Realme India CEO Madhav Sheth on 5G Push, GT Series, Book Slim, and Realme’s Journey to the Top of Flipkart

Realme has been growing its presence in India by launching new devices on a regular basis. The company owned by China’s BBK Electronics has a range of smartphones to take on the likes of Samsung and Xiaomi. Alongside phones, it also offers various connected devices including smartwatches and truly wireless stereo (TWS) earbuds. Realme also recently ventured into apparel and personal care by introducing sweatshirts, t-shirts, caps, and even electronic toothbrushes and hair dryers. Earlier this week, Realme expanded its Realme GT flagship lineup in the country and launched the Realme GT Neo 2 as its most affordable offering in the new series.

On this week’s episode of Gadgets 360 podcast Orbital host Akhil Arora and Reviews Editor Jamshed Avari speak with Madhav Sheth, Vice President of Realme and Chief Executive Officer of Realme India, Europe, and Latin America, who takes us behind the scenes at Realme.

Sheth says that with the arrival of the Realme GT series, the company has departed its earlier Realme X family. The new series is, however, claimed to be built on the legacy of the Realme X lineup and is aimed to deliver a flagship-like experience at compelling price points.

Realme GT Review: An All-Rounder at the Right Price

“You will see very soon a lot of GT products coming in the portfolio from Realme,” Sheth says. He also indicates that the company is planning to bring new Realme GT phones next year with 125W fast charging support.

Unlike its other series, Realme is aiming to deliver a full-fledged, all-round experience through the Realme GT series, the executive tells us during the conversation.

“You do not pay the price for logos, you pay the price for the technology. And I think if you are paying for the price of the technology, you should feel it. And that’s what GT is all going to be about,” he mentions.

Realme GT series expanded with the addition of the Realme GT Neo 2 on Wednesday. The new Realme phone comes with features including a 120Hz display and a Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 SoC to compete against models such as the Samsung Galaxy M52 5G, Mi 11X 5G, and Poco F3 GT.

The Realme GT Neo 2 also comes with 5G connectivity and 65W fast charging. It is the third model in the Realme GT series after the Realme GT 5G and Realme GT Master Edition that is going on sale in India. Realme GT Neo 2 price in India starts at Rs. 31,999 for the base 8GB RAM + 128GB storage variant and goes up to Rs. 35,999 for the 12GB + 256GB model.

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Alongside the Realme GT series, Sheth talks about Realme’s ongoing research and development in India. He also touches upon the existing ‘Make in India’ move by manufacturers like Realme to localise their production in the country.

“Where India is at this point of time is all about assembly and the semi-manufacturing,” he says, adding that he is optimistic on seeing the country moving towards the direction of reaching complete local production over time.

Sheth also highlights the growth Realme achieved so far in the ongoing festive season sales. He says that the company managed to generate Rs. 3,500 crores of sales during the sale and became number one brand on Flipkart across product categories including smartphones, laptops, and audio and ANC (active noise cancellation).

Alongside online sales, Realme is planning to grow its offline presence in the country. Sheth says that there are plans to have 1,000 offline stores next year where it would showcase its entire ecosystem of products to consumers.

We also ask Sheth on how Realme is differentiating the experience while launching multiple products on a regular basis. He says that the aim of hosting a number of product launches is to grow the community.

“It’s not about whether we are launching so many products at the same time or where people are getting confused, but they are all different categories of products. We are giving more choices to the users. We are getting more options for the users to select from what their current portfolio is all about in the market,” he says.

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Later, the Realme India chief also talks about why we’re seeing 5G phones all around despite the fact that telecom networks are yet to roll out their next-generation cellular services.

You can listen to our complete wide-ranging 40-minute conversation with Sheth by hitting the play button on the embedded player above.

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