In January, Xiaomi introduced POCO X6 Pro to the industry. The new iteration of the «popular» smartphone has an adequate price tag, modern design, and powerful hardware, but as usual, there are nuances with the camera. We’ve already tested the new product, played with it, taken photos, etc., and are finally ready to share our impressions.
Pluses:
modern design; IP54 protection; bright, detailed 120 Hz AMOLED screen; Always-On-Display function; powerful processor and graphics chip; rich stereo sound with Dolby Atmos support; fast LPDDR5X and UFS 4.0 memory; 5000 mAh battery; 67W fast charging; rich package
Minuses:
branded body; cameras could be better; too many proprietary applications and services; some people will definitely not like the lack of a microSD slot
Content
Technical specifications of POCO X6 Pro
| Screen | AMOLED, 6.67 inches, 1220×2712 pixels, 120 Hz, 68 billion colors, Dolby Vision, HDR10+ |
| Processor | MediaTek Dimensity 8300 Ultra, 4 nm, 8 cores (1×3.35 GHz — Cortex-A715, 3×3.2 GHz — Cortex-A715, 4×2.2 GHz — Cortex-A510) |
| Graphics | Mali G615-MC6 |
| Main camera | 64 megapixels, f/1.7, 25 mm, 0.7µm, PDAF, OIS, second wide-angle module 8 megapixels, f/2.2, 120˚, third macro 2 megapixels, f/2.4 |
| Front camera | 16 megapixels, f/2.4 |
| Record video | 4K@24fps/30fps, 1080p@30fps/60fps |
| Memory | 12/512 GB, 8/256 GB, no memory card slot |
| Data transfer | LTE/5G, DualSIM, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax), Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, USB Type-C 2.0, |
| Navigation | GPS, Glonass, Beidou, Galileo, QZSS |
| Battery | 5000 mAh, 67W fast charging |
| Degree of protection | YES, IP54 |
| Sound | Stereo sound, Dolby Atmos support |
| Operating system | HyperOS based on Android 14 |
| Body material | Glass (Gorilla Glass 5) + plastic or eco-leather |
| Dimensions | 160.45 × 74.34 × 8.25 mm |
| Weight | 186 grams |
Packaging and equipment
POCO X6 Pro comes in a regular-sized box in the brand’s black and yellow colors.
Inside we see the following:
- the phone itself with a film stuck to the screen;
- a nice plastic case;
- 67 W power supply;
- USB-A — USB-C cable;
- a paper clip for removing the SIM card;
- documentation.
Design and ergonomics
POCO X6 Pro has a stylish, modern design: the Gorilla Glass 5 front panel is flat, the edges are flat, and the corners are smoothed. The back panel is rounded at the edges and has a large bulging platform that houses the main camera modules, flash, and POCO inscription.
On the front panel, we see relatively thin bezels and a slightly thicker bottom bezel, a front-facing camera built into the screen and a fingerprint scanner ring.
On the left side there is a screen lock button and volume keys. There is nothing on the right side. On the top edge we see a speaker, an infrared port and a microphone. On the bottom is a second speaker, a USB-C port, and a slot for two SIM cards. The phone does not support microSD memory cards.
The novelty has three colors: two glossy black and gray, and a yellow color with an eco-leather back cover. In our case, it is black glossy plastic. The dimensions of the model are 160.45×74.34×8.25 mm, and it weighs — 186 grams. The phone is IP54 protected against water and dust. This means that POCO X6 Pro is not afraid of moisture, rain, etc., but it should not be immersed in water.
The smartphone fits comfortably in the palm of your hand despite its slippery surface. However, the glossy body is prone to scratches and within a second after contact with your hand, it becomes covered with fingerprints and dust. Therefore, if you are worried about this, you should immediately put on the bundled case.
We reviewed a black model with a black case, so the whole thing looks good together.
The menu has dark and light themes, color scheme settings (modes «Standard PRO», «Vivid», «Saturated» and «Advanced settings». There is a reading mode, font settings and selection, lock screen settings, and refresh rate changes. In the latter case, we have an adaptive option that automatically jumps from 60 to 120 Hz and only 120 Hz. The Always-On-Display function has also been brought in.
Sound and vibration response
POCO X6 Pro has full stereo sound. That is, it’s not just one speaker plus an additional speaker. These are two separate speakers placed at the top and bottom ends. There is support for Dolby Digital technology, as well as Xiaomi’s own Sound. There is a built-in equalizer and a variety of sound presets. Immersive sound is also activated, which adds an immersive effect and a sense of space. This is a kind of enhanced surround sound that you should try to turn on in videos, movies, or TV shows, but it’s definitely not for music.
The sound of the speakers is rich and loud. There is no buzzing even at maximum volume. When you activate the aforementioned mode, some volume is really added, but I wouldn’t say that it’s very noticeable. It’s just that the smartphone has a powerful sound, so the improvements are less noticeable against the general background.
As for the sound in the headphones, there is 24-bit/192 kHz Hi-Res sound, as well as support for AAC, AptX, LDAC codecs. That is, if you have a good audio headset, then the smartphone has the capabilities to reveal it.
The vibration response is pleasant, but, of course, not of the flagship level. There is no vibration setting. You can only change the intensity of the tactile response, turn it off or on.
POCO X6 Pro cameras
The POCO X6 Pro features a triple main camera with a 64-megapixel main sensor (f/1.7 aperture) with optical stabilization. The second sensor is an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle sensor (f/2.2) with a 120-degree viewing angle. The third module is 2-megapixel (f/2.4 aperture).
Filming is available in 4K 24/30 fps, 1080p at 60 or 30 frames per second, and 720p at 30 fps.
The main module of the phone takes good, detailed photos with adequate color reproduction. The night mode is also fine, but the wide-angle module is starting to lack detail. With a strong zoom, it’s even worse. The camera can be called the weakest point of the smartphone, because although it is of high quality for the money, it is worse than that of competitors in the same category.
The POCO X series has been known for its powerful chips for its price tag, but the cameras have always been just okay. These are not affordable camera phones, but «people’s» smartphones for mobile gaming, and it’s worth remembering that.
The front sensor is 16 megapixels (f/2.4 aperture). The camera supports HDR, panoramic shooting, beauty focusers, etc. This camera can shoot video in 1080p at 30/60fps.
I liked the selfie camera. The photos are beautiful and detailed.
Productivity, software and games
The heart of POCO X6 Pro is the MediaTek Dimensity 8300 Ultra chip, made using the 4nm process technology. There are eight cores: four Cortex-A715 (1×3.35 GHz + 3×3.20 GHz) and the same number of Cortex-A510 (4×2.20 GHz). Graphics — Mali-G615 MC6.
There can be 8/12 GB of LPDDR5X RAM and 256/512 UFS 4.0 internal storage. You can also add up to 8 GB of virtual memory. This is one of the new features of HyperOS. That is, we see fast memory standards, which improves the performance of the smartphone. Interfaces are represented by LTE/5G, DualSIM, Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax), Bluetooth 5.4 and. NFC.
All benchmark tests can be found below. I have to say that the processor turned out to be very powerful and cooler than I expected.
POCO X6 Pro runs all popular and «heavy» projects at high-maximum graphics settings with good fps. Genshin Impact runs at high 30+ fps. World of Tanks Blitz, PUBG Mobile, and the like run on ultra settings without any problems and work great. This is a really relatively affordable phone that can handle anything.
POCO X6 Pro runs on Android 14 with the new proprietary HyperOS shell. The latter has replaced MIUI in new Xiaomi models and gradually all their smartphones will switch to it. In general, it is very similar to its predecessor. It is an add-on with many pre-installed branded applications, powerful customization options, etc.
The location and style of some menu items have changed slightly, some functions have been moved to other sections, etc., but in general, the aesthetics and direction will be familiar to all users of the Chinese giant.
Autonomy of POCO X6 Pro
POCO X6 Pro is equipped with a 5000 mAh battery. Fast charging of 67 watts is declared. There is no wireless charging. Charging from 0 to 100% takes 45 minutes. In my opinion, this is a good result.
In PC Mark battery tests, the phone showed a result of 11 hours and 16 minutes. This is not the best result we’ve ever seen, but it’s closer to the average.
In reality, the smartphone lasts a day and a half without any problems. As usual, depending on the usage scenarios, the phone can be drained much faster or last up to two days. But the average time you can definitely count on is — a day and a half with more or less standard use.
However, it’s worth highlighting the battery life in mobile games, because this smartphone is designed specifically for gamers. In this case, you can play for 5-7 hours in a row. It depends on the game, its level of graphics, etc.
User experience
POCO X6 Pro turned out to be better than I expected. I didn’t like the design, although the smartphone has a modern look with protruding modules. I just don’t like them all that much, and it’s purely a matter of taste that doesn’t affect the rating. However, it fits perfectly in the palm of your hand, and the glossy body is pleasant to the touch. But it collects a lot of dust and fingerprints. In the photos, you can see how dirty it is, and this is despite the fact that I wiped it literally every minute. So either take the yellow color with eco-leather or put it in a case.
I liked the screen. It is bright with a detailed, rich image. I like the sound from the speakers. It’s not just a loud stereo, which is now starting to appear in more budget models. This is a high-quality sound with surround sound, which is pleasant to listen to. Of course, it’s still not for music, but it’s definitely for games, movies, TV shows, or YouTube videos.
I’ve already written about the cameras. They are adequate, and definitely not bad. It’s just worse than other smartphones for the same money. The battery is fine and it’s good that there is a 67W fast charger.
I was impressed with the power of the phone in this price category, although POCO X surprises with this every new generation.
I can’t say anything more about HyperOS than I have already said. It still takes much more time than a single phone review. I’ve always liked the customization capabilities of this and other Chinese shells, but I was annoyed by the excessive number of built-in apps, proprietary services, etc. It was always too much for me in Xiaomi, and it still is.
Price and competitors
Price for POCO X6 Pro starts at UAH 12,369. However, the official price in large networks such as «Allo» starts from UAH 13,999. In my opinion, the price is adequate and reflects the reality. However, this segment is full of serious competitors.
To get started, you can look at the predecessor POCO X5 Pro. There are also Motorola Edge 40 Neo, Motorola Edge 40 5G andMotorola Moto G84 (price from UAH 8399). Also popular is the new Redmi Note 13 Pro 4G. Also pay attention toSamsung Galaxy A54.