Poco F6 Review – F For Flagship Killer Performance!

The Poco F6 5G retails in India for a price of Rs.29,999 for the base variant with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage. Furthermore, the phone models with 12GB+256GB and 12GB+512GB retail for Rs.31,999 and Rs.33,999, respectively.

The phone is available on Titanium and Black on Flipkart and Xiaomi India’s websites.

The Poco F6 packs the following items inside the box:

• Phone
• Case
• 120W Charger
• USB Cable
• Manual
• SIM Ejector

Before we talk in detail about the device, let’s see what the on-paper specs look like:

• Display: 6.67-inch 1.5K AMOLED with 120Hz
• Chipset: Snapdragon 8s Gen 3
• RAM & ROM: 8GB 256GB,12GB 512GB
• Software: HyperOS based on Android 14
• Rear camera: 50MP+8MP
• Selfie camera: 20MP
• Battery: 5,000mAh
• Weight: 179 grams
• Dimensions: 160.5 x 74.5 x 8 mm

The Poco F6 has a familiar design, with three concentric camera modules on the back, similar to its predecessor, the Poco F5. You get two large camera modules apart from an LED ring next to them.

Unlike other Poco phones, the camera module is not surrounded by a black strip. However, you do get a Poco logo and a 50MP camera text, while the rest of the back remains clean.

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Furthermore, the phone has a plastic build with a shimmery back. I have the Titanium colour for review, and it shines under bright light.

Moreover, the phone has a curved back panel with flat edges, making it ergonomic. Although the plastic build makes it slippery, Xiaomi includes a high-quality silicone case that offers good grip and protection.

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It weighs around 179 grams and is just 8mm thick despite packing a 5,000mAh battery. It did not feel heavy or bulky to hold in the hand.

Coming to ports and placements, the volume rocker and power buttons are on the right, while the left remains clean.

On the top, there is a secondary speaker, a microphone, and an IR Blaster.

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At the bottom, you will be greeted by the USB-C, SIM tray, and speaker grille. An IP64 rating protects the phone and comes with NFC support.

The Poco F6 features a 50-megapixel camera with OIS and an 8-megapixel ultrawide sensor. On the front, there is a 20-megapixel front-facing camera. Thankfully, there is no 2-megapixel macro sensor present this time.

The 50-megapixel Sony IMX 882 sensor can take amazing shots during the day with plenty of details and exposure. Furthermore, the phones take saturated photos with good colours and dynamic range. You can also turn on the 50-megapixel mode to capture more detail.

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The 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor can also take decent photos during the day. However, it cannot match the colour profile of the primary camera, and the images are dull or balanced, as some would like to call them.

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The phone takes decent photos in low light using the primary sensor. However, it can sometimes struggle to maintain exposure to multiple light sources. Similarly, the ultrawide takes photos with soft details and average dynamic range at night.

Regarding selfies, the 20-megapixel selfie camera does a decent job. However, it tends to soften the skin tones, thus removing the details. Regarding video recording, you get support for 4K at 60 FPS from the primary camera and 1080p at 30 FPS from the ultrawide and front-facing camera. Overall, the Poco F6 does a decent job in terms of photography. However, there are much better camera-centric phones than the Poco F6, like the Realme 12 Pro+, which we have reviewed if photography is your priority.

The Poco F6 packs a massive 5,000mAh battery with 120W charging support, although you only get a 90W charger in the box. Furthermore, the phone can easily last 6 to 7 hours on a single charge with moderate usage.

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This includes scrolling through reels on Instagram, taking photos, watching YouTube videos, and playing games.  If you are a light user, the phone can easily get you through the day.

In addition, the 90W charger can help you charge the phone from 0 to 100 per cent in just 40 minutes. I hoped Xiaomi would offer 120W charging with Poco F6, given that competitors like the Realme GT 6T, which we recently reviewed do so. It’s still fast charging, nonetheless, so I have no complaints.

The Poco F6 boasts a 6.7-inch 1.5K AMOLED screen with a 120Hz refresh rate. Moreover, it is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus and has a peak brightness of 2400 nits of peak brightness.The Poco F6 is one of the few phones I have reviewed offering Gorilla Glass Victus and 1.5K resolution.

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The phone has a punch-hole camera cutout with very slim bezels surrounding it. It is also very bright, and I did not face any issues when using it outdoors.

You also get HDR and Dolby Vision support, I enjoyed watching Season 4 of The Boys On Amazon Prime Video. In addition, there is Widevine L1 certification, which means you can enjoy high-resolution content on OTT platforms.

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Thanks to the 120Hz refresh rate, navigating the user interface remains smooth and fluid. You can also switch between 60Hz and 120Hz with the option to force 120Hz in third-party apps, which is excellent.

However, no LTPO support means the screen won’t automatically adjust the refresh rate based on the content. This is a bit disappointing as similarly priced phones like Realme GT 6 and iQOO Neo 9 Pro have LTPO panels.

For the first time on the F series, there is also an in-display fingerprint sensor, which is fast and accurate. Unfortunately, Xiaomi has removed the 3.5mm headphone jack, which is a bummer for a gaming-centric smartphone.

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Regarding audio, you get a stereo speaker setup that is loud and clear with no distortion, even at full volume. You also get an IR Blaster, another rare feature nowadays.

The Poco F6 is the star of the show when it comes to performance, and it’s also the main reason I was excited to test it first in my review. It is powered by the new 4 nm-based Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, which sits between the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 and the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3. It uses the 4nm architecture as the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3.

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The phone performs day-to-day tasks such as opening social media apps, watching videos on YouTube, taking photos, etc. Furthermore, thanks to the 12GB of LPDDR5X RAM, most apps remain in memory, and there is also virtual RAM support of up to 8GB so that you won’t face any issues.

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Furthermore, when it comes to intensive tasks like gaming, the Poco F6 can handle games like the BGMI and CODM at 60 FPS and 120 FPS, respectively. Unfortunately, BGMI does not support 90 FPS, which is a bit disappointing given the flagship chipset.

I also tried more demanding games, such as Wreckfest, Hitman Blood Money Reprisal, GTA SA Definitive Edition, Diablo Immortal, and COD Warzone. While it ran most games at 60 FPS, some even at 80 or 120 FPS, the phone got warm during my prolonged gaming sessions in a controlled room with an ambient temperature of 26 degrees.

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Although this is an issue, I have also noticed that on other Snapdragon 8s Gen 3, it’s more of a chipset issue than a phone one. Hopefully, Poco and Xiaomi can work together to fix this issue.

Regarding benchmarks, the phone has a Geekbench score of 1854 in single-core and 4574 in multi-core test. Furthermore, it has a stability score of 86.1 per cent in the 3D Mark Wildlife Extreme Stress test, and it only throttled to 93 per cent of its peak performance in the 15-minute CPU throttling test. In the AnTuTu V10 benchmark, the Poco F6 scores 1443065 and a storage speed test score of 176671. Overall, the Poco F6 impresses with its flagship-level performance, hovering close to phones with Snapdragon 8 Gen 2.

The Poco F6 runs out of the box on the latest HyperOS based on Android 14. Furthermore, Xiaomi promises three years of OS updates and four years of security patches. This means you can expect the phone to receive updates till Android 17, which is excellent.

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After booting the phone, you will be greeted with a familiar HyperOS experience with tons of ads and bloatware. Dark patterns are also visible during the setup process. It prompts you to enable the Glance lock screen, app recommendations, and other unwanted features.

In addition, you get plenty of bloatware apps, such as LinkedIn, Jewels Blast, Snapchat, Snalke Zone, Tile Fun, Word Trip, and Dust Settle. Thankfully, you can uninstall most of these apps by going to Settings.

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The rest of the HyperOS experience remains familiar with smoother app opening animations, lock screen customization options, a new control centre, and many other changes. Furthermore, you get plenty of additional options such as Quick Ball, One-Handed Mode, Screen Recorder, Floating Windows, Second Space, Heart Rate, and a new Active Visual Perception feature.

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This feature ensures the screen stays on when you are looking, so you don’t need to frequently press the power button to turn it on when reading or watching something. You also get AI features like AI Image Expansion and AI Eraser Pro to add and remove objects from the photos.

Overall, the Poco F6’s software experience is great but marred by bloatware, ads, and annoying notifications. The company has promised three years of OS updates, but Xiaomi’s track record of providing timely updates leaves much to be desired.