Smartphone Xiaomi Pocophone F1 6/64GB and 128GB – advantages and disadvantages

On August 22, 2018, Xiaomi announced the creation of a separate sub-brand, which will be called Pocophone. The production of models for the standalone brand will take place in parallel with the line of devices from Xiaomi, without interfering with the release of MI and RedMI, which are also released under the wing of the company.

The history of Pocophone

Apparently, the creators decided to follow the example of Honor, which at one time also separated from Huawei and quite succeeded in free swimming. Galaxy, a few years ago, also almost separated from Samsung - there were such conversations, but the company conferred and decided to leave it as it is. Didn't guess.

Let's return to the hero of today's review. They became a brand new, barely off the assembly line, Xiaomi Pocophone F1. Let's get to know him better and learn about the pros and cons.

Its main competitor can be considered MI8, which was also recently released by the company. The functionality of both devices has many similar features.

The new brand started immediately with the sale of a new device. On advertising banners, the smartphone is called “master of speed”, which translates as “master of speed” or “master of speed”. Who likes it better.

The three most important features that developers draw our attention to are:

1. Performance;
2. Improved camera;
3. Maximum user convenience.

When asked why the manufacturers chose this name, a company representative replied that “poco” in Spanish means “small”. You can translate as - "small phone". The reason for choosing such a name is not clear, since it is not too small either. By the way, Xiaomi in Chinese means “small grain of rice”. Now we know almost everything.

Design and features

To please consumers, the company has released a smartphone in three colors so that each user can choose what he likes. Available colors: black graphite, blue steel and provocative red. A limited edition "Armored Edition" has also been released, featuring a special margin of safety.

Interestingly, there is a logo on the back cover of the phone. And since India was the first country where the smartphone began to be sold, in the version for the Indian market, the logo consists simply of the word “poco”. For the rest of the world, the inscription on the case is longer - “pocophone”. It is this small detail that distinguishes versions of smartphones designed for different markets.

The body of the smartphone is made of polycarbonate. Good quality, well painted. But plastic! Keep in mind.

Xiaomi decided to stand out and not repeat after other brands that actively prefer metal and glass as the body material.

The plastic is not brittle, and those who like to carry their phone without a case should not be afraid to break it after the first drop. Although the manufacturer carefully put a transparent case in the kit for the smartphone.

For those who do not want a plastic phone, but liked the model, the manufacturers promise a limited version from Du Pont made of Kivlar material. This substance is used in industry for the manufacture of bulletproof vests, and even in shipbuilding there is a use of kivlar. The limited edition will be more expensive in cost, but the increased durability compensates for this. It will be beautiful and practical.

With MI8, they differ in design, since MI8 copies the iPhone X with its appearance, while the F1 has a completely different back cover. MI8 has a Super AMOLED screen matrix from Samsung, and our hero has an IPS matrix, Corning Gorilla Glass.

The installed IPS matrix increases the level of power consumption. Unfortunately, there is no active screen function, when even on the locked display you can see information about notifications, calls and events. The function is extremely useful - it's a pity that it is not there.

Screen

Despite the name invented by the manufacturer, the phone is by no means “small”, as you can read in the translation. The display here is 6.18 inches, which is a lot. The screen resolution is 2246 by 1080 pixels. IPS matrix, which significantly affects battery consumption.

The phone supports control using gestures, as well as by built-in buttons on the screen. If this interferes with use, the buttons can be easily disabled or swapped for greater convenience.

Performance

The Snapdragon 845 chip is responsible for the speed in the smartphone - the most productive according to the results for 2019. This is done so that F1 can become the winner in all possible synthetic tests. To make it even better, the case is equipped with special liquid cooling. This happens due to the heat-conducting copper tube, designed to provide high performance and reliable operation without unnecessary heating of the device.

Xiaomi promises that the 845 Snapdragon will outperform the processors of competitive brands - Kirin 970 by 60%, and Exynos 9810 by 30%. And thus guarantees the lead samsung galaxy s9 and One Plus 6.

When tested using the Antutu benchmark, it scores 264,000 points. Thanks to the cooling system, the heating temperature of the smartphone is 3-4% lower than that of the Galaxy s9. Many users have experienced smartphone overheating and know that when the processor starts to heat up beyond the norm, the phone will slow down terribly.

In games you will be waiting for a bright and realistic picture and smart graphics. All popular games are running well, during the time of use, neither application "crashes" nor "freezes" were noticed. Tested on Tekken and World of Tanks games. Toys went at maximum settings quickly, efficiently and without overheating of the case.

Built-in memory

The smartphone will be delivered with two options of built-in memory "on board" - this is a version for 64gb and 128gb. The amount of RAM in both cases is 6Gb.

Micro SD card slot supports up to 256GB. It upsets the fact that it is combined with one of the SIM cards. You will have to make a choice in favor of either the second number, or an increase in memory.Although, if you take a model with the maximum amount of internal memory, you won’t have to think about expanding gigabytes for some time.

autonomy

4000mAh battery, versus 3400mAh in MI8. With active use, it will last a day and a half. By the end of the second day, you will be able to observe 20 percent of the remaining charge. If the use is less active, it will last for two days without problems.

The smartphone supports fast charging with Quick Charge 3.0 technology. A useful feature allows you to fully charge your smartphone up to 38% in half an hour from scratch. After passing tests for autonomy, the device produces the following indicators:

• 25 hours 20 minutes - when communicating on the 3g network;
• 13 hours 40 minutes - when browsing the Internet;
• 12 hours of continuous video playback.

Sound and headphones

3.5mm audio jack. returned to F1, although MI8 decided to abandon it. The decision is correct, because it is necessary and very convenient. Not all users are ready to give up their favorite headset.

The package bundle of the smartphone is minimalistic, and, unfortunately, there are no headphones. The photo shows a speaker, a microphone and a USB type-c connector.

The sound of the external speaker is loud and good, but the sound volume is not enough. Music plays simultaneously through the voice speaker and located on the bottom of the case. It turns out an interesting stereo sound.

The model even has an FM radio to please music lovers. The role of the antenna will be performed by the headphones connected to the phone.

Camera

In Pocophone, the cameras have a dual module. Rear camera: 12+5 MP, front: 20MP. Double flash. The sensors in the smartphone are from Sony. Added an artificial intelligence function that can solve more than 206 image scenarios. There is a mode "food" or, for example, "panorama".

How to take pictures during the day:

Takes pictures in the sun perfectly and is able to notice small details. Able to beautifully blur the background. Autofocus works quickly and flawlessly. And yet, the quality of the photo does not fundamentally differ from MI8.

There is no optical stabilization. There is a feature in artificial intelligence that not everyone will like - the photo turns out to be so contrasting and saturated that you can immediately upload it, raw, to the social network. True, its further use in such processing will be difficult.

Video can shoot in 4K 30 frames per second, and in Full HD - 240 frames per second, but there is no stabilization. If you can’t do without it, then you can process the picture in Google Photos. Or start shooting in Full HD, there is stabilization there. There is a panorama mode, accelerated shooting.

When shooting at night, artificial intelligence makes mistakes. You can turn it off and turn on HDR mode - then it will become better.

How to take pictures at night:

The front camera is also good. Even when shooting against the light, there is no "grain" and darkening of the face. Everything is clearly visible. Low level of light noise.

Unlock

On the front of the smartphone, next to the hearing speaker, is an infrared sensor designed for the user's face unlock scanner.

Unlocking a smartphone is possible only with the help of your face, it is impossible to deceive the system. You can’t substitute a photo - it recognizes and responds only to the owner. Quickly fast and well finished.

In the process of use, a minus appeared - the unlock worked only in a vertical position. Refused to work horizontally.

The fingerprint scanner is located just below the rear camera. Responsive and recognizes fingerprints well.The location, however, let us down a little - you can hit the camera with your hand out of habit.

Interface and operating system

Pocophone F1 is the most affordable 845 Snapdragon flagship. The smartphone has Android 8.1 Oreo installed, and the system runs on MIUI 9. The manufacturer assured that the system will be updated to Android 9 and MIUI 10 in the future.

The interface is designed in such a way as to resemble “pure” Android as much as possible. Of the entire Xiaomi model range, this model was the first to receive its own version of MIUI, which contains a set of useful features for increased ease of use.

That same User Experience - a special comfort of use, which was emphasized at the presentation, is really pleasant. Application icons are all made in the same style and harmonize with each other.

The menu has not undergone cardinal changes, all settings are in their usual places. Decided to remove the animation of the icons. All applications are now sorted by headings and by shades of program labels.

Poco Launcher can be downloaded from Google Play and is available for almost all device models. After the device was literally swept off the shelves in the first hours of sales, the manufacturers decided to make the Poko Launcher available to everyone. Now, if you want your favorite smartphone to resemble Xiaomi, you can find and download the application yourself.

Poco Launcher works well, but there are some lags. Most likely they will be fixed in future updates.

Now, using the Launcher, you can arrange applications in alphabetical order, or by combining them by color. You can completely change the icons or hide the desired application icons.Pleasant and smooth animation, coupled with nimble work, will not disappoint even the most picky users.

The generosity of large manufacturing companies is a very interesting thing. It often happens that when the cost is reduced, they save on something important. For example, the device lacks protection against water and dust. This is a useful feature, but it's not here. Oleophobic screen coating is also present, but an inexpensive sample.

There is a drawback in which the time is displayed incorrectly on the locked screen - half of it is simply not visible due to the “bangs” on the top of the display. It would be great if the bug is fixed.

Equipment

Opening a stylish black and yellow box, we will see inside:

1. Smartphone;
2. Instructions;
3. USB type-c cable;
4. Charger;
5. Silicone Case;
6. Clip to remove the SIM card and Micro SD.

Specifications

Price

How much will a phone cost in 2019? The average price of a smartphone for the 6gb/64gb version will be 24,000 rubles. For the 6gb / 128gb version - 28,000 rubles.

F1 is the most inexpensive phone, positioning its “stuffing” as a flagship one.

Pros vs. Minuses

Having got acquainted closer with the Xiaomi Pocophone F1 smartphone, we managed to identify its positive and negative sides. Let's call them.

• Screen;
• Battery;
• CPU;
• Liquid cooling system;
• 3.5mm headphone jack;
• Silicone case included.

• No NFC;
• No protection against water and dust;
• No wireless charging.

Results

The phone turned out to be successful, the design is stylish and attracts attention, the processor is one of the most powerful. There is no experience of long-term use yet, since the smartphone was only recently introduced to the public.

The budget flagship evokes positive emotions, but it will not show results higher than stated. Fully justifies its cost.