POCO India has launched the POCO X8 in India, expanding its X-series smartphone lineup. The new phone is aimed at users who want a large display, long battery life and better durability without moving to a flagship smartphone.
The POCO X8 features a large 6.83-inch AMOLED display with a resolution of 2772 x 1280 pixels. The panel supports a 120Hz refresh rate and 240Hz touch sampling rate. Its instantaneous touch sampling rate can reach up to 3,200Hz. The display offers up to 3,200 nits of peak brightness and supports HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. It also has 3840Hz high-frequency PWM dimming and supports 12-bit colour depth and the DCI-P3 wide colour gamut.
POCO has used Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 for screen protection. The display also comes with TÜV Triple Eye Protection certification.
The POCO X8 measures 163.45 x 78.27 x 8.6mm and weighs 223 grams. It comes in Fiery Orange, Black and Frost White colours. The phone carries IP66, IP68, IP69 and IP69K ratings for dust and water resistance. This should make the device better suited to outdoor use and accidental exposure to water compared with phones that only offer basic splash resistance.
The POCO X8 is powered by the 4nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 6s Gen 4 Mobile Platform. The octa-core processor uses four Cortex-A78 cores clocked at up to 2.4GHz and four Cortex-A55 cores clocked at up to 1.8GHz. Graphics are handled by an Adreno GPU.
The phone is available with 6GB or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM. Storage options include 128GB and 256GB. The 128GB model uses UFS 2.2 storage, while the 256GB variant gets faster UFS 3.1 storage.
The Snapdragon 6s Gen 4 should be capable of handling everyday tasks, social media, streaming and general productivity. The 120Hz AMOLED display should also make scrolling and supported animations feel smoother.
However, the chipset is positioned in the mid-range segment. So while the specifications look suitable for regular use and casual gaming, actual gaming performance and sustained performance will need to be tested before drawing conclusions about how well the phone handles demanding games.
The POCO X8 has a dual-camera setup on the rear. It includes a 50-megapixel primary camera with an f/1.8 aperture and optical image stabilisation. The detailed specifications also list an 8-megapixel ultra-wide camera with an f/2.2 aperture. The phone supports video recording at up to 1080p.
POCO is promoting camera features such as Portrait, HDR, Live Moments, Ultra HD Mode, Pro Mode and Dual Video.
On the front, there is a 16-megapixel selfie camera with an f/2.4 aperture. It supports features such as Portrait, HDR, Live Moments and AI Beautify. Front video recording is supported at up to 1080p.
The camera hardware looks fairly straightforward for this segment. The 50-megapixel main camera with OIS is the more important sensor here, especially for shooting in low light and keeping videos and photos more stable. However, image quality will depend heavily on POCO’s processing, so that is something that needs to be checked in a proper camera test.
The POCO X8 runs Android 16 with Xiaomi HyperOS 3 out of the box. POCO has promised four years of Android OS updates and six years of security updates. This is a useful commitment for buyers planning to keep the phone for several years.
For audio, the phone has stereo speakers with Dolby Atmos and Hi-Res Audio certification. There is also a 300% volume boost mode.
The phone has an in-display fingerprint sensor and an infrared sensor. It also supports dual SIM, 5G SA/NSA, dual 4G VoLTE, Wi-Fi 5 and Bluetooth 5.1. For wired connectivity, the phone uses a USB Type-C port.
The POCO X8 packs a 9,000mAh silicon-carbon battery. The battery is managed by Xiaomi’s Surge G1 battery management chip. The phone supports 67W Xiaomi HyperCharge fast wired charging. POCO is also including the charger in the box, which is worth noting as some smartphones in this price segment no longer include a charging adapter.
There is also support for 22.5W wired reverse charging. This allows the phone to be used as a power source for accessories and other devices.
The trade-off is weight. At 223 grams, the POCO X8 is not a lightweight phone, although the large battery helps explain the added weight.
The POCO X8 is priced at Rs. 29,999 for the 6GB RAM + 128GB storage version. The 8GB + 128GB model costs Rs. 32,999, while the top-end 8GB + 256GB variant is priced at Rs. 35,999.
The phone will be available through Flipkart from September 11 at 12 PM.
Launch offers include a Rs. 2,000 coupon discount and a Rs. 1,000 bank or exchange bonus. No-cost EMI starts at Rs. 2,250 per month for 12 months.
The POCO X8 is clearly designed around battery life, durability and multimedia use. The 9,000mAh silicon-carbon battery is its biggest highlight, while the 6.83-inch 1.5K 120Hz AMOLED display should make it a good fit for users who consume a lot of video content. The IP66, IP68, IP69 and IP69K ratings also make the phone more interesting.
