GADGETS | realme C55 first unboxing and impressions

realme C55: The budget phone with a big screen and fast charging is coming soon to the Philippines

realme is set to launch its latest budget-friendly smartphone, the C55, in the Philippines on Tuesday, April 18. The C55 boasts some impressive features for its price range that inlcude a 6.72-inch FHD display with a smooth 90Hz refresh rate, a handy Mini Capsule notification feature, a powerful Helio G88 processor, a 64MP main camera, and a 33W SUPERVOOC fast charger that can power up the phone in no time.

The C55 also sports a sleek design with a gradient back and a punch-hole selfie camera. The only thing that remains to be seen is how much it will cost in the local market. Based on the prices in other countries, we expect it to be around $160 or the peso equivlent of P8,900+, which would make it a very competitive option for gamers on a budget.

We got our hands on the C55 and we’re working on a full review to see how it performs in real-life scenarios. In the meantime, here’s a quick look at what the phone has to offer.

What’s in the box of the realme C55?

The realme C55 arrives in a familiar yellow box that contains everything you need to get started with the phone. Here’s what you’ll find inside:

• The realme C55 smartphone unit, with a screen protector already applied
• A clear silicone case to protect the phone from scratches and drops
• A 33W SUPERVOOC fast-charger that can fill up the battery in a flash
• A USB-C cable to connect the phone to the charger or a computer
• A SIM eject tool to insert or remove your SIM cards
• Some documentation, including a quick start guide and a warranty card

The first time you turn on the phone, you’ll have to go through the usual setup process, which includes signing in to your Google account and choosing your preferences. However, you’ll also notice that there are quite a few third-party apps pre-installed on the phone, some of which you might not want or need. You can easily uninstall them by long-pressing on their icons and tapping on the uninstall option.

First Look

The realme C55 feels sturdy and comfortable in the hand, thanks to its plastic body with curved edges that eliminate any sharpness and improve the grip. It’s not a slim or sleek phone by any means, but it has a solid build quality that can withstand some wear and tear.

Its main attraction is its 6.72-inch FHD+ IPS display, which is the biggest screen ever on a C-series phone. It has a resolution of 2400×1080 and a refresh rate of 90Hz, which means it can deliver crisp and colorful visuals with smooth and fluid animations. The screen is bright enough to use outdoors, and the bezels are minimal on the top and sides, while the bottom bezel is slightly thicker, which is typical for this price segment.

The realme C55 has a front-facing camera with an 8MP sensor and an f/2.0 aperture, which is housed in a hole punch cutout at the center of the top edge. The camera can take decent selfies and support face unlock.

One of the most interesting features of the phone is the Mini Capsule, which is a small circle that appears next to the camera and shows different animations depending on the situation. It’s similar to the iPhone’s Dynamic Island, and it can show you things like the charging status (with a lightning bolt icon), the battery level (with a percentage indicator), the data usage (with a megabyte counter), and the fitness stats (with a step counter and a distance meter). It’s a neat and stylish feature that could be more useful if realme adds more functionality to it in the future, such as notifications, weather, or music controls.

On the back of the phone you have a dual-camera setup, consisting of a 64MP main camera and a 2MP depth camera, which are housed in a rectangular module with a glossy finish that adds some flair to the matte back panel. The cameras have large lenses that capture more light and detail, which can enhance your photography skills.

The realme C55 runs on a MediaTek Helio G88 processor, which is a great gaming chip for this price segment. It can handle games with smooth and responsive performance in low to medium graphics settings.

The phone also comes with 8GB of RAM with an option to expand it up to 8GB more using the virtual RAM feature (realme UI Dynamic RAM expansion), which can improve the multitasking performance. It has 256GB of storage, which is generous for this price range and can store a lot of apps, games, photos, and videos.

The 5000mAh battery can last for a whole day of moderate use and charge quickly with the 33W SUPERVOOC charger, which can fill up the battery from zero to 100% in about an hour. Finally, the phone runs on realme UI 4, which is based on Android 13 and offers a lot of customization options and features.

So far the phone has been fast and smooth in my daily use. The animations look fluid and pleasing, thanks to the 90Hz refresh rate and the Helio G88 processor. I’ll test it more thoroughly in my full review, including the gaming performance, the camera quality, the audio output, and the network connectivity.

These are my initial thoughts on the realme C55. I’m impressed by it so far and I think it has a lot of potential to be a great budget-friendly smartphone.

realme C55 Specs