realme C63 Review: Durable Budget Smartphone

The realme C63 is the latest budget-friendly option in the popular C Series. While the company promotes it as a durable smartphone, we think this device offers much more than just a tough exterior. Priced at Php 8,999, the C63 fits comfortably within the budget segment. In this review, we’ll explore several reasons why this smartphone might be the perfect choice for you.

realme C63 Review

From its impressive battery life to its user-friendly features, the realme C63 stands out as a well-rounded device for everyday use. Let’s dive into what makes it a compelling option in its price range.

Review Summary:

Pros

  • Good quality vegan leather design
  • Long battery life
  • Useful software features
  • Ultra-tough design

Cons

  • Mono speakers
  • Some camera limitations

Design

The realme C63 has one of the best build qualities for a realme C series phone. Our Leather Blue review unit is treated with a vegan leather design which is something that we don’t usually experience in this segment.

realme C63 Vegan Leather Design in Leather Blue color.
Classy vegan leather design in Leather Blue variant.

Apart from being a beautiful smartphone, it features a slim profile of just 7.74 millimeters and a lightweight build at 191 grams; it’s comfortable to hold.

In addition to the Leather Blue colorway, the phone is also available in Jade Green. Whether you pick up the latter or the former, realme gives 48-month fluency certification and realme Lab High Reliability certification. This means that the device had undergone a rigorous series of processes to ensure its toughness and durability. Aside from that, it's equipped with IP54 rating for water and dust resistance.

realme C63 ports and buttons placements, camera module design
Ports and buttons placement, camera module design.

When it comes to the ports and buttons, the realme C63 houses the power button that doubles as a fingerprint scanner and the volume rocker on the right side. Likewise, the bottom is a home to the speaker grille, USB-C port, and primary microphone.

Display + Multimedia

The realme C63 frames a 6.75-inch HD+ display with a 720 x 1600 pixel resolution. This panel has a 90Hz refresh rate which gives a smooth feel when scrolling through its interface and apps.

realme C63 display with a U-shaped notch.
Large 90Hz display with a U-shaped notch design.

For its price, the realme C63 is surprisingly good in terms of viewing experience. This screen actually delivers more than expected for its price range. Sure, the pixel density sits at about 260 ppi, which isn't going to blow anyone away, but for everyday use like video streaming or browsing, it does the job just fine.

Netflix streaming with realme C63.
Netflix streaming with realme C63.

The large screen is perfect for handling your media consumption, as long as you manage expectations. It’s not flagship-level sharpness, but for most users, it gets the job done.

On top of that, the display is TÜV Rheinland certified, which means it's easier on the eyes with reduced blue light emissions. It's a nice touch if you’re spending hours on your phone. It may not offer the ultra-smooth experience you’d get with a higher-end phone, but it’s responsive and far from sluggish.

Although you don’t get stereo speakers, the 200% UltraBoom Speaker still manages to crank out audio that’s loud and clear enough for most users' needs.

Performance + Gaming

The realme C63, powered by the Unisoc Tiger T612 (12 nm) processor and Mali-G57 GPU, delivers a solid casual gaming experience for most titles. Casual games like Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) and Honor of Kings run well, even at higher graphics settings. I played a few matches in MLBB, and the gameplay felt smooth without any noticeable lag.

realme C63 Gaming Performance with Mobile Legends: Bang Bang

realme C63 Review - Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Gameplay
Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Gaming Test

For graphics-demanding games, some settings tweaking is definitely in order. It is advisable to lower both your device's settings and your expectations. With titles like Genshin Impact, the phone might struggle with occasional frame drops and stutters when the action heats up. While this is expected for a budget smartphone, it's something to keep in mind if you're planning to play graphics-heavy games regularly.

The realme C63's CPU is supported by 8GB of RAM plus 16GB of virtual RAM. The device runs smoothly for the most part when navigating through its interface, but I did notice some hiccups when juggling several apps at once. Considering it's powered by an entry-level chipset, this isn’t too surprising. Overall, the realme C63 handles everyday apps just fine and gets the job done.

realme C63 Geekbench 6 CPU and GPU Benchmarks
Geekbench 6: CPU and GPU Performance Benchmarks

In our Geekbench 6 benchmark test, the phone tallied 434 single-core and 1395 multi-core scores. It also poses fair results for an entry-level smartphone in our GPU benchmarks with 461 OpenCL and 462 Vulkan scores.

Camera

The realme C63 has a 50MP main camera with an f/1.8 aperture and PDAF feature. In good lighting conditions, the camera gets the job done with plenty of details, contrast, and good color accuracy. Just try to avoid darker environments if you want clear shots.

realme C63 Camera Performance
Dual camera system topbilled by the 50MP main camera.

The camera's 3x digital zoom is quite acceptable, but if you push it beyond that, you’ll start seeing some grain and noise. The secondary lens helps with depth and macro shots. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but it gets the job done. Additionally, the bokeh effect looks decent without becoming too blurry.

realme C63 sample 1x zoom camera photo
Sample Photo 1x Zoom

realme C63 sample 3x zoom camera photo
Sample Photo 3x Zoom

realme C63 sample 3x digital zoom camera photo
Sample Photo 3x Zoom

realme C63 sample indoor low-light camera photo
Sample Photos: Indoor Low-light

realme C63 sample indoor lowlight photos
Sample Photos: Indoor Low-light

For selfies, there’s an 8MP front camera with an f/2.0 aperture. It offers 1x zoom for both standard and portrait shots. Selfies are great and ideal for social media use. There's also a beauty mode should you choose to use it.

realme C63 sample selfies
Sample Selfies Plus Portrait

Unfortunately, the camera app doesn’t have Street Mode like the C65 does. Overall, the camera performs well as long as there’s enough light. You’ll get the best results using the 1x and 3x zoom modes, but in lowlight, it might struggle a bit.

Software and Battery

The realme C63 runs on the company’s realme UI, which is based on Android v14. This software offers plenty of customization options, a better user interface, improved battery management, and added security features. However, there’s still quite a bit of pre-installed bloatware, together with the apps I selected to be installed during the setup process.

I really like the Mini Capsule v2.0. It uses the hole-punched area of the screen and is inspired by the iPhone’s Dynamic Island. It shows information like battery status, charging percentage, sleep tracking, reminders, weather updates, and music controls. The phone also supports Air Gestures, Rainwater Smart Touch, and AI Noise Reduction.

realme C63 Mini Capsule
realme C63's Mini Capsule v2.0

The phone has a 5000 mAh battery that can last up to multiple days on standby. It also supports 45-watt SuperVOOC fast charging, which can charge the phone to 50% in just 30 minutes. In my testing, the device easily lasted more than a day with moderate use.

Should You Buy the realme C63?

The realme C63 is no doubt one of the toughest smartphones in the market today. With its Php 8,999 price tag, realme goes to great lengths offering this feature in this price range. Overall, the phone is a great choice in this category due to its large display, vegan leather design, software-oriented features, and long battery life.

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