It is well-priced for a supposed flagship killer. Is POCO back to its roots?
Just a few days ago, the POCO F6 launched with a staggering price point that could even make OnePlus rethink their decisions. There are two phones in the series, the POCO F6 of course, and the POCO F6 Pro. The former is based on the China-only Redmi Turbo 3 while the latter is based on the Redmi Note 13 Pro Plus. Oddly enough, the POCO F6 Pro uses an older chipset, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2. Theoretically, they are not that different performance-wise but the 8s Gen 3 has better clocks (3GHz vs 2.4GHz of the 8 Gen 3) and will last longer, being a newer chip. Both are manufactured on a 4nm process.
It seems like the highlight this time is the POCO F6, aka Redmi Turbo 3 which also gained some fanfare natively and in the global scene to the point where it is being sold as a grey unit. Now that the POCO F6 is released, there is little reason to do that unless you prefer the Redmi branding and a cheaper price. Though, for what the POCO F6 offers, it’s unreasonable to get a grey market variant.
As with the Redmi Turbo 3, the POCO F6 is gaming oriented. It comes with the usual flagship-killer specs including a 1.5K 120Hz “CrystalRes” AMOLED display with up to 480Hz touch response rate, 2400nits peak brightness, Corning Gorilla Glass Victus protection, and 1920Hz PWM dimming. Typical flagship things. The display is made by TCL this time around, avoiding the notorious “green line” issue that Samsung displays suffers from.
Aside from this, there is the aforementioned featured chipset, the flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3. The “s” is a code used by Qualcomm to denote a slightly improved version of the original 8 Gen 3 with better clock speeds and efficiency. The phone comes with 8 or 12GB LPDDR5X RAM and either 256 or 512GB UFS 4.0 storage. Expandable? No.
Now, the cameras are not usually a big priority when it comes to flagship killer phones. After all, even the original did not flaunt exactly amazing cameras on paper. Now, there have been some improvements since the POCO F5. It now uses a newer, more potent 50MP Sony IMX882 main camera with OIS (the POCO F5 lacked this feature). The camera is not exactly a flagship type, but it is more than enough for what the POCO F6 is. Alongside is an 8MP Sony IMX355 ultrawide sensor and a ring light flash. We’re glad that Xiaomi finally decided to ditch the unnecessary 2MP filler cameras and found a way to design a phone that looks attractive without them. It is highly possible, after all.
Usually, Xiaomi would just leave the default 16MP front camera for this type of device. This time, that isn’t the case. Just like how ASUS is treating the ROG Phones right now, the POCO F6 seems like an “everyman’s phone”. It can be used to capture amazing shots, game, and as a mobile theater all at the same time. Not to mention, great calls, as phones are originally intended to do. For the POCO F6, a 20MP sensor, an Omnivision OV20B is used. The brand finally decided to shake things up a little.
Finally, there is the 90W charger inside. It has the typical 5000mAh battery. Wireless charging is still not an option because that would mean increased costs and that isn’t necessary. The phone also now has extra protection against internal heating by adding three layers of temperature control.
Are you ready for the price? It’s PHP 21,999 (with an early bird price of PHP 19,599) for the 8/256 variation and PHP 24,999 (PHP 21,999 early bird) for the 12/256 variant. Remember, the original Pocophone F1 is priced almost similarly and if Xiaomi can maintain its quality and software, then this is truly the flagship killer of all flagship killers. Transsion has some stiff competition, and OnePlus need to go back to the drawing board.
We honestly believe that the phone is correctly priced. The POCO F6 was highly anticipated the moment it launched in China as the Redmi Turbo 3. Not only do you get good hardware, but also decent software. We’re just hoping Xiaomi becomes more consistent with optimization. Unheard of in this price range is the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 which brings us back to the POCO F1 days with a Snapdragon 845. It still is highly competitive today as a midrange phone. Though, the F1 lacks 5G services which makes it less future-proof than newer contemporaries. The F6 ticked everything correctly and greatly improved on the POCO F5 that one might even consider upgrading. This isn’t just a successor, but also a worthy upgrade. Go get it while it’s still in its early bird price!
Where do you even get one? Shopee of course! Head over to POCO’s official Shopee channel to find the phone. Vouchers are up for grabs and you might even get the F6 for cheap.
SPECS:
- 6.67″ 1.5K (2772x1220px) CrystalRes AMOLED, 1-120Hz refresh rate, 1920Hz PWM Dimming, HDR10+
- Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 (4nm)
- CAMERAS:
- 50MP (Primary), f/1.59, 1.6µm, OIS, Sony IMX882
- 8MP (Ultrawide), f/2.2, Sony IMX355
- FRONT: 20MP, f/2.2, Omnivision OV20B
- HyperOS based on Android 14
- 5000mAh, 90W fast charging
- USB-C, Stereo Speakers, Hi-Res Audio (Wired and Wireless), IR Blaster, X-Axis Linear Motor
- 5G services, 4G LTE, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC
- Black, Green, Titanium
- PRICE:
- 8/256: PHP 21,999
- 12/256: PHP 24,999
Source: POCO
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