Poco M4 Pro review

Competition

The Poco M4 Pro is faced with serious competition, from products under the same brand and from sister brand Xiaomi as well. Realme's 9-series isn't quite as competitive as the 8s, so maybe a rival can be found in the previous generation there. It's a similar story with the new-gen Galaxies, where the A33 5G will be priced way higher, while the A22 has inferior hardware, not to mention that you can't buy them just yet.

Since RAM and storage versions vary from country to country, your local circumstances may vary. We've seen the base version (6GB/64GB) sold for around €240 in Europe; some places may get the 6GB/128GB one for around €250, €280 for the top-spec 8GB/258GB and no other options there. In India, we're looking at INR 15K for the base version, up to 18K for 8GB/128GB. What else can you get in that ballpark?

Well, first of all, there's always the 5G version. Aside from the connectivity advantage and largely immaterial performance gains, the Poco M3 Pro 5G has little going for it here, though. With battery life a toss-up between the two and the 4G version having the better display and superior cameras, you must really be dead-set on having that '5G' in your status bar, to get the Poco M4 Pro 5G over the LTE model. Wait, it's not that simple - the 5G model can be cheaper in some places, complicating that decision a bit.

Next on our list comes the Redmi Note 11. Navigating your way through the Redmi 11 lineup is tough, but we mean this specific one that the link below will take you to. It starts at slightly below M4 Pro money (€200/INR 14K for 4GB/64GB version) though, again, regional availability may limit your RAM and storage options and make direct comparisons impossible. Display, battery life and charging are essentially the same between these two, but the Poco has better camera performance and a superior chipset, and we'd say these are worth the small price premium.

The Galaxy A32 (non-5G, because Samsung can also play that game) is at least €50 more expensive than the Poco M4 Pro in Europe, or a good INR 7,000 more in India, and it's not a difference that's easy to justify. The Galaxy matches the Poco in display quality but has a weaker chipset, slower charging, and only a single speaker. The Poco is also the better cameraphone overall unless the 5MP macro camera is of particular interest to you. There's the matter of the brand image, but is it really worth obsessing over that when shopping on a budget? The A22 and A22 5G are more in the M4 Pro's price ballpark, but we don't think they make a stronger case for a value-priced Galaxy either.

The Realme 8 is precisely one year old but remains a nicely well-rounded value offering - and it's widely available too. It has the most powerful chipset in this selection of phones, with particularly strong graphics performance. It's also the only one here to have 4K video recording capability, though the Poco may have an advantage for shooting stills. Battery life is comparable between the two, as is charging speed, and while not a match for the Poco display, the one on the Realme is plenty good enough.

Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G • Xiaomi Redmi Note 11 • Samsung Galaxy A32 • Realme 8

Verdict

The Poco M4 Pro has few flaws, and they're neither big nor uncommon among the crowd that it's fighting. More advanced video recording, at least in 2022, will take a step up in price and Night mode-capable ultrawide cameras in Xiaomi's lineup aren't a given at the lower end of the price spectrum (though, admittedly, outside competition does tend to have them).

Some redesigned features in MIUI 13 look the old way on this Poco build, not to mention that we should be seeing Android 12-based MIUI across the board by now, and that's not the case here. The matter of design and looks is subjective, and just because we're not fans of the camera island doesn't mean you have to feel that way, while the alternative color options provide an escape from both monotony and fingerprints.

And the rest of the Poco M4 Pro is mostly a list of wins. We like both major changes on the LTE version compared to the 5G one. The OLED display is just a little bit smaller but a lot better. The main camera is a tangible step up, the ultrawide is about as good, and the selfies are an improvement too.

Other things remain unchanged, but they're good things. The IP53 rating has been making it to more and more Xiaomi phones, and while not true waterproofing, it's more than nothing. Battery life is great, charging is very fast for the market position, and there's no small convenience feature missing in hardware.

Regional constraints will play a significant role in how great of a deal the Poco M4 Pro is. If all you're getting is the 8GB/256GB top-spec version at close to €300, perhaps it's not the best idea. But a base 6GB/64GB variant for... base price - that one we can get behind.

Pros

• IP53 rating is nice to have, even though that doesn't make the phone greatly water-resistant.
• Excellent AMOLED display - bright, color-accurate, with a 90Hz refresh rate.
• Long-lasting battery, some of the fastest charging for the money.
• Very capable primary camera, ultrawide is good in daylight too, selfies are also competitive.
• The full set of nice-to-haves - 3.5mm jack, FM Radio, NFC, IR blaster, microSD slot.

Cons

• Overdesigned camera bump, black colorway is dull and picks up fingerprints.
• The MIUI 13 build is still based on Android 11, is missing some features.
• No 4K or 1080p60 video recording.
• No Night mode on the ultrawide camera.