In the crowded Indian market for mid-range 5G phones, Realme has placed its new 8s 5G at Rs 17,999, the lowest entry price among three rivals that now stand side by side. News18 sets the handset against the iQoo Z3 5G and the Poco X3 Pro across price, design, screen, performance, cameras and battery, and in doing so draws out the familiar pattern of such launches: each device offers a different balance of trade-offs, and buyers must decide which compromise they can live with. The publication's final leaning toward the iQoo rests on paper specifications alone, a reminder that a fair judgement o
Realme 8s 5G, iQoo Z3 5G and Poco X3 Pro: How the Rs 18,000-20,000 5G Trio Compares on Price and Specs
Of the entry configurations listed, Realme's is the cheapest.
Mark
Why does a phone launch like this get a head-to-head comparison?
Mimi
Because the three phones sit within a few thousand rupees of each other. The Realme starts at Rs 17,999, the Poco at Rs 18,999 and the iQoo at Rs 19,999.
Mark
What is Realme's main selling point?
Mimi
The Dimensity 810 chip and Dynamic RAM Expansion, which can add up to 5GB of virtual RAM to an 8GB phone, for 13GB in total.
Luke
Worth noting that 13GB is not 13GB of physical memory. Five of those gigabytes are borrowed, and Realme's claim of being first in the segment comes from the company. The article gives no performance numbers for it.
Mark
And the iQoo, why does it get the nod?
Mimi
The Snapdragon 778G and 55W charging. Those are the two specs where it clearly stands apart from the other two.
Luke
But it also has the smallest battery, 4,400mAh against 5,160mAh on the Poco. The verdict says it is the best on the spec sheet, and that is a narrower claim than saying it is the best phone.
Mark
Anything the article leaves out?
Luke
Benchmarks, camera samples, battery life tests. It compares numbers only, so we do not know how any of the three performs in daily use.
Mimi
Which means the price gaps and the charging speeds are the most solid points of comparison here.
Le Pouls
- Realme has dropped a new 5G phone into one of India's most fiercely contested price brackets, starting at Rs 17,999.
- Rivals iQoo Z3 5G and Poco X3 Pro sit close by in price, forcing every buyer to weigh small differences in screens, chips and cameras.
- Realme's 13GB claim through Dynamic RAM Expansion and its MediaTek Dimensity 810 are being pitched as a fresh challenge to established options.
- The Realme trails on refresh rate at 90Hz, while the iQoo's 55W charging and Snapdragon 778G put it at the front of News18's spec-sheet verdict.
- The comparison remains a paper exercise, with no real-world testing yet to settle which of the three phones truly delivers.
In the crowded Indian market for mid-range 5G phones, Realme has placed its new 8s 5G at Rs 17,999, the lowest entry price among three rivals that now stand side by side. News18 sets the handset against the iQoo Z3 5G and the Poco X3 Pro across price, design, screen, performance, cameras and battery, and in doing so draws out the familiar pattern of such launches: each device offers a different balance of trade-offs, and buyers must decide which compromise they can live with. The publication's final leaning toward the iQoo rests on paper specifications alone, a reminder that a fair judgement of any phone ultimately waits on use in the hand.
Realme has launched the 8s 5G into one of India's busiest price brackets. The base version, with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, costs Rs 17,999, and an 8GB model arrives at Rs 19,999. It enters a field already occupied by the iQoo Z3 5G and the Poco X3 Pro, and News18 has set the three side by side to see where each one stands.
On price, Realme's entry model undercuts both rivals. The iQoo starts at Rs 19,999 and the Poco at Rs 18,999, though each offers higher-end configurations that Realme does not match at this stage. The designs differ in modest ways, from Realme's Infinite Star look to the iQoo's water-drop notch and the Poco's polycarbonate back.
The screens and chips tell a more divided story. The Poco has the largest display and the iQoo the smoothest refresh rate tied with it, while the Realme's 90Hz panel is the slowest of the group. Realme leans on the MediaTek Dimensity 810 and a Dynamic RAM Expansion feature that it says can reach 13GB of memory. The iQoo runs the Snapdragon 778G, and the Poco uses the Snapdragon 860.
Cameras and batteries split the field further. The Poco has the largest battery and a 48MP main sensor, the Realme pairs a 64MP camera with 33W charging, and the iQoo has the smallest battery but the only 55W fast charge.
News18 calls the Realme a very capable 5G phone, yet its verdict favours the iQoo as the best equipped on paper. That view rests on specifications alone, and the comparison does not include real-world testing of any of the three.
Realme has put a new 5G phone into one of India's most crowded price brackets. The Realme 8s 5G starts at Rs 17,999 for the 6GB RAM and 128GB storage version, and Rs 19,999 buys the 8GB and 128GB model. It arrives alongside two established rivals, the iQoo Z3 5G and the Poco X3 Pro, and News18 has lined the three up on price, design, display, performance, cameras and battery.
Price is where the first separation shows. The iQoo Z3 5G comes in three versions: Rs 19,999 for 6GB and 128GB, Rs 20,990 for 8GB and 128GB, and Rs 22,990 for the top 12GB and 256GB model. The Poco X3 Pro starts at Rs 18,999 for 6GB and 128GB, and Rs 20,999 for 8GB and 128GB. Of the entry configurations listed, Realme's is the cheapest.
The designs differ in small ways. The Realme 8s 5G comes in Universe Blue and Universe Purple, with what the company calls an Infinite Star design, a punch-hole front and a square camera module on the back. The iQoo Z3 5G is offered in Ace Black and Cyber Blue, with a water-drop notch on the front and a vertical camera strip behind. The Poco X3 Pro has a polycarbonate back, three colours (Graphite Black, Steel Blue and Golden Bronze), a punch-hole display and a quad-camera array.
On screens, the Poco is the largest. Its 6.67-inch FHD+ IPS LCD runs at 120Hz with a 240Hz touch sample rate and HDR10 support. The iQoo's 6.58-inch Full HD+ LCD also refreshes at 120Hz and supports HDR. The Realme has a 6.5-inch Full HD+ IPS panel at 90Hz with 600 nits of brightness, the slowest refresh rate of the group.
Inside, the three phones take different routes. Realme uses the new MediaTek Dimensity 810 5G processor, with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. Its Dynamic RAM Expansion feature can add up to 5GB of virtual memory, for as much as 13GB in total, which Realme says is a first in this segment. It runs Realme UI 2.0 on Android 11. The iQoo Z3 5G uses Qualcomm's Snapdragon 778G, with up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. The Poco X3 Pro uses the Snapdragon 860, with up to 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, and runs MIUI 12 on Android 11.
Camera setups follow a similar pattern. The Realme has a triple rear system: a 64MP main sensor, a 2MP black-and-white portrait lens and a 2MP macro lens, plus a 16MP selfie camera. The iQoo pairs its 64MP main camera with an 8MP ultra-wide and a 2MP macro, and also has a 16MP front camera. The Poco uses a 48MP main sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide and two 2MP sensors for depth and macro, with a 20MP front camera in its punch-hole.
Battery and charging favour different phones. The Poco X3 Pro has the largest cell at 5,160mAh with 33W charging. The Realme carries 4,880mAh and also charges at 33W through its DART system. The iQoo has the smallest battery at 4,400mAh, but it is the only one with 55W fast charging.
News18 calls the Realme 8s 5G a very capable 5G phone, but its verdict leans toward the iQoo Z3 5G, which it describes as a super reliable pick and possibly the best equipped on paper, citing the Snapdragon 778G and 55W charging. That judgement rests on the spec sheet alone, and the comparison does not report real-world testing of any of the three.
Citations marquantes
The iQoo Z3 is a super reliable pick in this segment, and may be the most well heeled as per the spec sheet.— News18 verdict
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