New affordable Android phones beat Samsung on most | Tech News

Two new Android phones may put equally priced Samsung Galaxy phones on discover, purely as a result of these rival units offer the specs on paper to please gadget followers trying to get the best worth for money when shopping for a new smartphone.

The Poco X8 Pro and Poco X8 Pro Max can be found to buy within the UK now, with costs ranging from £349 and £469 respectively – and simply £289 and £359 if you are going to buy them in early fowl provides between March 17 and March 31, 2026.

Poco is a sub-brand of Xiaomi that after marketed its units as gaming phones, however now focus on area of interest audiences who favour pure spec energy and maybe aren’t as involved with thighs corresponding to digicam efficiency – highlighted by each phones’ 8MP ultra-wide lenses and lack of telephoto shooters.

The cheaper Poco X8 Pro boasts a 6.59-inch AMOLED show with 120Hz refresh price, twin cameras fronted by a 50-MP lens, a enormous 6,500mAh silicon-carbon battery with 100W charging and extremely sturdy IP68/IP69K mud and water resistance, the very best ranking any telephone can at present declare on the planet.

You get 8GB and 256GB of fast UFS 4.4 storage as normal too, and it’s powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra. Not in any respect unhealthy for £349, with £399 getting you double the storage at 512GB.

If you examine these specs to Samsung’s £399 Galaxy A36, you’ll principally discover the Poco successful out. The Galaxy has a bigger 6.7-inch 120Hz AMOLED panel, and does pack in triple cameras, with a 50MP essential lens.

But its much less environment friendly lithium-ion battery is smaller at 5,000mAh with slower 45W charging, it’s solely IP67 rated, and for £399 you get simply 6GB RAM and 256GB of slower UFS 2.2 storage.

Poco additionally has you lined with stereo audio system, as does the Samsung, however the X8 Pro has help for Hi-Res wi-fi playback.

But in case you’re searching for an Android improve and wish the best bang to your buck, the X8 Pro Max is accessible within the early fowl offer for £399 as a substitute of £519, with 12GB RAM and 512GB storage. This Max model has even higher specs than the Pro, with a barely thinner construct and a bigger 6.83-inch 120Hz AMOLED show.

It’s acquired the Dimensity 9500s, a chip that ought to outpace its sibling in addition to the Samsung different, which makes use of the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3.

The Max has the identical twin cameras because the Pro, however has a bigger – a lot bigger – 8.500mAh battery. This ought to simply get two or three days of battery life due to the dimensions and more environment friendly silicon-carbon tech.

Both Poco phones even have RGB lights round each digicam lenses, with small LEDs lighting up when the telephone is face down to make you conscious of notifications.

Even at its £519 RRP, the X8 Pro Max is taking the struggle to the jewel in Samsung’s mid-range crown, the £499 Galaxy A56.

You can buy the Poco X8 phones from Xiaomi’s UK web site.