Poco launched the smartphone industry in 2018 when it launched the Poco F1. The phone was a hit among users because it offered flagship-level performance in a mid-range price segment. That’s something most upstart manufacturers would struggle to finesse. Still, Poco was able to do it, mainly because they have a bit of independence within Xiaomi and get access to components other companies won’t be able to tap into.
The Poco F5 5G is the latest offering from the company, and it promises a near-flagship experience at an affordable price. It will compete directly with the Redmi Note 12 Turbo and Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite. The F5 is available in variants of 8GB/128GB and 12GB/256GB.
I had the chance to use the phone for a week and found it to be a solid contender in this price segment. The 6.4-inch display is sharp and offers Dolby Vision HDR playback. It also has a 120Hz refresh rate and supports fast-motion content like videos and games without losing details. In addition, the phone is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 processor, a powerhouse. It’s not only a great performer but also delivers excellent efficiency and outperforms the competition at this price point.
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Another aspect that impressed me was the battery life. The 5,000mAh battery is vast and lasts me almost three days with about three hours of screen time, no gaming, and everyday use. I even used the phone to watch a couple of full-length movies on the go, and it worked well. The only issue I had with the battery was a slightly perceptible latency for touch inputs, which I suspect could be related to software or a lousy digitizer.
The cameras on the Poco F5 are decent as well. The primary camera has a 64MP sensor that produces pictures with accurate colors and good detail levels. The phone also has a 2x lossless zoom mode and records 4K video without visible distortion. The 16MP front camera also does an excellent job of taking selfies.
Overall, the Poco F5 5G is a good smartphone that will compete with the Redmi 13 and the Xiaomi Mi A2 Lite. It has a solid design, fast charging, an excellent display, and a great battery. However, the software is too bloated for my liking, and the photo quality from the primary camera is a bit disappointing. Nevertheless, if Poco can tame the MIUI software and improve the primary camera, this will be a great smartphone to consider.
The Poco F5 5G is priced at Rs 27,999 for the 8GB/128GB version and Rs 33,999 for the 12GB/256GB variant. You can purchase the phone from Flipkart.
