The Poco F4 5G emerges as a compelling contender in the mid-range smartphone market, offering a harmonious blend of features and a price point that seems to hit the sweet spot. However, it’s not just about the specifications; this phone faces a fierce battle for your attention from rivals like OnePlus, iQoo, and even its sister brand Xiaomi. This comprehensive review aims to dissect the Poco F4 5G’s strengths and weaknesses, helping you understand whether this is the right device for your needs or if similar alternatives might be more suitable.
Poco F4 5G Price in India
The Poco F4 5G arrives with a starting price of Rs. 27,999 for the 6GB RAM and 256GB storage variant. Moving up the ladder, the 8GB RAM and 128GB storage option is available at Rs. 29,999, while the top-tier model with 12GB RAM and 256GB storage is priced at Rs. 33,999. Notably, these prices can fluctuate significantly through promotional offers and online sales, allowing for potential savings on each variant. The phone is available in two colour options: Nebula Green and Night Black.
Poco F4 5G Design
The Poco F4 5G projects a sense of premium appeal thanks to its frosted glass back and matte frame. While its weight of approximately 195g might feel substantial in hand, its slim 7.7mm profile prevents it from feeling bulky. The flat frame, despite its flatness, includes chamfered edges to ensure a comfortable grip and prevent any discomfort.
However, a point of contention arises with the phone’s buttons. Both the volume and power buttons are positioned on the right side and, unfortunately, feel too recessed and stiff, requiring a greater effort to use. The consistent texture across these buttons makes it difficult, at times, to distinguish between them, especially since the power button doubles as the fingerprint sensor.
The absence of a headphone jack on the Poco F4 5G might be a dealbreaker for some. To compensate, the phone offers stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos for an immersive audio experience, and includes an infrared emitter, allowing for control of compatible devices. A generous retail package includes a protective case, a 67W power adapter, a data cable, and even a USB Type-C to 3.5mm headphone adapter, demonstrating a focus on user convenience.
The F4 5G’s display is a major highlight, attracting those who prioritize media consumption on their smartphones. It features a 6.67-inch E4 AMOLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate, ensuring a fluid and responsive visual experience. Dolby Vision HDR playback, supported on the Netflix app, augments the viewing experience with richer and more vivid colours. Moreover, the display is compatible with HDR10+ playback, delivering a superior visual fidelity for compatible content. Rounding off the impressive display package is a full-HD+ resolution with a respectable pixel density of 395 ppi and Corning Gorilla Glass 5 for scratch resistance. While a pre-applied screen protector is included for added protection, it’s worth noting that it’s prone to smudges and fingerprints.
Poco F4 5G Specifications and Software
Under the hood, the Poco F4 5G relies on the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 SoC, which is coupled with support for up to 10 5G bands in India. Additional features include dual-band Wi-Fi ac, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, and a standard assortment of sensors and satellite navigation systems. Poco emphasizes its use of a vapor chamber and graphite sheets to manage the SoC’s thermal output, ensuring sustained performance even under heavy workloads. The phone incorporates an X-axis linear vibration motor, delivering precise and responsive haptics for a more immersive user experience.
Poco claims an IP53 rating for dust and water resistance for the F4 5G, although documentation and marketing materials haven’t explicitly mentioned this feature. Power is supplied by a 4,500mAh battery, supported by 67W wired fast charging for swift recharging.
The Poco F4 5G runs on MIUI 13 (v13.0.3), built upon the Android 12 foundation. During the course of this review, the device received updates, the latest of which included the June 2022 Android security patch. MIUI has a reputation for being a bloated skin on Xiaomi smartphones, with many of its first-party apps notorious for spamming users with intrusive notifications. Although the F4 5G retains most of this bloatware, it surprisingly delivers a much more manageable notification experience, despite the inclusion of preinstalled apps such as GetApps and Themes. A significant drawback, however, is Poco’s lack of a clear commitment to long-term updates for the F4 5G.
The user interface is smooth and responsive, offering extensive customization options. The always-on display allows for a high degree of personalization, enabling users to have it enabled constantly or schedule it for specific periods, unlike on some other Poco devices such as the X4 Pro 5G. The familiar MIUI shortcuts and gestures are readily accessible, ensuring a consistent user experience.
Poco F4 5G Performance and Battery Life
The Poco F4 5G delivered consistently smooth performance throughout the review period, without exhibiting any significant performance hiccups. The fingerprint sensor provided reliable authentication, and the option between touch or press activation for the power button enhances user flexibility. Face recognition also performed well, especially in ample lighting conditions.
The F4 5G’s display excelled in displaying HDR media streamed over the internet, showcasing vivid colors and adequate brightness. Dolby Vision shows on Netflix looked notably impressive, while HDR videos in general delivered an exceptional visual experience. The stereo speakers are capable of reaching high volumes without sacrificing sound quality. Popular gaming titles like Asphalt 9: Legends and Call of Duty: Mobile ran smoothly, showcasing the phone’s gaming prowess.
Even after extended gaming sessions lasting over 20 minutes, the Poco F4 5G remained impressively cool. Benchmark scores were equally impressive, achieving 684,474 points in AnTuTu and a respectable 50fps in GFXbench’s ‘Car Chase’ test.
Battery life on the Poco F4 5G consistently exceeded expectations. Under medium to light usage, encompassing activities like gaming, video watching, and web browsing, the F4 5G consistently delivered over a day of battery life. The bundled high-wattage power adapter facilitated rapid charging. In our battery loop test, the Poco F4 5G achieved a commendable 18 hours and 14 minutes, demonstrating its impressive battery endurance.
Poco F4 5G Cameras
The Poco F4 5G’s primary camera boasts a 64-megapixel Omnivision sensor with an f/1.8 aperture and optical stabilization (OIS). The rear camera system is complemented by an 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera and a 2-megapixel macro camera. Selfies are captured using a 20-megapixel front-facing camera. The camera app should be familiar to anyone acquainted with recent Xiaomi smartphones, offering a comprehensive array of shooting modes for both photos and videos. The main rear camera supports 4K 60fps video recording, although the ultra-wide and selfie cameras are limited to 1080p 30fps.
Daylight landscape photos captured with the main camera showcased vivid colors and decent detail, although texture quality on objects appeared smoothed and less distinct upon closer inspection. The ultra-wide camera delivered a more natural color tone, but detail levels were noticeably weaker, and noticeable chromatic aberration was present along the edges of some objects. Close-up shots produced good results, but requiring screen taps to ensure accurate focus was a recurring theme. While images generally appeared good, they lacked a bit of sharpness. Macro photos captured under sufficient lighting, surprisingly, turned out decent.
The rear cameras encountered difficulties with exposure in low-light landscape shots. Details were lacking, objects exhibited poor texture quality, and darker regions were rendered as black patches. Night mode had a minimal impact on improving exposure or details. The ultra-wide camera struggled even more in low-light scenarios, and while Night mode provided a minor enhancement, it wasn’t sufficient to produce usable photos.
Selfies captured in daylight conditions displayed good results, showcasing respectable skin tones, detail levels, and exposure. Portrait mode also performed well, effectively blurring out the appropriate portions of the image.
Videos recorded at 4K 60fps exhibited excellent quality, although stabilization was absent. Autofocus remained stable, detail levels were commendable, and colors appeared vibrant. 4K 30fps videos included stabilization, but footage exhibited noticeable jerkiness during walking, even at slower paces. The ‘Steady video’ toggle, despite its name, restricts recording to 1080p resolution and still produces jerky footage that is heavily cropped. Low-light videos displayed visible noise and jitter due to stabilization.
Verdict
The Poco F4 5G emerges as a well-designed smartphone that exudes a premium character, both in terms of its appearance and feel. It delivers exceptional gaming performance, above-average battery life, rapid charging, and an impressive display that supports Dolby Vision HDR playback. The IP53 rating is an added bonus, enhancing the phone’s overall appeal.
Compared to the Xiaomi Mi 11X, which essentially shares the same core features but with slower charging, the F4 5G offers superior value. For those seeking the 12GB RAM version, its price point of under Rs. 30,000 makes it a worthwhile investment. However, at its official price of Rs. 33,999, the Nothing Phone 1 stands out as a better alternative.
For photography enthusiasts prioritizing camera performance, smartphones such as the Realme 9 Pro+ and OnePlus Nord 2T present more compelling options. The recently launched Oppo Reno 8, bearing similarities to the Nord 2T, is also expected to deliver strong camera capabilities, although its final verdict awaits further review.
Ultimately, the Poco F4 5G stands as a strong contender in the mid-range segment, catering to individuals who seek a harmonious blend of performance, design, and price. However, its camera performance might fall short for those prioritizing exceptional image quality, and the lack of long-term update commitment could be a deterrent for some users. When deciding between this phone and others in the market, a careful assessment of individual preferences and priorities will ultimately guide the most suitable choice.
