Poco F6 review

New primary, same ultrawide

The Poco F6 comes with a couple of changes to the camera system compared to the previous generation. Looking at the specs alone, both the new main camera and the different selfie unit appear as sidesteps rather than obvious improvements. The removal of the low-res macro shooter can be counted as a step in the right direction though.

The primary camera on the back now employs a 50MP Sony sensor in place of the 64MP OmniVision one of the predecessor. The overall sensor size is more or less the same , though - 1/1.95" vs. 1/2.0", so it will be the Lytia stacked design that will be the source of improvements, not just sheer dimensions. You'll also note that the F6's 50MP main camera is different from the F6 Pro's 50MP main camera (OmniVision 1/1.55" imager there).

The two F6s do share a camera, and that's the 8MP ultrawide, which has been inherited from the F5.

Flip over to the display side, and there are further differences. The F6 opts for a 20MP sensor instead of the 16MP units on the F6 Pro and F5. More importantly, it's paired with a wider-than-usual 21mm-equivalent lens - so you'll be getting more friends (or, realistically, wider surroundings) into your selfies.

• Wide (main): 50MP Sony IMX 882 (likely same as LYT600, 1/1.95", 0.8µm - 1.6µm), f/1.6, 26mm, multi directional PDAF, OIS; 4K@60/30fps
• Ultrawide: 8MP Sony IMX 355 (1/4.0", 1.12µm), f/2.2, 16mm, fixed focus; FullHD@30fps
• Front camera: 20MP OmniVision OV20B, f/2.2, 21mm, fixed focus; FullHD@60/30fps

Daylight photo quality

Main camera

The Poco F6's main camera does relatively well in daylight. Detail is very good if not quite as organic as on the F6 Pro, while noise is low, though there's still some fine grain here or there.

 

The auto white balance can be trusted, and the color rendition is quite likable - it's a notch below the Pro's slightly excessive pop. Dynamic range is great too.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x)

The way the Poco F6 renders skin tones and faces , in general, isn't our favorite - there's some skin smoothing and whitening that still remains despite us having disabled all the beautification features. It's not bad or anything, just not as good as it could be.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), Photo mode

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), Portrait mode

We're struggling to find a meaningful improvement in resolved detail in the 50MP shots, but don't hesitate to examine them yourself.

Daylight samples, main camera (1x), 50MP

The 12.5MP 2x zoom photos have essentially the same amount of detail as the 50MP ones when viewed at 1:1 - so not great, strictly speaking, but okay for the purpose. They do offer better noise reduction and you'll get metering for just the right portion of the frame.

Daylight samples, main camera (2x)

Ultrawide camera

The ultrawide camera does fairly well without actually shining, though we wouldn't have expected it from its unremarkable hardware. That said, what should be the same camera hardware on the F6 Pro (as best as we can tell) gave us slightly nicer images, so maybe the two different Snapdragons have their own specifics.

Detail is alright, given the resolution, and whatever noise there is doesn't get in the way. Colors can be a little muted, and there's a general aura of lifelessness, which we didn't experience on the Pro. To be fair, we'd have probably been just fine with the F6's shots, but it's just that the F6 Pro's are a little better.

Daylight samples, ultrawide camera

Selfies

Selfies on the Poco F6 are nice in some ways, and not quite so in others. Contrast is a little low, both globally and on a micro level. A saturation nudge also wouldn't hurt them, though skin tones are well rendered as they are. Detail is decent, but since it's a Quad Bayer type sensor it's not really a true 20MP image. The best bit, in our book, and the one that sets the F6 apart from most phones, is the  wide coverage of the front-facing camera.

Selfie samples

Low-light photo quality

Main camera

The Poco F6's main camera doesn't fear darkness and continues to deliver solid images at night. You don't need to worry much about going into Night mode as the phone does well enough in full auto. Tonal development is very good, and you'll typically get reasonably bright shadows and well-contained highlights. Detail and noise performance are good, and we have no major complaints about color either.

Low-light samples, main camera (1x)

At 2x zoom, you can expect usable images, though looking at them at 1:1 will reveal their upscaled nature.

Low-light samples, main camera (2x)

Ultrawide camera

The ultrawide camera's low-light photos are pretty meh. Dynamic range is alright, but colors are a little off. The images are also quite soft - more so than on the F6 Pro.

 

Low-light samples, ultrawide camera

Video recording

The Poco F6 records video at up to 4K60 with its primary camera and 1080p/30fps with its ultrawide. It's missing the (rather pointless) 8K resolution option of the F6 Pro, and it also doesn't allow for 4K24 (just 30fps and 60fps). Sure enough, there's always-on stabilization and the option to choose between the h.264 (default) and h.265 codecs.

4K clips from the main camera are solid. Detail is very good at 30fps, on par with the F6 Pro's results, and there's a similar minor drop in quality at 60fps. The F6 is a bit more restrained in its color saturation than the Pro model, and we'd probably pick this one as the better rendition - it's more faithful without looking dull. The darker shadows do make for a slightly gloomier look, though. The ultrawide's 1080p videos are so-so - they're not particularly detailed, even for 1080p.

Stabilization on the Poco F6 is alright. Walking shake does cause the occasional focus hunting on the main camera, but if you stay put, you'll avoid that issue, and the pans are smooth. The ultrawide is also good at stabilizing, though its clips ended up softer in these conditions than what we got on the F6 Pro.

In the dark, the Poco F6's main camera does a respectable job - perhaps ever so slightly better than the Pro, even. It captures good detail, has reasonably wide dynamic range and maintains color saturation well. The ultrawide is best avoided at night.

Video sample playlist

You can check out the playlist below, which includes multiple video samples.