Realme’s making an Ultra smartphone with a massive camera inside

By Andy Boxall Published February 25, 2025

Realme is teasing an exciting camera announcement at MWC 2025, and is also jumping on the “Ultra” naming bandwagon for the phone it will reside in, a space already occupied by Samsung, Xiaomi, Motorola, and likely many others too. The name does have some meaning though, as Realme claims it has an “ultra-large” sensor.

The camera sensor is destined to be part of an unannounced smartphone which likely will not be fully revealed during MWC 2025, merely teased. What we do know already is that in addition to the ultra-large sensor — which we expect to be a 1-inch sensor, much like the one inside phones such as the Xiaomi 14 Ultra — it will also have a telephoto camera to take optical zoom photos.

Realme says it has been testing the camera and it shows, “unprecedented advancements in portrait photography and low-light performance,” and will “set a new standard for smartphone photography,”  But then, it would say that. The last tease before the show is an image, where in front of the word “Ultra” in a bold font is a smartphone shrouded in shadow, notable for a gigantic camera module on one side of it.

Realme’s plan for its new camera will be one part of the company’s MWC 2025 showcase, and the other will be global release details for the Realme 14 series, including the Realme 14 Pro Plus. Announced in 2024, the Realme 14 Pro Plus is notable because the rear panel changes color depending on the temperature. It has an off-white finish with gold flecks when it’s quite warm, but when the temperature drops, the gold is joined by an icy blue. It’s a striking effect, and genuinely changes the look of the phone. But if you live somewhere warm, then you may not see the blue color all that often.

Realme has its event set for March 3 at Mobile World Congress 2025, which takes place in Barcelona Spain between March 3 and March 6.