I’m not deliberately torturing myself as I type these words with almost frozen fingers, as my weather app tells me it “feels like 1-degrees Celsius.” I’m actually testing the Realme 14 Pro Plus’ big party trick.
When it gets cold, the back of the phone changes color, and between getting out of my warm car and now, it has changed from an off-white color with gold flecks to a frigid white with blue waves. I’m glad I’ve seen what happens when Realme’s color-changing phone gets cold, but I’m really looking forward to seeing it get warm again.
A color-changing smartphone
Yes, the Realme 14 Pro Plus’ back changes color. The Pearl White version of the Realme 14 Pro Plus has a “thermochromic fusion fiber” rear cover, which steadily turns from its normal white to a pearl-like blue when the temperature drops down to minus-8 degrees Celsius or 16 degrees Fahrenheit and returns to normal when it climbs back up. It’s highly unusual, and even though it’s an absolute gimmick, it’s very cool-looking, too.
It has been very cold in the U.K. since the Realme 14 Pro Plus arrived, and I’ve seen firsthand how it adapts, shifts, and morphs with dramatic effect. When it’s warm, the Realme 14 Pro Plus has an attractive matte finish with a gold pearl effect, which matches well with the gold chassis and camera module border.
As the ambient temperature falls, the gold becomes less prominent and is replaced by a vibrant blue. It happens subtly, although you can hasten the change when you put the phone in cold water or rub it between your warm hands. I like how it almost imperceivably alters; it’s like a living, breathing thing.
I’m not about to tell you the color-changing rear panel is anything more than a fun design, but there’s no doubt it gets people talking when you tell them about it. I certainly can’t think of another current phone that changes color like this, and it’s great to see that it actually works too. You don’t have to do anything special, except be somewhere cold for it to change. However, if you live somewhere perennially warm (you lucky thing), you may not see the blue shades very often.
A surprisingly good camera
Realme has used its color-changing technology to make the Realme 14 Pro Plus stand out from the crowd, but it’s also pushing the camera, and it turns out that it’s right to do so. A Sony IMX896 50-megapixel main camera is joined by a 50MP Sony IMX882 periscope zoom camera,. Both have optical image stabilization (OIS), along with an 8MP wide-angle camera. You can shoot 3x optical zoom photos, plus 2x and 6x “lossless” zoom photos.
The camera module houses three flash units for Realme’s “MagicGlow” flash system, where you can manually adjust the warmth and brightness or use a pair of special filters to balance environmental lighting to suit different skin tones.
A color-changing rear panel is going to grab headlines, but the camera is the Realme 14 Pro Plus’ true standout feature. In the few dozen photos I’ve taken with it, the main camera shows considerable promise due to its lovely tones and color balance, while the 3x and even the 6x zoom modes take good pictures. I’m less taken with the 2x zoom, and as expected, the wide-angle camera’s photos are hazy and lack detail. That aside, the 14 Pro Plus seems to have one of the best Realme cameras in a while.
What about the rest of the phone?
The Realme 14 Pro Plus impresses more than you may expect from its relatively modest specifications. It has the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 processor, 12GB of RAM, and up to 512GB of storage space. A big 6,000mAh battery powers it, but this has not translated into a hefty weight or large dimensions, as the phone weighs 194 grams and is 7.99mm thick.
Realme has chosen to use a quad-curve 6.83-inch, 120Hz screen for the Realme 14 Pro Plus, meaning it has curved corners and sides, just like the OnePlus 13 and Redmi Note 14 Pro Plus. I like the screen’s curves, which feel great in the palm of your hand, and appreciate the slim 1.6mm bezels that give it a modern look. Overall, this is a really comfortable, lightweight phone, and it has slipped almost unnoticed into my pocket.
Other specifications include stereo speakers, an in-display fingerprint sensor, a 32MP selfie camera with autofocus, 80-watt wired charging, and Android 15 with the Realme 6.0 interface. If you don’t want the color-changing Pearl White model, there’s a Suede Grey version with a vegan leather rear cover. Realme also promises military-grade shock resistance, plus IP68 and IP69 dust and water resistance.
Is the special color-changing feature enough?
A phone that changes color based on the temperature is a silly feature, but I really do like it. It gives the Realme 14 Pro Plus some character and certainly makes it unique, but it’s not a reason to buy the phone.
Based on my short time with it, the camera does seem to be a reason to buy the Realme 14 Pro Plus, while the color-changing rear panel is a fun bonus that will amaze your friends and set your choice of mobile phone apart from all the rest.
At the time of writing, Realme has not stated where the Realme 14 Pro Plus will be released or how much it will cost. Realme is now deep into its renewed international release efforts, so it may arrive in Europe and the U.K. in the near future. We’ll update this article when we know more.
