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    POCO F4 GT long-term review: This gaming phone is still a terrific value

    POCO is doing plenty of good issues within the finances and mid-range classes, and the model is seeing elevated momentum exterior Asia this 12 months. That’s all the way down to a robust portfolio of units together with a value-first 5G technique that sees POCO undercutting the likes of Samsung, Vivo, and Realme in key areas. This is identical playbook that Xiaomi used when it was beginning out in India a decade in the past, and POCO is now leveraging the technique to nice impact in Spain, France, the U.Ok., and different western markets.POCO launched almost a dozen telephones this 12 months, and the one which caught my eye essentially the most is the F4 GT. The cellphone follows within the heels of final 12 months’s POCO F3 GT and is geared toward a youthful viewers, with a concentrate on gaming. Unlike different gaming-focused telephones, you will not discover RGB lighting or an aggressive styling right here; the one accouterments on this space embody gaming triggers positioned on the fitting that may be custom-made to in-game actions.I used the POCO F4 GT for some time again when it launched, however wasn’t in a position to do a full evaluate on the time. So I needed to take the time to revisit the machine now that it has been obtainable for some time and see what it does nicely and the place POCO must do a bit extra. To kick issues off, a rundown of the {hardware}: the F4 GT is powered by the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, has a 120Hz AMOLED display screen, 64MP digital camera on the again, and a 4700mAh battery with 120W wired charging. The cellphone is now promoting for £549 ($669), making it a superb worth in opposition to the Galaxy S22 and the Xiaomi 12 collection.(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)POCO’s units have all the time stood out for his or her daring designs — like the large digital camera island on the POCO M3 — and contemplating the model’s userbase, this was a superb technique. However, this 12 months’s units have been lackluster, and it seems like POCO simply cobbled collectively essentially the most fundamental designs with no thought towards a coherent aesthetic.That’s true of the F4 GT as nicely, with the machine that includes a design that is not attractive within the least. Sure, not all gaming telephones must have RGB lighting or an aggressive styling, however the design in the back of the F4 GT feels unfinished. Then there’s the flash module stylized like a lightning bolt that does not mix in with the remainder of the design decisions, and the nonsensical textual content written across the digital camera module. This is not a design that may get anybody excited, and the perfect factor to do is put a case on it.Image 1 of 5(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)That mentioned, the F4 GT would not really feel unwieldy within the hand, and whereas it has flat sides, they’ve a refined curve the place the again blends into the mid-frame, and that makes a noticeable distinction in usability. It can be sturdy, with the machine coming away with none points after taking just a few tumbles.Like final 12 months, the fitting aspect is especially heavy, with POCO retaining the magnetic gaming triggers. You get sliders to activate every set off, so with the triggers in use you’ve gotten 5 buttons on the fitting aspect. POCO must discover a higher system for the triggers, and as a lot as I just like the function, it simply makes the cellphone look busy.(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)Thankfully, there are not any shortcomings on the {hardware} aspect of issues. As with most different gaming telephones launched this 12 months, you get the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 right here, and the machine handles something you throw at it with ease. This typically hasn’t been a difficulty on any cellphone I’ve utilized in 2022, and due to the highly effective {hardware}, the F4 GT is a implausible gaming cellphone — I did not see any slowdowns in any way whereas gaming.There wasn’t a lot in the way in which of overheating both, with the machine managing its thermals nicely even throughout prolonged gaming classes. So though the F4 GT is not the flashiest gaming cellphone you will discover available in the market, it has the products the place it counts.(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)POCO admitted that the digital camera is not an space of focus on the subject of gaming telephones, and whilst you get a good shooter right here, it would not fairly measure as much as its rivals just like the Xiaomi 12 or the Find X5. For what it is price, you get the identical digital camera interface as different Xiaomi telephones, and there are a good variety of taking pictures modes obtainable.I discovered that the F4 GT takes first rate photographs in daylight, and the evening mode delivers usable photographs at evening. However, it’s lacking that closing little bit of finesse that makes units just like the Pixel 6a stand out, and in the event you see your self taking plenty of photographs, you have to to think about one other machine.(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)Finally, it is the software program the place POCO must do extra. It’s not technically underneath the producer’s management because it makes use of what Xiaomi has obtainable, and the Android 12-based MIUI 13 has so much to supply. That mentioned, Xiaomi is woefully behind its rivals in rolling out well timed updates, and that is not prone to change. As a end result, there is not any telling when the F4 GT will get the Android 13-based MIUI 14.Xiaomi says the secure construct will exit to the likes of the Xiaomi 12 Pro and different high-end telephones someday in Q1 2023, so that you’re taking a look at a Q2 window to get the secure Android 13 launch on the F4 GT. There’s additionally the truth that the machine will get solely two platform updates, and in a class the place an increasing number of producers are giving not less than three Android model updates, POCO is as soon as once more on the backfoot.(Image credit score: Harish Jonnalagadda / Android Central)Overall, I like what POCO achieved with the F4 GT. The machine does a terrific job at being a gaming cellphone with out overtly wanting like one, and the mixture of 120Hz AMOLED display screen, stereo sound, ultrasonic triggers, and highly effective Qualcomm {hardware} makes it enjoyable to make use of for gaming. To its credit score, POCO would not place this as a camera-focused cellphone, and whilst you’ll get first rate photographs, it is not the perfect on this class by far.The greatest space that wants consideration is software program, and that is largely out of POCO’s fingers — except it desires to construct its personal interface. That’s unlikely given the model’s positioning and its focus proper now, and that finally deters from what’s an in any other case nice gaming cellphone.

    The POCO F4 GT nails the fundamentals, and whereas it could not appear like it, it is a nice gaming cellphone. The giant 120Hz AMOLED display screen is vibrant, you get highly effective {hardware}, a large battery with quick charging, and gaming triggers on the aspect which can be really helpful. 

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