The Poco F5 Pro is fast, has a beautiful display, and doesn’t cost an absolute jackpot. But is this enough to blow up its competitors? I read it in this review.

This is the Poco F5 Pro review

Poco F5 Pro is the latest flagship from the Chinese smartphone maker. The smartphone rubs into the high-end segment due to its powerful specs, but it is also much more expensive than its predecessor. Where the Poco F4 was released last year for €399, you lost no less than €579 to the F5 Pro.

Big difference in price, but is the Poco smartphone worth it? How does the device compare to the competitor? There are many interesting phones available in this price range. Time to review!

Poco F5 Pro review sample.

The design is game-like

Poco F5 Pro comes in two colors (black and white) and has a glass back. This makes wireless charging possible — more on that later — and creates a sense of luxury. On the one hand, the frame is made of plastic, but this is certainly not annoying. The device fits comfortably in the hand, but is a bit slippery.

The design is not very special and hard to describe. The back is a bit reminiscent of gaming smartphones, for example, Asus. This is mainly due to the white colors and somewhat upright camera island. We don’t think it’s super cute, but it looks streamlined.

There is a loudspeaker at the top and bottom of the housing. There is also an infrared sensor on top, so you can use the Poco F5 Pro as a remote control. At the bottom we also see the USB-C port and the SIM card tray. The buttons, which look great, are on the right side.

A good screen looks good

Poco F5 Pro has a very good screen. The screen size is 6.67 inches and it has a QHD resolution of 3200 x 1440 pixels. However, the screen is set to Full HD by default to save battery. You can still set it to QHD, but honestly, we rarely see any difference in sharpness.

Nice is the high refresh rate of 120Hz, which makes the Poco F5 Pro feel lightning fast and images very smooth. Everything looks elegant thanks to the AMOLED panel: the colors come out on their own and the blacks are really black. The maximum brightness and viewing angles are also good, which is nice on sunny days.

The refresh rate is also set based on what’s happening on the screen, but you can also set it to 60 or 120 Hz. You also have several options for adjusting the color scheme, for example if you want the shadows to look saturated or more realistic.

Lightning fast hardware

Under the hood of the Poco F5 Pro, we find the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus processor. This is the second fastest chip we’ve seen in Android phones right now and it’s flagship models from last year, for example. It’s no wonder, then, that the performance of the Poco F5 Pro is excellent.

The processor is lightning fast and runs all the apps and games like magic. Even if you multitask a lot or play a heavy game, the Poco phone won’t have a hard time. Also nice: the device has 256GB of storage as standard and 8 or 12GB of RAM, depending on which version you choose. We tested the more expensive 12/256GB variant, though 8GB is probably more than enough for most users.

The Poco F5 Pro also has stereo speakers that sound great and an under-display fingerprint scanner. With the Poco F4, the scanner was still in the on/off button on the side, but we found a better place under the screen. You can unlock the Poco F5 Pro easier and faster with your thumb. Fortunately, the scanner is also nice and fast.

Software sucks

Out of the box, the Poco F5 Pro runs on Android 13, which is the version that Android 14 will succeed later this year. Poco puts its MIUI skin on Android and we’re not impressed with that. Even though you get many add-ons and customization options with MIUI, Android immediately looks very busy.

Particularly annoying is that Poco has crammed the entire F5 Pro with bloatware. In addition to all kinds of special applications – which are by no means better than those from Google itself – there are six games on the device. Then you have apps like WPS Office, Agoda, Booking.com, AliExpress, Amazon Shopping, etc.

Bloatware is already annoying on a €300 smartphone, but on the Poco F5 Pro — with a suggested retail price of nearly €600 — we find it simply unacceptable. It is also not clear how long the F5 Pro will receive updates. We have checked with Poco about the update policy, but have not received a response yet.

The cameras are nothing special

Unfortunately, the Poco F5 Pro does not excel with its cameras. There are three lenses on the back, only one of which is worth it. The main 64MP camera, which also has optical image stabilization, takes good pictures, especially during the day. The images have enough detail, the colors are a bit oversaturated and the dynamic range is just fine.

Even in the dark, the Poco F5 Pro still manages to take beautiful photos. The phone relies heavily on the night mode to brighten the image and remove noise. However, competing smartphones like the Google Pixel 7, Pixel 7a, and Samsung Galaxy S22 take better night photos than the Poco.

2x zoom can also be found in the camera app. Although the F5 Pro doesn’t have a separate telephoto lens for zooming, the shots still look great thanks to the camera’s high resolution. You can also use the “zoom function” to take close-ups, because the separate 2MP macro camera is almost useless.

You shouldn’t expect miracles from the 8MP wide-angle lens either. It helps that the camera is there and the shots you take aren’t necessarily bad, but they don’t look special either. Basically the problem is that with a €600 smartphone you can expect more than a simple wide-angle and macro lens.

Battery life and charging

If we look at the battery life of the Poco F5 Pro, we don’t have much to complain about. The device has a 5160 mAh battery and it lasts for a long time. In fact, you never have to worry about the battery, because even on a busy day you won’t have to reach for the charger. This is a big plus.

If your Poco phone is empty, you won’t have to wait long for the battery to fill up again. The box contains a 67W charger (neat!) and it pumps the phone half full in fifteen minutes. A full charge takes just over 45 minutes, which is also pretty good.

It’s a good idea that you can pretty much charge the Poco F5 Pro in about 30 minutes. Perfect when you often forget to charge at night. Wireless charging is also possible and can be used at a maximum of 30W. You need a suitable wireless charger, and it makes sense to purchase it separately.

Poco F5 Pro review conclusion

Poco F5 Pro is a powerful smartphone that has a lot to offer. The processor is very fast, the screen looks good, and the battery life is more than good. Unfortunately, we’re less than enthusiastic about the design, software, and cameras. Poco’s software in particular is still a thorn in the side.

Given the exorbitant price of 579 euros, we dare not recommend the Poco with complete conviction. In this price range, you can also choose the more complete Google Pixel 7, Samsung Galaxy S22 or OnePlus 10T, which are also supported for a longer period. With such competition, the Poco F5 Pro is simply having a hard time.

Buy the Poco F5 Pro

Are you planning to get a Poco F5 Pro? The smartphone is available separately or with a subscription. The base model costs €579 and has 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. If you choose the version with 12 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage, you will lose 629 euros.

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