Poco f2 pro is officially on sale right now. And I suspect it’ll be launched as the Redmi k30 pro in India(or not). And the pricing seems like that it’d be pretty close to what the OnePlus 8 costs here(India). And because of almost similar pricing, I believe it will be a hard choice between the 2. And when the time is for hard choices, I try to make them easier for you. Because I am a good bot with no plans of turning evil and world domination later(or not).
If you are in a similar state like me and confused which phone to get between these 2 then let me sort it out for you. By now I am pretty sure you might have already separated the differences between these 2 phones. Let me filter out some pros and cons of both of these phones for you and help you choose one.
So let’s start with k30 pro aka Poco f2 pro.
This phone has a 3.5mm jack on it. There I said it. I still like it. It’s been a couple of years or more since phones started removing the jack on them. But still, there are not many options for USB-c earphones. I don’t mind Bluetooth earphones BUT I think if they wanted to force us out from the 3.5mm happy jack group, then by now we should have at least a few usb-c options too. I mean the tread was supposed to be clear that but it seems like we got lost somewhere.
I mean it should be up to us if we want something wired or wireless and not carry converters. So that’s a big friggin advantage on the phone.
Because the phone’s screen runs at 60hz, which can be a disadvantage for many, and as it has a larger battery – it is supposed to give you more battery backup. So I am suspecting the battery of the phone should be better than oneplus 8. Because of the pop up selfie camera – there is no notch on the display. I know I know many don’t mind camera notches on their displays now – but the joy of having a clean display can’t really outweigh notched botched displays.
The main camera sensor on poco f2 is newer and newer is always better so yeah deal with it. Naaaaa, actually the newer sensor is larger in size. So it can definitely perform a bit better than oneplus 8’s old imx 586 sensor, especially in low light shots. Also it records 8k videos, which are actually upscaled 6k, at 30 fps. Use it or not – it actually shows how far the newer sensors can push. There’s also a telephoto macro, which is just an extra camera just lying there if you want to use that too for the kind of shots they showed in the presentation.
The poco f2 starts at 500 us dollars right now which is 200 dollars less than the OnePlus 8, which alone can be a big frigging factor for many consumers, especially during these uncertain times. Now let’s talk about some pros of oneplus 8
It has a 90hz screen, which I know many would prefer. Especially if they game. And if you don’t game then I really don’t see the logic behind getting this screen. I mean, I anyway speed up my phone’s animations at 0.5x in developer settings and I don’t really care how smooth a 1-millisecond transition is looking like between shifting apps. However, if you play games that can easily touch 90 fps on snapdragon 865 then yes there is a huge advantage in getting this phone.
Right now OnePlus 8 also supports EIS stabilization on its front camera, which is another good advantage for those who use front cameras more than the rear cameras or if you are someone who loves vlogging inside their houses because of lockdown in many parts of the world. Also, OnePlus 8 supports usb 3.1 which might turn out faster when it comes to transferring data from the phone to a PC or laptop.
Also the UI on OnePlus is super stock. And because of that it is tremendously smooth and fluid and snappy and I am sure something else too. With android 10 android just feels like 10 out of 10 and any skin over it……….is just not worth the hassle of getting rid of by rooting, etc. Also, OnePlus 8 is already out and if you need a phone right now you can buy it. In many countries, the poco f2 pro is available on gearbest and aliexpress but in countries like India where it will be sold as k30 pro – there is no definite date details till yet.
So let me sum this up for you.
These are the major differences in my opinion. If you are a gamer, as in a competitive gamer, and by competition, I mean playing daily with your friends online so that later you can boast how you outperformed them……… and who really digs seeing 90 fps on screen and doesn’t mind a little less battery backup on the phone……then definitely go with the OnePlus 8 – but yeah, just for that advantage make sure you are going to spend a good difference. Also if you just can’t live without a stock UI experience and also don’t want to go through the hassle of rooting and injecting in a custom rom….this is one of the best options you have right now on a snapdragon 865 platform. So do evaluate if the extra cost is worth it.
On the other hand, if you want to own a phone with a newer main camera sensor, is cheaper, and doesn’t sacrifice much – then just go with the poco f2 pro aka k30 pro. That is IF you are okay running on a phone which has a heavy skin aka MIUI on it. The UI will certainly make the phone feel less snappier than OnePlus but also keep in mind for almost the same phone you’d be paying 200 dollars less, or 100 pounds less or few thousands less when it comes in India. In India the price difference between these 2 phones might not be much in the end. But that has to be revealed yet. Even if there is not much of a gap in the prices here – I believe the k30 pro might still be a better choice IF you can stand the MIUI.
Let’s assume the k30 pro comes for 40000 rupees here, and the OnePlus 8 starts at 42000 – I might still lean towards the k30 pro more. The 3.5mm jack, better battery, no notch on display, and a tad better main camera, AND marginally better battery – are good reasons to still go for it. We can just hope Miui gets some sort of stabilization on the front camera video too. So hope I was able to help you here and you’d be making the right decision for yourself considering in which category you fall in as a consumer.
That’s all for today. MuBot out.