Realme will show ads on its phones but you can disable them
One of the most contested aspects of the MIUI software experience on Xiaomi and Redmi phones in places such as India has been the extensive use of ads all over. But it looks like the appeal of introducing ads into your software UI is just too high, because now Realme is doing it too.
Realme as a brand is an Oppo offshoot that is pretty clearly aiming to compete primarily with Xiaomi (and mostly, its Redmi sub-brand), and it's been doing a great job so far. Now though, it will introduce ads in its UI in India, which it's sneakily calling "commercial content recommendation".
All Realme phones running ColorOS 6 and above will receive updates that enable the ads. Content recommendation will promote apps and commercial links. The ads will appear in the Phone Manager app and the Security Check page after installing new apps. Apparently the ad system will "ensure protection of your privacy and compliance with relevant laws and regulations", according to Realme.
Thankfully, there's an easy way to turn off these ads entirely - and that's one area where Realme is getting things right from the get-go, unlike Xiaomi who didn't offer such a toggle initially.
On your Realme phone, you just need to go to Settings > Additional settings > Get recommendations and flip the switch. Ads will be on by default as you can imagine, and we're pretty sure that not using the word "ads" in the Settings menu is on purpose. So if you're not the type to dive into every single menu and submenu on your phone or read about this on the internet, you probably wouldn't even know there's a way to disable the ads.
All that said, it's commendable that Realme included this option, and hopefully the ad placement won't get more annoying over time. The company implies in its official statement on the matter that the ads are required for it to maintain a healthy and sustainable business model.