Introducing the POCO X5 Pro – the latest addition to the Poco family that’s here to elevate your smartphone experience. With its sleek design, high-refresh OLED panel, powerful battery, and triple camera array, this phone has everything you need to stay connected and capture your world. Whether you’re a gamer or a content creator, the Poco X5 Pro is packed with features to help you achieve more. So, in this blog, I will share a complete comprehensive review of the POCO X5 Pro.
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POCO X5 Pro Unboxing
The Poco X5 Pro appears to be highly popular, as evidenced by the typical Poco box in black and yellow. Upon opening the box, we are greeted by the familiar Poco yellow insert which contains a Sim ejector tool and a thick bundle of booklets. Additionally, we find a soft PPU case, which is a standard inclusion by Poco, and finally, the POCO X5 Pro itself. At the same time, the yellow variant looks better in my opinion. Poco also offers a blue variant with color-matched sides that provide a unique vibe.
Regardless of the color, the back of the phone is made of plastic, which is a disadvantage compared to the Poco X4 Pro. The back has a matte finish that reduces fingerprint smudges, and the yellow variant looks stunning. Moving back to the box contents, we have a USB Type-A to Type-C cable with orange accents and a 67-watt fast charger.
Build and Design
Despite having the same display size as its predecessor, Poco managed to reduce the overall footprint of the X5 Pro to just 7.9 millimeters thick, making it slightly shorter and narrower than the X4 Pro due to the reduced bezels. The most significant difference, however, is the weight, with the X5 Pro being almost 25 grams lighter than the X4 Pro despite having the same size display and battery capacity. This weight reduction makes the switch to plastic feel like it wasn’t just a cost-cutting measure.
MicroSD support is no longer available, and the phone only supports two SIM cards. The n77 5G band is not supported, which seems like an odd omission, but the X5 Pro retains its predecessor’s ip53 Splash resistance rating, and the IR Blaster and headphone jack are still present. Additionally, the phone features dual stereo speakers that sound pretty good. The physical scanner is built into the power key and is fast and accurate, just like Face Unlock.
Selfie Camera and Display
The front-facing camera on the POCO X5 Pro features a 16-megapixel lens that delivers good-quality selfies with sharp details and accurate skin tones. The dynamic range is impressive, although the edge detection can be hit or miss. The selfie video maxes out at 1080p 60fps with Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS) that performs well. Moving on to the display, it’s the same size as its predecessor at 6.67 inches and is protected by Gorilla Glass 5.
However, the panel has been upgraded to a 10-bit OLED display that supports HDR10 and Dolby Vision. Unfortunately, the brightness has taken a significant hit, with the X5 Pro offering 900 nits compared to the X4 Pro’s 1200 nits. Despite the reduction, the X5 Pro’s display is still usable outdoors. It’s perplexing that not many people are discussing the lower brightness, so let me know in the comments if I’m missing something.
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Performance and Software
The performance of the POCO X5 Pro has greatly improved compared to its predecessor. It is powered by the reliable Qualcomm Snapdragon 778G SOC paired with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and either 128GB or 256GB of UFS 2.2 storage. This chip has been used in many devices over the past few years and has proven to be excellent.
During my gaming test, the phone didn’t overheat or throttle, and the stability scores after 20 minutes of 3DMark Wildlife Extreme were very high. With day-to-day use, the X5 Pro felt very smooth and fluid as expected of a phone with these specs.
However, I find it disappointing that the phone is running on MIUI 14 built on Android 12, which came out about a year and a half ago. While Poco promises two years of Android version updates and three years of security patches, it feels like we’re only getting one year of actual updates since we’re already starting with an outdated version of Android. There are a lot of pre-installed apps, but these can be uninstalled easily. Most of the new MIUI 14 features are not yet available on the X5 Pro, but they will be added over time.
POCO X5 Pro Primary Camera
In terms of optics, the POCO X5 Pro boasts a triple camera setup at the back. The primary camera features a 108-megapixel Samsung HM2 sensor, which is the same as the global Poco X4 Pro, whereas, in India, it was downgraded to a 64-megapixel sensor.
The HM2 sensor captures well-detailed images, although it shoots 12-megapixel images by default using nano-binning technology, which combines nine pixels into one for a larger pixel size and smaller file size. However, selecting the 108-megapixel mode results in noticeable differences in detail. However, this increases the file size five times, from 3MB for 12-megapixel images to 15-18MB for full-resolution 108-megapixel images.
The color saturation seems a bit high, but there is a dedicated night mode that performs well in low-light conditions. The secondary camera is an 8-megapixel ultra-wide sensor, which captures a broader view and differs from the primary camera in terms of color and detail levels. The third camera is a token 2-megapixel macro sensor that is included mainly to claim a triple camera array.
When shooting video, the POCO X5 Pro can shoot up to 4K 30 FPS, but the footage is average at best due to over-sharpening and occasional frame drops.
Conclusion
In terms of build and design, the POCO X5 Pro has a similar feel to an iPhone, with a solid and comfortable weight and slim bezels. The phone also features a high-refresh OLED panel, a large battery with fast charging capabilities, and enough power for everyday use and casual gaming.
The optics are decent and the price point is competitive, starting at Rs 23,000 rupees, which is slightly more than its predecessor but still reasonable considering the current market.
However, there are some drawbacks to keep in mind, such as the lack of MicroSD support, the absence of the n77 band, the plastic back, lower peak brightness, and the fact that it runs on Android 12. If you’re considering purchasing this phone, be aware of these factors.
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