realme C85 Unboxing, First Impressions, and First Camera Samples - Big battery and pool-friendly

In case you missed it, the new realme C85 is now official in the Philippines.

realme C85 design

It is a budget smartphone with a robust build, best-in-class dust and water resistance, and 

To recap, the realme C85 boasts a drop-resistant build, triple IP resistance: IP66/68/69K, making it the best rating yet for its segment. It also features a large 7,000mAh battery, a 6.8-inch 144Hz display, 5G-ready chip.

Let's dive deeper.

Unboxing/Accessories

The box

The realme C85 came with the usual Yellow colored box. You'd find the brand's logo and model unit on top. While at the bottom, there's some print of its quick features.

Inside the box

Upon opening, you'll be greeted by the C85 unit, transparent case, USB-A to USB-C cable, 45W SUPERVOOC charger, SIM injector tool, and Paperworks for a quick guide and warranty.

Build Quality/Design 

The design

In terms of construction, the C85's rear is made of glossy polycarbonate material. realme claims it has a bend resistance of up to 25kg, thanks to the multi-layer structure capable of absorbing or cushioning shocks.

The phone can also survive accidental drops, bumps, or even impacts, thus earning it a MIL-STD-810H rating for Military Grade Shock Resistance.

Among its standout features is the triple IP rating of IP66/68/69K. This means the realme C85 can withstand close-range high-pressure water jets, 1.5M water submersion for 30 minutes, and survive annoying dust or dirt.

Solid water-resistance

We tested those claims during our weekend getaway. We got carried away and had the realme C85 splashed and submerged in a 5-foot pool for around 1 hour and 30 minutes. 

Surprisingly, the phone can hold up for such a long period and did not even sustain any water damage, not even moisture. But of course, don't do that so casually, as this will also void your warranty. 

For its looks, we have the Peacock Green, which boasts Light Feather Design. You can literally see glowing feathers when light hits the phone's back, thus giving a more elegant vibe even at a budget price.

If you want a lighter color, you can always choose the Parrot Purple with similar glowing feather effects.

Up front is a microphone hole, while at the bottom you'd find a SIM card slot, a microphone hole, USB-C, and a speaker grill.

The left portion has a blank space, while the right area has a fingerprint scanner and volume rockers.

Another highlight to point out is its large 7,000mAh battery capacity. It can really last for more than two days, as we didn't have to charge the device during the last weekend until Monday. 

We used it heavily for taking photos or videos in the pool, some food shots at night, and even as an emergency power bank for our main device. And guess what? It still had around 30 percent in the tank after that before we hit the plug.

The cameras

Moving to its cameras. The realme C85 features a 50MP Sony IMX852 sensor coupled with a Flicker sensor and an LED flash. At the front, it carries an 8MP camera for selfies.

First Camera Samples

Outdoor greens 28mm

Outdoor building 28mm

Outdoor building 56mm

Indoor 28mm

Indoor 56mm

Indoor food shot 28mm

Indoor food shot sample 2

Selfie sample outdoor

Selfie camera outdoor lowlight

Our initial test results showed the realme C85 has a decent camera. After all, it uses a Sony sensor that can take well-exposed shots across daylight, indoor, and outdoor scenarios. 

The images we got are decently clear and detailed, so you can confidently share them straight on IG or Facebook. We are particularly pleased with realme's color rendering as it was spot on during our food shots and indoor snaps.

It also has a usable zoom at 2x lossless quality (56mm), although as you try push further, you'll lose more detail and the image gets grainier. Overall, the aforementioned 56mm focal length should be enough for most of your portrait shots.

For low light, realme's imaging can still get the exact color of the scene, while also providing bright photos under such conditions. Ofcourse there are visible flares, noises, and reduced dynamic range. You'll get more of these as you zoom in further.

Another gripe here is that at PHP 15K, the phone could also use an ultra-wide lens to provide users with a usable focal length when needed.

For selfies, the realme C85's front camera provides generally okay images. The 8MP shooter can deliver with enough details, some visible texture on our face, and surprisingly nice dynamic range if you take a closer look at the background.

realme C85 5G Specs

Display: 6.8-inch ArmorShell Glass protected LCD (IPS) screen w/ 144Hz refresh rate, 180Hz touch sampling rate, HD+ 1570 x 720 resolution at 254 ppi

CPU: 2.4Ghz 6nm Dimensity 6300 octa-core processor

GPU: Mali-G57 MC2

RAM: 8GB

ROM: 256GB expandable storage via microSD card slot up to 2TB

Back Camera: 50MP Sony IMX852 PDAF f/1.8 + LED flash

Selfie Camera: 8MP f/2.0

Battery: 7,000mAh w/ 45W SUPERVOOC

OS: Android 15 w/ realme UI 6.0

Connectivity: WiFi (2.4GHz/5GHz), 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.0 (SBC, AAC, LDAC), OTG, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, Galileo, QZSS, dual SIM (nano)

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

Others: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, IP66/68/69 dust and water resistance, USB-C, Colors: Peacock Green, Parrot Purple

Dimensions: 166.1 x 77.9 x 8.4 mm

Weight: 215 g

Price: 14,999

Quick thoughts

The realme C85 definitely brought meaningful improvements from its predecessor.

Not only is it more durable than ever with its ArmorShell protection and triple IP rating, but you'll also get longer battery life with the 7,000mAh battery.

Additionally, the device also receive speedier processor, but you'll also get a Sony sensor for better mobile photography both in daylight and low light scenarios.

The downside we can see is that it only has an HD+ resolution, even if the refresh rate is smoother than usual at 144Hz.

Stay tuned for our full review.