IT had been eight years in the waiting, but after being at the SMDC Festival Grounds for more than six hours, I had enough of Ed Sheeran—well, at least to last until his next concert tour.
I got up from my seat as he began his trio of encore songs, though I was still able to finish “Bad Habits” as it was a 5-minute walk from our section to the main exit gates. When he closed the show with “Bad Habits” and a fireworks display, I had just crossed JW Diokno Boulevard. on my way to Ayala Malls Manila Bay.
Despite being at the tail end of his Mathematics Tour (which began in 2022), Ed Sheeran’s performance never gave that impression. He kept pacing all around that revolving stage all night to make sure everybody got to see him—even the ones who unfortunately paid for seats that were literally at the back side of the stage. Yes, the seat plan was terrible, almost unfair even. The stage was in the middle and the layout didn’t even indicate where the front was, so those who bought tickets in our area mostly watched the back of Ed Sheeran. That revolving stage also made it look like Sheeran was performing on a microwave tray; as for the opening acts, Calum Scott and Ben&Ben, we barely saw their faces—except on the LED screens. One of the things I look forward to when watching concerts sponsored by Smart Communications are the side activities and interactive booths. Too bad I didn’t even get the chance to see them because the entrance to the main portals were quite far and I was reserving the energy of my “tito” legs. I did see merch teams offering special Smart Bucket Hats for P99 and Dumpling Bags for P149—all you needed to do was top up with either Power All 99 or Magic Data P149. Too bad I forgot my prepaid sim because both items were cool collectibles.
PERISCOPE AND PORTRAIT MASTER
Besides getting to see Ed Sheeran perform live, the one other thing that excited me most about the concert was getting to test the realme 12 Pro+ 5G. With a 64MP Periscope Portrait Camera that can zoom up to 120x, I was curious how it could compare to those Huawei P series and Galaxy Ultra flagships. The realme 12 Pro+ 5G is priced at P25,999, and for context, flagship phones that offer these zoom capabilities cost almost three times as much.
The newest realme number series flagship also features its most advanced camera system with a 64MP Periscope Portrait Camera + 50MP Sony IMX890 OIS Camera and Sony LYT600 OIS Camera + an 8MP 112° Wide Angle Camera. At first, it might seem like a downgrade compared to the 200MP main cameras of its predecessor, but after using it for the past few weeks, I can say that the realme 12 Pro+ 5G actually can take even better photos that are just as detailed.
The most notable of these triple cameras is its 64MP Periscope Portrait Lens. Currently, it is the highest resolution telephoto lens on any smartphone camera in its segment, as even flagships only have a 10MP and a 5MP Telephoto Lens. This lens sets a new benchmark for telephoto capabilities for smartphones, as it offers up to 3x Telephoto Zoom and 6x In-Sensor Zoom. These enable the realme 12 Pro+ to capture detailed shots from varying distances. It also has one of the highest zoom capabilities in any smartphone in its segment, with other flagships only having up to 100x zoom capabilities.
The camera system utilizes an Omnivision 64B Sensor with a 1/2” sensor size, accompanied by OIS to reduce blur and improve image quality. It provides a focal length of 80mm in Portrait Mode and 71mm in Photo Mode, supporting up to 3x Portrait In-Sensor Zoom. This is very useful for those like me who have shaky hands and helps stabilize shots even when zoomed in. Advanced Cinematic Bokeh Algorithms are employed to enhance photo-realism, creating a more distinct separation between the subject and background.
The device also introduces the Flagship Omnifocal Photography System, integrating a 50MP Sony IMX890 sensor known for its large size and superior light intake capability, ensuring brightly lit photos despite a maximum of 50 megapixels. This camera, with a 24mm focal length and an f/1.8 aperture, excels in HDR and Nightscape photography, benefiting from its sensor’s light sensitivity.
Living up to its “Be the Portrait Master” tagline, both the Periscope Portrait Camera and the Sony IMX890 Camera are capable of using the “Master Portrait Filters” which are customized through the help of Oscar award winner for Best Cinematography Claudio Miranda. These movie-inspired filters guarantee to give your photos a unique look and include—Journey, inspired by the Life of Pi with yellow tones and high contrast colors to create a ”dream-like” tone; Memory, inspired by The Curious Case of Benjamin Button with cold tones and low-saturation colors for a calm and capable vibe; and Maverick, inspired by Top Gun: Maverick with yellow-green tones, high contrast and high noise to create a retro film-like vibe.
As for selfies, it uses a 32MP Sony IMX615 Sensor that is known for taking very clear photos even in dimly lit areas. It also has a wide FOV at 90° for wider coverage when taking selfies.
During the pre-release campaign, realme challenged us to do a camera blind test, so I did a side-by-side comparison between the realme 12 Pro+ and the iPhone 15 Pro Max. While the iPhone still took better videos, I preferred the photos taken by the realme 12 Pro+ just because it made me look better showing less of my facial flaws. Even my friends would ask me to switch to my realme phone whenever we took selfies just because it made us look good. I also noticed that the realme 12 Pro+ also took less saturated and more natural photos compared to its predecessors.
So how did it perform during the Ed Sheeran concert? Well, if it wasn’t for my seat location, which again was at the back, I would have probably gotten even better photos. Since Ed and the stage were always moving, it was really hard to get a clear shot when taking shots past the 6x zoom. It might not be the best phone for concerts—yet—but give realme a year or two to optimize it just like those other flagships. I just hope realme does continue to develop its periscope camera and not switch to some other feature.
As far as other specs worth mentioning, you’ll be happy to know that it has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 2, an improved flagship-level octa-core processor that provides 5G connectivity and a powerful performance with up to 2.4GHz; 660,000++ AnTuTu Score for benchmarks and high-level power efficiency with its 4nm architecture.
This is paired with 12GBRAM that can be expanded up to 24GB via Dynamic RAM expansion and 512GB of storage. This means you can expect the smoothest performance as it can run all apps and even the more demanding games without any problem or slowdown. The 5000mAh battery allows up to 390.43 hours of standby, 35.03 hours of phone calls, 17.41 hours of YouTube streaming, 20.43 hours of chatting on WhatsApp, 21.6 hours on Twitter or X, 72.72 hours of music playback, and up to 6 or 7 hours of continuous gaming according to the brand’s tests so it will easily last you a day on a single charge. The 67W SUPERVOOC Charge is also a sweet spot when it comes to charging speed and a full charge will take just under an hour. Also worth noting is it that has IP65 dust and water protection that protects it from accidental splashes but is not submersible.
For the display, the 6.7” FHD+ Curved OLED Display has a 120Hz Refresh Rate and a 240Hz Touch Sampling Rate that can rise to 2,000Hz. This has very narrow bezels also that results in a 93 percent Screen-To-Body Ratio. Bezels are 1.81mm (Top), 1.57mm (Each Side), and 2.32mm (Bottom). It has a 100 percent DCI-P3 Color Gamut and reaches up to 950 Nits of Brightness under direct sunlight. It also supports up to 20,000 levels of brightness for ease of use no matter how dim or dark the surrounding area is for eye protection. Most importantly for eye protection, it has 2160Hz PWM Dimming that helps lessen eye strain when the device is used in dark areas. It also has TÜV Rheinland for Flicker Free Certification and Low Blue Light Certification.
Lastly, the realme 12Pro+ has got to be the most elegant-looking phone from the brand thanks to its “Luxury Watch Design”. In collaboration with Master Designer Ollivier Savéo who has worked with Swiss brands including Rolex, Roger Dubuis, Piaget, Breitling, and Quentin, the realme 12Pro+ takes elements and refinements from the luxury watch industry such as the polished Sunburst Dial, Golden Fluted Bezel, and 3D Jubilee Bracelet. This design is complimented by the Premium Vegan Leather Back finish showcased by both the Submarine Blue and Navigator Beige color variants.
Final word: I do believe that the realme 12 Pro+ has set a new standard for cameras for midrange flagships, particularly when it comes to portrait photography. Whether captured in a meticulously arranged studio or the spontaneity of everyday settings, it consistently delivers unparalleled excellence. Again, here’s hoping that realme continues its focus on improving its periscope cameras and optimizing its video capabilities—and still maintain its superb pricing.