realme Narzo 60 review
The Realme Narzo 60 is a budget smartphone that aims to impress with its sleek design and robust features. Priced at around ₹18K, this device promises to deliver high-quality visuals on its AMOLED display and capture stunning photos with its newly designed camera setup. But does it live up to its premium looks? Can the Snapdragon 695 processor handle demanding tasks without lagging behind? And how well does it perform in low-light conditions? In this review, we'll delve into the Narzo 60's strengths and weaknesses, helping you decide if it's worth your hard-earned cash.
Build Quality and Design
The Realme Narzo 60 is an intriguing smartphone that boasts a premium design despite its budget-friendly price tag. The phone's build quality is impressive, with a sleek and sturdy body that feels like it's made of stainless steel (albeit plastic). The frames are minimalist, adding to the overall aesthetic appeal. One of the standout features of the Narzo 60 is its camera module, which is reminiscent of the Realme Pro Series. The design language is unmistakable, with a clean and symmetrical look that makes the phone feel like a premium offering. The rear panel is made of vegan leather, similar to what we've seen on the iPhone 14 Pro series. This adds a touch of sophistication to the overall design, making the Narzo 60 stand out from its budget-friendly peers. In terms of size and shape, the Narzo 60 is slightly taller than its predecessors but retains the same footprint. The boxy design makes it feel more substantial in hand, while the display's slight offset adds a touch of personality to the phone's overall look. Overall, the Realme Narzo 60's build quality and design are impressive for a budget-friendly smartphone. While it may not be as premium-looking as some of its competitors, the Narzo 60 certainly holds its own in terms of aesthetic appeal.
Battery Life
The Realme Narzo 60 is a budget smartphone that promises to deliver good performance at an affordable price. While it may not be the best in every department, its battery life is indeed one of its standout features. The phone comes with a 5000mAh battery, which is impressive considering its price segment. In our usage tests, we found that the Narzo 60 easily lasts for three to four days on moderate to heavy use. For super-heavy users, it can even stretch up to two days without needing a recharge. One of the reasons behind this excellent battery life is the phone's efficient hardware and software combination. The Realme UI based on Android 13 helps in managing resources effectively, ensuring that the battery lasts longer. Additionally, the phone comes with a 67W charger in the box, which can quickly top up the battery to 100% when needed. While it may not be as good as some of its competitors, the Narzo 60's battery life is certainly commendable for a budget smartphone. If you're looking for a device that can last all day and still have some juice left over, then the Realme Narzo 60 is definitely worth considering.
Display
The Realme Narzo 60 boasts an impressive display that's sure to catch the eye. The phone features an AMOLED panel, a notable upgrade from the LCD display found in its predecessor. This change results in better color accuracy and overall visual quality. One of the standout features of the display is its beautiful design. The screen is slightly rounded, giving it a premium look that's hard to find at this price point. The vegan leather backing complements the display nicely, creating a cohesive and stylish aesthetic. The punch-hole camera cutout is another notable change from previous Realme phones, which often featured an Infinity V-style notch. This design decision gives the phone a more modern feel, but may not be to everyone's taste. Performance-wise, the display holds up well under various conditions. The AMOLED panel handles color and contrast well, making it suitable for both casual use and entertainment purposes. However, it's worth noting that this is still a budget-friendly device, so don't expect the most advanced or feature-rich display experience on the market. In terms of specific features, the Narzo 60 offers a decent viewing experience, but some may find the lack of higher refresh rates (it only goes up to 90Hz) and limited color gamut somewhat restrictive. Nevertheless, considering its price point, the display is certainly one of the highlights of this device. If you're looking for an affordable phone with good visuals and a premium feel, the Narzo 60's display is definitely worth checking out.
Camera
The Realme Narzo 60 camera is a mixed bag. On one hand, the phone takes decent shots with good details, but on the other hand, it struggles in low-light situations. In well-lit environments, the camera produces photos with natural colors and sufficient detail. However, when faced with dim lighting, the results are less impressive. Even with the night mode enabled, the images lack vibrancy and tend to be noisy. The zoom capabilities of the camera are a redeeming feature, allowing for up to 20x digital zoom without any significant loss in quality. This is especially true when compared to other phones in this price segment. One notable issue with the Realme Narzo 60's camera is its inability to produce spectacular low-light shots. Compared to some of the other phones available at similar prices, the Narzo 60's low-light performance is underwhelming. Video recording capabilities are limited to 1080p resolution from the rear camera, and there is no optical image stabilization (OIS) to help reduce camera shake. This results in a slightly jerky and unsteady video experience, especially when panning or moving around. On the selfie front, the 16-megapixel camera takes decent photos with sufficient detail. However, it's not exceptionally good and may not be enough for those who frequently take selfies. Overall, while the Realme Narzo 60 camera is capable of producing some good shots, its limitations in low-light situations and video recording capabilities bring down its overall performance. For a phone priced around Rs 18,000, the expectations would be to have at least decent camera capabilities. However, considering the competition from other brands like IQ z7s, Motorola G82, and Realme's own offerings like the 10 Pro, it's hard to justify the Narzo 60 as a top choice for those looking for great cameras. The phone does excel in terms of battery life and charging speed, but its camera performance is not exceptional enough to warrant a purchase decision solely based on that.
Price and Value
Priced at around Rs. 17,000 (18K) with bank offers, the Realme Narzo 60 is an intriguing device in the budget segment. At first glance, it looks like a premium phone, with its sleek design and vegan leather finish. However, upon closer inspection, one starts to question whether the price justifies the features. One of the major drawbacks of this phone is its performance. Powered by the Snapdragon 695 chip, it's slightly inferior compared to the previous year's Narzo 50, which had the Dimensity 810 processor. While it handles day-to-day tasks with ease, it falters when pushed to play games on default settings. Tweaking the settings slightly can alleviate this issue, but it's still a concern for gamers. The camera department is another area where the Narzo 60 falls short. The 50MP primary sensor and 2MP depth sensor produce decent photos, but lack vibrancy and sometimes details are missing. Low-light performance is not impressive either, with noise visible even in well-lit scenes. Video recording is limited to 1080p without OIS, resulting in shaky footage. The battery life, on the other hand, is a highlight of this phone. The 5000mAh cell delivers excellent backup, lasting up to three to four days for moderate users and two days for heavy users. Considering its price point, there are better options available, such as the IQ z7s or Motorola G82, which offer features like 120Hz displays with OIS support. Even within Realme's own portfolio, the Narzo 10 Pro offers a superior display experience at a similar price point. Ultimately, whether or not to buy the Realme Narzo 60 depends on one's priorities. If you value battery life and camera performance is not a top concern, this phone might be worth considering. However, if you're looking for better overall value, there are other options available in the market that offer more features at similar prices.
Performance
The Realme Narzo 60's performance is a mixed bag. On the plus side, it's powered by a new CPU, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 6020, which performs well for day-to-day tasks and handles camera-intensive activities with ease. However, when pushing the phone to its limits, such as playing games on the default setting or demanding apps, users may experience some lag. In comparison to last year's Narzo 50, which had a Dimensity 810 chip, the Snapdragon 6020 is slightly inferior in terms of performance. The only notable advantage of the Narzo 60 is its ability to play videos up to 1440p on YouTube, whereas the Dimensity 695 variant can only handle up to 1080p. The phone's Android operating system is based on Realme UI 4.0 and runs smoothly with minimal lag. However, users may need to spend some time customizing settings and apps, as it comes pre-installed with several default applications that might not be desirable. In terms of memory management, the Narzo 60 performs well, but users may notice a slightly higher number of notification apps compared to other smartphones. Overall, while the Narzo 60's performance is adequate for general use, it falls short in demanding scenarios. Its lackluster performance compared to last year's model and its inability to keep up with more recent releases make it a less appealing option in the mid-range segment.
Pros
1. This phone could be one of the best-looking phones for the price segment.
2. The design is pretty cool, with stainless steel-like frames that look premium.
3. The camera is completely newly designed, similar to the Realme Pro Series and features a punch hole camera.
4. The display is beautiful, with good color accuracy and a 90Hz refresh rate.
5. The performance of this phone is good for daily tasks, although it may experience some lag when playing games on default settings.
6. You can play up to 1440p videos on YouTube, which is an advantage over the Snapdragon 695-based phones.
7. The phone has a large 5000mAh battery that provides excellent backup, lasting up to three to four days for moderate use.
8. The charger included in the box is fast, taking some time to charge the phone completely.
Cons
1. The launch price of this phone is 18K, which may be out of budget for some users.
2. You can buy other good phones like the IQ z7s and Motorola G82 at a similar price point, offering features like a 120Hz display with OIS.
3. The Realme Narzo 60's camera is not one of the best in its segment, particularly in low-light conditions.
4. The video recording capabilities are limited to 1080p, without OIS, which can result in some shake and poor quality.
5. Selfie camera quality is decent but not exceptional.
6. The phone may have some issues with Bluetooth applications, which might be a concern for some users.
7. The Realme Narzo 60's price point puts it in competition with the Realme 10 Pro, which offers better display and battery life at a similar price.
8. The camera zoom capabilities are not exceptional, and quality may degrade when using the digital zoom feature.