Realme XT vs Huawei Nova 5T: Specs Comparison

If you’re in the market for a new phone that’s under the Php20,000 price point – you’re in luck! As both Huawei and Realme are offering phones that are just under your budget but is still packed with flagship-level features.

This is the truth about most mid-range phones these days. They’re getting more and more powerful and are close to reaching “Flagship” levels in terms of specs. Both the Huawei Nova 5T and the Realme XT are great examples of mid-range phones with unique flagship features. Let’s start talking about them now.

First of the two phones is the Realme XT. Realme’s main “flagship” feature is its 64-megapixel quad-camera shooter.

Its ultra-high-resolution sensor, 3D HDR Technology, and pixel-bining guarantee the user to take crystal clear, high-quality images anytime and anywhere.

The second phone in this spec matchup is the Huawei Nova 5T. When I said that both phones have their own set of flagship features, I wasn’t lying. The Nova 5T is packing the HiSilicon Kirin 980 processer which is, for those of you unaware, the same processor used in their flagship device, the Huawei P30 Pro.

As you can see, both smartphones have their unique “flagship” phone features, but which one would you choose? Are you leaning towards the powerful processor in the Huawei Nova 5T or the pixel-packed camera in the Realme XT? These are the questions we would like to answer in our Realme XT vs Huawei Nova 5T specs comparison.

	Realme XT	Huawei Nova 5T
Operating System	Android 9 Pie ColorOS 6	Android 9 Pie EMUI 9.1
SIM	Dual SIM Dual Standby	Dual SIM Dual Standby
Display	6.4-inch FHD+ Super AMOLED 1080 x 2340 pixel resolution ~403 ppi	6.26-inch FHD+ IPS 2340 x 1080 pixel resolution ~412ppi
Processor	2.3GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 octa-core	2.6GHz Kirin 980 octa-core
RAM	4GB/6GB/8GB	8GB
GPU	Adreno 616	Mali-G76 MP10
Storage	64GB/128GB UFS 2.1 expandable up to 256GB	128GB UFS 2.1 non-expandable
Front camera	16-megapixel Waterdrop notch f/2.0	32-megapixel Punch-hole f/2.0
Rear Camera	64-megapixel (f/1.8, PDAF) 8-megapixel (ultra-wide, f/2.25) 2-megapixel (depth sensor) 2-megapixel (macro) LED flash AI Scene Detection Chroma Boost Super Nightscape	48-megapixel (Sony IMX 586, f/1.8) 16-megapixel (ultra wide) 2-megapixel (macro) 2-megapixel (depth sensor) PDAF LED flash AI scene detection Night mode
Audio	Single loudspeaker Headphone jack	Single loudspeaker No headphone jack
Security	Under display fingerprint scanner Face unlock	Side-mounted fingerprint scanner Face unlock
Connectivity	4G LTE WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band Bluetooth 5.0 GPS, BDS, Galileo, A-GPS USB Type-C	4G LTE, VoLTE WiFi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band Bluetooth 5.0 Dual-band GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BDS, QZSS NFC USB Type-C
Dimensions	158.7 x 75.2 x 8.6mm	154.25 x 73.97 x 7.87mm
Weight	183g	174g
Colors	Pearl White Pearl Blue	Midsummer Purple Crush Blue Black
Battery	4,000mAh VOOC 3.0 20W fast-charging	3,750mAh 22.5W Huawei SuperCharge
Price	PHP 16,990	Php18,990

From the specs above, you can see that it’s somewhat a close fight between the two. With that, let’s start talking about the processor of the two phones.

As said before, the Nova 5T is running the flagship HiSilicon Kirin 980 processor. Meanwhile, the Realme XT has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 712 chipset, a respectable processor but is overmatched by Huawei’s. From a processor point of view, Huawei takes the win.

On the camera aspect, Realme XT’s flagship 64-megapixel main camera, 8-megapixel (ultrawide), 2-megapixel (macro) and 2-megapixel (depth sensor) clearly overpowers the Nova 5T

The latter only has 48-megapixel main shooter, 16-megapixel (ultrawide), 2-megapixel (macro) and 2-megapixel (depth sensor). Although, the Nova 5T has a better selfie camera sporting a 32-megapixel front camera versus the 16-megapixel one from Realme.

On the memory front, both devices come with 128GB of internal storage. Unfortunately, only the Realme XT has the option to have an expandable memory of up to 256GB.

On the display side, The Realme XT has a Super AMOLED screen along with a Corning Gorilla Glass 5 protection. On the other hand, the Nova 5T has an inferior LCD display and no Gorilla Glass protection. So if you’re a klutz like me and prioritize display quality, getting the phone with better protection and more vibrant display panel is the better option.

Battery wise, the Huawei Nova 5T has a 3,750mAh battery with a 22W dast battery charging while the Realme XT has a 4,000mAh battery with a 20W fast battery charger. On the battery size front, the XT is clearly better but the Nova 5T has faster 22.5W charging that is said to charge at least 50% in just 24 minutes.

Related

• Xiaomi Mi 9T Pro vs Huawei Nova 5T: Specs Comparison
• Realme XT vs Realme 5 Pro: What’s the difference?

Bottom line, both phones are great options if you’re looking for a phone that’s priced below Php20,000. If you want the best possible performance from your device, I would have to go with the Huawei Nova 5T. You can check out our hands-on about this device to learn more about it.

Although, if you’re more into photography the Realme XT is clearly the winner. You can also check out our Realme XT hands-on review, before we publish our full review soon.

The Huawei Nova 5T is available for purchase for the price of Php18,990 while the Realme XT can be bought for the price of Php16,990. They are both available in their respective concept stores, kiosks, and online shops.