The POCO F6 stands out as a powerful contender in the mid-range smartphone market, boasting a blend of high-end features and performance capabilities. This POCO F6 review will explore its design, display, performance, camera, battery, software, pricing, and overall value, offering an in-depth look at what makes the POCO F6 a noteworthy choice.

Unboxing Experience

The unboxing experience of the POCO F6 is something I wish more major companies would adopt. POCO not only includes a case with their phones, including their flagships, but also packages both the charging cable and power brick, so users don’t have to spend extra to get the full experience of their phone after purchasing it. The charger is a blazing-fast 90W.

Design and Build

Looking at the phone itself, I was pleased to see that POCO once again provided a review unit that is not the typical bland black. The F6 we received was a shade of green, which I like to call Sage Green, although POCO simply calls it green. Buyers can also opt for black or a premium-looking gold color that POCO calls Titanium.

While I have mixed feelings about the phone being primarily made of plastic, I appreciate not having to worry about the back glass shattering unexpectedly. The matte finish also means fingerprints on both the front and back of my phone are a thing of the past. However, I would have preferred aluminum sides over plastic, especially for a model aimed at competing with flagships. That said, I am generally gentle with my phones, so I don’t see durability as a significant concern.

One design aspect others have commented on is the large camera lenses on the back. While they remind me a bit of the Asus Zenfone 10 and don’t bother me much, I have heard some complaints that they make the phone look unattractive. Your opinion may vary.

Display and Speaker

But what’s the point of playing games or consuming media if the screen you’re playing on is subpar? The POCO F6 addresses this concern with its 6.67″ 1.5K AMOLED display, which supports a refresh rate of up to 120Hz. This ensures that media always comes out brilliantly sharp with rich 100% DCI-P3 color coverage, making everything feel like it came to life.

Under most circumstances, the screen gets up to 500 nits, but in the brightest conditions, the screen can reach an astounding 2400 peak nits, making your phone viewable even on the sunniest days outside. To put the icing on the cake, the panel also features Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, which provides solid durability to stand up to some of the harshest conditions.

Hardware and Performance

Powering this year’s POCO F6 is the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, a welcome upgrade from last year’s POCO F5 and even the F5 Pro. This chip is beyond fast and makes even high-end phones feel like budget devices. Every task I threw at the F6 it chewed up and spit out like it wasn’t even a challenge.

Running Antutu 3D, I was able to achieve an astonishing score of 1,433,193, which is a massive increase over last year’s F5 Pro score of 1,053,586 and puts it in the realm of a Samsung Galaxy S23. Sure, it may not outshine the S24 line, but it’s certainly more than enough to handle almost any task you’d ever need to accomplish.

Similarly, Geekbench 6 was able to produce an equally impressive set of numbers, 1850 in single-core and 4664 in multi-core. Compared to last year’s F5 and F5 Pro, which were well below these numbers, I was blown away by how much of an improvement the POCO was able to make.

Gaming Performance

In gaming sessions, the POCO F6 continued to blaze through everything I threw at it, even some of the most intense games. Playing Fortnite, even on max settings with the high-quality texture pack, the F6 made it feel like a game of solitaire and played at a consistent 60fps. Genshin Impact and Call of Duty Warzone ran at full speed and made my experience much more exciting, often leading to longer games that I would not have normally played on cheaper, less powerful phones.

At no time, even during extended gaming sessions, did I ever feel that the phone was getting too warm to hold or use. POCO’s new LiquidCool Technology 4.0 played a big part in this, keeping temperatures to a minimum.

Camera

This year’s cameras include a 50MP main shooter with OIS and an f/1.59 aperture, and an 8MP ultra-wide lens. The 2MP macro camera found on previous POCO models has been dropped. I wasn’t upset to see it go, as I rarely used it. A zoom lens would have been nicer to compete with other flagship phones.

The photo quality, while not quite on par with the Pixels, iPhones, and high-end Galaxy phones, is still incredible, and I often found myself taking some remarkable photos packed with detail. In bright lighting, I could regularly zoom in on photos and still see more detail than I’ve ever seen on a phone. From individual blades of grass to strands of fur on my cats, I was often blown away by how much the main shooter could do.

In low-light situations like night shots, while I often had mixed results with the built-in night mode, using the dedicated long exposure mode could produce photos I wouldn’t be afraid to frame on my wall. However, long exposure shots require either a very steady hand or a tripod to produce the best possible images, so it may take some practice to master these modes properly.

Battery Life

Despite its powerful features, the POCO F6’s 5000mAh battery ensures it lasts through even the longest of days. On days where I found myself away from the charger for extended periods, with heavier use, I could still get through a long 17-hour day while still getting 10 hours of screen time playing games, using the GPS, camera, and lots of messaging and social media. On lighter days, I could go to bed with more than half a charge and get close to 2 days of battery life.

Software, UI, and Apps

Running on MIUI based on Android 14, the POCO F6 offers a smooth and intuitive user experience. The phone comes with several preloaded apps, but thankfully, most of these can be uninstalled if you don’t find them useful. The interface is clean, and navigating through different settings and features is a breeze.

Pricing and Availability

The POCO F6 is priced competitively, making it a great value for the features it offers. The phone comes in two versions: an 8GB RAM with 256GB storage model and a 12GB RAM with 512GB storage model, mine being the latter. This makes the POCO F6 a solid choice for users looking for a powerful device without breaking the bank. The POCO F6 starts at Rs. 34,999 for the 8GB + 256GB model and goes up to Rs. 39,999 for the 12GB + 512GB model.

Verdict

Once again, POCO has delivered a phone that not only impressed me but left me wondering why they aren’t more popular. With everything I was able to achieve with the new POCO F6, it makes it hard to justify paying more for flagships with all the value POCO offers. This year’s POCO F6 is an absolutely incredible phone that makes me wonder why anyone would ever want to buy anything more expensive when there are such great value phones out there.

Pros and Cons

Pros

• Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 offers top-tier performance
• Stunning 1.5K AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate
• Long battery life with 5000mAh capacity
• Excellent main camera performance
• Competitive pricing

Cons

• Primarily plastic build might not appeal to everyone
• Lack of a dedicated zoom lens
• Preloaded apps can be a nuisance

Image Credits :The images used in this review are sourced from the official Poco Website https://www.po.co/global/ . All rights reserved to their respective owners.

Do checkout review of Motorola Edge 50 pro : https://reviewandratings.com/motorola-edge-50-pro-review/