realme 14 Pro+ 5G Review | Geek Lifestyle

Only a quarter into the year, and we’re getting yet another absolute banger of a camera-centric smartphone in the realme 14 Pro+ 5G. The brand is constantly bringing their A-game when it comes to their upper midrangers, and if arguably, hit their turning point with the realme 10 Pro+. It’s safe to say that four short generations later, they’re barely recognizable–in the best way possible.

While the upgrades aren’t leaps and bounds above, they’re by no means lateral improvements. From its Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chipset, to its triple Sony main camera setup, to a ginormous 6,000 mAh battery, there’s much to enjoy in realme’s 14th, waterproof offspring. Thankfully, we got a chance to see for ourselves.

Is lucky number 13 still the way to go, or should you choose to take the quite literal plunge and go one step further? Read on to find out.

Geeksthetic

The realme 14 Pro+ 5G’s “Pearl Design” is a thing of beauty. Aside from the fact that it’s color-sensitive–more on that later, its ocean-inspired design that incorporates natural shell powder is both trippy and captivating. You’ll find yourself staring at it for a good moment before snapping back to reality. Good stuff.

At only 7.99 mm thin, and weighing 194 grams, it’s rather lightweight and handy. Speaking of running your hands across it, the matte finish is resistant to a variety of stains from coffee, oil, coffee, and other substances. Yes, we tried–and no, we won’t show you the b-roll.  To be fair, splashes will be the least of your worries as the phone’s All-Around Waterproof (IP69, IP68, IP66 Rated) reliability will make sure you’ll be safe–regardless of the wetness.

Check out our unboxing here.

It’s also borderline immune to errant smudges from fingerprints, so if you choose to not use the proprietary TPU case, you’re good. Boy, have we come a long way.

We also appreciate the very symmetrical camera aesthetic. Most brands change their camera designs every other generation, so it’s nice to see that realme has been keeping things dead center for three straight installments, and even fine-tuning the symmetry to boot.

The aforementioned color-sensitive back panel is a nice novelty–adding some cool blue streaks to the already intricate pearl design. Take note, though. You’ll need literal ice cubes or anything just as cold to trigger the reaction. 16° Celsius, to be exact.

The 6.83-inch display is bright and vivid, and you’ll see just how so once you boot it up. It’s protected by a strong sheet of Gorilla Glass 7i and a pre-installed screen protector, so you need not fret.

Binge-Watching Factor

That 6.83-inch OLED display sporting a 1.5K 1272 x 2800 resolution a highlight of this smartphone, for sure. While semi-curved, it’s not too bothersome. We’re just glad it doesn’t get any mistouches like one would expect. Truth be told, curved screens look gorgeous–we just really hate accidentally opening the camera.

With a maximum 1200 nits and 120Hz refresh rate, you can crank up the brightness and just go to town. Browsing through the home screen and beyond is easy peasy, and smooth as can be. Of course, you can stream and enjoy all your favorite shows at the highest possible quality. While the 14 Pro+ has a 89.7% screen-to-body ratio you won’t be seeing any chin–or better yet, any bezels this time around. The curved design helps a lot in this area. Surprisingly enough, you’ll only really see it if you try really hard. 

This has become a mainstay for the series, but we’ll mention it anyway. Hi-Res Dual Stereo Speakers are here to stay, and we’ll be damned if any midrange phone beyond 2025 reverts to bottom-blowing audio. They’re nice, clear, and crispy.

Now, who’d try that hard if they’re watching the new episode of Blue Box? Not us.

Gaming Prowess

Now, realme’s numbered series isn’t infamous for its gaming capabilities, but that’s no reason to dismiss it. While it might not be your top choice for playing the best HoYo titles, it’s still willing and able to get its game on–as you do. That being said, the 4-nanometer Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 5G is no slouch.

Whether you’re playing newer titles like Wuthering Waves or HoYo’s newest moneymaker, Zenless Zone Zero, you’ll get decent performance right out of the box. You can even crank the settings up to Medium at 60 fps and still have a good time. Thermals are great, too, thanks to a very efficient Vapor Chamber Cooling System geared towards heat management. After a good hour of gameplay only left a smidge of warmth. It’s worth noting that these are some hefty, demanding titles to run, so if you so decide to play some Honor of Kings or Call of Duty Mobile, you can expect even better performance. Also, with 12 GB of RAM and 512 GB of storage, you can rest assured that the games can pile up, and you can multi-task at will.

Just why you’d actually do that is a mystery, but it’s nice to know that you actually have the option.

Geek Photoshoot Capabilities

Now, the realme 14 Pro+ 5G’s crowning glory–the triple Sony camera setup. Even in the hands of an absolute photo scrub like yours truly, decent output was made. So what exactly are we looking at? To the rear, we have a 50MP Sony IMX896 OIS main shooter, a 50MP Sony IMX882 OIS telephoto with 120x zoom, and an 8MP Sony IMX355 112° ultrawide shooter. That’s a deadly trifecta, if we’re keeping it a buck. Also, in case you were wondering, yes–the ultrawide performs just as nicely as the other two.

Whether you’re shooting for the hip, or whipping out the portrait camera setting, you’ll be getting really good shots–even under dimmer lighting. Night time is usually the waterloo of your run-of-the-mill smartphone camera, but not with the 14 Pro+ 5G. For as long as it isn’t literally pitch black, you’ll get some social media-ready snaps.

Another key features introduced in the new series is MagicGlow Triple Flash. Basically, what’s supposedly your usual photo flash becomes some semi-professional lighting to create some pretty interesting aesthetics. The lights stay the same, so the process is mostly software-powered.

Still, it’s a great look. What’s more is you can adjust things even further via Smart Color Temperature–making for a myriad of aesthetic possibilities, depending on your mood. If that’s not enough, you have free reign over a variety of filters, too. You’re quote spoiled for choice here.

Remember the fact that the realme 14 Pro+ 5G is waterproof? Like IP69, IP68, IP66 Rated levels of waterproof? Of course. How could we forget? That comes into play with the camera’s Underwater Mode that defaults your shutter to the volume rocker while allowing you to snap while submerged. The quality of photos will depend on the water’s murkiness, or lack thereof.

The 32MP Ultra Clear Selfie Camera is exactly what you think it is. What’s more is the MagicGlow Triple Flash actually carries over to the front. While it’s more of an “effect” than actual LEDs in your face, you can still recreate the “moods” that the rear shooter can capture. Yes, you’ll still look really good. Take it from us.

As for AI features, AI Eraser and AI Ultra Clarity are better than ever. These were key features in the 13 series and needed a bit of tweaking upon launch. With the 14 series, it’s hot and fresh out of the box. AI Snap Mode and Live Photo are the newcomers here. They aren’t as flawless, though, and take a bit of getting used to. Maybe an update or two. AI Snap Mode supposedly emulates faster shutter speed, but we still got a bit of blur once things ramped up. 

Lastly, video performance. We get the same as the last generation, sadly. The realme 14 Pro+ 5G is sadly limited by its chipset, so we won’t be going 4K at 60 FPS anytime soon. It’s a maximum 4K at 30fps, and 1080p at 60fps. Then again, FHD at the same 60 FPS is nothing to scoff at. Given the fact that you also have OIS means you can shoot some decent vlogging material as well.

Overall, the realme 14 Pro+ 5G’s cameras are a step up from last generation with consistent quality and some nice new features–both AI-powered or otherwise.

Everyday Reliability

At the end of the day, you’re still wielding a smartphone–in spite of all the bells and whistles. If you can’t power up your device, everything goes down the toilet. Thankfully, that will likely never be the case thanks to a massive 6000 mAh battery and some very speedy 80W SUPERVOOC Charge. Just 40 watts shy of the newfangled 120W charging bricks, you’ll be back to 100% in about 45 minutes after taking almost a literal day of trying to discharge the battery. You’ll be more than ready to take on any day-to-day challenge, bar none.

When you’re running on both realme UI 6.0 and Android 15 it’s always smooth sailing. The features that come with Android 15–especially those involving photos, will prove invaluable for both your daily work tasks and content creation. Also, not to keep repeating ourselves, but that IP69, IP68, IP66 rating also guarantees that you can use your phone, rain or shine. It seems like this will become a staple for this series moving forward, and while you won’t likely be submerged a couple of meters underwater against your will anytime soon, it’s nice to know that your phone–along with yourself, will make it out in one piece.

It’s a great daily driver. Plain and simple–despite its gaudy appearance.

Geek Lifestyle Final Verdict

The realme 14 Pro+ 5G is a great smartphone and a worthy successor to its predecessor. Cameras have, are, and will like always be the X-Factor of this series, and it’s exciting to imagine just how they plan to one-up themselves in series 15. That’s quite a way to go, but given their track record, we’re sure they’ll hit it out of the park.

With all-around waterproof durability, a decent chipset, a very reliable battery, and a timeless aesthetic, there’s not much more to ask for when it comes to this smartphone. All you have to do is try it out for yourself and get that firsthand 14 Series experience. We promise, you’ll enjoy it.

The realme 14 Pro+ is priced at P27,999  and comes in 256GB + 12GB RAM, and 512GB + 12GB RAM varuints. It’s available in Pearl White and Suede Grey. For more information, visit the realme official website and follow realme on Facebook.

realme 14 Pro+ 5G Specs:

• 6.83″ 120HZ OLED 1.5K (1272 x 2800) Display
• Qualcomm SM7635 Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 (4 nm)
• Adreno 710 (940 MHz)
• 50 MP, f/1.8, (wide), PDAF
• 50 MP, f/1.8, 24mm (wide), 1/1.56″, 1.0µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS
• 50 MP, f/2.7, 73mm, (periscope telephoto), 1/1.95″, 0.8µm, multi-directional PDAF, OIS, 3x optical zoom
• 8 MP, f/2.2, 16mm, 112˚ (ultrawide)
• 32 MP, f/2.0, 21mm (wide), 1/2.74″, 0.8µm, AF
• 12GB RAM, 256/512 GB internal storage
• Fingerprint (screen), Accelerometer, proximity
• Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot/ LTE /5G
• USB Type-C
• 6000 mAh Battery, supports 80W SUPERVOOC charging
• Android 15
• realme UI 6.0 Edition
• Pearl White, Suede Grey
• Price: P27,999