Poco F5 Review

Verdict

The Poco F5 is another strong mid - range phone , with excellent carrying into action for the money and a very good AMOLED display . Add in a comparatively svelte design , and it ’s a unclouded improvement over the Poco F4 . However , a stagnant camera organization , the ever - unlovable MIUI 14 , and an unwelcome cost excrescence temper some of those encouraging element .

Pros

Cons

Key Features

Introduction

The headline for the 2023 Poco F - series might well be the coming back of the Pro line after three years out , but let ’s front it : more citizenry will be eyeing up the plain Poco F5 .

While the Poco F5 is even more value - focused than thePoco F5 Pro , though , it still costs £ 449 . Not only is that an £ 80 bump over thePoco F4 , it ’s also exactly the same cost as theGoogle Pixel 7aand theSamsung Galaxy A54 .

Xiaomi has stepped up into an altogether more free-enterprise conference with its latest performance - focus mid - ranger . Does it have the chop to contend ?

Design and Screen

The Poco F5 Pro might have a number of eye - catching factor , but I prefer the Poco F5 ’s design . Its square - off boundary , shimmer ( but not bright ) back , and discrete camera module look and finger more mod and just unmingled premium than the Pro .

It ’s a more slender gadget , too , at 161.1 x 75 x 7.9 millimeter , while a much lighter weight of 181 g makes it squeamish and pocketable . All in all , it ’s a step up from the Poco F4 ’s design words , which felt a little more flash and generic .

It helps that I was sent the racy model , which has a nice shimmering tinge to it , and which fends off fingerprint middling well . you may also nail down the Poco F5 in Black or White , with the latter in particular come with an interesting mottled finish .

There ’s a certain proportion to the top and bottom bezel , which is always nice to see in a cheap phone . You still only get anIP53rating , however , which is inferior to the likes of the Pixel 7a and the Samsung Galaxy A54 . There’sGorilla Glass 5around front , which tick the Pixel 7a ’s GG3 for staying power .

As if the Poco F5 ’s improved design was n’t enough , Xiaomi has also restore the 3.5 mm headphones jack after skipping the feature on the Poco F4 . That ’s good to see , and backs up all the gaming talk from the brand . Wireless buds mostly mean latency , after all .

While the design has draw a little more refined , Xiaomi has adhere with generally the same display band - up with the Poco F5 . It ’s another 6.67 - inch FHD+ ( 1080 x 2400)AMOLED displaywith a120Hz refresh rateand a 240Hz tactile sensation response rate . The peak luminosity ( in HBM ) has been prod up ever so more or less , from 900 nits in the Poco F4 to 1000 nits here , but there really is n’t much in it .

I have no complaint about the Poco F5 screen outride much the same . It ’s still an agreeably magnanimous , shiny , antiphonal , and color - precise jury for the money , and one that ’s well suited to down sensitive on the go .

One means in which it ’s actually gotten a little worsened , however , is with a touch sampling pace of 240Hz rather than the Poco F4 ’s 360Hz . For the vast absolute majority of users , this wo n’t be remotely consequential . But give that Poco often woo the play crowd and bigs up the gaming performance of its phones , it ’s not a particularly good look , at least on paper .

This screen is flanked by a set of stereo speakers , which are tatty and clear , if a little lacking in nicety and freshwater bass .

Camera

Xiaomi appears to have perplex with on the dot the same triple camera scheme as the Poco F4 . Of naturally , it ’s also the same organisation as the Poco F5 Pro , which is a rather more flattering stop of equivalence .

Once again there ’s a rather succinct 1/2 in 64MP main detector , a mediocre 8MP extremist - wide , and an inconsequential 2MP macro . OIS make a return for that main sensor , which is secure news , but again nothing new .

The main television camera charm solid shots with decent particular and dynamic range , at least in strong kindling . people of color tend to be vibrant in such scenarios , without dropping too far into tawdry soil – at least by default .

The AI supporter is turned off by nonremittal , as seems to be the case across the wide Xiaomi range . This is a good thing , as when active it be given to punch colours up too much . Blue skies and unripened field , in particular , become rather gaudy . Where it can be handy is in things such as indoors food stab , where a little surplus light and color is often welcome .

It also helps lift radical - wide shots that are otherwise olive-drab , flat , and lack in detail , with a openhanded drop - off at the edges . We ’ve derive to await this from such mid - range set - ups , of line .

There ’s no telephoto photographic camera , so the Poco F5 crops in on the main sensing element for its 2x shots . These look fine in good lighting , with the superior tone and dynamic range helping out . But there ’s a certain softness that utter to that weedy sensor and Xiaomi ’s image processing work extra time to recompense .

There ’s a 2MP macro camera too , but it simply does n’t capture sufficient detail to make it at all worthwhile . The fact that macro modality is buried in the camera menu rather than pronto accessible from the main camera UI advise that Xiaomi do it this to be the case .

There ’s a 16MP selfie camera around front , but it ’s rather special when it comes to item and dynamical range . Some of the selfies I took looked bleached out , and my cutis look even sicklier than normal . Selfie portraits , meanwhile , do a competent problem of distinguishing the subject , but scramble even more with overexposure .

Overall , the Poco F5 ’s photographic camera is perfectly acceptable for the money , but it lags behind mid - range rivals such as theRedmi Note 12 Pro Plusand with its impressive 200MP primary photographic camera , as well as theRedmi Note 12 Proand theOnePlus Nord 2Twith their larger Sony IMX766 epitome sensing element . Google ’s Pixel 7a andPixel 6a , of course , remain mid - range photographic camera star for the same or much less money respectively .

Performance

Poco phones , and the Poco F - serial publication in picky , have always been performance - focussed . It ’s in force to see the Poco F5 sticking to its heritage and packing a extremely capableSnapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 chip .

In mainframe terms , this chip actually outperforms theSnapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1found in the Poco F5 Pro – at least accord to my Geekbench tests . That ’s impressive stuff .

It ’s a different grammatical case when it get to the GPU results , where the Poco F5 Pro comfortably beats its little chum in wish - for - like conditions . Even so , the Poco F5 is no slouch , and I was able to make for Wreckfest on ramped - up setting . There was the odd stammer that suggest you might be better off slenderly below the top configurations , but it continue playable .

It doubtless help that my tryout model came with a generous 12 GB RAM , which is the only spec uncommitted in the UK . You ’ll get 256 GB of storage in that lonesome model , too , which is likewise generous . It would have been decent to have a lower - capacity pick ( perhaps 8GB/128 GB ) at a cheaper starting point , though .

And so we come to the part of the review where we observe the key helplessness with most if not all Xiaomi phones : software .

You ’re get MIUI 14 layered on top ofAndroid 13with the Poco F5 , just like with the Poco F5 Pro , not to refer theXiaomi 13and the Redmi Note 12 Pro . It ’s no less littered or clumsy here .

There ’s still far too much bloatware , include three web browsers , which never ceases to mystify me no matter how many time over the preceding few months I ’ve come across it ( and Xiaomi secrete alotof phones ) . The UI is mostly very busy and somewhat nannying with its relentless notifications .

In its defence force , it ’s quite a customisable UI , and you’re able to cultivate to minimize the irritating minute by deleting apps , installing others , and tinkering around in the preferences carte . you may switch away from that convoluted schism notification menu ( like iOS , but clunkier ) to something more simple-minded , set up the always - on display , aline the notification , and more .

But really , you should n’t have to work that hard directly out of the loge . Other mid - range headphone , most notably the Pixel 7a and theMotorola Edge 40 , do n’t make you bound through so many hoop .

Battery life

Xiaomi has given the Poco F5 a 5000mAh electric battery , which is much expectant than the Poco F4 ’s 4500mAh electric cell . turn over last year ’s role model was quite a turn expectant , that ’s quite a exploit .

Sure enough , the Poco F5 will see anyone through a full day of custom with change to spare . I was able to get through lightsome day with more than 60 % left , meaning this will be a echt two - dayer for some people . For gamers and more intensive users , you may expect a full solar day with no concern .

pip it hard with media – which is kind of what the Poco brand is all about – and it ’ll bear up to the challenge . An hour of 4 KB video streaming drain 6 % , while the same video recording at FHD debilitate just 3 % . Half an minute of intensive gambling on Wreckfest run out 11 % , while an 60 minutes of music pelt on YouTube Music did n’t even move the telephone dial below 100 % .

The Poco F5 is a square stamina champ , then , and it also saddle up pretty quickly with 67W fast charge capabilities . In my experience , it ’ll go from empty to 47 % in 15 transactions , and on to 82 % in 30 minutes . It hits 100 % in around 52 minutes .

There are quicker - charging sound for the money ( the Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus with its 120W battery charger spring to mind ) , but it ’s not regretful at all . It ’s a shame there ’s no wireless charging here , however . Ordinarily , it would scantily be worth a acknowledgment , but the Poco F5 Pro does let in such a feature this year , as does the Pixel 7a .

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Should you buy it?

r : With a rapid , advanced Snapdragon 7 Plus Gen 2 processor , 12 GB of RAM , and 256 GB of storage , the Poco F5 should palpate fast and fluid for age .

The Poco F5 ’s primary camera is fine , but you’re able to do much better for similar or even less money .

Final Thoughts

The Poco F5 is quite clearly a dependable phone than the Poco F4 , with telling performance , a nice figure , and superscript battery animation total to an already impressive AMOLED show .

However , some familiar drawbacks remain , include the overly engaged MIUI software program , a mediocre IP53 waterproofed military rank , and a television camera that merely scrapes into ‘ OK ’ status . Now that it ’s no longer a sub-£400 proffer like its harbinger , these flaws ca n’t be so promptly overtop .

Ultimately , like the Poco F5 Pro , the Poco F5 is something of a mid - range specialiser , offering a strong media and gaming - focused experience for decent money . If your priority lie elsewhere – flagship - level innovation , light software , or a genuinely beneficial camera , say – there are plenty of good selection for standardized or even less money .

More choice is skilful , of form , and the Poco F5 works its fussy niche very well . What it is n’t , however , is that Holy Grail of amid - stove all - rounderthat we can recommend to most people without caveat .

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