Xiaomi Poco F7 Ultra

At Rs. 259,999, the Xiaomi Poco F7 Ultra brings the Snapdragon 8 Elite for far less than the Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra at Rs. 434,999.

• Advantages: top gaming performance, a bright 2K display, IP68 protection, 120W wired and 50W wireless charging, and a versatile triple camera with a 2.5x telephoto.
• Compromises: a smaller 5300 mAh battery, good rather than class-leading cameras, 1080p-only selfie and ultrawide video, and weaker haptics and glass protection.

Buyers who want the best camera or a bigger brand name have other choices at this price, but for raw performance it is hard to beat.

Verdict: excellent value for gamers and power users; camera-first buyers should compare before buying.

The 6.67-inch AMOLED has 2K resolution (1440 x 3200), a 120Hz refresh rate, 12-bit colour and Dolby Vision support, so streaming apps look rich and sharp.

• Outdoors: high-brightness mode reaches 1800 nits, and the screen stays easy to read on a sunny day. GSMArena calls it an excellent, bright display.
• Eye comfort: 3840Hz PWM dimming and hardware low blue light certification help during long sessions.
• Gaming and video: the flat panel avoids accidental touches, and the VisionBoost D7 chip sharpens game graphics and upscales low-resolution video in real time.
• Limitation: Poco Shield Glass is less scratch and drop resistant than Gorilla Glass Victus 2, so the pre-applied screen protector is worth keeping.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite comes with 12GB or 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM and fast UFS 4.1 storage, so apps open quickly and multitasking is effortless.

• Gaming: PUBG and Mobile Legends run at 120 FPS with excellent stability, and Genshin Impact holds a stable 60 FPS at the highest graphics setting.
• Heat: a large vapour chamber keeps temperatures under 40°C while gaming, and 30 to 40 minute sessions cause no problems.
• Benchmarks: the AnTuTu score is about 2.4 million, among the highest in its price range.
• Graphics chip: the VisionBoost D7 chip adds contrast and sharper graphics in games.

The one small letdown is the vibration motor, which feels weaker than on Xiaomi 15 series phones.

The rear has a 50 MP main camera (Light Fusion 800 sensor), a 50 MP 2.5x telephoto and a 32 MP ultrawide; the front has a 32 MP selfie camera.

• Main camera: good detail and colour, though images sometimes come out a little warm. Results are decent rather than class-leading.
• Portraits and close-ups: 2.5x portraits show natural skin tones and fine texture, and the telephoto also shoots sharp macro photos. GSMArena calls its telephoto close-ups class-leading.
• Ultrawide: good enough for social media, but video stops at 1080p 60fps.
• Selfies: skin tone and detail are kept, but the look is not the most natural and background exposure is sometimes off. Selfie video is 1080p only.
• Video: 4K 60fps has good detail and decent stabilisation, but footage jitters when you walk or run. 8K recording is also available.

Low-light performance has not been verified yet.

The Poco F7 Ultra has a 5300 mAh battery, a standard cell rather than the higher-capacity silicon-carbon type, so it is smaller than many rivals. Even so, a charge lasts about a full day and night of use, and GSMArena rates its battery life as solid.

• 120W wired: 0 to 100% in under 35 minutes.
• Other chargers: a 65W PD charger fills it in about an hour.
• Wireless: 50W wireless charging is supported.
• In the box: a 120W charger and cable are included, though GSMArena notes the charger is left out in some markets.

Two in-house chips manage charging and battery health for stable charging.

The Poco F7 Ultra launched with Android 15 and can be upgraded to Android 16 with HyperOS 3. GSMArena calls HyperOS feature-rich.

• Useful extras: a very fast ultrasonic fingerprint sensor, an infrared port for controlling TVs and air conditioners, and real-time video upscaling.
• Polish: opinions differ on the software experience, and the OnePlus 13 is seen as smoother in daily use.

No official software update commitment was confirmed for this model, and advertisements or preinstalled apps have not been verified, so check the setup screens before you start using it.