We tested the Poco C65: is it the best mobile phone under 150 euros?

When I am asked about a mobile phone under 150 euros, I inevitably think of Xiaomi. The Asian company has an interesting catalog of smartphones for those looking for the basics and not wanting to spend money, and the latest from one of its brands, Poco, is more than interesting. It’s about Small C65mobile phone with a 90 Hz screen, a 5000 mAh battery and a 50 megapixel camera, which Hypertext We’ve tested it to find out if it’s the best mobile phone you can buy at this price.

Poco C65, actually, Easily the best option for this price. Mainly because it offers features that are rare in such cheap phones. One of them, we repeat, is its screen with a refresh rate of 90 Hz, as well as the Helio G85 processor, which we see in some mobile phones costing around 200 euros. It also includes a very attractive RAM and storage configuration.

Small C65 It also attracts attention with its appearance.. Actually, that’s the first thing I noticed. It maintains the line so characteristic of the brand, with the photographic module next to the logo and the back with satin tones that, although not my favorite, are not very sharp. The back is also completely flat, which makes the phone look more elegant. However, it is a mobile phone with a plastic body, which is to be expected for this price range.

Poco C65 in everyday life

While the design is one of the main attractions of this phone and one of the things that initially caught my attention, there is one section that, in my opinion, stands out much more than the rest of the features of this Poco C65; good combination of performance and autonomy.

In particular, Poco C65 has a chip MediaTek Helio G85. This is, I repeat, a processor present in many entry-level mobile phones that usually cost around 200 euros, and provides more than sufficient performance for basic tasks such as browsing social networks, watching multimedia content or even casual games. It also comes with a RAM and storage configuration that is quite unusual for mobiles in this price range. The cheapest version has 6 GB RAM and 128 GB internal memory. However, the most powerful variant includes 8GB of RAM and 256GB of internal storage.

This more than decent performance for the price is complemented by 5000 mAh battery allowing intensive use throughout the day without any inconvenience. Now the load is 18 W; Not as powerful as other smartphones, but enough for those times when we need a boost.

As for the screen, the only surprise here is its refresh rate, which reaches 90 Hz. This is something that is valued because the user experience is higher. However, the overall quality of the panel is not unusual. Come on, what to expect from a mobile phone at this price. This 6.74″ LCD screen with a resolution of 1600 x 720 pixels and a brightness of 600 nits. It’s colorful and the resolution is more suitable for viewing multimedia content, although I do miss a little more brightness outdoors. However, there is nothing alarming about this.

How are your cameras?

The camera is not usually a strong point of entry-level mobile phones, and the truth is that it is no different in this case. Small C65 It is equipped with only two sensors: the main one is 50 megapixels. with an f/1.8 aperture and another 2-megapixel macro camera with an f/2.4 aperture. The Poco C65 also has a depth-of-field sensor that appears to be used for focusing and portrait mode.

Results offered by the main sensor They’re decent when there’s good light., with correct detail and adequate color interpretation. Indoors the results are also good, if you take into account, of course, that we are talking about a 150 euro mobile phone. We begin to see noise and significant loss of detail in night scenes. This is where HDR can help a little, but obviously the results are not comparable to what we get in broad daylight.

On the other hand, the macro sensor allows you to capture images from a distance of approximately four centimeters, something that can be useful for photographing small details. However, it is a very useful camera. In fact, the macro mode is hidden in the application.

Is Poco C65 worth the money?

Available at €129 (or €149 after the promotional period), the Poco C65 ticks the boxes in almost all sections. It has the right design, decent performance, a decent but sufficient screen, and a pretty good camera for the price. Practically, No other smartphone offers these features at this price..

Oppo, for example, has models such as Oppo A17 (119 euros on Amazon), which, although it has the same battery, does not have a 90 Hz screen or a base memory of 128 GB. Samsung also has some other models such as Galaxy M13 which, again, has a slightly smaller screen in terms of features, as well as less internal memory.

Interestingly, where Poco has competition is at home. Poco C65 is priced at par with other Xiaomi smartphones that have better specifications and are on sale at a higher price, but due to age or some other offer, their price is significantly reduced. The best example is Xiaomi Redmi Note 12.which has a 120 Hz AMOLED screen and faster charging and is available for 149.99 euros in the variant with 4 GB of RAM and 128 GB of internal memory, although its starting price is 249.99 euros.

Therefore, my advice is: if you are looking for a mobile phone under 150 euros, take advantage of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 offer. In case you are reading this, the price has increased due to the end of the offer or for some other reason, Poco C65 is the best option. which you can buy at this price.