Over the years, we’ve come to expect some heavy-hitting midrange phones from Poco’s X series. The X7 Pro (our review here) was one of our favourite gaming phones in the midrange bracket last year. This year, Poco has refreshed the lineup, getting rid of the base variant and adding a new top-spec ‘Pro Max’ model into the mix. The new range-topping variant packs the mighty MediaTek Dimensity 9500s chipset under its hood. It also gets premium features like NFC, an ultrasonic fingerprint reader, and a 5,800mm² vapour chamber to establish its reputation as a heavyweight. We used the smartphone for a week and put it through its paces. Here is our review of the Poco X8 Pro Max.
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In This Article
Poco X8 Pro Max Review: Design and Display
Box Contents
- Smartphone
- 100W power adapter
- USB-A to USB-C cable
- Silicone cover
- SIM ejector
- Quick start guide
There are no radical changes on the design front, as the Poco X8 Pro Max sticks to the design language of the X7 Pro. There are no dual-tone colour variants on offer this time. The device comes in 3 standard colours – Black, White, and Blue. The two camera cutouts in the pill-shaped island are surrounded by RGB lighting. These lighting effects are turned off by default. You can program them to come to life when you play music, receive an incoming call, start up a game, take a timed picture or burst shot, or receive a notification from a specified app.
The fibreglass back panel, along with the aluminium frame, is the reason why this phone is considerably heavier than its predecessor. It tips the scale at 218g, but the weight is evenly spread. The frame houses the volume rocker and the side key on its right edge. The SIM tray, primary microphone, USB-C port, and primary speaker grille are placed at the bottom. Up top lie the secondary speaker grille and a noise-cancelling microphone. There’s IP68/IP69/IP69 protection on board.
The 6.83-inch AMOLED panel has a 120Hz refresh rate and can reach a peak brightness of 3,500 nits while playing HDR content. In High Brightness Mode, it can go up to 2,000 nits, maintaining legibility under harsh sunlight with ease. Thin, uniform bezels surround the display. The touch response is smooth and satisfying. The under-display fingerprint sensor is leagues ahead of its optical counterparts.
We used the Poco X8 Pro Max as our primary media streaming device during the review period. Its AMOLED panel produced brilliant visuals with rich colours, sharp contrast, and excellent dynamic range. The audio output from the stereo speaker setup had a tinge of boxiness to it. When pushed to the highest volume level, some harshness and distortion crept into the mix.
Poco X8 Pro Max Review: Performance and Cameras
The Poco X8 Pro Max makes no compromises when it comes to performance. For starters, it is powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 9500s chipset, which is based on a 3nm process. This chipset is placed just below the flagship Dimensity 9500 SoC in MediaTek’s portfolio. There’s 12GB LPDDR5X Ultra RAM on board. The device comes in 2 UFS 4.1 storage variants:
- 256GB: Rs 41,999
- 512GB: Rs 45,999
Before we dive into its everyday performance, let’s take a look at how the X8 Pro Max performed in common benchmark tests.
- AnTuTu 3D: 2,767,125
- Geekbench 6: 2,624 (single-core) | 8,289 (multi-core)
The Poco X8 Pro Max crushes whatever task you throw at it. Routine tasks like calling, instant messaging, emailing, web browsing, navigation, and media streaming are handled with utmost expertise. Even power-intensive processes like photo and video editing are managed without a hiccup. The smartphone’s flagship-grade RAM and storage configurations uplift its general performance above the average midrange smartphone standards. The addition of NFC to the feature list is also a nice touch.
As a dedicated gaming phone, the X8 Pro Max runs major titles like BGMI and Call of Duty without any lag, frame drop, or hiccup. Its ‘Wild Boost’ toggle in the ‘Game Turbo’ shelf pushes the frame rate up to 120fps. The result is a smooth and sensational gaming experience. The Poco 3D IceLoop cooling system, comprising a 5,800mm² vapour chamber and an 11,000mm² graphite layer, does a splendid job of keeping the internal temperature of the device in check. We breezed past the 30-minute mark without any significant heating along the back panel.
The Android 16-based HyperOS 3 handles the software duties on this device. The UI is riddled with bloatware apps, but thankfully, they can all be uninstalled. We won’t hold this against Poco, as most midrange phones tend to favour bloatware to keep their prices in check. The HyperOS 3 skin, borrowed from Xiaomi, is well optimised for the platform. Everything from slick transitions to panel motions feels smooth and intuitive. We like the translucent effect for the quick settings menu and wish there was something similar for the app drawer. You can change the transparency level of the app drawer, but it doesn’t have the same effect.
The Poco X8 Pro doesn’t boast an extensive AI package, but the Xiaomi HyperAI suite has all the essentials. These include summarisation, expansion, and proofreading tools for texts, translation for calls, voice notes, and in-person conversations, and subtitles for media. The native Gallery app has AI tools for erasing objects, boosting details, and optimising the colour and tones of your photographs. You can also generate short videos from selected images.
The massive 9,000mAh battery holds enough juice to comfortably last 2 days. Even if you rack up 7-8 hours of screen time with a healthy dose of gaming, video streaming, and web browsing, it is challenging to deplete the battery pack within a day. If your screen time doesn’t go beyond the 5-hour mark, you have a 2-day phone on your hands. The 100W charger provided in the box takes 90 minutes to fully charge the phone. This is understandable, given the sheer size of the battery pack.
The Poco X8 Pro Max uses a similar camera setup to its predecessor. The rear camera array comprises a 50MP Light Fusion 600 sensor for the primary shooter and an 8MP ultrawide lens.
The 50MP primary shooter takes good images in outdoor daylight conditions. These aren’t benchmark-setting pictures, but they get the job done. They pack vibrant colours and a good level of detail. The dynamic range feels tasteful. In limited lighting conditions, the Night Mode takes over and does a decent job of resolving the noise. The images still appear a bit dim.
Images captured with the 8MP ultrawide lens are visibly softer, but we like their colour tones. You can take good shots with this camera in outdoor daylight conditions. The lack of autofocus is the biggest miss here. Its absence is felt when the subject is closer to the lens. In limited lighting conditions, the Night Mode gets rid of most of the noise, but some grain manages to creep into the shots.
Portraits taken by the X8 Pro Max fail to impress. The smartphone does a decent job of focusing on the subject, but the minimal background blur is far from ideal. On the bright side, the front-facing 20MP camera takes great selfies without overprocessing the skin tone or texture of the subject. The recording chops of this camera are limited to 1,080p resolution at 30/60fps. The ultrawide lens can also record 1,080p videos at 30fps. Meanwhile, the primary shooter can shoot 4K footage at 30/60fps.
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Verdict
The Poco X8 Pro Max is very easy to recommend to power users. The MediaTek Dimensity 9500s chipset is the star of the show as it goes through any task like a hot knife through butter. This includes running gaming titles like BGMI and Call of Duty Mobile at 120fps. The wide AMOLED display also impresses with its vibrant colours and the flagship-grade ultrasonic fingerprint sensor. To top it off, the massive 9,000mAh battery pack lasts up to 2 days on moderate usage. The big tradeoff comes on the camera front. The lack of a telephoto lens is the obvious miss, and the 8MP ultrawide sensor with its fixed focus could have used an upgrade.
Pros
- Powerful processor
- Bright display
- Ultrasonic fingerprint sensor
- NFC
- Big battery
Cons
- No telephoto lens
- Ultrawide lens lacks autofocus
- Slightly boxy audio output
