Unlock Elite Gaming on a Budget: The Unexpected Champion Among Mid-Range Phones

If there’s been a Unicorn of the iphone gaming community, one that combines low price and high performance, we have yet to see it. High-resolution graphics, the fastest refresh rates and buttery-smooth performance used to be the exclusive territory of phones that cost hundreds of dollars. But not any more. In 2024, one low-cost hero is poised to impress, and give budget-minded gamers a run for their money.

The Mid-Range Gaming Phone Arena

Instead, giants such as Google, Samsung and OnePlus have historically led the mid-range gaming phone race with devices such as the Google Pixel 8a with its Tensor G3 chipset, or the OnePlus 12R with its hardy Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 processor. Both claim to deliver flagship performance minus the flagship price.

However, a new challenger approaches, boasting attributes that set the battleground alight with anticipation.

The POCO F6: A Game-Changer in Disguise

All in all, the Poco F6 is no boring mid-range phone. Its Qualcomm Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 chip, which features the same core as the flagship Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, could soon make it a headache for the premium phone industry. With a recommended price of just $379, it promises to be the winking light in the horizon for gamers who want high performance without cutting a bigger cheque.

Snapdragon 8S Gen 3: The Heart of a Warrior

The Snapdragon 8S Gen 3, with ray tracing enabled, is in the centre of the device Fighting it out in the mid-range category is a chip that’s based on a 2022 GPU – the Snapdragon 8 Gen 2 – and crammed with features such as ray tracing. In fact, it’s pretty much the same chip at the heart of the Poco F6, except for minor tweaks that increase the power a tad.

Performance Benchmarks: The Numbers Speak

Some benchmark comparisons help to illustrate this point: the Poco F6 is pitted against the likes of the Galaxy S24 and OnePlus 12R. Its CPU and GPU performance is just a tad behind flagship models, meaning the Poco F6 provides gaming and multitasking performance that’s very close to flagship phones, but at a fraction of the cost.

The Snapdragon 8S Gen 3 passed all the gaming tests with flying colours. Its frame rates remain very stable under pressure, and can keep up good performance on even the longest playing sessions. This means the Poco F6 is a viable phone for serious gamers. We are thankful to our partner, Qualcomm, for supporting this article.

The Verdict: Best Bang for Your Buck

On the whole, there’s no denying that the Poco F6 is the best value for money phone for gamers. The trade-offs don’t really matter. Unless you’re willing to spend more money, it’s going to be difficult to find a gaming-focused smartphone that performs as well as the Poco F6. Its sub-par internal thermal design and the lack of a few features, such as ray-tracing and Nvidia’s DLSS (Deep Learning Super Sampling), are barely noticeable.

Intriguingly, the Poco F6 does not seem to be available in the US, making it a highly desirable phone in the UK and Europe. Gamers in the rest of the world will probably opt for the OnePlus 12R; the Pixel 8a will be the choice of those interested in photography and AI-enhancements along with gaming.

Why the POCO F6 Stands Out

• Price-to-performance ratio: a near-flagship gaming experience at a price that’s nearly impossible to beat.
• High-End Chiprt blogging platform.

In the coming of age story of mobile gaming, the Poco F6 is a game changer. It shows that exceptional gaming experiences are not the sole domain of flagship phones and that there are indeed exciting possibilities for gamers on a budget. The future of mobile gaming phones will undoubtedly continue to evolve, but the Poco F6 will be remembered as a catalyst in delivering mobile gaming experiences once considered beyond budget phones.