POCO M5: An Attractive Offer With a Twist
If you enjoyed the POCO M3, you’d love the POCO M5. As with the last batch, the signature “POCO yellow” hue and “Among Us”-style character designs are returning. Like the bulk of the company’s other smartphones, the POCO M5 has impressive specs for the price.
The POCO M5’s hardware lineup includes a Full HD+ 90Hz LCD display, a MediaTek Dimensity G99 CPU, a 50MP triple camera system, a huge battery, and much more. It’s all yours for the low, low price of $12,499.
Design
POCO smartphones always stand out in a sea of similar gadgets thanks to their unique coloring and construction. The POCO M5 is similar to the M4 but has a fake leather back instead of metal. This phone comes in three color options. Since this is a low-cost item, it is built entirely out of high-quality plastic and has a Gorilla Glass screen protector.
The phone’s star-shaped triple camera array and flash occupy the top left corner in a glossy black visor, giving the device a two-tone look. Large, angular bezels and a notch in the form of a dewdrop accompany the 6.58-inch front display. The SIM card slot is on the left, while the other controls (volume controls and power) are on the right (the latter doubles as a fingerprint reader). It includes a USB Type-C connector, speaker grill, microphone on the bottom, and an infrared blaster and 3.5mm audio jack.
A rubber seal protects the SIM tray to keep out dust and water. Because of its smooth edges and well-distributed 210 grams of weight, you can use the POCO M5 with only one hand.
Display
The POCO M5 has a 6.58-inch LCD screen on the front with Full High Definition Plus (FHD+) resolution. The panel’s adjustable refresh rate changes from 30Hz to 60Hz and then to 90Hz as needed. The screen is responsive to swipes and is readable even in direct sunlight. The viewing angles are OK, about what you’d expect from a budget-friendly IPS LCD screen, but the black levels and color reproduction leave much to be desired.
The teardrop notch and somewhat broad chin may turn off some consumers, but for the price, it is acceptable. Even if it has a dated look, the message remains the same. The M5’s display is Widevine L1 certified so that you can watch films in Full HD on Netflix, Prime Video, and various video streaming applications; nevertheless, one can expect the absence of HDR support considering the phone’s low price.
Camera
On the back of the POCO M5 are three cameras: a 50MP main camera, a 2MP macro camera, and a 2MP sensor located in one of two symmetrical, thick rings. A better match, in our opinion, would have been an 8MP ultrawide camera. The 8MP front-facing camera is discreetly placed in the phone’s dew-drop notch, where it captures excellent selfies.
The camera app is similar to what you’d find on other MIUI-powered smartphones, so it’s easy to find what you need. The primary camera produces acceptable results when shooting in natural light but with significantly colder color tones. The photos are detailed, although the highlights are sometimes too bright. Unfortunately, there is not much of a visible difference between HDR and non-HDR photographs. Furthermore, AI Colour mode is not available on this device, contrary to other MIUI-powered smartphones.
The POCO M5’s front-facing camera has mixed reviews. Taking a selfie usually results in dull colors, although this is something that may be adjusted through an OTA in the future. However, it takes beautiful portraits with a linear background-blur look and excellent subject recognition.
Software
The POCO M5 runs Android 12, with Xiaomi’s MIUI 13 overlay applied on top. Every three months, POCO has vowed to provide a new security patch. The POCO launcher, which sits atop MIUI 13 and has unique POCO icons, provides a unique experience compared to that of Redmi or any other Xiaomi smartphone.
MIUI 13 is feature-rich compared to other OEMs’ custom skins. However, for inexpensive mobile devices, this may be excessive. To make matters worse, the POCO M5 has the same problem. A lot of the time, you get alerts from random applications that we would consider bloatware. Thankfully, they can be eliminated. Some preinstalled applications promote “recommended content” and bombard you with alerts that may be simply disabled.
Battery
One of the POCO M5’s most appealing features is its lengthy battery life. The large, powerful battery in the phone can last for a whole day. This phone’s battery may last for over two days with light to moderate use. The provided 22.5W charger can charge the device in around 1 hour and 45 minutes, which is a definite benefit.
Performance
New MediaTek Helio G99 SoC is what drives the POCO M5. MediaTek’s latest 4G SoC shares its architecture with the popular Helio G96. This chip is aimed at consumers who are searching for a powerful, low-cost option with a price tag of less than $15,000. In order to compete in this price range, POCO omitted 5G from the M5 in favor of features such as an adaptive refresh display, triple cameras, and a large battery.
As long as you stick to normal usage, the POCO M5 shouldn’t give you any major trouble. The phone’s app switching times are longer than average, but one can anticipate that from a low-priced smartphone with a bloated operating system shell that includes tons of extra features. Our only complaints are MIUI’s aggressive RAM management and bloatware, both of which we expect to be addressed in future iterations of the operating system.
Conclusion
The POCO M5 includes several improvements and new features. The phone does offer certain advantages, such as a nice appearance, a huge battery, and a decent chipset. Yet there are still several issues, including MIUI’s aggressive RAM management, bloatware, and intrusive push notifications from pre-installed applications.
The POCO M5’s biggest drawback is that it can’t connect to 5G networks, even though two carriers have already released 5G services nationwide. Nevertheless, those looking to move from a feature or entry-level smartphone to a cheap one at the current price of 12,499 can consider the POCO M5.
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