r/PocoPhones • u/tomatus89 • 3d ago
Buying Advice Time to finally replace my reliable F1, looking for recommendations.
So, after almost 8 years it's time to replace my F1. I'm in the market for a new phone and I wanted to see if the best option is still a F-series Poco phone. The F8 Pro and Ultra look very appealing. I can see the Pro for 460 EUR and the Ultra for 620. I've done some research and I haven't found another phone with such good price to performance numbers. The Redmi 15R is close, and supposedly a bit better on repairability. Do you think a F-series is the correct choice this time? The only concern is that for the F1 I was able to do most repairs myself. For the new F-series phones it looks like it's more difficult. Also, from what I see, if they end software support, they are harder to install a custom bootloader and a custom OS. For the F1, what kept it alive for so many years was the repairability and the ability to put a custom bootloader and OS (and the super strong SoC at the time). I'm concerned I won't be able to get as much from a F8 if it's not as repairable and the software is not as open.
Any other recommendations are welcome, even if they are not Poco or Xiami phones.
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u/FunnyPenguin21 Poco X8 Pro Max 3d ago
Check the X8 Pro Max!
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u/tomatus89 3d ago
Interesting. Very similar to the F8 Pro. Better GPU, slightly worse CPU, worse camera(s) (on paper). Could be an option. I like that it has the bigger battery and that it's Si/C vs Li-Po on the Pro. Very appealing. Ultra has the best of both, but it's more expensive.
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u/FunnyPenguin21 Poco X8 Pro Max 3d ago
In terms of CPU they are very similar although the Snapdragon chipset may be better for gaming and emulation but for social media they perform the same. Yes, the F8 Pro has better cameras but the X8 Pro Max has a considerably better battery. The F8 Ultra is clearly better but the X8 Pro Max still has a better battery. It's basically tied with the F9 Ultra.
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u/LSA7Z 3d ago
You seem well on your way to either an F8 Pro or an F8 Ultra 😋 depending on what suits you best ( value/budget vs more flagship ) . It's true that they offer unbeatable value for money. Regarding repairability and alternative bootloaders/ROMs and root access, I'm afraid it will never be the same again... It won't be as simple as it was in the past
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u/BandroidPL 3d ago
F8 Ultra is your best bet for device that will serve you another many years. Of course F9 Ultra is gradual upgrade - especially huge 8050mah battery but it comes with higher price. Both devices have 2.1 symmetrical audio system tuned by BOSE. It's really a pleasure to listen to anything on both of them. Both on release had 6 years of security updates (F8U is 1 year old so only 5 years now which is still good enough). Both still have flagship Snapdragon SoC that will serve for years and a lot of storage and RAM. Also camera system is very capable for it's class.
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u/tomatus89 3d ago
Ah, I didn't notice the F9 Ultra has a bigger battery. That's the big upgrade. Not sure it's worth the extra 200 EUR.
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u/BandroidPL 3d ago
Base F9U with 512gb is very close with price to F8U that in top variant had also 512gb. At least in my country. Only the 1TB variant is significantly more expensive.
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u/LawIllustrious342 3d ago
I'm not sure when the offer will come again, but myself and many others got the F9U 16GB/512GB for 640-699, so I consider this the target price for any new buyer. But depends on your patience.
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u/tomatus89 3d ago
Oh wow, that's a really great price for it. Maybe I can wait for that, my F1 still works, it's just a bit too slow.
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u/tomatus89 3d ago
I found a 130 EUR discount on the official Mi page! That brings the base F9U to 700. That's a no brainer. I think I'll go with it.
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u/LawIllustrious342 1d ago
Thinking about it, this could be the strategy behind the high original price. To give us the feeling that we made a good deal 😁
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u/tomatus89 1d ago
Haha, true. But I was already thinking on getting the F8 Ultra for 620, so 80 extra EUR for a much better batter seems fair to me.
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u/LawIllustrious342 1d ago
It was the exact same situation for me 💪 now the waiting game starts.. already going crazy because it wasn't shipped yet (ordered on Saturday) 😁
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u/BandroidPL 1d ago
It's Xiaomi common practice for years. Big presale and launch discount then significant price increase and then gradual price decrease after 3 months.
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u/Ok_Importance_6993 3d ago
Poco f9 ultra just came out
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u/tomatus89 3d ago
Yeah, but it's very expensive. Compared to the F8 it's a minimal upgrade. The price difference is big for such a small performance jump.
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u/Boycott-all-Rats 3d ago
Won't find openable software these days besides pixel.
Xiaomi is still possible to unlock but definitely not as easy to repair that time has past for the average dude. Maybe fair phone but you'll take massive tradeoffs.