Poco has really shaken things up this year with its F-series, and now you're probably wondering which one to pick: the F7 Pro or the F7 Ultra. The F7 Pro is like the old top-tier model, a real "flagship killer." But then there's the F7 Ultra, Poco's first true flagship. So, is the Ultra worth the extra cash, or does the Pro still hold its own? Let's break it down.
Design and Build Quality
Both the F7 Pro and F7 Ultra look pretty premium. They share a similar design with a dual-tone glass back—glossy around the cameras and a different finish below. Both also have a flat aluminum frame. They're about the same size and weight, too.
One key difference is their water and dust resistance. Both are IP68 rated, but Xiaomi says the Ultra can handle being submerged up to 2.5 meters, while the Pro sticks to the standard 1.5 meters.
Display Features
When it comes to the screen, both phones use the same 6.67-inch OLED panel with a QHD resolution and a 120 Hz refresh rate. The main difference is the glass protection: the Ultra has "shield glass," while the Pro uses Gorilla Glass 7i. Both displays are really good, super sharp, and support 12-bit color, Dolby Vision, and HDR10 Plus.
Brightness is excellent on both, hitting around 1500 nits. Neither phone has LTPO tech, so their refresh rates behave similarly: 120 Hz when you're touching the screen and dropping to 60 Hz when idle to save battery.
Audio and Other Features
Both phones have really good stereo speakers. They have similar max loudness and great audio quality. You can unlock either phone with an ultrasonic under-display fingerprint reader. Plus, both come with an IR blaster, which is handy for controlling other devices.
Storage options are the same for both: 256 GB or 512 GB, but you can't expand it with a micro SD card. They both run on Xiaomi's latest Hyper OS2, based on Android 15. They also come with AI features, including Google Gemini and Xiaomi's own AI tools. Xiaomi promises four major OS updates and six years of security patches for both phones.
Performance and Benchmarks
The Poco F7 Pro packs a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, which was a top-tier chip not long ago. The F7 Ultra, however, uses the current top Qualcomm chip, the Snapdragon 8 Elite. In benchmarks, the Ultra scores higher, which is expected with a newer chip. This difference might matter more to serious gamers or power users, but the F7 Pro still handles everything just fine.
Interestingly, the F7 Pro is better at managing heat than the F7 Ultra. It loses less CPU performance during long stress tests.
Battery Life and Charging
The Poco F7 Pro has a bigger 6,000 mAh battery compared to the Ultra's 5,300 mAh. But in real-world use, the difference in battery life is pretty small. The F7 Pro wins by a little bit, but both phones have good active use scores.
For charging, the F7 Ultra supports 120W wired charging, while the Pro has 90W. The actual charging time difference is minor: the Ultra charges to full in 30 minutes, and the Pro takes 34 minutes. Only the Ultra model supports wireless charging.
Camera Comparison
Camera Specs
- Poco F7 Pro: 50 MP main camera, 8 MP ultrawide (fixed focus).
- Poco F7 Ultra: 50 MP main camera, dedicated 2.5x zoom (close focusing), higher-resolution ultrawide.
Photo Quality
- Daylight: Both main cameras take nice photos. The Ultra's images might have slightly higher sharpening and more saturated colors in some scenes.
- Low Light: Main camera shots are similar, but the Ultra's images are a bit cleaner and sharper.
- Zoom: The Ultra has a clear advantage with its telephoto camera, producing good results. The Pro's digital zoom is usable, but the Ultra's close-up shooting is something the Pro can't do.
- Ultrawide: The Ultra's ultrawide produces 8 MP shots (due to pixel binning) that are better than the Pro's 8 MP shots, with finer detail and better definition, even at night.
- Selfies: The F7 Pro has a 20 MP camera, and the Ultra has a 32 MP one. Both have fixed focus. Neither is amazing for detail, but the Pro's coverage is wider.
Video Quality
- Both can record up to 8K with their main cameras. The Ultra can shoot 4K with its telephoto, while both ultrawides are capped at 1080p.
- In 4K, the F7 Pro's main camera is slightly sharper, but it's a small difference.
- The F7 Ultra is better for zoomed-in videos thanks to its dedicated telephoto camera.
- Ultrawide videos are decent at 1080p.
- In low light, the Pro's main camera is again a bit sharper.
Features
- The F7 Pro and F7 Ultra are very similar in design, display, and speakers.
- Software features and support are identical.
- Battery life and charging speed are almost the same.
- The camera experience is quite similar, except for the Ultra's telephoto zoom.
- The F7 Pro has better thermal management and wider selfies.
- The F7 Pro is the more affordable option.
- The F7 Ultra has "shield glass" and can handle deeper water submersion.
- The F7 Ultra has a more powerful chipset, wireless charging, and a dedicated 2.5x zoom camera.
So, the F7 Ultra definitely has some advantages, especially if you want the best chipset or the zoom camera. But if those aren't your top priorities, the F7 Pro does pretty much the same things for less money.
