Again when the POCO F6 and F6 Professional launched, I centered my consideration on the common mannequin. POCO determined to restrict the F6 Professional to just some international markets, and the machine did not make its approach to India and most Southeast Asian areas. As a substitute, POCO provided the F6 because the default possibility in these international locations.
Hardwired
In Hardwired, AC Senior Editor Harish Jonnalagadda delves into all issues {hardware}, together with telephones, audio merchandise, storage servers, and routers.
In my POCO F6 evaluation, I known as it top-of-the-line value-focused telephones of the yr, and that is right down to how inexpensive it’s in India, the place it retails for simply ₹27,999 ($336). That mentioned, POCO does not fairly supply the identical worth in different areas; the F6 is out there for £359 ($457) within the U.Okay., and that is not practically as engaging.
Fortunately, there’s a greater possibility accessible: the F6 Professional. The telephone is now right down to £449 ($572), and that makes it worthy of consideration when you’re fascinated about a brand new mid-ranger. I did not use the F6 Professional when it got here out, however I switched to it after utilizing the OnePlus 12R Sundown Dune version; it did not take lengthy to understand that POCO is onto one thing particular with its 2024 flagship.
The F6 Professional has a significantly better design than the usual mannequin, and the white coloration variant specifically appears to be like placing. I do not normally favor telephones with flat sides, however POCO added beveled edges, and that makes an enormous distinction in each day use. The glass window across the rear digital camera housing has been a mainstay on POCO telephones going again 4 years now, and it finally ends up wanting elegant.
POCO did not shortchange customers with materials decisions both; the F6 Professional makes use of an aluminum body that is sandwiched between panes of glass, and it appears to be like simply as premium because the Xiaomi 14 — if something, I like POCO’s design extra. The one downside on this space is that the telephone has IP54 ingress safety, and that is not sufficient; even the common F6 will get an IP64 score, so I am not likely certain what POCO was pondering.
Apart from that and an in-screen module that sits a little bit too low on the display screen, there’s nothing to complain in regards to the design; the F6 Professional has best weight distribution, and the textured sample beneath the glass appears to be like implausible. There’s loads to love in regards to the panel too; POCO went with a 120Hz AMOLED panel with QHD+ decision, and it’s simply one of the best display screen of any of its gadgets so far.
The panel does not get fairly as brilliant as different mid-rangers I used this yr — the 12R is noticeably brighter outdoor — however it’s nonetheless a robust displaying. On that word, the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 is totally the best name; Qualcomm’s 2024 chipset nonetheless has loads to supply, and it’s simply as quick in each day use.
Contemplating that the 12R can also be powered by the identical silicon, the F6 Professional is on an equal footing. I did not see any points within the week I used the telephone as my each day driver, and it handles demanding video games with ease; the one tangible acquire you may see with the 8 Gen 3 is healthier battery life.
It is a related story with the cameras; the F6 Professional manages to take higher photographs than the F6 in nearly each state of affairs, and it holds up extremely nicely in low-light situations. The 12R has a slender edge on this space, however on the entire, the F6 Professional is not far behind.
That mentioned, the most important problem with the cameras is that the auxiliary 8MP wide-angle lens is not anyplace pretty much as good as the principle digital camera, and I nonetheless do not perceive why POCO cannot ship two usable sensors on the again. That is true of the 12R as nicely, and solely Google manages to ship a mid-ranger with a wide-angle digital camera that is truly respectable.
POCO did not change any software program options from the usual F6, and whereas I nonetheless imagine that the software program is in want of a visible overhaul, it’s significantly better optimized this yr. The interface is fluid, there is a good quantity of customizability, and it does not have any annoying bugs. There’s nonetheless a whole lot of bloatware out of the field, and POCO is not good at delivering updates on time — these are issues it must actively change.
General, the F6 Professional is likely one of the finest telephones at present accessible within the mid-range section. POCO’s resolution to not launch the machine in most international markets is puzzling; it’s the best different to the OnePlus 12R and Galaxy A55, and with the producer setting lofty targets this yr, wider availability of the F6 Professional would have highlighted the model’s ambition on this section.
The F6 Professional has an awesome design, one of the best AMOLED panel POCO used up thus far, dependable {hardware}, and a terrific digital camera on the again. When you’ve used Xiaomi telephones up to now and desire a mid-ranger that has a very good worth, the F6 Professional brings loads to the desk.