Hands on with the realme 14 5G smartphone!
Upon unboxing, the mecha-inspired design of the realme 14 5G looked cool for me. It further showed impressive performance during my gaming review with FPS tests.
However, further testing revealed some disadvantages. Let’s take a closer look at the device including its display, connectivity, performance, camera quality, software, and battery. Here’s my realme 14 5G review!
I love the mecha-inspired design of the realme 14 5G in Mecha Silver colorway… probably because I’m a fan of giant robot shows (mecha) like Gundam and Pacific Rim. However, it won’t appeal to everyone. Thankfully, it comes in tamer color variants – Storm Titanium and Warrior Pink.
The boxy frame is complemented by bold orange accents, including the power button, giving it a distinct, futuristic aesthetic. The back panel tends to attract smudges though, so you’ll need to wipe it down occasionally or use the included FREE phone case.
On the durability front, it has an IP69 rating which is the highest degree of water and dust resistance. This means peace of mind whether you’re using it near a pool or in the rain. In my testing, it even survived an accidental coffee spill without issue.
The realme 14 5G has a large 6.67-inch FHD+ AMOLED display. It still feels compact to use because of the narrow bezels all around the screen.
It’s a bright display with a peak brightness of 2000 nits but without HDR playback support for Netflix. Texts and graphics remain legible outdoors even under the noontime sun.
Visuals and animations look smooth thanks to its 120Hz refresh rate. I enjoyed watching videos and scrolling across TikTok and Facebook using the device.
In terms of audio, the stereo loudspeakers can get loud with its 300% volume booster but the sound quality isn’t great. It’s tinny at high volumes.
The realme 14 5G is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 4 with 12GB of physical RAM. It scored 757,000+ points on the Antutu benchmark.
Performance in basic tasks is smooth and snappy. Apps open quickly and switching between apps is usually lag-free.
Meanwhile, gaming performance is smooth in MOBA games like Mobile Legends and Honor of Kings even at Ultra graphics quality. More resource-intensive games like Call of Duty and Genshin Impact are also playable.
It has a large 6050mm² vapor chamber for cooling and GT Mode for enhanced performance. I have a detailed gaming review of the realme 14 5G here.
While its performance is impressive, there’s a throttling issue when GT Mode is activated. After several minutes of pushing the phone’s limits, it automatically lowers the game’s framerate probably for thermal management.
The realme 14 5G is equipped with a 50 Megapixel main camera and an auxiliary or “decorative” secondary lens at the back. It would have been better if there’s an ultrawide camera in the latter’s place.
Its 50MP main camera can capture good-looking pictures in well-lit scenes. Images look sharp and detailed with decent colors and dynamic range.
Low-light pictures tend to be grainy but Night mode enhances images making them shareable on social media. Here are several sample pictures:
On the front is a 16 Megapixel selfie camera. It’s capable of producing decent selfies with pleasing skin tone.
It applies a beautification filter by default but can be changed to make selfies look more natural.
Here are some sample selfies:
The built-in Photos app also has an AI Editor to erase unwanted objects or make blurry pictures sharper.
For videos, the realme 14 5G has a maximum shooting resolution of 4K. However, video stabilization is capped at 1080p.
The realme 14 5G runs on the Android 15 operating system with the realme UI 6.0 software. It has a neat user interface and plenty of customization options.
Apps launch swiftly but there are several pre-installed apps with a few that can be considered as bloatwares. These can be easily uninstalled including some annoying notifications.
Gamers will appreciate the different gaming-centric software features including a voice changer, power tuning, notification blocker, bypass charging, and more.
The realme 14 5G is a dual-SIM smartphone with 5G connectivity. Mobile data speeds are good in areas with 5G cellular signal. Its SIM card tray is hybrid type which means it can accommodate a microSD card instead of a second SIM card.
Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and GPS also work well. It supports 5GHz Wi-Fi networks too.
For security, the device has an under-display fingerprint scanner with decently quick unlocking speed. There’s a face unlock feature via the selfie camera too.
The realme 14 5G is powered by a large-capacity 6,000mAh battery. It uses the new Silicon-Carbon anode technology for Lithium-ion batteries which means it packs more battery capacity in a smaller volume.
It lasts a long time on a single charge – almost 2 days with my normal usage. Playing games continuously drains the battery in around 10 hours.
Meanwhile, recharging takes around 80 minutes to reach 100% using the 45W bundled charger. That’s acceptable given the battery capacity but I wish it was slightly faster.
The realme 14 5G has a cool design, good performance, decent cameras, feature-packed software, and long-battery life. I recommend it for MOBA gamers (ML, HOK).
A few competitors have better specs but the realme 14 5G is a more polished product. If I was looking for a device in this price range, I would highly consider the realme 14 5G.
However, it has a few shortcomings. There’s no ultrawide camera, charging speed isn’t as fast as competitors, thermal issues when performance is pushed to the limits, and the design isn’t for everyone.
It’s now available in realme physical stores, authorized retailers, and official online shops.
