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I am nonetheless smarting over how final season ended; Max had all of the momentum going into Abu Dhabi, and I assumed he’d have the ability to as soon as once more clinch the title with the barest of margins. Nonetheless, Lando deserved the win; McLaren was constant all through the season, and if something, the racing was satisfying within the latter half of the 12 months.
And similar to that, we’re within the 2026 cycle, and testing of the brand new vehicles suggests this season ought to be simply as fascinating. Earlier than that although, it is time to check out an fascinating collaboration: the Realme GT 8 Professional Dream Version. The cellphone retails in India for ₹79,999 ($870), which is simply ₹1,000 ($11) greater than the common 16GB/512GB mannequin of the GT 8 Professional. Now, Realme is not technically partnered with the Aston Martin F1 staff, however that does not make the cellphone any much less intriguing.
A design Adrian Newey can be happy with
If something, Realme went above and past in designing the cellphone, and the GT 8 Professional Dream Version seems to be fairly completely different to the common GT 8 Professional. The model did a fantastic job translating Aston Martin’s livery, and the metallic paint conveys a way of magnificence that you just simply do not get with the usual mannequin. You even get circulate strains etched on the rear, and that simply seems to be cool.
Dominating the rear is the Aston Martin emblem in silver, and it contrasts very effectively with the inexperienced hue of the cellphone. A differentiating design function on the GT 8 Professional is the interchangeable digicam covers, and that is out there on this machine as effectively — you get a rounded and sq. cowl, and each are designed to imitate a Kevlar end that appears fairly nice.
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The inexperienced design has yellow accents, and this once more provides just a little little bit of aptitude to the cellphone (not that it wants it). Truthfully, the GT 8 Professional Dream Version is among the most placing telephones round, and although Aston Martin is not rivaling Pink Bull or McLaren but, that will change quickly due to the brand new laws and Adrian Newey’s wizardry.
As is often the case with each restricted version cellphone, the GT 8 Professional Dream Version comes with a customized packaging that has loads of cool equipment. You get two instances (to accommodate the 2 digicam cowl designs), and unboxing the cellphone is an event — accurately on a tool like this. It is a small factor, however I like that the SIM card ejector is styled after the AMR25, and it might simply be the best-looking one I used but, although I just like the arc reactor that POCO bundled with the X7 Professional Iron Man Version.
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The design makes the GT 8 Professional Dream Version reasonably fascinating, and it has a great in-hand really feel, although it feels heavier than the likes of the Discover X9 Professional, which is in actual fact 6g heavier. The cellphone comes with a 6.79-inch AMOLED panel, and it’s simply as brilliant and has comparable shade accuracy to the perfect telephones round — I did not see any points within the month I used the cellphone.
Standout internals — and cameras that may delight you
If something, Realme is doing a great job with the panel on the whole, and that’s noticeable whereas gaming. The one quibble on this space is that the machine misses out on LTPO tech, so it would not go all the way down to 1Hz whereas idling. In any other case, you get the usual 120Hz, with the choice to go as much as 144Hz whereas taking part in choose video games.
Like its Chinese language rivals, the GT 8 Professional Dream Version makes use of the newest Qualcomm silicon, and I did not see any points in common use. The one draw back is that it tends to overheat, and that is the case on the cellphone as effectively, with the machine exceeding 53 levels whereas working artificial checks. In common gaming, I noticed it get uncomfortably sizzling, however no a lot that I could not truly maintain it (which was the case throughout 3DMark testing).
Outdoors of that, there aren’t any issues with the {hardware}. The Dream Version comes with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, and with a 7,000mAh battery, the cellphone manages to final a day and a half comfortably — even with heavy use. Truthfully, all telephones I used within the final 12 months have managed to take action, and apart from outliers just like the iPhone Air, it is a given that you’re going to recover from a day with any cellphone in 2026.
Whereas it would not have the perfect digicam sensors, Realme’s collaboration with Ricoh means there are tangible beneficial properties on this space with the GT 8 Professional Dream Version, and that is encouraging to see. The cellphone will get a 50MP customized Sony LYT-700 important digicam, 200MP Samsung HP5 that acts because the tele lens with 3x and 6x modes, and a 50MP OmniVision wide-angle lens.
The cellphone additionally will get a devoted Ricoh GR mode with handbook controls, and apart from that, you get the identical digicam interface because the Discover X9 Professional. Total digicam tuning is fairly nice with this technology, and the Dream Version takes fabulous images in any situation, and also you get sufficient capturing modes and filters to make your pictures stand out just a little bit.
Switching over to the software program, you get loads of customized tweaks to spotlight the Aston Martin collaboration, together with icons, backgrounds, and results. It would not look gaudy within the least, and the icons are respectable sufficient that I did not see the necessity to swap to the default ColorOS choice.
Apart from that, the cellphone runs Android 16 out of the field, and the interface is fluid, with wonderful customizability. Realme has all the usual ColorOS 16 options, however it calls the interface Realme UI 7.0, which has similarities to what OnePlus does with the OnePlus 15. The one difficulty is that the cellphone will not get as many software program updates, with Realme guaranteeing simply 4 platform updates.
This cellphone is a dream
There have been different F1 telephones, with OnePlus rolling out the 6T McLaren and 7T Professional McLaren Version half a decade in the past. However with the GT 8 Professional Dream Version, Realme did a wonderful job with the design, and whereas I nonetheless like my 6T McLaren fairly a bit, it wasn’t wherever pretty much as good on the digicam aspect of issues because the GT 8 Professional.
The very best half is that the cellphone would not value rather more than the common mannequin, so when you’re an F1 fan seeking to purchase a brand new cellphone, the GT 8 Professional Dream Version is a superb selection as we head into the 2026 season.
Realme GT 8 Professional Dream Version
The GT 8 Professional Dream Version is the perfect cellphone when you’re an F1 fan seeking to get a brand new machine this 12 months.
