Mats Hellqvist
Weeks after its debut in China as the Realme GT Neo5, the world’s first smartphone with 240W fast charging is also available worldwide. Internationally, the model is called Realme GT3 and will be launched in several regions. This is the first time that the Chinese are moving a GT Neo cell phone from the mid-range to the premium GT category. However, prices remain well below flagship levels – the Realme GT3 starts at $650 for an 8/128 GB model.
This makes it one of the cheapest Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 smartphones available, especially outside of China. The big selling point, of course, is the charging technology. The GT3 uses three 100 watt charging chips to achieve 98.5% transmission efficiency during charging and maintain a large margin of safety. Power comes from a dual GaN charger, which is the same size as last year’s GT Neo3 150W’s 150-watt charger. Special hardware is also required for the cable – the world’s first 12A USB cable is on board, as never before has so much power had to be routed via USB.
According to Realme, the 240-watt system will offer the “fastest charging power for years to come, as it has reached the maximum charging power possible under USB-C standards”. However, Xiaomi has just pushed almost 300 watts through the cable with an adapted Redmi Note 12 Discovery. Neither company uses normal USB standards for this. Each uses its own proprietary technology and not the new USB PD Extended Power Range standard. The latter limits the maximum possible current to 5 amps, even in 240 watt mode.
100% battery in 9:30 minutes
The 240 watts end up in a 4,600 mAh battery in the Realme GT3, which can be fully charged in about 9 minutes and 30 seconds. The Realme smartphone reaches 20% in just 80 seconds and 50% in 4 minutes. TÜV Rheinland has tested the system and certified its safety. This required a huge vapor chamber of 6,580 mm², which not only cools the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1. It also covers 61.5% of the battery and together with 13 temperature sensors ensures that the cell stays at a safe level during charging.
An intelligent system can switch between several modes – travel, sleep and in the car – and select the appropriate charging speed. But even if you always only charge with 240 watts, the battery still retains 80% of its original capacity after 1,600 charging cycles. The Realme GT3 also features a “Pulse Interface System” on the back, aka C-shaped RGB light. This is used, for example, to visualize the charging process. It pulsates red for the first 80 seconds, violet for the next 7 minutes and finally lights up violet continuously because the battery is full.
You can also use the RGB light for notifications and when taking photos. If you start a 10-second countdown for the self-timer, the light changes between blue, white and orange. However, you can also customize the light and choose from 25 colors, 2 rhythm types and 5 light speed modes.
Realme GT3 specifications
On the front of the Realme GT3 is a 6.74-inch, 144 Hz, 10-bit AMOLED display with a resolution of 1,240 x 2,772 pixels (20:9). As mentioned, it is powered by a Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 chipset and starts Android 13 with Realme UI 4.0. The camera setup includes a 50 megapixel main camera with a 1/1.56 inch sensor, 1.0 µm pixels and OIS. Also, Realme installs an 8 megapixel ultrawide with a 112 degree fov and a 2 megapixel microscope camera. Upfront we have a 16 megapixel selfie camera.
The Realme GT3 will soon be available in the following configurations: 8/128GB, 12/256GB, 16/256GB and 16/512GB, as well as a special 16GB/1TB variant. The 8/128GB model is priced at $650/€614. There are two color options, Booster Black and Pulse White. Release timing varies by region between May and June.
