor.
The handset is powered by a Dimensity 7050 chip, which is only slower than the Dimensity 7200 SoC present inside its direct competitor iQOO Z9 5G. While in other departments, Narzo aces over iQOO with features like 67W wired charging and others mentioned above.
In other words, just like the Redmi Note 10 Pro, the Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G caters to all types of consumers, including enthusiasts.
3. But there’s one notable difference
The Redmi Note 10 Pro was a multi-channel product. In simpler words, it was available widely across both offline and online channels. Thus, it not only had more reach but also several financing options to make it approachable to more consumers.
Whereas the Realme Narzo 70 Pro 5G is an online-esclusive product. It is only sold through Realme.com and Amazon. Thus, its reach is about half as that of Redmi Note 10 Pro.
Therefore, I don’t think that the Realme smartphone will be as popular as Redmi despite being the best product in the sub-20K INR price segment
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