Just over a year after the launch of the POCO X7 series, the company is gearing up to release the POCO X8 Pro series in India soon. Comprising the POCO X8 Pro and POCO X8 Pro Max, these smartphones are heavily focused on delivering high-end performance and swift gaming capabilities. While the POCO X8 Pro can be considered the successor to last year’s POCO X7 Pro, the POCO X8 Pro Max is a new entrant in POCO’s lineup, featuring the flagship-grade Dimensity 9500s processor, an answer to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Gen 5.
Thanks to a wave of official teasers and social media reveals from POCO, here’s everything you need to know about the POCO X8 Pro series ahead of the launch.
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POCO X8 Pro series India launch date
The POCO X8 Pro series is set to launch in India on March 17th at 5:30 PM (IST). Simultaneously, the phones will be unveiled globally in some markets. As for the availability, these smartphones will be sold online via Flipkart in India, as has been the case with all previous POCO phone launches.
POCO X8 Pro series specifications
India’s first phones with MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra and Dimensity 9500s
The POCO X8 Pro will run on the MediaTek Dimensity 8500 Ultra, while the POCO X8 Pro Max will be powered by the Dimensity 9500s. Released shortly after the Dimensity 9500 earlier this year, both these chipsets cater to upper high-end smartphones and feature an All Big Core CPU structure. With vapor chamber cooling area of up to 5,800mm², it’s worth seeing how well these POCO phones will be able to maximise the potential of these chipsets.
Per POCO, the X8 Pro scores 23,00,000 on AnTuTu, while the X8 Pro Max can achieve a score of 31,00,000, rivalling the likes of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 5 present on iQOO 15R and OnePlus 15R. Both phones are confirmed to come with LPDDR5X RAM and UFS 4.1 storage.
Metallic designs and RGB lights
As per the teasers up on Flipkart, the POCO X8 Pro and X8 Pro Max will feature a metallic mid-frame, along with an IP69K rating, providing users a sense of confidence when bringing the phones near water sources. Surprisingly, the X8 Pro gets a glass back, while the X8 Pro Max will sport a fibre glass rear, something we recently saw on the OnePlus 15‘s Sand Storm colour.
120FPS gaming support with several gaming tricks
While the official display sizes of the POCO X8 Pro series haven’t been revealed, the phones will come with 1.5K resolution and support 120FPS in popular titles like Call of Duty: Mobile, BGMI, Standoff 2, Mobile Legends, and others. The game manager UI on HyperOS has been refined to feel more responsive, while HDR support in games will enhance the visuals and contrast.
Speaking of which, while the brand hasn’t shed light on the software, the X8 Pro series is likely to come pre-loaded with Android 16-based HyperOS 3 skin, just like the recently launched Xiaomi 17 and Xiaomi 17 Ultra.
Massive batteries on board
Apart from the processors, the other headlining aspect of the POCO X8 Pro series appears to be the battery capacities. While the POCO X8 Pro’s 6,500mAh battery doesn’t see a major jump in capacity over the X7 Pro, the X8 Pro Max will rock a massive 9,000mAh cell, around 20 percent bigger than the POCO F7’s 7,550mAh unit. In other news, the global variant of X8 Pro Max will feature a tad smaller 8,500mAh battery.
Both phones get 100W fast charging support along with 27W reverse wired charging to juice up other devices when they run low on power.
Standard camera setups
As was the case with many previous performance-oriented handsets, the POCO X8 Pro series will feature a dual rear camera setup with no signs of a dedicated zoom lens. The POCO X8 Pro gets a 50MP 1/1.95″ Sony IMX882 primary camera with f/1.5 aperture and OIS, along with an 8MP ultrawide lens with 120 degree field of view. On the other hand, the X8 Pro Max will carry a 50MP Light Fusion 600 main camera with f/1.5 aperture and OIS and the same ultrawide as the X8 Pro.
POCO X8 Pro series India pricing (leaked)
Just days before the launch, tipster Yogesh Brar, on X, has hinted that the POCO X8 Pro’s price could start at Rs 35,000, while the POCO X8 Pro Max could sell at Rs 42,000. At the leaked pricing level, the Dimensity 9500s-powered POCO X8 Pro Max could directly compete with the iQOO 15R, which sells for Rs 44,999 in India and packs a comparably powerful chipset, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 5
The iQOO 15R comes with a smaller 7,600mAh battery, though both phones match on charging at 100W. In our internal testing, the iQOO 15R (review) achieved an AnTuTu score of 3,078,708, on par with X8 Pro Max’s 3,010,000 score. For the battery gains on the POCO X8 Pro Max and a lesser rumoured price, the handset could stand as a worthwhile option for mobile gamers, considering the X8 Pro Max brings impressive performance capabilities to the table.
As for the POCO X8 Pro, it could rival the brand’s own POCO F7, which features a more powerful Snapdragon 8s Gen 4 chipset along with a bigger 7,550mAh battery. Similarly, the iQOO Neo 10 and OnePlus Nord 5 also sit around the Rs 35,000 price bracket with capable Snapdragon processors and batteries of up to 7,000mAh, offering users more options to choose from when it comes to performance-oriented smartphones.
