Continuing Excellence: A Comprehensive Review of POCO F6 - The Legacy Lives On!

The POCO F6, following in the footsteps of the impressive F5, has significant expectations to meet. The POCO F5 set a high bar with its performance, and the F6 aims to exceed it with the introduction of the Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 SoC, built on the same architecture as Qualcomm’s flagship chipset. Additionally, the POCO F6 boasts the fastest-ever charging solution and the highest peak display brightness in the F-series lineup.

How do these upgrades translate into real-world performance? Can the F6 give POCO an edge over competitors like the iQOO Neo 9 Pro and Realme GT 6T? This POCO F6 review delves into these questions to determine if the latest model lives up to its promise. Keep reading for a comprehensive analysis.

The POCO F6 presents itself as a solid upgrade to the F5, aligning well with current market trends. Its performance ranks among the best, and the display quality is commendable, although an LTPO panel would have been a welcome addition. The cameras perform well, especially considering the phone's gaming focus, and both battery life and charging speeds are noteworthy.

POCO F6 Specs

POCO F6
Brand	POCO
Display	6.67 inches
Display Type	AMOLED, 68B colors, 120Hz, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 500 nits (typ), 1200 nits (HBM), 2400 nits (peak)
Build	Glass front (Gorilla Glass Victus), plastic frame, plastic back
OS	Android 14, HyperOS
Processor	Qualcomm SM8635 Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 (4 nm)
Memory & RAM	8GB + 256GB, 12GB + 512GB
Camera	Dual, 50 MP+8 MP
Battery	5000mAh, 100W wired

POCO F6 Price

Available	Models	Price
Flipkart	POCO F6 5G (Titanium, 256 GB) (8 GB RAM)	Buy Now
Flipkart	POCO F6 5G (Titanium, 256 GB) (12 GB RAM)	Buy Now
Flipkart	POCO F6 5G (Titanium, 512 GB) (12 GB RAM)	Buy Now

POCO F6: Design and display

The design of the POCO F6 remains quite similar to last year's F-series model. It features the same plastic unibody with flat edges and separate camera rings. However, the camera rings are now slightly larger and protrude more from the frame. The glossy back has been replaced with a shimmery, textured panel that resists fingerprints and smudges. While these changes are a step forward, the design still lacks the flair of some other phones in the same price range.

Despite this, the phone is very lightweight at 179 grams, making it comfortable for extended use. The IP rating has been improved from 53 to 64, enhancing its resistance to water and dust. The F6 also features a dual speaker system fine-tuned by Dolby Atmos for clear audio quality. Notably, the 3.5mm headphone jack from last year's model has been removed. For security, the phone has an in-display fingerprint scanner that quickly unlocks the device. In terms of ports, the handset includes a USB Type-C port and an IR blaster.

                                   

Although the POCO F6's display is slightly smaller than its predecessor, measuring 6.67 inches compared to 6.7 inches, it offers significant improvements in brightness and resolution. The device features a CrystalRes Flow AMOLED panel with a 1.5K resolution and a peak brightness of 2,400 nits. These upgrades provide better picture quality and make the screen easily readable in direct sunlight.

                                   

The display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass Victus, typically found on higher-end smartphones, and supports Dolby Vision and HDR10+ for an enhanced viewing experience with compatible content. The screen boasts a 94 percent screen-to-body ratio, with ultra-thin bezels on all sides, and includes wet touch technology to prevent accidental touches from sweat during gaming or water exposure.  Additionally, it provides an adaptive refresh rate of up to 120Hz, supports 68 billion colors, and boasts a pixel density of 446 pixels per inch (ppi). Overall, these features make the display a notable improvement over last year’s model.

POCO F6: Performance and software

Performance has always been the hallmark of the F-series smartphones, and the POCO F6 continues this legacy. It is the first smartphone in India to feature Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset, which enhances on-device AI accessibility. This chipset promises flagship-level capabilities such as on-device generative AI, an always-sensing ISP, hyper-realistic mobile gaming, improved connectivity, and lossless high-definition sound.

                                           

Despite these promises, the POCO F6 does not seem to offer any explicit AI features. Instead, it focuses on sheer performance, achieving an impressive score of over 1,500,000 on AnTuTu. While this score is slightly lower than that of the iQOO Neo 9 Pro, which uses the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 SoC, the POCO F6 still stands out in its segment. Additionally, it scored 1,930 in single-core and 5,017 in multi-core tests on Geekbench. However, it’s important to note that the phone showed significant throttling during the Burnout CPU throttle test, operating at just 56 percent of its peak performance under heavy load.

However, despite this, the throttling didn't manifest in day-to-day usage. The device effortlessly managed heavy multitasking and graphically demanding games like BGMI, Call of Duty, and Real Racing 3. Equipped with proprietary Iceloop cooling technology and LiquidCool Technology 4.0, the POCO F6 enhances thermal efficiency during gaming and other resource-intensive tasks. Following 30-minute gaming sessions of BGMI, Call of Duty, and Real Racing 3 at moderate settings, the phone's temperature rose by approximately 15 degrees. Nevertheless, the gaming experience remained seamless, devoid of stutters or frame drops. Additionally, the phone incorporates Wild Boost Optimization 3.0 to ensure smooth gameplay.

In summary, the POCO F6 maintains its reputation for high performance, supported by advanced cooling technologies and optimization features, making it a strong contender in the mid-range smartphone market.

The POCO F6 comes in two configurations: 8GB RAM with 256GB storage and 12GB RAM with 512GB storage. Although the storage cannot be expanded by the user, its fast UFS 4.0 standard ensures swift transfer speeds. The RAM type used is the standard LPDDR5X.

In terms of software, the POCO F6 runs on HyperOS layered on top of Android 14 out of the box. The device will receive three years of major software updates and four years of security updates. The current software experience is largely similar to that of the POCO X6 Pro. Currently, there are no exclusive features on the POCO F6, although support for AI air gestures is expected to be introduced in a future OTA update. This feature will enable users to navigate through compatible apps using hand gestures recognized by the front camera, similar to what has been seen on some Realme smartphones.

While many competitors are opting for larger battery cells, the POCO F6 maintains the same battery capacity as its predecessor. With a 5,000mAh battery, the handset underwent the PCMark battery test at 80 percent screen brightness, lasting 11 hours and 42 minutes. While this performance is respectable, it falls slightly behind some of its competitors. In our 30-minute YouTube video playback test, the handset consumed 4 percent of its battery life, which is slightly higher compared to the Realme GT 6T, which features a 5,500mAh battery.

During gaming tests, the handset showed a higher battery consumption, with a 24 percent drop in battery life after 30 minutes of playing games like BGMI, Call of Duty, and Real Racing 3. Despite this, the device can comfortably last a full day on a single charge. It comes bundled with a 90W charger, capable of quickly replenishing the battery. With this charger, the device can go from 20 to 100 percent charge in approximately 30 minutes. Additionally, there is an option to enable faster charging speeds with Boost charging in the settings menu, although it comes with a warning about potential overheating, particularly in hot climates like Delhi's summer.

POCO F6: Cameras

The camera setup of the POCO F6 comprises a 50MP OIS Sony IMX882 primary sensor paired with an 8MP ultrawide lens. While the primary sensor delivers impressive results, the ultrawide lens falls short in comparison. There is noticeable warping around the edges of the frame, and the details are not as sharp. However, the colour calibration remains consistent with the primary camera, providing a contrasty look to the images.

When compared to its close rival, the Realme GT 6T, the POCO F6 performs better overall. It offers a superior dynamic range, along with decent detailing and colour accuracy. However, if image brightness is your main concern, you may find the Realme smartphone more appealing due to its brighter results.

For selfies and video calls, the POCO F6 features a 20MP selfie camera capable of capturing images with near-accurate skin tones in daylight. However, facial detailing may appear underwhelming, with some noticeable smoothening effect. While the portrait mode offers good edge detection, the bokeh effect may seem slightly unnatural. Indoors or in low light conditions, image quality decreases, with reduced sharpness and more noise. Although the night mode reduces noise, it sacrifices some detail in the process.

POCO F6 Images: 

Final verdict:

While the POCO F6 faces stiff competition from numerous smartphones, its closest rival remains the Realme GT 6T. Priced starting at Rs 30,999 in India, the Realme smartphone stands out for its LTPO panel, supporting up to 6,000 nits brightness. In contrast, the F6 opts for a standard display with an adaptive refresh rate, peaking at 2,400 nits brightness. Additionally, the F6 features a smaller battery capacity compared to its counterpart. Despite this, the charging capacity is similar, with both handsets taking the same time to achieve a full charge from 20 percent due to the F6's smaller battery pack.

However, the POCO F6 has its strengths in performance, cameras, and competitive pricing. The Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 SoC appears to offer more power than the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 SoC, and the handset is capable of capturing better images than the Realme offering in various lighting conditions. With a starting price of Rs 29,999 in India, the POCO F6 delivers a compelling package despite minor drawbacks such as pre-installed apps and relatively shorter battery life. It remains an attractive option for users seeking a reliable and powerful device.