Realme 14 Pro Plus review: Flagship looks and performance at mid-range price | Technology News

Design

The Realme 14 Pro Plus is available in three colourways—Suede Grey, Bikaner Purple, and Pearl White. I received the Pearl White variant, which has a marble-like rear panel that changes colour when exposed to temperatures below 16 degree Celsius. At first glance, it reminded me of the OnePlus 11 Marble Odyssey edition, but Realme has a nifty little trick up its sleeve.

Realme claims the phone uses a “natural micro-crystal shell powder,” which reacts to cold temperatures, creating a “dreamlike blue texture offset with white and gold.” In Delhi’s winter, I frequently saw the phone change colour when taken outdoors or even when washed under a tap. However, this effect has limitations. Realme states that the colour-changing effect is strongest when the phone is new and may fade after a few months, ultimately leaving users with a white, marble-like phone.

I use most phones without a case or a cover, and since this phone’s back panel is super smooth, I thought it would be slippery, but the Realme 14 Pro Plus has a quad-curved screen with edges that blend into the body, making it comfortable to hold. Not once did I feel like the phone would slip out of my hands.

Realme claims the phone comes with IP66, IP68 and IP69 ratings, and I did put the phone to test. While I did not drop the phone, I submerged it in both cold and hot water for a few minutes and it worked as expected.

Realme UI 6.0 is one of the smoothest Android skins of all time. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)

Display

One of the main gripes I have with Realme phones is their tall but narrow form factor. This holds true for the Realme 14 Pro Plus. It has a huge 6.83-inch 120Hz curved AMOLED screen, which is really bright under direct sunlight and is a pleasure to look at. Whether watching videos, browsing the web, or texting outdoors, visibility is excellent.

However, as with most curved-screen phones, accidental touches can be a problem. While watching videos in landscape mode was seamless, gaming was another story. Games like Genshin Impact, BGMI, or Mobile Legends often registered unintended touches. A potential workaround is using the included case or a third-party one, but that diminishes the phone’s unique aesthetic.

Software and performance

The Realme 14 Pro Plus runs Realme UI 15 based on Android 15 out of the box, which is nearly identical to OxygenOS 15 and ColorOS 15, offering the same features as OnePlus and Oppo devices.

Performance-wise, Realme UI is smooth and lag-free. In fact, at times, I found it smoother than Apple’s iOS, but your experience may vary. However, Realme has removed app-launching animations, which I personally miss, as they add fluidity to the experience, especially when compared to high-end OnePlus and Oppo phones.

Under the hood, the Realme 14 Pro Plus is powered by MediaTek’s Dimensity 8350 chipset, a mid-range chipset that can easily handle day-to-day tasks and even play some games at a high refresh rate if you are willing to tone down the graphic settings by a bit. I have the 12GB RAM and 256GB version of the phone, and never did I once encounter lags or stutters.

For graphically demanding titles like Genshin Impact, Zenless Zone Zero, or Wuthering Waves, settings need to be dialled down to low or a mix of low and medium for optimal performance. Realme claims the phone can run BGMI at 90fps, but so can many other mid-range devices. While not the fastest chipset in its segment, it certainly gets the job done.

The Realme 14 Pro Plus also happens to be the few phones with three flashes. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)

Camera

Beyond design, the camera setup is another standout feature. The phone’s large circular camera module houses a 50MP Sony IMX896 primary sensor, a 50MP Sony IMX882 periscope telephoto lens with 3x optical zoom, and an 8MP ultrawide shooter. It is also one of the first smartphones to feature a triple-flash setup.

The primary camera delivers excellent shots in most lighting conditions. However, I noticed a slight colour shift when switching to the periscope telephoto lens. Despite the high megapixel count, low-light performance of the telephoto sensor lags behind the primary camera.

However, this can be compensated for using the triple flash setup, which has two white flashes in addition to a colour-adjustable light, which reminded me of Vivo’s Auralight. Not only can you adjust the brightness of these flashes, but also change the colour of the third flash from red to white.

This may seem gimmicky at first, but it does make a huge difference when taking photos or recording videos in low-light conditions. When I took pictures in extreme darkness without turning on the flash, or flashes, I noticed that the images were grainy as expected and lacked detail. But when I turned on the three flashes, it lit up the image without making it look like I was standing in front of a floodlight.

The periscope telephoto sensor is impressive for a mid-range device. It proved particularly useful at the Auto Expo, allowing me to capture detailed shots of car interiors from a distance with minimal noise. The ultrawide camera, however, is underwhelming. Shots appear soft and lack detail, particularly when capturing wide-angle images from close distances. I hope Realme incorporates a higher-resolution ultrawide sensor in future iterations.

The primary camera takes sharp, detailed and slightly oversaturated photos during time. (Image Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
Indoor photos with adequate lighting are detiled and crisp as well. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
A photo from one of Delhi’s many foggy nights. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
Even in low light conditions, the main camera has details and almost no noise. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
Here’s an ultrawide shot of MG’s concept car at the Auto Expo 2025. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
The 8MP ultrawide camera clicks somewhat good images when there is enough light. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
I like how the Realme 14 Pro Plus was able to accurately capture the sky, but the 8MP sensor lacks details. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
The periscope telephoto camera is pretty good as well. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)
Photos captured by the periscope telephoto sensor are soft and sometimes lacked details. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)

Battery

The Realme 14 Pro Plus has a huge 6,000mAh silicon-carbon battery. My typical usage involves using navigation almost every day, making multiple calls, replying to texts, browsing the internet and listening to music for hours on end. Despite my heavy usage, I noticed that the phone had around 10-20 per cent battery remaining the other morning, and I am pretty sure the phone will easily last two days if you are a light or moderate user. Honestly, I have been loving the increased battery capacity, and now it is really hard for me to go back to phones with 5,000mAh or less battery capacity.

The only gripe I have is the 8MP ultrawide shooter and the lack of animations in Realme UI 6. (Photo Credit: Anurag Chawake/The Indian Express)

Realme 14 Pro Plus: Should you buy it?

With so many options in the mid-range smartphone segment, it is hard to recommend a device since everyone’s use case is different. The Realme 14 Pro Plus has a decent chipset, good cameras for the asking price, excellent battery life and a great design that makes you feel like you are holding a flagship phone.

If you are looking for a smartphone for everyday usage or are a photography enthusiast who also happens to record videos every now and then, the Realme 14 Pro Plus might appeal to you. However, those looking for long-term software support and want to play the latest games at high settings should look elsewhere. While there is nothing exceptional about the phone, it stands out with its huge battery, unique design and impressive primary and telephoto shooter, making it an easy recommendation for most people who are looking to buy a phone for around Rs 30,000.