realme C15 Unboxing and First Impressions

realme's newest handset in town is not your ordinary budget smartphone, it's a handset with the biggest battery capacity in its class yet—the C15.

C15 PH version

Starting at PHP 6,490, the realme C15 is the most affordable in the country featuring a monstrous 6,000mAh battery which can easily last for up to 2 days on a single charge and a power bank feature that can charge other devices when needed.

Aside from the big battery capacity, it also goes with a modern-looking design, capable overall specs for multitasking and a bit of gaming, and plenty of cameras at the back with different photography modes.

Could this be the one for those who are looking for a handset with extra strong battery performance?

Here's our review part 1.

Unboxing/Accessories

PH Squad Edition Box (Doodle Box)

The C15 PH version arrived with the custom Squad Edition Box (Doodle Box). Inside, you'll find a smaller box containing the paper documents and SIM ejector tool.

Next is the phone itself with a pre-installed screen protector. Under the phone are the 9V/2A (18W) USB wall charger and USB-A to micro USB data and charging cables.

Unlike higher-end realme devices, there's no case included in the box. There are no earphones as usual as well.

Build Quality/Design

Unique back design

C15's build is very similar to other realme C series phones and realme 6i. It features a sturdy and textured polycarbonate shell, 2.5D curved glass display with Corning's Gorilla Glass protection, and P2i water splash resistance. It generally feels sturdy and should a few hard drops even without the case.

Hefty, but sturdy and attractive!

What's new with the device is the design. It comes with a curved "Geometric Gradient Design"  at the back highlighting a unique texture for improved grip as well as resistance to fingerprints and scratches.

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I also like that it goes with the square quad-camera hump with a minimal protrusion, unlike other budget smartphones. You will also see that it has an LED flash below the camera hump and an easy to reach fingerprint screen in the upper-middle portion behind.

6.5-inch panel!

In the front, it uses a 6.5-inch HD+ display with a notch. The top and side bezels are slim. The chin bezel is thicker, but that's normal on budget smartphones.

Not that thick for a phone with big battery capacity!

The phone measures at 164.5 x 75.9 mm. Surprisingly, it is just 9.8 mm slim. This simply means that the C15 is not thick for a smartphone with a massive 6,000mAh battery.

Top and bottom

There's nothing on top. Below, you'll find a single speaker grille, micro USB port, microphone holes, and a 3.5mm audio jack.

Left and right keys

At left, you'll find a pinhole for the triple-slot tray. On the right side, the power button and volume up and down keys are properly placed.

Overall, the phone is well machined and there are no sharp edges. It is fairly comfortable with two hands as well. But due to its large size and battery capacity, it is a little bit hefty at 209 grams.

realme C15 Specs

Display: 6.5-inch 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass protected IPS LCD screen w/ HD+ 1600 x 720 resolution at 270 ppi

CPU: 2.3GHz 12nm Helio G35 octa-core processor

GPU: PowerVR GE8320 (680MHz)

RAM: 3GB/4GB LPDDR4X

ROM: 64GB eMMC 5.1 expandable via microSD card slot up to 256GB (dedicated)

Back Camera: 13MP f/2.2 w/ PDAF + 8MP f/2.25 w/ 119-degree ultra-wide-angle + 2MP f/2.4 w/ retro + 2MP f/2.4 w/ mono + LED flash

Selfie Camera: 8MP f/2.0

Battery: 6,000mAh w/ 18W charger

OS: Android 10.0 w/ realme UI 1.0

Connectivity: WiFi 802.11b/g/n/ac, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, OTG, FM Radio, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, dual SIM

Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic

Others: Fingerprint sensor, face unlock, P2i splash resistance, Dirac HD Sound, Colors: Marine Blue, Seagull Silver

Dimensions: 164.5 x 75.9 x 9.8 mm

Weight: 209 g

Price: PHP 6,490 (3GB/64GB), PHP 6,990 (4GB/64GB)

As of the moment

AnTuTu and Geekbench results

realme C15 is looking to be the battery champ on a budget. It could be the right handset for those in need of a phone that simply keeps on going and going and going.

In fact, we still have to charge our review unit after two straight days of using it as a secondary handset. We also find it neat and stylish looking with reasonably snappy performance (even for the 3GB RAM version) and stable connectivity functions for a budget smartphone.

Fairly clear cameras!

We also like that aside from its battery, realme didn't forget about its cameras and made sure that it is loaded with features like Nightscape Mode, Chroma Boost, Slo-mo, and up to 1080p videos.

So far, it has more pros than cons.

Watch out for our full review!