INTRODUCTION

    As someone who grew up with cellular phones like the Motorola StarTAC (inspired by the Tricorders in Star Trek), Philips diga and the Nokia 6110/8210/9110/N93/6600 series (most I still have, with dead batteries that is) I've always looked forward for what the industry had to offer. Yes, I didn't get into smartphone reviews because countless others have but since some of you did ask and even pointed out a small gap in other reviews (particularly when it comes to benchmark apps used) I decided to get the ball rolling again. Today's plan was to review the Poco C75 5G smartphone by Xiaomi but for some strange reason we ended up receiving the 4G version (6GB/128GB) so that's what I've been working on for the past month or so.

    Xiaomi Corporation was founded in April 2010 and listed on the Main Board of the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on July 9, 2018 (1810.HK). Xiaomi is a consumer electronics and smart manufacturing company with smartphones and smart hardware connected by an IoT platform at its core. Xiaomi is one of the world’s leading smartphone companies. In September 2024, the MAU reached approximately 685.8 million globally. The company has also established the world’s leading consumer AIoT (AI+IoT) platform, reached approximately 861.4 million smart devices connected to its platform (excluding smartphones, laptops and tablets) as of September 30, 2024. In October 2023, Xiaomi upgraded its strategy to “Human × Car × Home” smart ecosystem, seamlessly merges personal devices, smart home products, and cars. Xiaomi always centers on humanity and is committed to providing comprehensive, better connected experiences. Xiaomi products are present in more than 100 countries and regions around the world. In August 2024, Xiaomi was included in the Fortune Global 500 list for the sixth year in a row. Xiaomi is a constituent of the Hang Seng Index, Hang Seng China Enterprises Index, Hang Seng TECH Index and Hang Seng China 50 Index.

    Even though both the 4G and 5G versions of the Poco C75 are meant for people with a tight budget they still pack an 6.88" HD (1640x720p) LCD with 120Hz refresh rate (450 nits typical brightness, 600 nits HBM, 240Hz touch sampling rate), Helio G81 chip (Cortex A75 - Cortex A55 CPUs / Mali G52 MC2 GPU) for the 4G version and Snapdragon 4s Gen 2 (Cortex A78 - Cortex A55 CPUs / Adreno 611 GPU) for the 5G version, 6/8GB LPDDR4 RAM (expandable to 16GB), 128/256GB eMMC 5.1 flash, 5160mAh battery pack (supports 18W fast charging), NFC, 50MP rear camera (Sony IMX852) and 13MP front camera for the 4G version and 5MP front camera for the 5G version  (1080p@30fps video and HDR for both cameras). The Poco C75 is available in 3 different colors (black, gold and green), runs on the first generation Xiaomi HyperOS (Android 14), is IP52 certified and as with past models Xiaomi guarantees at least two major Android updates with four years of security updates. Worth pointing out is that the above specs are for the EU version of the Poco C75 4/5G models, in other regions of the world the same device is available with just 4GB of LPDDR4 RAM and 64GB of flash memory.