Android Advisor - UK (2021-08)

46 ANDROID ADVISOR • ISSUE 88

REVIEWS

It combines with an Adreno 650 GPU

and 8GB of RAM on the model I tested,

although the starting configuration drops

the latter to 6GB. The performance I got

from the F3 was superb, blazing through

everything I could throw at it without

even a hesitation.

This primarily included web browsing,

social media and some multitasking,

with the F3 barely breaking sweat. It’s

clear the phone can handle gaming,

too – demanding titles like Call of Duty:

Mobile and Asphalt 9 weren’t a problem

here. This is where that 120Hz refresh

rate comes into its own, although not

all games support it. However, the Poco

F3’s stellar performance isn’t necessarily

reflected in the below benchmarks – the

results are roughly in line with many

similarly-priced handsets.

Geekbench 5 (multi-core)

Poco F3: 3,184

Poco X3 Pro: 2,646

Poco X3 NFC: 1,764

Realme 8 Pro: 1,721

OnePlus Nord: 1,963

Google Pixel 4a: 1,640

Moto G100: 2,898

GFX Manhattan 3.1

Poco F3: 61fps

Poco X3 Pro: 62fps

Poco X3 NFC: 27fps

Realme 8 Pro: 27fps

OnePlus Nord: 34fps

Google Pixel 4a: 27fps

Moto G100: 81fps

The Snapdragon 870 chips also

brings 5G to the party, one of the key

upgrades over the X3 Pro. Without a

5G-enabled SIM I couldn’t test how

well it worked, but 4G performance was

exemplary. Wi-Fi 6 keeps things speedy

when at home, while Bluetooth 5.1 and

NFC are also on board.

It’s slightly more complicated where

on-device storage is concerned. I was

comfortable with the 256GB available

on the model I tested, but you might

struggle with just 128GB. If you’re

concerned about running out of space,

buy the more expensive model – there’s

no option for microSD card expansion.

SOFTWARE

Out of the box, the Poco F3 runs

Xiaomi’s MIUI 12 skin over Android 11.

You can easily swap out the default

launcher and an update to Android 12 is

likely at some point, but my experience

here reflects what you’ll get when you

buy the phone now. There’s no doubting

MIUI is a big departure from the so-

called ‘stock Android’ you’ll find on Pixel

phones, but it’sbecomemuch more

intuitive in recentyears.