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.

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

The Poco C75 4G arrived in a yellow box that has the product name at the front.

At the rear there's a sticker on which Xiaomi has placed several certifications, warnings and what you can expect to find in the box.

I was surprised to see a sticker on the smartphone with its main specifications printed on it.

Along with the Poco C75 4G inside the box there's a USB-C charging/data cable, safety information paper and the quick start guide (no charger).

THE POCO C75 4G

The Poco C75 4G is a large smartphone that measures 171.88mm in length, 77.8mm in width, 8.22mm in thickness and weighs just 204g.

To have a better idea about the size of the Poco C75 4G next to it I placed my old Redmi Note 8 Pro (161.4x76.4x8.8mm).

At the front we see the 13MP camera and the proximity and ambient light sensors.

On the left side we find the microSD and SIM card slot (microSD/2xSIM).

The on/off/lock (also doubles as the fingerprint sensor) and volume up/down buttons are located on the other side (and in proper height, even for use with one hand).

The speaker (150% volume boost) and USB-C charging port are located at the base of the Poco C75 4G.

At the top we find a 3.5mm port which is something we ever hardly see any more (and for some people it's a very important feature).

Xiaomi has given a marble like pattern to the back of the Poco C75 which actually looks very nice.

The 50MP camera is based on the Sony IMX852 compact image sensor, takes pictures of up to 3072x4080 and can record video at 1080p with 30fps.

Haven't really used the Xiaomi HyperOS in the past so I am curious to see how it behaves.

XIAOMI HYPEROS

Since the HyperOS is based on Android 14 it's not that different compared to many other smartphones I've used lately.

Unfortunately, as many point out Xiaomi fills many of their smartphones with bloatware and well, the Poco C75 4G came with at least 15 apps that I had to remove later on (since I wasn't the only one using the Poco C75 4G I had to choose Greek as the main language).

MAIN CAMERA

The Poco C75 4G allows the end user to take pictures in various sizes (1:1/3:4/9:16/full/wide), using a beauty mode and even HDR.

The camera has a 2x optical zoom and an 10x digital zoom (above you can see normal, 2x optical and 10x digital zoom pictures). Colors are surprisingly accurate and in no way over saturated. Yes, the 50MP camera of the Poco C75 4G will not leave you with your mouth open but for the price it's very good.

As expected, pictures taken at low light conditions are not great, again however, for the price I can't really complain.

TESTING METHODOLOGY

    Since some of you requested more benchmarks, I have decided to use the following apps to review the performance of smartphones, GeekBench 6, GeekBench AI, 3D Mark, GFXBench, Passmark and AI Benchmark. Unfortunately, due to certain brand policies it seems that some of these can't be run on every smartphone out there so whenever that's the case those results will obviously not be included in the review. All tests will be repeated a total of 6 times and the average numbers will be then recorded in the charts. 

    For all of you wondering just how smartphones do regarding mobile data (4G/5G and above) I will be using the SpeedTest app from the same location (same rooftop) and with the same SIM card (Vodafone) for all models. This may not be an 100% accurate test (many variables) but it should be a good indicator of mobile data performance.

TEST RESULTS

CONCLUSION

    The Poco C75 4G may not be among the fastest smartphones out there currently (not even among the fastest of the last 5 years or so if we're being honest - I didn't however encounter any issues while using it, for the most part the OS is stable and fast) but thanks to its very large 6.88" LCD screen, 6GB LPDDR4 RAM, 128GB flash memory, 50MP front camera and its massive 5160mAh battery it's a great choice for people on a tight budget who don't really care about raw performance. At the same time this means that if you want to play somewhat demanding games on the go the Poco C75 4G is obviously not for you. For surfing and watching videos on YouTube and TikTok the HD screen is extremely good and even though its 120Hz feature is not quite perfect it does work well overall. I did find it strange that Xiaomi didn't include a charger with the bundle but thanks to that I did use some of the fast chargers I have in the lab and with a 65W GaN III model going from 1% to the 80% recommended charging (for higher battery longevity - around 4400mAh) took around 1 and 1/2 hours which isn't great but again, not bad either.  As for the camera it all comes down to cost and even though 50MP and 1080P@30fps video recording are not numbers that will swoop you off your feet for the price this phone retails for, they are good.

    I’ve already mentioned prices a few times in this review but just how much does the Poco C75 4G (6GB/128GB) retail for? Well, it seems that you’re actually better off with the slightly better 8GB/256GB variant which currently retails for USD132.50 inside the USA (Amazon.com) and for 125Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de). This is why I’ve said over and over in this review that the Poco C75 4G is very good for the money and yes, it's a smartphone I can highly recommend to people with a tight budget.

PROS

- Build Quality
- 6.88” HD 120Hz Screen
- 6/8GB LPDDR4 RAM (Expandable To 16GB)
- 128/256GB Flash Memory
- 13MP Front / 50MP Rear Camera (2x Optical Zoom / 10x Digital Zoom / Beauty Mode / HDR)
- 5160mAh Battery
- IP52 Certified
- Available Colors (Black / Gold / Green)
- Price (For Some)

CONS

- Weak CPU/GPU
- 1080p@30fps Video Recording
- HyperOS (Bloatware)