Announced in April 2022, the new POCO F4 GT who will be the protagonist of this review.
We are facing a high-end smartphone integrating the processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Generation 1 to deliver maximum performance power. In fact, it is a team focused on the world of gamers, but with a much more discreet design.
It has a retractable trigger system that will be very useful when we play, in addition to integrating a screen 6.67-inch AMOLED with 120Hz refresh rate so our games and media look great.
It also has a system of stereo speakers with two woofers and two tweeters supporting Dolby Atmos sound which sound pretty good, plus 5G connectivity, Wi-Fi 6 and 120W fast charging.
In short, we have a lot to tell you about this smartphone that brings us A LITTLEI therefore invite you to continue reading our opinion so that you know all the good and the bad of this high-end smartphone which has landed in Chile.
Here begins our test of the POCO F4 GT!
Filter
We are facing a 6.67-inch AMOLED screen, since it is this detail, we imagine that its screen will look really good, and the truth is that it does not disappoint at all.
It’s a screen that looks really good, with very vivid and real colors, although it also reaches a fairly high level of brightness when viewing content in HDR, in addition to seeing everything really fluid thanks to its 120Hz refresh rate.
To the above we add that it is an AMOLED type screen, so it does not require LED backlighting and each pixel generates its own light, thus allowing to see real black colors, really deep.
We’ve got a 120Hz refresh rate which helps with the smoothness of the screen so we can see 100 per cent smooth motion without any lag, which is obviously appreciated. Now in the settings menu you can choose “Default” mode to have the refresh rate automatically adjust, but you can also choose to run at 60 or 120Hz.
cameras
In this section we will find a triple camera, its main sensor being a 60 megapixel sensor with a PDAF f/1.9 aperture, followed by an 8 MP f/2.2 ultra wide angle sensor with a viewing angle of 120º, then we have a 2MP f/2.4 macro sensor.
When we open the camera app we are going to find an interface that is already familiar to us since it is the same that we see in Xiaomi and Redmi equipment.
We have multiple capture modes and with multiple customization options, as well as artificial intelligence that recognizes capture modes based on the content it observes.
I leave you with photos of proof below:
Captures in automatic mode
night shots
Macro Mode
ultra wide angle mode
As you can see, dear reader, the photographic quality is quite good, as well as the night photos, although of course you have the last word.
Video
Our protagonist has the ability to record videos in 4K quality with up to 60 frames per second in maximum quality.
In my test, I made a video recording in 4K at 30 frames per second, and here is the video:
As you can see, the image and sound quality is very good. I also liked the image stabilization, although I’m not sure if it’s electronic or optical. However, in the camera menu, I can activate an option to stabilize the image even more, but it only works in Full HD quality.
Multimedia and performance
This smartphone has the necessary power so that we can do almost everything with it, from watching a simple video to browsing the web, social networks, chatting, and playing games with demanding graphics.
We owe all this to its Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor with 8 cores and manufactured in a 4 nanometer process, and we cannot forget its graphics processor, as it has an Adreno 730 GPU.
All this hardware is accompanied by 12 GB of RAM, although the system adds an additional 3 GB which are used from its internal storage which reaches 256 GB of type UFS 3.1.
All the above is controlled by the Android 12 operating system which is customized by the MIUI 13 layer, and here I will stop a bit, because if you have read my reviews of Xiaomi and Redmi equipment, you remember that I always complained due to the number of bugs I found in MIUI, especially with notifications that did not arrive or were simply silenced.
Well, with MIUI 13 things have changed… Finally! Since I had no issues with the notifications, I received them all without issue, especially the ones from Twitter which were quick to arrive, which is obviously appreciated.
I think this time the company has done a good job and continues to improve, the system worked perfectly, everything is very fast, without any lags, I was impressed with how quickly it was installed or updated the apps on the Google Play Store, as I have absolutely nothing to criticize on the performance of the team.
Demonstration
Here is a complete demo video so you can know the POCO F4 GT in more detail, including its Game Turbo mode, how the retractable triggers work, sound quality, part of the camera, menus, interface , etc. I even did an unboxing so you can see what it brings.
audio
In another section where this Xiaomi stands out is in the audio, since this equipment integrates four stereo speakers, although instead it is two speakers that improve the bass and two tweeters for the treble, powered by Dolby Atmos technology. It also features 24-bit/192kHz high-resolution audio.
The speaker quality is really good, the sound is quite loud as you might have heard in the demo video.
We don’t have a 3.5mm headphone jack, but we can use the device’s USB-C port with an adapter included in the box. In my case I used Bluetooth headphones and the sound quality was very good, Dolby Atmos helps a lot with this, in addition to having access to pre-equalized profiles and also an equalizer that we can customize.
Security
Our protagonist offers us two security methods to block the device. The first is its fingerprint reader located on the power button, which works very quickly (as you could see in the demo video), and the second method uses the front camera to perform face unlock.
As for the security patch of the device, at the time of use, the April patch was applied, so we can say that its security was up to date, which is appreciated.
connectivity
The POCO F4 GT is compatible with the 5G networks of the three main national operators, being able to successfully test the 5G NSA network of WOM and Movistar.
I was also able to use services such as VoLTE and Wi-Fi Voice, and in compatibility with 4G networks, it is fully compatible with the bands used in Chile, including WOM’s B66. It is also Dual SIM 5G, it is compatible with 4G+, but unfortunately it lacks eSIM technology.
Finally we have compatibility with Wi-Fi 6 networks to be able to reach higher speeds in our home network, it has NFC for mobile payments, the already classic infrared port and a compatible USB Type-C 2.0 port with USB On-The – Go. We don’t have FM radio just in case.
Drums
Our protagonist has a battery with a capacity of 4,700 mAh, a figure that I personally did not expect, since I imagined that it would incorporate a minimum of 5,000 mAh.
But hey, this battery can be charged with 120W fast charging thanks to the included charger and cable. According to the manufacturer, you can charge the battery to 100% in just 17 minutes.
I used this device as if it were my own, with all the apps I normally use, with the screen brightness set to automatic, but with its original resolution and refresh rate still at 120 Hz. I used Wi-Fi and was also connected to WOM’s 5G network, and had a Xiaomi Mi Watch paired via Bluetooth.
With all the usage I described, the battery gave me a total battery life of 16 hours and 7 minutes. Active screen time was 5 hours and 28 minutes.
Design
I must admit that reading the name of this smartphone, I imagined that its design would be a bit robust and adapted to the typical design that we see in products dedicated to gamers. However, I was wrong because we have a more elegant, modern design and far from those rough models, with colored lights, etc.
We appreciate that the screen is completely flat, it helps a lot with the grip and is comfortable to handle. However, when we play like I don’t find it very comfortable to hold the equipment horizontally to be able to touch the retractable triggers, although I think it can depend on each one.
We have glass on the front and back, while the edges are aluminum, all of very good quality, although the latter will only be known over time.
Let’s take a look at the edges:
The one on the left we have volume keys and a third dedicated microphone when we play. On the right side we have the retractable triggers with their corresponding sliding lock button, and we also have the power key which is also its fingerprint reader.
On the upper side we have one of its speakers with a second microphone and the infrared port. On the lower side we have two more speakers, as well as the main microphone and its USB Type-C port.
conclusion
I must say that I liked this POCO F4 GT, I found it very complete, very fast, with a very good screen, good cameras, good speakers, battery saving, even if that Could have been better, and a design that I personally liked. I liked it because it looks sleek and modern.
In the Xiaomi 12 Pro review some people asked me if it had a proximity sensor or if it was virtual, unfortunately I didn’t pay attention to it then, but now I didn’t want to do the same error. Well, here I didn’t see a sensor, but I could see that the screen turned off correctly every time I brought it closer to my face during a call, it worked fine.
I liked that it had haptic vibrations, ideal for games or when we write, there that has an additional point. The truth is that I did not find many differences compared to the Xiaomi 12 Pro, it is more, given that I liked this POCO more than the same Xiaomi 12 Pro that I tried some time ago .
Both teams gave me the same performance which was really fast, very good sound, good cameras, a decent screen, acceptable autonomy and a very rich design. However, the Xiaomi 12 Pro has a value that reaches almost a million pesos, while the POCO F4 GT which offers you practically the same is worth less than 700 thousand pesos.
I recommand it? Of course yes, for all the reasons that I have just mentioned and to have almost everything that we are looking for today in a smartphone and its price, which although it is high, I think it is in line with what it offers.
Availablity
You can find the POCO F4 GT in online stores Mi Store Chili for $669,990as well as in the official Xiaomi store at Free market for $669,990.
