2022 realme 9i Specification & Review | Sticks with Snapdragon 680 and 33W Dart Charge
realme 9i key specs: · 6.6″ Ultra Smooth 90Hz display · 4GB/64GB | 6GB/128GB · Snapdragon 680 4G chipset · 5000mAh battery · 50MP AI Triple Camera.
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| Photo of realme 9i Android smartphone. Released: Jan 2022 Price: US$385,00 | IDR 2,699,000 (4/64GB), IDR 2,999,000 (6/128GB) |
After just presenting the realme 9 variant for use on the 4G network, realme is back to offering a similar product that is priced at a more affordable price. Allowing users at the beginner level to be able to experience the power efficiency offered by the 6nm Snapdragon 680 chipset. Interestingly, in this price range, in addition to offering a charming chipset, the product named realme 9i is also accompanied by 33W Dart Charge technology.
In addition to the combination of RAM and ROM adjusted by the realme 9i product, practically nothing is reduced from the realme 9 in this product. We have mentioned that the realme 9i still carries the Snapdragon 680 chipset and 33W Dart Charge fast charging. In addition, this smartphone also still carries the 90Hz screen specifications and a number of technologies brought by realme UI.
realme 9i Full Specifications
| realme 9i Specs | |
|---|---|
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| Color Options | Prism Blue and Prism Black |
| Sales Package | realme 9i smartphone, USB type-C data cable, Dart Charge 33W charger adapter, Silicon case, manual book, PIN ejector |
| Dimensions & Weight (mm&grams) | 164.4 x 75.7 x 8.4 mm/ 190 grams |
| Network & Connectivity | Dual Nano SIM, 4G LTE/HSPA+/3G/2G, WiFi |
| Operating System (OS) | realme UI 2.0, based on Android 11 |
| Supported external storage | Yes, MicroSD card up to 1TB |
| Display | 6.6 inches, ~90.8% screen-to-body ratio, 1080 x 2412 pixels, IPS LCD, 90Hz, Dragontrail Pro Glass |
| Processor/ CPU | Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 (6nm); Octa-core CPU (4×2.4 GHz Kryo 265 Gold + 4×1.9 GHz Kryo 265 Silver), GPU: Adreno 610 |
| RAM & Internal Storage | 4 GB RAM / 64 GB ROM 6 GB RAM/ 128 GB ROM |
| Camera (MP/feature) rear/front | Triple Rear: 50 MP f/1.8 Main Camera 2 MP f/2.4, Macro 2 MP f/2.4 BW Video: 1080p 30fps, 720p 30fps Front Single: |
| Battery type (type) | 5000 mAh Li-ion (non-removable), Dart Charge 33W |
realme 9i Features
| Removable battery | No | Fingerprint | Yes |
| Multitouch | Yes | Dual Front Camera | No |
| Dual SIM | Yes | External memory | Yes |
| 3G HSDPA | Yes | Gyroscope | Yes |
| 4G LTE | Yes | Stereo Speaker | Yes |
| 5G Ready | No | 4K video recording | No |
| NFC | No | Video player | Yes |
| USB On-the-go | Yes | Music player | Yes |
| GPS | Yes | 3.5 Audio Port | Yes |
realme 9i Advantages & Disadvantages
| ADVANTAGES | DISADVANTAGES |
| Latest 4G chipset with better power efficiency | No NFC yet |
| 33W Dart Charge | Still realme UI 2.0 based on Android 11 |
| A capable camera in low light conditions | |
| Attractive back cover design | |
| Screen with adaptive refresh rate up to 90Hz | |
| 5000 mAh Battery |
realme 9i Reviews
Stereo Prism Design
As usual, our review this time begins by discussing the overall smartphone design. And, as usual, we will start with realme’s approach to beautifying the back cover with a design that is again different from previous products.
This time, on the realme 9i, the back cover looks neat with thin lines extending from top to bottom and repeating to create the effect of 3000 line combinations that are able to change the light in each line which is caused by the difference in angle and depth of the lines. Realme calls it a stereo prism design.
The application of the line design is then stacked into several layers, including optical layers and light paths with refraction, and then finished with a transparent layer to maintain high and relatively clear color saturation.
If I may say, the outermost layer does not have a significant texture. It feels smooth, but not slippery. But when exposed to light from a different angle, vertical lines will be visible which give a charming color effect.
In addition to the attractive new coloring, the back cover has also been embedded with a camera section, with two large circles and one small circle accompanied by an LED flash. This part protrudes slightly from the surface of the back cover.
While on the edge, there is a power button that is made to protrude inward. Indicating that this power button also functions as a fingerprint sensor. Then there is a volume button on the opposite side, with a protruding shape as usual. And finally there is a 3.5mm audio port, speaker cone and USB type C plug on the bottom side.
Well, there is something interesting on the audio output side. Where realme 9i does not only rely on the speaker cone at the bottom. Because this product has adopted dual stereo speaker technology, so the audio output also takes place from the earpiece, or speaker cone above the screen.
We can feel this when listening to music, watching YouTube or playing games. In the smartphone landscape position, the stereo effect will come from two opposite directions, making listening and watching or playing games on this smartphone more immersive.
Adaptive Screen with Refresh Rate Up to 90Hz
The presence of a 6.6-inch screen on the realme 9i makes this smartphone a smartphone with a relatively wide screen. Suitable for those who need a screen to read a lot of documents, or watch content on a large screen.
This screen panel is an IPS LCD with a maximum brightness recorded at 480 nits and an adaptive refresh rate of up to 90Hz. First introduced in the realme 9 Pro, this adaptive screen technology can also save power because the system can determine the right refresh rate for the content we are enjoying.
For example, when we are enjoying a game, the system will offer the highest refresh rate at 90Hz, but when watching a movie, it can be lowered to 48Hz. When watching analog TV shows, for example, it can then be adjusted to 50Hz, or when reading manga it can only be 30Hz and so on.
Makes the screen not continuously at the highest refresh rate, and will automatically reduce the power needed to achieve that refresh rate.
Carrying FHD + resolution, aka 2412 x 1080 pixels, the images displayed on the realme 9i screen are fairly dense. Up to 401 pixels per inch. Almost 90.8 percent of the front of the smartphone is filled with an interactive screen, because the front camera is placed in a single punch hole design that relatively does not require much space.
User Interface and Built-in Features
Different from a number of other realme 9 series smartphones, this realme 9i still carries realme UI 2.0 based on Android 11. Not too bad, considering the combination of RAM vs ROM carried by this product is the smallest among the other realme 9 series.
It doesn’t matter, because realme UI 2.0 also has a number of interesting and useful features, such as RAM DRE aka Dynamic RAM Expansion. This feature will give us the freedom to add dynamic RAM that will take some parts of the ROM to be used as temporary RAM when needed.
Game Space, Phone Manager, to the Power Saving Menu are some of the built-in applications that are appropriate to be applied to smartphones like the realme 9i.
CPU, GPU and Memory
The realme 9i smartphone is equipped with the latest 4G network chipset from Qualcomm, Snapdragon 680. This chipset has a 6nm fabrication. This means that every component in this chipset is built with small transistors, only 6nm from the source point to the drain point. So that it allows for high transistor density in a chip design.
This high density will increase the efficiency of power usage much better. Because the distance traveled by the current is also getting smaller. Therefore, chipsets with small fabrication like this are often referred to as chipsets with low power consumption.
Back to the Snapdragon 680, this chipset carries a CPU with 8 cores, consisting of 4 kryo 265 Gold cores (derivatives of Cortex A73) with a clock speed of 2.4 GHz and 4 Kryo 265 Silver cores (derivatives of Cortex A55) with a clock speed of 1.9 GHz. When compared to the previous popular 4G chipset, the 680 has increased performance by up to 25%. Especially on the AI and machine learning side.
In addition to the CPU, this chipset also carries the Adreno 610 GPU, which is a mid-high class GPU with proven performance. Together with Snapdragon 680, this GPU can accelerate 10% better than the previous generation chipset.
Judging from the results of GeekBench 5, the performance of this smartphone is very identical to the realme 9 which also carries the same chipset. But in Antutu, the value is slightly lower, which still reaches 250-300 thousand, but in several experiments, it is often below the performance of the realme 9, which makes us conclude that this is due to memory.
Yes, the realme 9i memory only consists of 4GB RAM with 64GB ROM (the product we reviewed). Based on the information that reached our ears, realme Indonesia also provides a variant with a higher ROM, namely 128GB accompanied by 6GB of RAM for smartphones that are available in almost all realme Official Stores online.
Battery and Dart Charge
The realme 9i smartphone is equipped with a 5000 mAh battery. Paired with a 6nm chipset, as well as a UI that offers energy-saving features, plus a screen refresh rate that is also friendly to power usage, this capacity is sufficient to keep the smartphone alive all day long. Making it suitable for use by those who work outside the home.
And with the support of 33W Dart Charge fast charging, we don’t need much time to recharge the battery. It only takes 70 minutes to charge the battery from 0 to 100%. So when you are touring on a motorbike to a faraway place, you can stop for a moment for 10 minutes to charge the battery so you can continue riding for hours.
Even if we are forced to save power, this smartphone already has the Power Save Mode and Super Power Save mode features, which can be activated when the battery is 20% and will turn off a number of functions that are not needed. So that you can still send news or make calls for the next 2 hours.
50MP Camera
The rear camera carried by the realme 9i consists of 3 cameras for 3 different needs. First, there is a 50MP UltraHD camera with an f/1.8 aperture. Seeing these specifications, we can expect good performance when used in less than optimal lighting conditions.
Second, there is a 2MP Black and White camera to create professional portrait photos. Then third, there is a 2MP macro camera. These three cameras can be used to take pictures in several AI modes provided. Among them are: 50MP Mode, Video, Night Mode, Panoramic view, Expert, Timelapse, Portrait Mode, HDR, Ultra macro, AI Beauty, Filter, Super Text, Slow Motion.
Meanwhile, on the front, there is a 16MP camera with an IMX471 sensor. Having an aperture of f/2.1, this camera is also capable of capturing images from the front of the camera at a relatively wide angle of up to 79.3 degrees.
Conclusion
In its price range, which is only 2 million, realme 9i has all the interesting features we need. A chipset with modern 6nm fabrication that is energy efficient, a capable camera, a UI that supports all activities in all possibilities, to a battery and 33W Dart Charge fast charging technology that is of course only owned by realme.