This Poco phone is less than half the price of a Pixel 9a, but goes toe-to-toe with it on specs

If you’re eyeing up a new smartphone, the £1000 price that the latest handsets typically come with is somewhat off-putting. That’s where mid-range or budget phones come in. And this new Poco budget phone punches well above its weight. The sub-£200 Poco M7 Pro 5G costs less than half of what Google’s Pixel 9a, but is alarmingly close in almost every meaningful category on paper.

• Read more: Best cheap phones in 2025 reviewed and rated

Under the hood, Poco’s latest got a MediaTek Dimensity 7025 Ultra chip, but it performs rather well. You’ll find the base version chip in the Honor 400 Lite. We found that it “enough oomph to run Android at a fair lick” but left us wanting more for gaming in our review. So hopefully this Ultra version delivers a little more. You get up to 12GB of RAM and 256GB of storage.

The display is a 6.67-inch AMOLED panel with a 120Hz refresh rate and a 2100 nit peak brightness. It’s also TÜV-certified to be easy on the eyes, so you can stare at it for unhealthy amounts of time without them turning into raisins. Battery life clocks in at a chunky 5110mAh cell with 45W turbo charging that’ll take you from dead to 62% in half an hour.

Poco is also throwing in a 50MP Sony IMX882 sensor on the back with optical and electronic image stabilisation. As you’d expect in 2025, there’s some clever AI trickery that includes a pseudo-2X optical zoom and enough modes to keep your Instagram feed ticking over nicely. There’s also a 20MP selfie cam up front, for some selfie-snapping action for Instagram.

Other niceties include Dolby Atmos stereo speakers with an alleged 300% volume boost, IP64 dust and water resistance, an in-screen fingerprint reader, NFC, and even an IR blaster.

You can pick up the Poco M7 Pro 5G now starting at £199 directly from Xiaomi or Amazon. At that price, this budget smartphone is almost a no-brainer.

• Related: Best upcoming phones for 2025: find your next phone!

Connor Jewiss

About

Connor is a writer for Stuff, working across the magazine and the Stuff.tv website. He has been writing for around nine years now across the web and in print too. Connor has attended the biggest tech expos, including CES, MWC, and IFA – with contributions as a judge on panels at them. He's also been interviewed as a technology expert on TV and radio by national news outlets including France24. Connor has experience with most major platforms, though does hold a place in his heart for macOS, iOS/iPadOS, electric vehicles, and smartphone tech. Just like everyone else around here, he's a fan of gadgets of all sorts. Aside from writing, Connor is involved in the startup and venture capital scene, which puts him at the front of new and exciting tech - he is always on the lookout for innovative products.

Areas of expertise

Mobile, macOS, EVs, smart home