Realme 9 Review: Good "All-in-One" recipe but lacks excitement

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Since the beginning of 2022, we have seen smartphones taking a new turn towards 5G but with cost-cutting on other specs due to the high component prices. And this is evident, especially in the budget segment of smartphones. That's where 4G smartphones manage to onboard the innovative features, clean user experience, and value without the fear of striking a bargain against factors that matter more than just connectivity. And with no immediate hope of on-ground usage of 5G in India, it still makes sense to look out for a feature-loaded 4G smartphone.

Realme takes that opportunity of going after the innovative features instead of just doing 5G with the Realme 9, which brings a 108MP primary camera, larger battery, AMOLED display experience, and a Snapdragon 680 processor running on the latest Android 12 at the price of Rs. 17,999. In the sub-Rs. 20,000 space, which is full of competition from Xiaomi, Poco, Vivo, Samsung and even Realme, does this smartphone manage to bring something new to the table? Let’s find out in the review..

Realme 9 comes with a glossy look on a plastic body while keeping the overall design clean and minimalistic - just the rear camera module and Realme logo. I got Realme 9 in Sunburst Gold which is bright enough to grab your attention. When light falls on the rear panel, it brings a ripple effect while emitting different hues of its colour. If bright colour is not what you are a fan of, then you have options from Meteor Black and Stargaze White colour variants too. The rear camera module carries a design identical to what we have seen in many other Realme smartphones. While in front, Realme 9 features a hole-punch cutout display and a considerably thick bezel at the bottom rather than the sides.