Poco X6 review

The competition

The Poco X6 starts at €300, which is one incredibly competitive price tag, tempting even. It offers the best screen in this segment, one premium design and well-rounded specs, so there is a good chance it gets picked right away.

Xiaomi's own Redmi Note 13 Pro is the first competitor that comes to mind, which is the same phone as Poco X6 but with a more premium 200MP primary camera. But for this higher resolution imager, and arguably a more signature branding, you'd be paying about €100 more (the expected global price is about €380). We'd say the Poco X6 makes more sense, for sure.

The Galaxy A54 is priced closely to the Poco X6. It is a completely waterproof smartphone with better cameras and similar speed, but one that packs not as premium OLED, slower charging, and no charger in the box. You must decide by your priorities here.

The Moto G84 is a good alternative for its clean Android experience, similar IP54-design, a good OLED screen and more premium cameras. It has a longer battery life, FM radio, and a microSD slot. It is also cheaper.

Finally, you may want to consider the Google Pixel 6a if available in your market. It is one very affordable flagship phone, IP67-rated, incredibly fast hardware, and superb cameras. It is a two-year compact phone, but it is totally worth it. You will have to make do with a 60Hz display, though.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 13 • Samsung Galaxy A54 • Motorola Moto G84 • Google Pixel 6a

Our verdict

The Poco X6 is an excellent upgrade over the Poco X5, improving on almost every single aspect - design, display, battery and charging, speakers, performance, camera, software even. And it is as well-rounded as every other Xiaomi-made phone and offers great bang for the money.

We liked the Poco X6 for its IP54-rated design, but the real showstopper is the Dolby Vision OLED with all sorts of niceties. The 67W fast charging and the new chip are quite alright, too.

The cameras do well in broad daylight, but the low-light performance is mediocre at best. We did expect more.

Finally, the Poco X6 should have launched with HyperOS like the Poco X6 Pro, but alas - it comes with Android 13 and MIUI 14. The HyperOS update is around the corner, but it will eat one of those three promised major updates right after you buy the phone, which is a terrible trick.

Overall, the Poco X6 is a solid phone with competitive price and features. And that is why it is easy to recommend in spite of some not so major flaws - it is just a solid offer.

Pros

• IP54-rated design, Gorilla Glass Victus screen shield
• Bright AMOLED with Dolby Vision, 120Hz, can be color accurate.
• Fast to charge, bundled fast charger.
• Dolby Atmos speakers with good loudness.
• Good mid-range performance and stability.
• Reliable cameras for daylight photos and videos.
• Snappy MIUI 14, four years of updates with 3 major ones incoming.

Cons

• Average battery life.
• Selfie camera produces soft photos and lacks EIS for video recording.
• HyperOS not available at launch.