Xiaomi Redmi 7 vs Realme C1 specs comparison

The Realme C1 is dubbed as the best budget smartphone of 2018 (based on our Readers’ Choice) due to its impressive specs-to-price ratio. But now we have the Xiaomi Redmi 7 to challenge the device. As requested by a number of readers, we have put the two devices side by side to find out which looks better on paper.

Author’s Note: The specs comparison between the Redmi 7 and Realme C1 is made possible thanks to our readers’ requests in various comments of our posts.

Here are their detailed specs:

	Xiaomi Redmi 7	Realme C1
Display	6.26-inch 19:9 HD+ display @ 1520 x 720px	6.2-inch 19:9 HD+ display @ 1520 x 720px
Glass Protection	Corning Gorilla Glass 5	Corning Gorilla Glass 3
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 632 1.8GHz octa-core	Qualcomm Snapdragon 450 1.8GHz Octa-core
GPU	Adreno 506	Adreno 506
RAM	2GB, 3GB	2GB
Storage	16GB/32GB	16GB
Expandable	Expandable up to 512GB via microSD (dedicated slot)	Expandable up to 256GB via microSD (dedicated slot)
Rear camera	12MP f/2.2 + 2MP dual rear cameras	13MP f/2.2 + 2MP aperture, PDAF dual rear cameras
Front camera	8MP f/2.0 selfie camera	5MP f/2.2 front camera
SIM	Dual SIM (Nano)	Dual SIM (Nano)
LTE	4G LTE	4G LTE
Wi-Fi	WiFi 802.11b/g/n	WiFi 802.11b/g/n
Bluetooth	Bluetooth 4.2	Bluetooth 4.2
GPS	GPS, AGPS, GLONASS, Beidou	GPS, AGPS
USB	Micro USB	Micro USB
Biometrics	- Fingerprint Scanner - Face Unlock	- Face Unlock
OS	MIUI 10 (Android 9 Pie)	Color OS 5.1 (Android 8.1 Oreo)
Battery	4,000mAh battery	4,230mAh battery

Author’s Note: Unfortunately, the 3GB + 32GB variant of the Realme C1 is not available in the Philippines.

Here are the advantages of each smartphone:

Xiaomi Redmi 7

Gorilla Glass 5
Better performing CPU
Higher maximum RAM
Higher maximum storage
Higher front camera resolution
Fingerprint Scanner
Android 9 Pie out-of-the-box

Realme C1

Higher rear camera resolution
Larger battery capacity

Both the displays of the Redmi 7 and Realme C1 are pretty much the same in configurations. They are both great for watching and streaming videos, but the former wins in this aspect due to its stronger glass protection.

Performance-wise, the Redmi 7 is faster than the Realme C1 in terms of CPU speed. In our AnTuTu benchmark of the Honor 8C which sports the same Snapdragon 632 chipset as the latter, it scored 100K which is 30K higher than what we got on the latter’s 72K.

For gaming performance, however, both devices are of the same caliber due to their identical Adreno 506 GPU. The Redmi 7 may have a little advantage in this aspect if we use the 3GB RAM variant instead of the 2GB one.

In terms of camera performance, the Realme C1 has a higher rear camera resolution while the Redmi 7 has a higher front camera megapixel. We’ll know more once we get our hands on both devices and test them out side-by-side.

Unfortunately, the Realme C1 lacks a fingerprint scanner while the Redmi 7 has one. The latter also has an Android 9 Pie operating system out-of-the-box, but worry not as the former will receive a software update soon.

Lastly, the battery capacity of the Realme C1 is larger than the Redmi 7 which should result in longer battery life. We’re not yet sure if this will hold as we still don’t know the performance of the latter so stay tuned for that.

Here are the prices of each smartphone:

Redmi 7 2GB + 16GB – PHP 5,890USD 100INR 8,509EUR 96CNY 731
Redmi 7 3GB + 32GB – PHP 6,490USD 111INR 9,375EUR 105CNY 805
Realme C1 2GB + 16GB – PHP 5,890USD 100INR 8,509EUR 96CNY 731

Overall, it’s the winner is the Xiaomi Redmi 7, but if you want a higher rear camera resolution and a larger battery capacity, feel free to choose the Realme C1. Do note that both devices are great budget smartphones so purchasing any of these will automatically be a win for you.