Poco M4 Pro and X4 Pro 5G unveiled: mid-rangers face-to-face

Unsurprisingly, Xiaomi is also present at the Mobile World Congress. Xiaomi's sub-brand Poco has two smartphones in its bag that expand the Chinese manufacturer's mid-range line-up. The Poco X4 Pro 5G is the stronger of the two. The LTE version of the Poco M4 Pro is more of a supplement to the Poco M4 Pro 5G, which Xiaomi already unveiled last November.

We present a direct comparison of the Poco X4 Pro 5G and the Poco M4 Pro - as usual, we start with an overview of the technical specs:

	New mid-range flagship	Price-performance contender
Product	Poco X4 Pro 5G	Poco M4 Pro
Image
Display	6.67 inch AMOLED Display 2400 x 1080 pixels 120-hertz refresh rate 360-hertz touch sampling rate	6.43-inch AMOLED display 2400 x 1080 pixels 90-hertz refresh rate 180-hertz touch sampling rate
SoC	Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 octa-core SoC with up to 2.2 GHz	MediaTek Helio G96 octa-core SoC with up to 2.05 GHz
Memory	6 / 8 GB RAM 128 / 256 GB storage	6 / 8 GB RAM 128 / 256 GB storage
microSD	Yes
Software	MIUI 13
Rear camera	Main camera: 108 MP, f/1.9 Ultra-wide: 8 MP, f/2.2, 118° Macro: 2 MP,f/2.4	Main camera: 64 MP, f/1.8 Ultra-wide: 8 MP, f/2.2, 118° Macro: 2 MP,f/2.4
Front camera	16 MP, f/2.4	16 MP, f/2.2
Battery	5,000 mAh Quick-charging with max. 67 watts	5,000 mAh Quick-Charging with max. 33 watts
Connectivity	5G, LTE, NFC, WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n/ac), Bluetooth 5.1	LTE, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC, WLAN (802.11a/b/g/n/ac)
IP certification	IP53
Colors	Laser Black, Laser Blue, Poco Yellow	Power Black, Cool Blue, Poco Yellow
Dimensions and weight	164.19 x 76.1 x 8.12 mm, 205 g	159.87 x 73.87 x 8.09 mm, 179.5 g
Prices	From 299 Euros (around $340)	From 229 Euro (~ $260)
To the offer*	not available in North America

• Read also: These are the best Xiaomi smartphones

If you're already keeping your eyes open for a new phone: Both models will be available starting March 2. Let's take a quick look at what the two new models have in store:

Jump to:

• Display and case
• Performance and connectivity
• Cameras
• Software
• Battery and quick charging
• Price and availability

Display and casing

Both smartphones come with an AMOLED display, with the X4 Pro 5G being the larger panel at 6.67 inches. Images are refreshed at 120 hertz, and the touch sampling rate is 360 hertz. The M4 Pro on the other hand measures 6.43 inches, and it is also a bit weaker in terms of refresh rate (90 hertz) and touch sampling rate (180 hertz).

The display is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass, but the X4 Pro 5G has the edge here as well with Gorilla Glass 5 vs. Gorilla Glass 3. In terms of design, it is noticeable that both models have both a slot for a microSD card, stereo speakers, and space for a 3.5 mm headphone jack. Both models are available in blue, yellow, and black and feature a fingerprint sensor on the device's side.

Performance and connectivity

The Snapdragon 695 in the X4 Pro 5G is the strongest Qualcomm SoC in the 6 series and was only introduced last October. The M4 Pro, on the other hand, uses a MediaTek SoC: the Helio G96, which clocks at up to 2.05 Hertz. Both phones are available in two configurations: One with 6 GB RAM and 128 GB storage, alternatively with 8 GB RAM and 256 GB storage. Thanks to "Dynamic RAM Expansion Technology", 3 GB can be tapped from the internal memory for the RAM in both devices.

As the suffix "5G" suggests, Poco's mid-range flagship uses the 5G network, whereas the M4 Pro only uses the LTE network. Both of course have NFC and Bluetooth, although the M4 Pro only supports Bluetooth 5.0 (BT5.1 for the X4 Pro 5G).

Cameras

Both smartphones come with a triple-camera array, which includes an ultra-wide-angle cam with 8 megapixels and a macro shooter with 2 megapixels in addition to the main camera. The main camera of the X4 Pro 5G offers 108 megapixels and 9-in-1 pixel binning. On the M4 Pro, it's 64 megapixels and 4-in-1 pixel binning.

The sensor of the X4 Pro 5G is said to capture significantly more light than previous models due to its size. But a test will have to prove these claims. The camera setup in both models is rounded off by a selfie shooter with 16 megapixels in a punch-hole design.

Software

Poco has not yet revealed much about the software, except that MIUI 13 is used. Assumes that Xiaomi's interface is unfortunately based on Android 11 again for now. Xiaomi has also not explicitly said anything about the expected number of updates. If the company sticks to its previous update cycles, we can expect two Android updates for the X4 Pro 5G, whereas the M-class model will probably only get one Android update.

Battery and Quick Charging

Here, both devices are in lockstep, at least as far as the 5,000 mAh capacity is concerned. However, the X-class phone can be charged with 67 watts, while the M4 Pro maxes at 33 watts. The X4 Pro 5G is supposed to be charged to 70 percent within 22 minutes, and the phone is fully charged in 41 minutes according to the manufacturer.

Price and availability

Both devices can be purchased in Europe from March 2, 2022. As mentioned, you will have a choice of three colors each and two memory configurations. As expected, Xiaomi doesn't sell its smartphones in North America, and the same holds true for Poco phones. Here are the prices for Europe:

	Poco X4 Pro 5G	Poco M4 Pro
6 GB / 128 GB	€299,90 Euro (~$340)	€229,90 (~$260)
8 GB / 256 GB	€349.90 Euro (~$395)	€279.90 (~$315)

I consider the X4 Pro 5G to be a very exciting alternative for the mid-rangers, especially if you get it at the early-bird price. Please keep in mind that you do without 5G for the M4 Pro - and the slightly differently equipped model with 5G is already available for less than 200 Euros (225 USD, again, not available in the US).