₹31,999 Realme 16 Pro Series Launched: 7000mAh Battery Changes Everything [2026]

Realme just threw a wrench into the mid-range smartphone war. The company launched the Realme 16 Pro and 16 Pro+ in India today—January 6, 2026—and the spec sheet reads like someone at Realme headquarters decided to overdeliver on purpose.

A 7,000mAh battery. A 200MP camera. Android 16 out of the box. Starting at ₹31,999. And if you're thinking "there must be a catch," well, you're not entirely wrong. But we'll get there.

Quick Answer: Realme 16 Pro starts at ₹31,999, Pro+ at ₹39,999 with 7,000mAh battery and 200MP camera. Best for battery-obsessed users and portrait enthusiasts. The catch? The ₹8,000 gap between models is where the real decision lies. Available January 9 on Flipkart and Realme.com.

The Battery That Actually Matters

Here's the thing most spec sheets miss: a massive battery means nothing if it dies in two years.

Realme packed both the 16 Pro and 16 Pro+ with identical 7,000mAh cells—the largest in their price segment—but paired them with an AI battery management chip designed for long-term health. Both support 80W fast charging, which Realme claims fills 50% in under 20 minutes.

For Indian users dealing with power cuts and two-day travel schedules, this isn't just marketing fluff. The OnePlus Nord 5 maxes out at 5,500mAh. The iQOO Neo 10 matches the 7,000mAh spec but charges slower at 100W (ironically, faster charging often degrades batteries quicker).

The Pro+ gets one addition: bypass charging mode that routes power directly during gaming, keeping temperatures lower. If you're the type who games while charging, that detail matters more than most reviewers will tell you.

₹8,000 Separates Two Very Different Phones

This is where Realme's strategy gets interesting.

The standard 16 Pro uses MediaTek's Dimensity 7300 Max—a capable mid-range chip scoring around 970,000 on AnTuTu. The Pro+ jumps to Qualcomm's Snapdragon 7 Gen 4, pushing past 1.44 million on the same benchmark. For casual users, you won't notice the difference. For gamers running Genshin Impact at max settings, you absolutely will.

But here's what nobody's talking about: the real differentiator is the telephoto camera.

The Pro+ includes a 50MP periscope telephoto with 3.5x optical zoom—hardware that typically shows up in phones above ₹50,000. The standard Pro skips this entirely, relying on digital crop from its 200MP sensor.

Is the 200MP Camera Worth Believing?

Both phones share the same 200MP Samsung HP5 main sensor, but "200MP" in 2026 is less about megapixels and more about what the software does with them.

Realme introduced their LumaColor engine with this series, which focuses on skin tone accuracy and portrait depth. The camera supports full-pixel autofocus and what Realme calls "five golden focal lengths"—1x, 1.5x, 2x, 3.5x, and 4x—though the 3.5x optical only exists on the Pro+.

Real-world performance? We'll need to test that. Realme's track record with high-megapixel cameras has been hit-or-miss, and competitors like the OnePlus Nord 5 with its Sony LYT-700 sensor often outperform on detail despite lower resolution.

The 50MP front camera on both phones supports 4K video recording—a genuine upgrade over the 32MP shooters common at this price.

India-Exclusive Colors and Naoto Fukasawa's Design Touch

Realme brought back Japanese designer Naoto Fukasawa for the "Urban Wild Design" language, which translates to textured matte finishes and curves that feel intentional rather than decorative.

Indian buyers get two exclusive colorways: Orchid Purple (Pro) and Camellia Pink (Pro+). Both phones also come in Master Gold, with the Pro+ adding Master Grey and the standard Pro offering Pebble Grey.

The Pro+ uses a bio-based organic silicone back—USDA certified, if that matters to you—with a wheat-grain texture that resists fingerprints better than glass. Both phones carry IP66, IP68, and IP69 ratings, meaning they'll survive monsoon season and accidental sink drops.

People Also Ask

Should I wait for the OnePlus Nord 6 instead?

Depends on your timeline. The Nord 6 is rumored for Q1 2026 but won't likely match the 7,000mAh battery. If battery life is your priority, the Realme 16 Pro series has no direct competitor right now.

Is the Realme 16 Pro better than iQOO Neo 10?

The iQOO Neo 10 (₹31,999) offers a Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chip—technically faster than the Dimensity 7300 Max in the Realme 16 Pro. But the Neo 10's display caps at 5,500 nits versus Realme's 6,500 nits (Pro+), and it lacks the 200MP camera. Choose iQOO for raw gaming power, Realme for camera and battery.

Does Realme 16 Pro support 5G in India?

Yes. Both phones support all major Indian 5G bands and work with Jio and Airtel 5G networks. They run on Android 16 with Realme UI 7.0, promising 3 years of OS updates and 4 years of security patches.

What's the effective price after bank offers?

With the ₹3,000 bank discount on the Pro and ₹4,000 on the Pro+, effective launch prices drop to ₹28,999 and ₹35,999 respectively. Exchange offers add up to ₹5,000 more.

The Verdict Nobody Asked For

The Realme 16 Pro series isn't trying to be subtle. It's swinging hard at OnePlus and iQOO with specs that look lifted from phones ₹10,000 more expensive.

Buy the Realme 16 Pro (₹31,999) if you want the core experience—massive battery, sharp 200MP camera, competent processor—without paying for features you won't use daily.

Stretch for the Realme 16 Pro+ (₹39,999) if you actually zoom into photos, game competitively, or want the curved display aesthetic. The periscope telephoto alone justifies the ₹8,000 premium for photography enthusiasts.

Skip both if you prioritize raw processing power over battery life. The iQOO Neo 10's Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 still outperforms both chips in sustained workloads.

Sales begin January 9 on Flipkart and Realme.com. We'll update this article with real-world battery and camera tests once we've had the devices for a week.