In an attempt to expand its C series and offer a big screen experience to the masses, POCO has today launched the POCO C85 starting at Rs 11,999 in India. Coming with a large 6.9-inch display, the handset is designed to keep up with demand for content consumption in the era of heavy OTT and social media apps usage, while offering strong battery endurance through its 6,000mAh battery.
The POCO C85 will be available for purchase on Flipkart, with the first sale starting at 12 PM on December 16th. The phone comes in several storage options, including 4+128GB, 6+128GB, and 8+128GB, which are priced at Rs 11,999, Rs 12,999, and Rs 14,499, respectively. Buyers with HDFC, SBI, and ICICI Bank debit and credit cards can avail an instant Rs 1,000 discount on the purchase of the POCO C85.
Coming in Mystic Purple, Spring Green, and Power Black colour options, the rear of the C85 flaunts a large “POCO” branding, a dual-tone shade, and a squarish camera deco comprising a 50MP AI primary camera, an unnamed secondary camera, and an LED flashlight, while the notch cutout on the display houses an 8MP selfie shooter. As for the thickness, the sideframe has a height of 7.9mm.
While we’ve seen better chipset offerings under Rs 12,000, the POCO C85 gets the MediaTek Dimensity 6300 processor. This is the same 5G-capable chipset powering the OPPO K13x, which scored 4,47,305 in our AnTuTu (v10) tests. The Lava Storm Play, on the other hand, starts at Rs 9,999 and features the Dimensity 7060, which delivered 5,03,166 on AnTuTu.
Then there’s the highlight of the phone, a massive 6.9-inch HD+ LCD display, which is paired with a 120Hz refresh rate for a smooth UI operation. This panel also gets 810 nits of peak brightness, TUV Low Blue Light, TUV Flicker-Free, and TUV Circadian certification to reduce strain on the eyes during prolonged use. While the U-shape notch on the display is a questionable addition going into 2026, the large display should offer an immersive video-watching experience even though it’s limited to 720p.
Powering the device is a 6,000mAh battery, one of the largest in the segment, alongside the Redmi 15C. POCO claims the battery can retain up to 80 percent of its battery capacity even after 1,000 charge cycles when using the bundled 33W charger. This charger can take the phone from 1 to 50 percent in 28 minutes. On a full charge, this battery is said to pack enough endurance for over 29 hours of social media browsing, 16 hours of Instagram Reels, and 106 hours of music playback. The phone also gets 10W reverse charging for situations when your secondary or a friend’s phone runs out of juice.
The POCO C85, running on Android 15-based HyperOS skin, follows the segment-wide norm of offering two OS upgrades along with four years of security patches. While this falls short in front of Samsung Galaxy M17’s promise of up to six OS upgrades, the POCO C85 should stay up to date with the latest Android version for a couple of years.
Should you buy the POCO C85 starting at Rs 10,999 with offers?
The POCO C85 doesn’t shy away from offering one of the largest displays on a smartphone in late 2025. With a 6.9-inch panel, potential buyers who prefer watching OTT, YouTube, or social media content may consider the POCO C85. However, the 720p resolution may not make the best use of this display, as the details may not be as crisp as on a 1080p panel. This display size is also ideal for multitaskers, especially those who use Android’s floating window or split screen features. The performance through the Dimensity 6300 may suffice for daily use, while the 6,000mAh battery should offer strong battery backup
