POCO M5 Review: An Enticing Deal With A Catch

Spun Content: POCO M5 Review

Bringing strong specifications but at an affordable price-at least when compared to its predecessor, the POCO M3-the iconic POCO yellow color and design ring a familiar tone to the popular character from "Among Us". This now highly featured smartphone is ready to be competitive across its segment.

With the Full HD+ LCD display sporting a 90Hz refresh rate, the MediaTek Dimensity G99 processor, and a 50MP triple-camera setup, the POCO M5 offers attractive in-class performance. It features a large battery capacity and much more at an enticing price: ₹12,499.

But in a market where affordable 5G options are more or less aplenty, will having only 4G support on the POCO M5 let it keep up? We shall dive into the details to see for the overall experience.

Specifications of POCO M5

An FHD+ LCD display with a 2,400 x 1,800 pixel resolution graces the front of the POCO M5, and its good visuals and color representation should be able to fulfill a user's expectations. The display is further designed with an adaptive refresh rate that changes between 30Hz and 90Hz for smoother functionality-be it for scrolling or in-game performance; it will adjust to optimize the performance of that very task.

The screen also has toughened Corning Gorilla Glass to provide partial scratch resistance against normal abrasion and minor falls. An 8MP front camera assures decent selfies and video calls, while there's a 50MP primary sensor on the back for nicely detailed shots. As usual, a 2MP macro lens is present for close-up shots, accompanied by a 2MP depth sensor to help achieve portrait photography and bokeh effects. The POCO M5 runs on the MediaTek Helio G99 chipset, fabbed to run multitasking and casual gameplay without breaking a sweat.

The phone is offered in two variants, one with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage and the other with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, expanding up to a microSD card slot. It boasts Android 12 straight out of the box, combined with MIUI 13 atop for an unending software experience. It has a 5,000mAh battery that supports 18W fast charging, good enough for a whole day.

Connectivity options - Dual SIM 4G, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.2, USB Type C.

Design and Build

Well, the design is really one of the strong points of the POCO M5, considering it features a faux leather back. Moreover, the material creates not only a high level of class in design but also makes the back grippy. It is fingerprint-resistant and keeps cleaner even after regular usage. This bold design is offered in three bold color options: POCO Yellow, Icy Blue, and Power Black-actually, choices to suit one's personality. For a budget phone, it appears classier: the camera module resides in a black visor on the upper part of the back panel, and the phone generally looks sleek and modern.

It has relatively thick bezels, especially with the "chin" at the bottom, but the 6.58-inch display is minimally impacted in the overall experience. The front camera sits in a dew-drop notch, thus easing the intrusion into the screen area.

It weighs 210 grams, which is pretty heavyweight; however, the MT 210 grams of weight distribution ensures that it feels easy in your hands and perfectly comfortable to hold even for a longer span. While there isn't any official IP rating on the POCO M5, yes-you guessed it right-the SIM tray does have a rubber gasket adding some durability to ordinary day-to-day use.

Display Performance

The POCO M5 features a 6.58-inch display running FHD+, which does pretty well in its class, though not an AMOLED panel.

The screen can go up and down in refresh rate between 30Hz, 60Hz, and 90Hz, depending on the content in front of it, with the goal of saving battery life without taking out any smoothness where, of course, that needs to be-for instance, gaming or scrolling through socials. It does get reasonably visible outdoors, given the peak brightness of 400 nits, though it may struggle in direct sunlight. Colors on it are well-vibrant, although less deep compared to what you would get from an AMOLED screen-the blacks tend to be somewhat grayish, too.

No HDR might be somewhat disappointing for many, although not a surprise within this range of pricing. In real life, for those who usually spend most of their screen time browsing, watching videos, and performing casual gaming, the display does more than an adequate job. Moreover, Widevine L1 certification will also enable users to stream Full HD content from services like Netflix and Prime Video for some good viewing pleasure.

Save for the teardrop notch and the thick chin, which are not to everyone's taste, these do not interfere too much with consumption of content, thus making for a clean overall display experience.

Camera Setup

Surprisingly, the rear triple-camera setup on the POCO M5, powered by a 50MP main sensor, does an okay job in good light conditions.

They're clicks just a little toward the cooler tone, yet they're detailed with good color reproduction.

But we did feel that the highlights can sometimes be blown. In low light, the camera doesn't do so well, but it's acceptable for this price. The 2MP macro and depth sensors don't add much value to the overall experience, really. An 8MP ultrawide lens would have been a better addition instead.

The 8MP front-facing camera takes reasonable selfies, although colours appear somewhat washed out. Software Experience The POCO M5 runs Android 12 with MIUI 13 atop, so it's pretty much the same as the familiar software experience that most devices can boast of having with Xiaomi and Redmi branding.

Software Experience

This MIUI 13 is feature-rich to a fault-sometimes doing too much, like the whole clamor of bloatware. RAM management can get a bit too aggressive: it kills background apps each and every time. That's frustrating. That can delay notifications, but there's an option to have an app run in the background. It's just that hard to find said setting. The POCO Launcher gives things a slightly different look and feel, but it's got a lot of pre-installed apps and quite a large number of them spam you with notifications. Thankfully, most can be uninstalled or disabled.

Performance and Gaming

The POCO M5 runs on the MediaTek Helio G99 chipset, which brings some serious performance capabilities with it for general work and casual gaming.

For those users not requiring 5G, this processor represents outstanding value in this class of devices. Benchmarks such as GeekBench and AnTuTu scored well with this phone, generally doing an alright job with apps and games without too many hiccups.

Speaking generically, considering the rate, the phone runs perfectly, so for users unconcerned by the lack of 5G network coverage, it is quite respectable. Battery Life During our tests, the POCO M5 handled rather smoothly-even when we played Call of Duty Mobile and other popular games, there's some lag at moments of extreme multitasking.

Battery Life

The biggest strengths of the POCO M5 are further going to be its large 5,000mAh battery. It easily lasts two days on moderate use, and for users who want nothing other than the very best battery life, this telephone is for them. As if that wasn't going to be enough, even with heavy usage, the phone didn't run out of juice within a day.

A 22.5W charger is also provided, which helps recharge the battery in about 1 hour and 45 minutes, though it supports only 18W of fast charging. This makes POCO M5 one of the strong points, and such battery performance is desirable considering its price.

Conclusion

The POCO M5 is a decent budget smartphone option, offering quite a balanced package of good performance and stellar battery life, coupled with an eye-catcher of a design.

But the lack of 5G connectivity might just be that one missing deal-breaker everyone has been looking for to future-proof their devices.

Of course, this MIUI software can be tweaked further for better RAM management and bloats lessening, but at its best, users moving from a feature phone or an entry-level smartphone won't get a better option than the POCO M5 at ₹12,499. It is doing the basics quite adequately and not causing any significant dent in your wallet.

FAQs

1. Does the POCO M5 support 5G?

No, POCO M5 is not 5G-enabled but comes with 4G LTE connectivity, which should be enough for those living in regions where 5G is not so popular or for users who do not need the potentials of higher speeds enabled by 5G. While 5G is getting popular, 4G remains a standard in many places, providing reliable performance for most day-to-day activities like browsing, streaming, and gaming.

The POCO M5 splits its efforts between the solid delivery of an overall experience with 4G support and hence would enable users to enjoy stable and fast enough connections without additional costs that generally come with 5G-enabled devices.

In this way, users for whom the connectivity of 5G is not a necessity can get a great balance of features with the POCO M5 alone at rather friendly prices, which ensure smooth performance with good value for money. However, users who want to try the latest in network technology for future-proofing would look elsewhere for options that are 5G capable.

2. How much is the POCO M5's battery life?

We also appreciated that the Poco M5 has a big 5,000mAh battery, promising great battery life to last well through a day and even longer with some judicious use. It means the battery will definitely last up to two days with moderate use: browsing across the web, keeping in touch on social media, catching up with videos, and calling.

Especially helpful for the instances when one can't reach the charging point very often or is usually outdoors for some type of activity.

In addition, it is equipped with 18W fast charging to get it up and running again in no time whenever the power gets low. This amount of battery performance should be quite enough for a majority of users; thus, the POCO M5 is truly your day-to-day companion. With support for fast charging, this is a long-lasting battery that rescues you from being anchored to your charger throughout the day.

3. What display does POCO M5 sport?

The POCO M5 is fitted with a 6.58-inch Full HD+ LCD panel, which comes in actuality with a resolution of 1080 x 2408 pixels. Other cool features of the display include the 90Hz adaptive refresh rate. Refreshing at 90Hz, it will turn up or down dynamical, depending on what's on screen-smooth scrolling, more responsiveness, with quite a noticeable difference when gaming and playing videos. The idea is to balance performance and battery life by dialing down refresh rates where possible.

Besides, the screen is treated with Corning Gorilla Glass for added strength in case of minor falls or scratches.

Though this is an LCD panel and not an AMOLED, the colors are good enough, and for general viewing-which means watching videos, playing games, and browsing the web-the experience is pretty satisfactory. Another good thing going about its display is that it does support decent brightness levels, hence making it fairly usable even under direct sunlight. All in all, the POCO M5 features a reliable screen to take good care of a broad sphere of activity.

4. Is the camera on the POCO M5 good?

On the rear, it has a triple-camera array: a 50MP f/1.8 primary camera, a 2MP f/2.4 macro camera, and another 2MP f/2.4 depth sensor.

But here, the true star of the show is that 50MP primary camera: shots are nice and sharp, especially in well-lit areas. This high-resolution camera ensures that the photos are clear, with good color reproduction when taken in daylight or under a brightly lit condition. Like many a budget phone, though, the POCO M5 struggles in low-light - images are often grainy or lacking some of the detail that can be captured in better-lit conditions.

Additional 2MP sensors for macro and depth add some versatility to the camera array, though performance is decidedly basic. This macro, on one hand, enables shooting really close: the depth sensor on the other helps create a bokeh effect in Portrait mode that is natural enough. It houses an 8-megapixel front camera for selfies-good enough for video calls and casual selfies, though much with not quite the same level of detail or clarity as this primary camera.

5. How much does the POCO M5 cost in India?

As evident, the POCO M5 is a budget phone in India, and its pricing is hence quite competitive given its spec sheet.

It is available in two variants, where the base variant carries 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage for ₹ 12,499, while the higher spec comes with 6GB of RAM and 128GB storage priced at ₹ 14,499. That makes what is known as the POCO M5 a pretty lucrative option, since desperate people need an affordably tagged smartphone without too much corners being cut in deliverables like a high-capacity battery, capable 50MP camera, and smoother-than-wholesome 90Hz display.

Its price keeps the phone well inside the budget segment of the market, hence within reach of a great class of users: students, casual users, and those looking for a secondary device. Given especially the specs and competitive pricing, POCO M5 is actually one of the great value-for-money devices given to all users, more specifically for those who do not want to go high on budgets but on the other hand are not willing to compromise on major features.