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Smartphones
AbacusTech

Realme is taking on Xiaomi’s Redmi and Poco budget brands, winning devoted fans in India and Southeast Asia

  • Realme, founded in 2018, is among the top five bestselling brands in India, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines
  • It belongs to the BBK Electronics family, which includes Oppo, Vivo and OnePlus

Reading Time:6 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
The Realme 6 smartphone as seen in Bangkok, Thailand on March 19, 2020. Photo: Shutterstock
Karen Chiu

Nitin Murarka doesn’t own a Realme smartphone. But the university student is so impressed with the brand that he founded a Facebook group called Realme India, which has more than 12,000 members. Most of them are owners of Realme handsets or people who are actively considering buying one.

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“Though I don‘t have a Realme device, it is definitely my favourite brand as of now,” said Murarka, an aspiring journalist who works for a wholesale business for plastic goods in the eastern city of Muzaffarpur. He also runs another Facebook group for Xiaomi’s entry-level brand Poco.

“I have recommended Realme phones to my friends and family … [Realme offers] amazing value for money,” he said.

Like Murarka, many Indian consumers only came to know Realme two years ago, when the new Chinese brand debuted in India. Rather than choosing to launch on its home turf, the Shenzhen-based phone maker introduced its first device – the roughly US$200 Realme 1 – exclusively on Amazon India. It reportedly sold out within two minutes.

Since then, Realme phones have been selling like hotcakes in the country.

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