The POCO F9 Ultra, which went on sale on 1 September, is the first phone in the POCO range that the source author is willing to call a flagship without qualification. According to the author’s hands-on account after several days of use, the headline features are a 6.9-inch AMOLED display running at 185 Hz, a Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 chip scoring around 4 million points in AnTuTu, an 8,050 mAh silicon-carbon battery with 100 W wired and 50 W wireless charging, a 200 MP main camera paired with a 5x periscope telephoto, and a Bose-branded 2.1 speaker system with a dedicated subwoofer. The author’s verdict is that the phone has no obvious compromise, though the review also flags a few irritations, including a display that offers only 60 Hz or 185 Hz with nothing in between.
The source author describes the POCO F9 Ultra as the most balanced flagship of 2026
What you need to know
- The 6.9-inch AMOLED panel (2608×1200) runs at 185 Hz, but the settings offer only 60 Hz and 185 Hz, with no 90 Hz or 120 Hz option.
- The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 scores roughly 4 million in AnTuTu; the source author observed noticeable throttling in the CPU Throttling Test when a case was fitted.
- The 8,050 mAh silicon-carbon battery went from 90% to 20% in more than 20 hours of active use in the author’s test; 100 W wired charging (charger included) takes about 45–50 minutes.
- Cameras: 200 MP Samsung main sensor with OIS, 50 MP ultrawide, 50 MP 5x periscope telephoto with OIS, plus a 32 MP front camera; video up to 8K at 30 fps.
Design and build
The Dark Cherry finish, a deep cherry-burgundy with a metallic sheen, is the first thing the author noticed and is new to the POCO line. The frame is metal (the author notes it feels cold to the touch, unlike plastic), while the back panel is plastic with a metal-topped camera module. A screen protector is applied at the factory, and a clear polycarbonate case is included in the box.
The POCO F9 Ultra in Dark Cherry looks stylish and premium, according to the source author
An LED ring around the camera module lights up for notifications, and its color can be customized. The author calls it a small but visible detail that sets the F9 Ultra apart from other POCO phones.
Display: 185 Hz, but only two refresh-rate options
The 6.9-inch AMOLED panel has a resolution of 2608×1200 and a peak refresh rate of 185 Hz. The settings menu offers just two values, 60 Hz and 185 Hz. There are no intermediate 90 Hz or 120 Hz modes, and the author reports that POCO has given no explanation for the omission.
The POCO F9 Ultra display refreshes at up to 185 Hz
In use, the author says the 185 Hz mode is physically noticeable: scrolling, animations and games look smoother than on 120 Hz rivals. Brightness is described as flagship-level and readable in direct sunlight, and the oleophobic coating makes fingerprints easy to wipe off.
Performance: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5
The F9 Ultra uses the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, which the source identifies as the top chip of 2026 and the same silicon found in the OnePlus 15 and Samsung Galaxy S26. The phone scores around 4 million points in AnTuTu. For context within POCO’s own line, the source notes that the POCO X8 Pro with a Dimensity 8500-Ultra scores about 2.1 million, a gap of roughly 76% that the author says is genuinely felt in heavy workloads.
POCO F9 Ultra results in synthetic benchmarks. Source: nanoreview.net
In games, the author reports that the refresh rate never dropped below 120 Hz under any load. Throttling does exist: in the CPU Throttling Test, the drop was noticeable with a case fitted and less severe without it, though the author considers this a non-issue for everyday use. Storage is UFS 4.1, one of the fastest standards currently available. The author also notes the system was clean out of the box, with no adverts or preinstalled junk.
Battery and charging: 8,050 mAh
The silicon-carbon battery has a capacity of 8,050 mAh, which the source describes as a record for a flagship of this form factor. In the author’s test, the phone went from 90% to 20% in more than 20 hours of active use, and a full cycle from empty lasted more than a day.
Wired charging is rated at 100 W, with the charger included in the box; a full charge took roughly 45–50 minutes. Wireless charging is 50 W, which the source calls rare in this price bracket, and reverse charging is also supported. The author adds that the POCO X8 Pro Max, with an 8,500 mAh cell, lasts slightly longer but trails the F9 Ultra in every other respect.
Cameras: 200 MP main, 5x periscope, up to 100x zoom
The camera system is what most clearly separates the F9 Ultra from the rest of the POCO range, according to the source. It consists of three modules:
- 200 MP main camera with a Samsung sensor and OIS;
- 50 MP ultrawide;
- 50 MP periscope telephoto with 5x optical zoom and OIS.
The author reports that handheld shots at 30x and 60x, without a tripod, retain legible detail. At 100x, heavy computational reconstruction is evident, but the results still work for demonstration purposes. Night shots taken without flash or dedicated modes are said to retain detail even in minimal street lighting.
Night photo at 10x zoom on the POCO F9 Ultra. Image: gsmarena.com
Video recording tops out at 4K 60 fps and 8K 30 fps. The 32 MP front camera sits in a punch-hole cutout, and the in-display fingerprint scanner is described as responding instantly. The source also points out that the earlier POCO F8 Ultra offers 5x zoom on the same platform for somewhat less money, for buyers who want a periscope camera on a tighter budget.
Audio: Bose-tuned 2.1 system with a real subwoofer
The Sound by Bose setup is a 2.1 system with a separate subwoofer located next to the camera module on the back panel. This is not just a marketing label: the subwoofer opening is visible to the naked eye.
A full subwoofer is built into the back of the POCO F9 Ultra
In practice, the author says the difference is audible in films, music and games, with spacious sound and tangible bass. It will not replace a portable speaker, but for a phone the experience is described as fundamentally different.
Verdict: who the POCO F9 Ultra is for
After several days of use, the source author concludes that the F9 Ultra is the first POCO that can be called a true flagship without caveats, combining top-tier performance, a record-capacity battery, a serious triple camera with 5x telephoto, and 2.1 audio. In the author’s comparison, the OnePlus 15 at a similar price falls behind on battery and camera, while the cheaper Xiaomi 17T uses a Dimensity 8500-Ultra that the author considers a fundamentally lower tier than the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. For reference, the source quoted roughly 55,000–59,000 rubles for the 12/256 GB version on Russian marketplaces at the time of writing.
Some caveats are worth keeping in mind. These are one reviewer’s impressions after a short period, not long-term testing. The lack of intermediate refresh-rate options and the throttling seen with a case fitted are real limitations, and the AnTuTu figure and comparisons with rival phones come from the source and third-party benchmark aggregators rather than independent verification by this publication. Pricing and availability vary by region, and the source’s purchase advice applied only to the Russian market.
