Realme GT 7 Pro battery review: fast and furious

The Realme GT 7 Pro stands out as the most powerful smartphone on the market right now. Powering its impressive performance is a 5,800mAh silicone-carbon anode battery, the largest of its kind in the industry. Realme claims it delivers an exceptional 450 hours of standby time, 17 hours of YouTube streaming, 20 hours of Instagram usage, and 68 hours of Spotify playback. We tested these claims in this Realme GT 7 Pro battery review and compared its performance with the Xiaomi 15, which was launched in China with the Snapdragon 8 Elite, and last year’s flagship, the OnePlus 12 (review). It is worth mentioning that, unlike Realme GT 7 Pro, both Xiaomi 15 and OnePlus 12 are equipped with a relatively smaller battery.

Verdict

The Realme GT 7 Pro is a powerhouse, offering exceptional battery life, rapid charging, and superior efficiency in demanding tasks like gaming.

Pros

• Excellent battery life
• Superior battery optimisation for gaming
• Rapid charging speeds

Cons

• Less Efficient for Video Streaming (in absolute terms)

Realme GT 7 Pro battery review at a glance

We put the Realme GT 7 Pro’s battery, along with that of its competitors—the Xiaomi 15 and OnePlus 12—through rigorous testing. This included synthetic benchmark apps as well as real-world battery drain tests, which include YouTube video streaming and high-end gaming sessions. We also conducted charging tests on each device to find out how quickly their charging efficiency.

PCMark battery (higher is better)

Winner: Realme GT 7 Pro

In our PCMark test, the Realme GT 7 Pro lasted much longer than the OnePlus 12. This efficiency could be attributed to the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, which is designed to consume less power compared to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 in the OnePlus 12. Unfortunately, we were unable to obtain comparable results for the Xiaomi 15, as the PCMark app crashed repeatedly during testing.

Real-world context: Users can expect the Realme GT 7 Pro to deliver longer usage, both regular and heavy, between charges compared to at least the OnePlus 12. The test also suggests the former will last much longer with the most moderate settings (flight mode enabled and low brightness).

YouTube video streaming

30-minute YouTube streaming test to check battery drain (lower is better)

Winner: Tie

This YouTube streaming test involves running a 30-minute video with the same resolution, brightness, and volume levels on each smartphone. All three smartphones consumed a similar amount of battery (4 percent, to be exact). However, in absolute numbers, the Realme smartphone is consuming more battery, which could be due to a variety of factors, such as differences in brightness level (absolute numbers), software optimisation, larger display size, and more.

Real-world context: If you’re a video streaming enthusiast, all three smartphones will offer similar battery life. Each device is well-optimised to ensure an uninterrupted viewing experience for hours.

Gaming

30-minute gaming test to check for battery drain (lower is better)

Winner: Realme GT 7 Pro

We tested all three smartphones by playing BGMI, Real Racing 3, and Call of Duty for half an hour each, using the same graphics, frame rate, brightness, and volume settings. The games were played back to back after ensuring the device’s temperature was below 30 degrees Celsius in a consistent environment.

The Realme GT 7 Pro consumes less battery, both in terms of percentage (16 to be exact) and absolute numbers (928mAh). This is followed by OnePlus 12 at 19 percent, while Xiaomi 15 stood third with a total of 21 percent battery reduction.

Real-world context: This gaming test is to give you a context of smartphones’ battery efficiency during intense usage. The Realme GT 7 Pro exceeds them all, consuming less battery than its counterparts during our test. This makes the handset an ideal choice for users seeking a device that can handle their demanding activities, like photo editing, navigation, multitasking, and more, for a longer duration, without without the constant need to search for a charger.

Charging test

Charging test to see time taken to charge from 20 to 100 percent

Winner: Realme GT 7 Pro

Fast charging speeds are just as essential as long battery life, at least to many users. The Realme GT 7 Pro addresses that with 120W fast charging capabilities, paired with ‘Smart rapid charging’ to amplify the charging speeds. On the contrary, the Xiaomi 15 and OnePlus 12 come with relatively slow 90W and 100W charging solutions, respectively. All three smartphones include compatible chargers in the box.

The Realme GT 7 Pro excels here as well, charging the device from 20-100 percent in under 30 minutes with the Smart rapid charging feature disabled. With smart rapid charging, which adjusts the speed depending on the phone’s temperature to protect battery health, the handset takes 32 minutes in total to achieve the same result. This is still faster than the Xiaomi 15 and OnePlus 12. The Xiaomi smartphone, despite its slower charging speed, manages to outpace the OnePlus 12, thanks to its software-optimised ‘Top Speed charging’ feature, similar to the GT 7 Pro’s Smart rapid charging.

Real-world context: The Realme GT 7 Pro’s fast charging speeds ensure you’re quickly back up and running. While the Xiaomi and OnePlus smartphones are also capable, they don’t charge as swiftly as the Realme device.

Final verdict

The Realme GT 7 Pro is truly a powerhouse when it comes to battery performance, even with its smaller 5,800mAh battery in the Indian variant compared to the 6,500mAh version available in China. The handset outperforms both the OnePlus 12 and Xiaomi 15 with exceptional efficiency while gaming, superior performance in the synthetic benchmark test, and fast charging speeds.

• The GT 7 Pro’s 120W fast charging ensures quick power-ups, while the 5,800mAh battery provides long-lasting endurance.
• While the phone performs similarly to its rivals in video streaming, it consumes slightly more battery in absolute terms.
• Nevertheless, the Realme GT 7 Pro stands out as the most well-rounded device, particularly for those seeking a phone that delivers both long-lasting power and quick recharges.