POCO F5 vs POCO F5 Pro: What’s Different?

POCO’s latest flagship devices has just launched, and they come in two variants: the standard POCO F5 powered by the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 and the POCO F5 Pro with a more powerful Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1.

So, what are the key differences between the two? Which one is for you? That’s what we’re about to find out in this comparison.

Let’s dive in!

Display

At first glance, you may assume that both devices have exactly the same screen: 6.67-inch AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate sandwiched with Gorilla Glass 5.

But taking a closer look at their respective specs, we can see that there are some pretty significant differences in their display resolutions, brightness, and touch sampling rate.

For the vanilla model, it only has a Full HD+ resolution with 2400 x 1080 pixels and 1000 nits peak brightness.

While the Pro variant, strikes a higher resolution: WQHD+ with 3200 x 1440 pixels and also a higher peak brightness at 1400 nits.

It’s also worth mentioning the 240Hz touch sampling rate on the vanilla model versus the 480Hz on the POCO F5 Pro. The latter will definitely be more attractive to mobile gamers who take reaction time very seriously.

Chipset

It’s no surprise that the Snapdragon 8+ Gen 1 (3.0 GHz max frequency) on the POCO F5 Pro outperforms the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 2 (2.91 GHz) on the base model POCO F5.

It’s a flagship chipset after all. But that doesn’t necessarily mean that the SD 7+ is any worse.

In fact, it almost catches up with the SD 8+ on all performance indicators according to nanoreview.

Therefore, you’ll sure to be getting the flagship level experience you deserve on both the POCO F5 and the F5 Pro.

Furthermore, they are equipped with some level of heat dissipation with a 5000mm² stainless steel vapor chamber (VC) on the Pro model and 3725mm² copper VC on the base model.

Memory and Storage

Both utilize an up to 12GB LPDDR5 RAM and UFS 3.1 storage technologies for those faster bandwidths.

The POCO F5 is default to only 256GB storage, but the F5 Pro takes that up to 512GB, giving you more storage options.

Unfortunately, no expandable storage here, so take note of that.

Cameras

For the camera department, both have the 64-megapixel triple lenses at the back, and 16-megapixel selfie camera at the front.

Although there are some minor differences, specifically the stabilization and video recording capabilities.

The F5 Pro with support for both optical (OIS) and electronic image stabilization (EIS) can record videos with up to 8K resolution at 24 frames per second (fps) and 4K at 60 fps.

The vanilla model is left with only OIS and 1080p videos at up to 60 fps.

Battery and Charging

For the battery, we have a higher 5160mAh cell on the POCO F5 Pro combined with 67W fast charging and 30W wireless charging in which POCO says can charge the device to 50% in just 32 minutes.

The POCO F5 on the other hand uses a 5000mAh cell and the same 67W fast charging tech (no wireless charging here).

Connectivity and Other Features

Both models support that sweet 5G connectivity, Android 13 with MIUI 14 (for POCO) on top, IP53 splash-proofing, NFC, and of course, an IR blaster.

The POCO F5 Pro gets an in-screen fingerprint sensor, while the POCO F5 is left with a side-mounted one.

If you ever want to use wired headphones or earphones, then you have the 3.5mm audio jack at your disposal but it’s only applied on the vanilla model.

Which one should you get?

The POCO F5 along with its sibling, the POCO F5 Pro have both proven to be the more compelling choices giving you flagship level experience with significantly lower prices as compared to other flagship phones out there.

While the Pro variant does offer some significant upgrades, such as a higher resolution display, a more powerful chipset, and better camera stabilization, the base model still holds up quite well in terms of performance and features.

Ultimately, it will come down to personal preference and budget when deciding which device to go for.

And speaking of budget, you may want to check them out as early as possible to get huge discounts. Early bird prices below for the POCO F5 series will run until May 16, 2023.

POCO F5 Pro
• PHP 23,999USD 409INR 34,669EUR 390CNY 2,978 | 8GB + 256GB
• PHP 25,999USD 443INR 37,558EUR 422CNY 3,226 | 12GB + 256GB
• PHP 27,999USD 477INR 40,447EUR 454CNY 3,475 | 12GB + 512GB

POCO F5
• PHP 18,299USD 312INR 26,435EUR 297CNY 2,271 | 8GB + 256GB
• PHP 20,099USD 342INR 29,035EUR 326CNY 2,494 | 12GB + 256GB

Technical Specifications: POCO F5 vs POCO F5 Pro