Realme Smart TV 4K 43-inch review: Realme's newest Smart TV is the subject of our in-depth examination.

Realme has established itself as a major player in the Indian smartphone market in little over three years. Furthermore, the company's dominion is no longer restricted to phones, as the brand has expanded its range to include audio and smart IoT products. In keeping with its multi-pronged strategy, Realme just released a new smart TV in the market called the Realme Smart TV 4K.

The company's latest addition, which comes in two sizes, brings a plethora of capabilities to the table (or to the wall), including an array of microphones for effortlessly talking to Google Assistant, as well as Dolby Vision HDR support. I was able to get my hands on the smaller, 43-inch version of the Realme Smart TV 4K, and we'll see if it's worth your money in this review.

Realme Smart TV 4K 43-inch review: Design and ports

The Realme Smart TV 4K's garden-variety appearance will not invite any second glances. As a result, the unit is entirely made of plastic and appears to be comparable to most modern, low-cost television sets. However, the design is quite smooth, and there are no uneven, projecting pieces across the chassis. The TV also has a slim frame and minimum bezels, which contribute to its modest, minimalistic appeal.

I particularly like the company for soliciting customer feedback and incorporating it into its most recent launch. On that note, unlike its predecessors, the Realme Smart TV 4K's footrests do not protrude beyond the unit's frame. As a result, you should be able to fit the TV on a tabletop without worrying about leaving enough headroom for the legs. I'd also like to mention that the TV feels solid, and the chassis didn't creak or flex when pressed from behind.

Furthermore, unlike some comparable TVs, I was able to easily screw in the legs, which is fantastic. With that stated, the LED indicators positioned at the bottom, below the company's insignia, are my main gripe with the Realme Smart TV 4K's design. The Realme Smart TV 4K comes with four far-field microphones that offer hands-free voice control, similar to a smart speaker.

While the functionality allows for a more fluid navigating experience, the negative is that while the microphones are muted, the LED indicators flash bright green. As a result, watching movies with the hands-free feature turned off can become rather irritating, as your attention will be drawn unwittingly to the LED indicators.

Speaking of microphones, the Realme Smart TV 4K comes with a physical toggle on the back that can be used to turn them on or off. The toggle is located beneath a joystick-like device that can be used to access various TV functionalities if the remote is misplaced. In terms of I/O, the device has three HDMI ports, one of which supports ARC.

There are also two USB Type-A connectors, a LAN port, and an AV connector on the device. Oh, and while Realme's latest TV doesn't come with a cable organiser, the device compensates by including side-mounted connections that are easier to access if the item is wall-mounted.

Realme Smart TV 4K 43-inch review: Performance, Software, and Remote

A quad-core MediaTek SoC powers the Realme Smart TV 4K, which is paired with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of built-in storage. As a result, I didn't have any performance concerns with the TV, and it could handle everything from browsing the UI to running multiple OTT apps without breaking a sweat.

Realme has chosen to equip its latest offering with Android TV (v10), which means you'll be able to install your favourite streaming apps, games, and everything in between through the Google Play store.

The Realme Smart TV 4K's remote, like the TV, now has a modern appearance and has hotkeys for popular services like Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube. All of the buttons were also appropriately tactile, and Realme even included AAA batteries with the remote, which is a nice touch.

Realme Smart TV 4K 43-inch review: Picture and Sound Quality 

The Realme Smart TV 4K can be considered an upgrade over the company's Realme SLED TV, which was released a while ago, depending on which side of the fence you're on. I say this because the Realme Smart TV 4K, unlike its predecessor, supports Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos.

While you'll need a specialised audio relay to enjoy Atmos-enabled material, you can enjoy Dolby Vision content right away thanks to the abundance of Dolby Vision content available on multiple OTT platforms. The TV is equipped with a VA screen, which provides a good contrast ratio and consistent black levels. A normal brightness of 280 nits and a peak brightness of roughly 325 nits are provided by the panel.

When it comes to picture quality, the Realme Smart TV 4K delivers excellent Dolby Vision pictures. I recently began watching the second season of Ragnarok on TV, and the moments depicting the wilderness of the protagonist's village Edda were breathtaking.

Furthermore, the TV represented the show's dark and bleak environment excellently when the picture mode was switched to Dolby Vision Dark. It's also worth noting that, despite the lack of local dimming zones, the darker components of a scene did not appear washed out or greyish, which is fantastic.

Turn the page to something more colourful and vibrant, like Formula 1: Drive to Survive, and you'll have a comparable good time. Surprisingly, the Realme Smart TV 4K does not come with any motion smoothing.

That didn't take away from the thrill of watching fast-paced Formula 1 races or watching my team perform in a football match. However, the quality of HDR 10 content wasn't great, and I noticed substantial noise in movies like Tom Clancy's No Remorse and Justice League, which have a lot of gloomy scenes.

The colours were also a little odd, so I had to manually reduce the saturation levels. The same was true with 1080p videos from sites like YouTube, and I noted that when upscaling media, the TV preferred punchier tones.

Finally, the Realme Smart TV 4K has extremely thin bezels around the panel, to the point where you won't notice them after a time. The viewing angles weren't horrible either, and the screen was bright enough to hold its own in a well-lit room, which is fantastic.

The Realme Smart TV 4K comes with two sets of speakers, each with a full-range driver and a tweeter for a total output of 24W. The speaker system may become fairly loud, yet the pair maintains clarity even at higher volumes, which is fantastic.

In fact, compared to the recently-launched Redmi X55 Smart TV, I discovered that the Realme Smart TV 4K's audio output was richer and airier (review). However, when listening to music on the TV, I recommend turning off the Dolby Atmos preset because it mutes the mids significantly.

Realme Smart TV 4K 43-inch review: Final Verdict

The Realme Smart TV 4K starts at Rs 25,999 for the 43-inch model I reviewed, and it appears to be a good value for money. For starters, the TV supports common HDR codecs and receives high scores in the acoustic department.

With hands-free Google Assistant integration and a stylish design, the Realme Smart TV 4K will surely stand out among the crowd of other options. However, the TV isn't ideal, and potential purchasers should keep their expectations for HDR 10 and 1080p content in check.

It's also worth noting that the Google Assistant's LED indications can be extremely distracting when watching TV on the set. Regardless, the Realme Smart TV 4K hits more than it misses for the price, and as a result, it earns my recommendation.