POCO F6 Pro Review: Flagship greatness with a mid-range price
The POCO F6 Series is a curious one. Consisting of the base variant F6 and the upscaled model F6 Pro, the two were meant to be value-for-money mid-rangers that don’t cost a bomb – or flagship killers, if you like.
While that’s largely true for the POCO F6, the F6 Pro has received divided feedback over its choice of hardware and price. Some love it and vouch that, with all things considered, it’s a steal; many others seem to think otherwise and would much rather put their money on the base F6.
It’s a completely understandable rationale, as there are certain areas of the F6 Pro that downgrade from what you get on the F6. We suppose POCO had to cut some corners to keep the Pro variant below the RM3,000 mark, which again, is understandable.
Don’t get us wrong though; the F6 Pro excels in many areas based on our experience with the phone. We were lucky enough to get our hands on the fully spec-ed model, specifically with 16GB RAM and 1TB storage, retailing at RM2,899. This isn’t exactly flagship pricing, but it’s definitely perching around that territory.
Having had the POCO F6 Pro for a month, we can finally share our thoughts on the phone and lay the details bare for you to decide if it’s worth cashing out on.
POCO F6 Pro: Pricing and what’s in the box
Let’s get to the pricing first. The POCO F6 Pro is available in three memory configurations: a 12GB+256GB model priced at RM2,299, a 12GB+512GB model priced at RM2,499, and a 16GB+1TB model priced at RM2,899.
At these prices, you’ll (thankfully) get a charging brick to support its 120W fast charging, a USB-A to USB-C cable, and a protective case.
Premium build quality. But what about IP rating?
Quash whatever doubts you have about the POCO F6 Pro feeling like a knock-off. This is a phone with weight and some heft, and honestly, feels great to hold.
It has a lovely glass back with smooth, velvety texture, designed with iridescent grey and black sheens that dance at different angles. The POCO website says the design was ‘inspired by ancient moon rocks,’ which was my first thought too before I even skimmed the website.
The POCO F6 Pro does have a large camera island that houses the triple camera setup, similar to what you see on the POCO X6 Pro released earlier this year. The aesthetic difference being that each camera on the F6 Pro has gold rims encircling the lens. Again, this has gotten a bit of mixed reaction, but I personally love that hint of detail and the way it gleams in contrast with the black panels.
Unfortunately, build quality is where we encounter the first drawback. The IP54 rating on the POCO F6 Pro isn’t necessarily a deal breaker; in fact, it’s actually not bad at all. However, putting it next to the more dust-resistant IP64 rating of the F6, it does raise a few question marks as to why the F6 Pro is not better, or at least equal to the price-friendlier F6.
Excellent displays rivalling that of flagships
I’m going to take a leap here and say the displays are on par with certain flagships out there.
It has a gorgeous 6.67″ AMOLED flat display offering WQHD+ (1440p) resolution and 120Hz refresh rate. The spec sheet says it has 526 pixels per inch (ppi), which means sharp details and crisp visuals in whatever content you’re binging on.
The high resolution and pixel density of the POCO F6 Pro outclass current mid-rangers and even flagship devices in the market. The Galaxy S24+, for example, has a slightly larger 6.7″ display with the same 1440p resolution but only 513ppi. Plus, it cost a lot more with a RM4,899 starting price.
On a more equal plane, HUAWEI’s Pura 70 has a 6.6″ display with a lower 1256p resolution and 460ppi, and it’s a fringe more expensive than the fully spec-ed F6 Pro at RM2,999.
The POCO F6 Pro has dynamic refresh rates that adjust from 60Hz to 120Hz to help with battery consumption. It doesn’t go as low as 1Hz or 10Hz, but it’s acceptable given this is a mid-ranger without LTPO.
This is an almost, almost perfect display on a smartphone. The only thing preventing us from giving it a ten out of ten score is the use of the relatively outdated Gorilla Glass 5, released in 2016. In contrast, the base model F6 features the newer 2020 Gorilla Glass Victus, which is believed to be more shatterproof and scratch-resistant than its predecessors.
All things considered though, the display on the POCO F6 Pro passes with flying colours, and you’ll certainly have a ball of a time doomscrolling in all its high resolution, high PPI glory.
Older Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is NOT a problem
We heard it even before the F6 Pro launched: the moans and groans about using an ‘older’ processor.
Before you have any gripes with it, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is still only a year and a half old, and still very, very good. Yes, using a previous-gen processor would be out of the ordinary if you’re spending soul-sucking money on a newly launched flagship phone. But considering prices start at RM2,299, this isn’t going to hurt you nearly as much.
A perspective worth pondering over is this: at less than half the price, you’ll be using the same chipset as someone who bought the Galaxy S23 Ultra (RRP: RM5,699), the HONOR Magic V2 (RRP: RM6,999), and the OPPO Find N3 (RRP: RM6,999). And I doubt any of their owners will be complaining about performance anytime soon.
As you’d expect from a flagship processor, the POCO F6 Pro excels in all the daily and common uses of a phone. Web browsing, streaming, and social media binging all work exceptionally well with no crashes. In fact, everything from app animations to scrolling is impressively smooth.
Where the POCO F6 Pro truly shines is in its gaming prowess. Running open world games like Genshin Impact proved lightwork for the F6 Pro, even at its maximum graphical settings. We encountered no issues with lag or stuttering in fighting animations, and, combined with responsive touch controls, it made gaming on the F6 Pro a delight.
The same goes for less demanding games such as Call of Duty and Mobile Legends, all of which ran superbly.
This is a Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, after all, so its exceptional performance comes as no surprise. Given the few drawbacks previously mentioned, the RM2K+ price tag now seems more justifiable.
Decent cameras, but nothing spectacular
Getting straight to the point, the cameras on the POCO F6 Pro are decent, but aren’t anything to shout about. The 50MP main camera, backed by the Light Fusion 800 sensor, does most of the heavy lifting, while the 8MP ultra-wide and 2MP macro lenses are nice to have but not spectacular.
Nevertheless, we’ve captured some quality shots with the F6 Pro, and it will no doubt get the job done if you’re a casual point-and-shoot user. Here are a few sample shots for your examination:
The POCO F6 Pro isn’t really marketed as a camera phone, so the lack of substance in its lens array is forgivable. If you’re looking for something more camera-centric at a similar price point, you’ll probably find more joy in other smartphones, such as the OPPO Reno12 Series or the HONOR 200 Series.
Sufficient battery endurance with lightning-quick charging
If you’re familiar with the POCO F series, it’s understandable if you have slight concerns about the reduced battery capacity. For the record, last year’s POCO F5 Pro packed a 5,160mAh battery with support for 67W wired charging and 30W wireless charging.
This year, POCO has decided to tone down the batteries to 5,000mAh, while also removing wireless charging altogether. Instead, you get in return 120W wired charging, almost doubled from its predecessor.
In total, we managed to squeeze 8 hours of screen time out of the POCO F6 Pro before it hit the 10% mark. Our usage consisted at least 6 hours of YouTube, an hour of Genshin Impact, and half an hour of TikTok scrolling.
Now, to see what the improved charging speed is all about, we took to timing how quickly the POCO F6 Pro charged from 0% – 100%. Do note that to experience the full 120W, you will need to turn on ‘Boost charging speed’ in the settings.
At full throttle, we got the phone fully charged in just 34 minutes. Not quite the 19 minutes promised on the website, but considering they conducted their tests in a controlled lab, the difference is expected. In real world usage though, it’s best to set your expectation to approximately 30 minutes.
Based on these measurements, the POCO F6 Pro has the capability to last a full day. Although time will tell if battery lifespan will deteriorate due to the heat generated from charging.
At this point though, where it’s just fresh from the launch, battery endurance and charging looks promising.
POCO F6 Pro: Worth cashing out on?
There are two major pros on the POCO F6 Pro that’s keeping us on the ‘yes’ side of this debate.
The first is its excellent high-res AMOLED displays with punchy visuals and vibrant, vivid colours. The second is its use of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2, a flagship processor still only in its second year and found in almost every flagship Android phone released in 2023.
Personally, I find that these two points alone are enough to justify the price, even more so if you’re gunning for the 12GB/256GB or 12GB/512GB model which floats just below the RM2,500 mark.
If you’re not all about displays and processor though, I think the only real hindrance are its sub-par cameras. They scrape by and do the job, but there are other camera-centric models out there that are far better.
As for the downgrades, the IP54 rating and the use of an older Gorilla Glass 5 only seems bad when you put it next to the base F6 model. In truth, you are getting decent IP and glass protection, and our verdict is that it’s not something to fret too much about.
All things considered, the POCO F6 Pro is a solid all-round phone that should definitely be on your list if you’re considering your next mid-ranger.
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