T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G review: This budget phone has a lot going for it

Thirteen years ago, when I started Techaeris, budget phones were among the worst things you could ever buy. Fast-forward to just a few years ago, and budget phones have become one of the best things you can buy. The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is one of these budget smartphones and it has a lot going for it. In contrast, it also has some things against it. But if you’re looking to not spend a lot and still get an excellent experience for the money, then something like the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is the way to go.

Estimated reading time: 13 minutes

These budget phones are sometimes difficult to review because there are several remarkable things about them, but then there are the things they lack. But how can you fault the lack of features when you’re comparing a $249 device to a $1,249 device? You really can’t, at least I can’t. Many might decry the cameras, speakers, or even the display. However, again, comparing to flagship norms is not the way to judge these smartphones. Let’s jump right into the full review of the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G.

The Quick Take

This is a simple, Quick Take on the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G. Reasons to consider and buy:

• Attainable price of $249
• Great display for this price point
• 120Hz variable refresh rate
• Great battery life
• Does all the basics anyone needs with ease
• Can even do some gaming, but may get warm when pushed
• Is an excellent phone with excellent reception and service from T-Mobile

Reasons to avoid this smartphone:

• Cameras are budget level, if you want the best cameras you can get, these aren’t them
• Build quality is decent for the price but it is a budget phone, remember this
• T-Mobile only, unless you can get it unlocked, this is for T-Mobile customers only
• You absolutely need flagship specs and build quality

Specifications

The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G has the following features and specifications:

• Ports: 3.5mm Jack, USB Type-C
• Connectivity: 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/6e, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC
• Display: 6.78” FHD+ AMOLED
• Processor: Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 Processor
• Camera: 50MP main lens camera with OIS (Quad-Camera System)
• Operating System: Android 14
• Battery: 5,000 mAh Battery with 15W wireless charging
• Ram: 8 GB
• Maximum Expandable Memory: 2 TB
• Wireless Network Technology Generations: 4G LTE, 5G
• WEA Capable: Yes
• Mobile Hotspot Capable: Yes
• Frequency: GSM: 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 1900 MHz; UMTS: Band I (2100), Band II (1900), Band IV (1700/2100), Band V (850), Band VIII (900); 5G: n1, n3, n7, n25, n28, n38, n41, n66, n71, n77, n78; LTE: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 20, 25, 26, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66, 71
• Weight: 7.27 Ounces
• Length: 0.34
• Height: 6.64
• Width: 3.07

What’s In The Box

• T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G
• USB-C to USB-C cable
• SIM card ejection pin
• Manuals and Documentation

Design

Smartphone design has basically stayed the same over the past five years, with some minor differences between brands. The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is inline with many other budget phones in the market in terms of build quality and materials.

While the front panel is glass, the rest of the unit is plastic, which isn’t actually a bad thing. The iPhone and Galaxy S24 are both glass front and back, which means those smartphones could break (from a drop) a lot easier. The rails and the back of the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G are all plastic, though the rails are shiny. The other benefit of plastic is that fingerprints are less of a hassle.

The front of the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G, as I said, is glass and the bezels on this device are pretty standard fare these days. They’re not ultraslim, but they aren’t too thick either. They are perfectly fine to my eye and taste. There is a punch hole at the top for the front — facing camera and of course, the earpiece, and speaker.

The back of the phone is a subtle T-Mobile logo and is all plastic. The camera setup is on the top left and I believe the lenses are glass covered. The top rail houses one microphone. The left rail houses the SIM card tray. The right rail houses the volume rocker and magenta power button. Both of these have nice feedback and work nicely with the power button pulling double duty as the fingerprint reader.

The bottom rail houses the AUX port, USB-C charging port and main speaker. The overall weight is pleasant, not too heavy, but it also doesn’t feel like it’s chintzy. The overall build quality is impressive, but the buttons do rattle a bit when you place the phone down on a solid surface. Not surprising, I expect this sort of thing from a budget phone.

Overall, the design of the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G isn’t groundbreaking by any means. It is functional, solid for the price, and everything you’d expect is right where it belongs.

Display

Alright, the 6.78” FHD+ AMOLED display on the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G really impressed me. Again, budget phones have had their issues and in the past, displays were one of them. But this guy, this guy has things going for it.

Not only is it an AMOLED display, past budget phones have always had cheaper IPS displays, but this display also has a variable refresh rate up to 120Hz. That means the refresh rate adjusts itself depending on the content you are viewing on the display. This is also better for gaming, though this isn’t exactly a gaming powerhouse, more on that later.

The AMOLED display on the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is precisely what you would expect out of an AMOLED display. It is vibrant with very saturated colors that pop and look fantastic. Movies and gaming content look really nice on this display. If you’re not into a bright and vivid look, this display may not be for you.

Touchpoints are spot on, I never had any issues tapping into something or closing something out. Pinch to zoom and gestures all worked flawlessly. Scrolling also worked perfect with no issues. This is a massive change from just five years ago, when displays in budget phones all had some minor issues that made it frustrating to use. I am glad to see these everyday use issues have been addressed.

Overall, this is a very impressive display for a budget phone. It’s bright and even usable outdoors, it struggles a bit in direct sun, but does just fine. The colors are vibrant, the whites are clean and crisp, and the blacks are deep and dark. The variable refresh rate works nicely in most situations. It’s just a pleasure to have such a display on a budget phone.

Software/UI

The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is running Android 14, which is also a considerable change, as many budget phones from the past were typically a few versions behind. Now, as far as updates go, I don’t know what the support for new Android versions for this phone will be. We can only hope that at least one update to Android 15, when it comes, will be in store.

But what really surprised me about the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is that, aside from the T-Mobile apps, this is basically stock Android. There is no skin on top of this user interface, and that is very welcome to see.

Overall, I have no issues with this software or user interface. Apart from the T-Mobile apps, this is like getting a stock Google Pixel in hand. Well done on T-Mobile’s part to not have included bloatware.

Performance and T-Mobile

First, let’s address T-Mobile’s service. I live in a rural area where most mobile carriers are pretty dismal. T-Mobile performed about the same as every other carrier out here. It works, I can watch YouTube, make calls, text, and browse socials. Good enough. It worked better in a larger town, though. Where there is 5G connectivity. So overall, T-Mobile works nicely and it will depend on where you’re located as to how good it works.

As for the performance of the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G itself, impressive for a budget device. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 Processor paired with 8GB of RAM was able to keep up with my day to day without issue. Content consumption, emails, videos, social media, texting, phone calls, taking photos, and all the normal activities all of us do, were fluid and went on easily.

Gaming was also fairly decent. Normal time waster games worked great and I saw no issues in performance. I tried a few other more intense games and the phone seemed to handle those fairly well, though not perfectly. But this is expected, this is a budget phone folks. The phone did get a little warm with more intense games, and the battery was certainly hit.

Overall, this is typical budget phone performance on the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G. It is more than sufficient for most regular users. Gamers who want to play Xbox Cloud or Steam or any sort of heavy game, you’re probably not going to like using this device. But the majority of users will be happy with this performance.

Speakers/Sound

Speakers on smartphones have improved year after year, and budget phone speakers have improved as well. The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G speakers are just about average for a budget phone. Nothing exceptional here. They are a little thin, but the mids are actually pretty good. The low end isn’t thick but it holds it together enough to make them easy to tolerate. Overall, these are budget speakers, but not bad for the price.

Camera

Alright, the cameras. This has always been a thing of contention with these budget phones. Buyers get these and expect to have iPhone and Galaxy level photos. Please do not expect that. The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G doesn’t have the same level of optics or software as the iPhone or Samsung.

That being said, the photos in good lighting are as expected, not bad at all for what you get. The main shooter is 50MP, but megapixels aren’t everything. The optics play a big part. These optics seem to do a decent job in good lighting.

Camera Samples

The cameras on the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G also perform decently well indoors with normal lighting. The front facing camera is just OK. I felt it blew out highlights and was very soft, but again, it is a budget smartphone. Still, it is good enough for most users.

Low light performance is not great, as expected. The iPhone and Samsung compensate for low light with AI software, and this phone just can’t do low light very well. That doesn’t make it a bad camera. This is a good camera when used in good lighting and good conditions.

Overall, you cannot expect the level of photos you get from an iPhone from the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G. If you go in knowing this, then you will be satisfied with the camera performance.

Reception/Call Quality

Bluetooth reception is spot on, but at this point, all Bluetooth devices should be getting this right. Call quality is also excellent and I had zero issues hearing and understanding calls and callers had no issues with hearing me. Nothing major in this section to talk about, the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G functions well in these areas.

Battery Life

Battery life is always a hard one. Why? Well, because we all use our smartphones differently and for different things. If you’re gaming a lot or watching a lot of video content, your battery is going to naturally drain faster. If you have the variable refresh rate on, the battery will drain faster. If you don’t use auto brightness and have full brightness all the time, it drains faster.

The 5,000 mAh battery on the T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G lasted me all day when I used it for basic tasks, some content consumption, email, and social media. It lasted half the day if I decided to watch numerous videos on it. I didn’t do enough gaming but it does drain faster when gaming.

Overall, this is precisely what you should expect from a battery on any smartphone. Great performance and all-day battery life for regular day-to-day tasks. Expect that to be impacted if you game or watch a lot of video, or if you’re CONSTANTLY on the phone without turning it off.

Price/Value

The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is priced at $249, but if you sign up with T-Mobile, it’s free. That’s up to you, of course. You could pay the $249 and get a cheap plan and be ready to go without strings attached. But if you don’t mind the plan, then do that instead for a free phone.

The value is here, no doubt. These budget phones have gotten excellent. Good enough for most users and cheap enough to enjoy without worrying.

Wrap Up

The T-Mobile REVVL 7Pro 5G is a winner in the budget phone category. The only major fault it has, is that you can only use it on T-Mobile. But if you’re reading this, you probably already know that and are a T-Mobile customer.

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