Xiaomi has a history of launching impressive budget phones under its Poco brand, and the newly announced Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G looks to be no exception.
This successor to the Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro 5G has a 6.6-inch 1080 x 2400 screen with a 90Hz refresh rate, a mid-range MediaTek Dimensity 810 chipset, a big 5,000mAh battery, and 33W charging.
That chipset and charging speed are both an upgrade on its predecessor, as is the camera, which now includes a 50MP main snapper, an 8MP ultra-wide one, and a 16MP front-facing one.
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Elsewhere, the Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G has 4GB or 6GB of RAM, 64GB or 128GB of storage, a microSD card slot, a side-mounted fingerprint scanner, dual speakers, a 3.5mm headphone port, and of course 5G.
Available in Poco Yellow, Power Black, or Cool Blue (with a large black panel extending out from the camera block in all cases), the Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro 5G starts at 229 euros (around $265 / £195 / AU$360) for a 4GB / 64GB model.
It rises to 249 euros (roughly $290 / £210 / AU$390) for a 6GB / 128GB one, with the price dropping by 30 euros (approximately $35 / £25 / AU$45) in both cases if you buy if between November 11 and November 13 from AliExpress.
There’s no word on UK pricing at the time of writing, but with the phone landing in Western Europe we’d expect the UK would be included. However, there’s no word on US or Australian availability.
Analysis: could this take the Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC’s cheap phone crown?
The Xiaomi Poco X3 NFC currently sits at the top of our best cheap phone chart, so could the Xiaomi Poco M4 Pro 5G dislodge it?
We’ll have to put it through a full review to be sure, but on paper it sounds generally promising, offering specs that are almost as good at a price that might be even lower, and with the addition of 5G.
Then again, the Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro 5G only achieved 3.5 stars in our review, with us noting particular issues with the camera and software, so it remains to be seen whether those will be solved here.
But at the very least the Poco M4 Pro 5G has different lenses, trading a 48MP main, 2MP macro, 2MP depth and 8MP front-facing, for a 50MP main, 8MP ultra-wide and 16MP front-facing. On paper then it seems like Xiaomi might have wisely gone for quality over quantity here, so that bodes well.
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