POCO X7 Pro Review

Xiaomi sub-brand POCO has started the year strong with the launch of the POCO X7 Pro. It’s positioned to be an outstanding find for 2025, boasting impressive specs at an affordable price.

Notably, this device is otherwise known as the global version of the Redmi Turbo 4. For those that didn’t know yet, its highlight is under the hood in the form of a MediaTek Dimensity 8400 Ultra.

Suffice it to say, it should put up insane numbers in the performance department. So for today, we’re here to share our insights on the device to see if it’s improved compared to its predecessor.

Before diving in, we have to mention that our review unit came in Black and Yellow. This came with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of internal storage available.

Design and Construction

Right out of the box, our review unit came with a flattering two-tone finish. It’s fairly thin, has a ruffled line texture, and a good amount of weight to it. The back panel is made up of what seems to be vegan leather, which makes it less prone to smudging.

For reference, the POCO X7 Pro’s other colorways come with polycarbonate material for its back panels. As a point of preference, readers should keep this in mind prior to purchasing.

Moving on, users may have also noticed that this iteration of the device has one less camera sensor. Users will notice this on the top left with an LED flash situated right next to it. While it does have dual-rear shooters now, we’ll have to cover that later on in the review.

At the front, we have the phone’s screen and its selfie camera in a punch hole notch. I’m happy to say it managed to keep the thin bezels that the previous model had.

For buttons and ports, we have the power button and volume rocker on the right side.

On the bottom, we have one of two loudspeakers and the SIM tray. There’s also the device’s primary microphones in between the USB Type-C port. On top, there’s another speaker, a secondary mic, and an IR blaster.

Lastly, the device has an IP68 for dust and water resistance. In other words, it’s safe from dirt and can be submerged in water. This is a huge upgrade from the POCO X6 Pro and its IP54 rating.

All things considered, we were pretty impressed with how the phone was fleshed out. The color scheme and leather texture give it a premium feel. This is complemented by its upgraded ingress protection rating, balancing function and form from the get-go.

Display, Multimedia, and Biometrics

Going back to display, the phone has a 6.67-inch AMOLED screen with an adaptive refresh rate up to 120Hz. This supports 12-bit color depth, Dolby Vision, and is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 7i.

As mentioned in our first impressions article, the screen feels very fluid. If I were to dissect why, it’s a flat AMOLED panel with razor-thin bezels. This is excellent, considering that this is an affordable midrange device.

Users can feel free to scroll, stream videos, and game to their hearts’ content with the device. It can even be used freely under direct sunlight as it has 3,200 nits of peak brightness.

For audio, the device is equipped with dual stereo speakers. It can produce fuller audio compared to its predecessor with notable clarity.

The phone also supports Dolby Atmos, but you have to add in the toggle via quick settings as seen above. I recommend readers to keep this on to make the most out of your listening experience with earbuds or headphones.

Biometrics include the usual options for contemporary mobile security. This includes an in-display fingerprint sensor and face unlock. Both work as intended with no gripes on my end.

They work fairly quickly and registration was smooth too. Users may also opt to use a fingerprint to verify purchases and app downloads on the device.

While everything under this segment was generally pleasant, I noticed something odd. The base POCO X7 is fitted with Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2. With the base model having better display protection, it begs a question. Where did POCO put their resources for this device?

Don’t get me wrong, the display and multimedia experience was superb. It’s just odd for the Pro variant of the line to have a lower level of protection. Then again, it is equipped with an insanely good chipset.

Cameras

Similar to the POCO F6 launched last year, cameras have been cut down for the POCO X7 Pro as well. For context, the POCO X6 Pro has triple-rear cameras.

Now, this iteration has a 50-megapixel main camera with OIS paired with an 8-megapixel ultrawide only. There’s also a 20-megapixel camera at the front for selfies and the like. The POCO X7 Pro’s main camera can shoot videos in 4K at 30 fps as well.

Don’t get it twisted though, its cameras can perform. Even with the lack of a depth sensor, it can still capture details well. I think that this device is a reliable tool for capturing clear images with notable color accuracy.

Even the HDR isn’t too aggressive either, which a handful of manufacturers still go overboard with. Plus, the stabilization is insanely good. This should make shooting for either photo or video easier.

It’s not going to throw punches with flagships, but it fills out the basic checklist for modern smartphone photography. Of course, we’ll leave readers to judge. Here are some of our shots for you to check out below!

Frankly, I don’t think POCO had high aspirations for the camera segment of the device. However, they were able to provide decent sensors that perform reliably.

I really appreciate how the brand tries to give us well-rounded devices. I can admit there’s a lot of value-for-money here, and we’re not even done with the review yet!

OS, Apps, and UI

The POCO X7 Pro runs on Xiaomi HyperOS based on Android 15 out of the box. Seeing as it’s a recipient of a software upgrade, it generally feels smooth and user-friendly.

Unlike my previous experience with a POCO device, it didn’t force me to install apps during setup. Useful pre-installed apps included Netflix, Spotify, Lazada, Shopee, TikTok, Facebook, and Gemini.

I also have to mention that there isn’t much bloatware here. Google’s suite of apps is neatly placed into a folder, as is the device’s system apps and other aforementioned apps. I’ll tip my hat to POCO for recognizing the unpleasantries that come with bloatware.

For those curious, we sadly don’t have information on the timeline for its Android updates and security patches. We’ll likely let users know via a news article on our website, so keep an eye out.

Wrapping up, we have the user interface. Fairly enough, customizing the quick settings in the drop down menu feels nice. Some useful system toggles aren’t there by default. Notable ones include DND, screen recorder, Dolby Atmos, NFC, Hotspot, and Interpret Audio.

My only comment here is that I think the quick setting toggles should generally have labels below them. Alright, they do pop up when you edit to remove or add toggles. However, I wasn’t sure what I was pressing with some of them from icons alone.

Performance and Benchmarks

Powering this device is the new MediaTek Dimensity 8400 Ultra. It also has a Mali-G720 MC7 GPU under the hood to manage graphics. When I asked where POCO put their resources into developing this device, I believe this is where it went.

Again, our review unit comes with 12GB of base RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.0 storage. Users may also get up to an additional 6GB of RAM via memory extension under settings.

We’re pleased to say that gamers should appreciate that this device can handle Genshin Impact with high graphics settings enabled. From experience, it can run at a stable 60 frames per second and even overclock it to highest.

The phone can handle anything else with relative ease. Aside from games, it can commit to multitasking and general use well. The only instance it heated up for us was during benchmarks and the huge patch download from Genshin upon installing.

Speaking of, we’ll leave our synthetic benchmark scores below for readers to see.

For a midranger, this phone brings great numbers as is. It managed to pump a 1.5 million score in AnTuTu with high read and write speeds. To put it bluntly, the phone’s really fast and handles processing with great efficiency.

Battery and Connectivity

This phone packs a large 6,000mAh battery with support for 90W of fast charging via USB Type-C. I can vouch that the phone handles itself well in terms of power consumption compared to its predecessor.

I’ve used it for browsing, streaming videos, photography, and a bit of gaming. From my experience, it should be good for roughly a whole day of use. After seeing our test result, it’s safe to say this was accurate.

In PC Mark’s Work 3.0 Battery Test, our review unit was able to last 15 hours and 2 minutes. This test was taken with the phone on 50% brightness, volume muted, and in airplane mode.

Connectivity options include dual nano-SIM, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.4, NFC, and 5G. The phone also comes with an IR blaster to attend to smart home appliances and whatnot. The phone has standard call quality over Wi-Fi or your local mobile network provider.

Pricing and Conclusion

The POCO X7 Pro starts at PHP 16,999USD 292INR 25,046EUR 283CNY 2,145 with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. It’s also available for PHP 17,999USD 309INR 26,520EUR 299CNY 2,271 with 12GB + 256GB and PHP 19,999USD 344INR 29,467EUR 333CNY 2,524 with 12GB + 512GB.

Readers could also get it for less via early bird offerings from January 9 to January 19, 2025. Discounted prices start at PHP 14,699USD 253INR 21,658EUR 244CNY 1,855, then PHP 15,699USD 270INR 23,131EUR 261CNY 1,981, and PHP 17,199USD 296INR 25,341EUR 286CNY 2,171. These are for the 8GB + 256GB, 12GB + 256GB, and 12GB + 512GB memory configurations, respectively.

That’s it for our review on the POCO X7 Pro. I’m pleased to say that the device lived up to the hype that the new chipset from MediaTek brought with it. The icing on the cake is how affordable the device ended up being.

This year’s iteration of the device gave us significant upgrades in almost every segment. These include design, cameras, and performance. There was even an incremental change to battery life, which I personally think they could still work on.

Either way, if there are readers who are looking for a smartphone with legitimate value-for-money, look no further. Start the year with a bang (for your buck) with the POCO X7 Pro.

So, is this phone a cop or a drop for you guys? Let us know what you think in the comment section below.

What we liked:
* Design changes
* Thin bezel retention
* Great performance
* Clean OS and app folder placement
* Price (value-for-money)

What we didn’t like:
* Incremental battery life upgrade

POCO X7 Pro specs:
6.67-inch CrystalRes 1.5K Flow AMOLED display
120Hz adaptive refresh rate
700 nits (typ), 1,400 nits (HBM), 3,200 nits (peak)
12-bit color depth, Dolby Vision
Corning Gorilla Glass 7i protection
MediaTek Dimensity 8400 Ultra
1x Cortex-A725 @ 3.25GHz
3x Cortex-A725 @ 3.0GHz
4x Cortex-A725 @ 2.1GHz
Mali-G720 MC7 GPU
12GB RAM
512GB UFS 4.0 storage
50MP Sony IMX882 main camera (f/1.5, 26mm, 1/1.95-inch sensor, OIS)
8MP ultrawide (f/2.2, 15mm, ¼-inch sensor)
20MP front camera (f/2.2)
Dual stereo speakers
5G
Dual nano-SIM
Wi-Fi 6
Bluetooth 5.4
GPS
NFC
USB Type-C
Fingerprint sensor (in-display, optical)
Face unlock
IR blaster
Xiaomi HyperOS (Android 15)
6,000mAh battery
90W HyperCharge support (wired, in-box charger)
IP68 rating for dust and water resistance
160.8 x 75.2 x 8.3 mm (dimensions)
198 grams (weight, vegan leather)
Black/Yellow, White, Green (colors)