Poco M4 Pro review: a well-finished and affordable entry-level

The Poco M4 Pro is equipped with a dual rear photo module consisting of a 50 Mpx wide-angle and an 8 Mpx ultra-wide-angle. A configuration that has become widely democratized, even on affordable smartphones.

On this price segment, there is no truly accomplished photophone. But real disparities are still visible between devices. To check it, here we compare the M4 Pro to theOppo A54 5G, who was doing quite well in the exercise.

Main module: 50 Mpx, f / 1.8, eq. 26 mm

Basic, the wide-angle module takes pictures in 12.5 Mpx thanks to the technique of pixel binning, which makes it possible to merge the pixels by four in order to capture more light when it runs out.

Oppo A54 5G (12 Mpx, eq. 26 mm, f / 1.7, ISO 157, 1/50 s)

Poco M4 Pro (12.5 Mpx, 26 mm eq, f / 1.8, ISO 92, 1/50 s)

Under good conditions, the result is more in favor of Oppo. Neither really shines, but the M4 Pro’s rendering feels underexposed and a little less crisp. The A54 5G shot is more saturated, and the colors flatter the retina more. We note despite everything a little more details on the faces or on the cover of the book with the M4 Pro, which has the merit of offering a little more sharpness on the periphery of the image.

Oppo A54 5G (12 Mpx, eq. 26 mm, f / 1.7, ISO 5508, 1/10 s)

Poco M4 Pro (12 Mpx, eq. 26 mm, f / 1.8, ISO 5365, 1/13 s)

At night, the result is not so close. The Poco shot has emptied of its color and the digital noise is apparent. The textures drool and the image loses its relief. Without impressing, the Oppo A54 5G saves furniture by accentuating the contrast, which helps maintain readability. It can be seen on the lion’s mane, facial features or the cover of the book.

50 MP mode

It is still possible to capture full definition (50 Mpx) shots, but this mode does not always bring a significant change on smartphones. We isolated a zone of identical size (0.90 Mpx) on each of the images. You can thus see the difference in definition.

Poco M4 Pro (50 Mpx, eq. 26 mm, f / 1.8, ISO 92, 1/50 s)

Poco M4 Pro (12.5 Mpx, 26 mm eq, f / 1.8, ISO 92, 1/50 s)

Unfortunately, this 50 Mpx mode does not transform the test. The colorimetry and the exposure do not move and there is no significant gain on the details. Unless you want to resize a particular image, we do not advise you to use this mode, which will have the disadvantage of cluttering the memory of the smartphone.

Poco M4 Pro (12 Mpx, eq. 26 mm, f / 1.8, ISO 5365, 1/13 s)

Poco M4 Pro (12 Mpx, eq. 26 mm, f / 1.8, ISO 5365, 1/13 s)

Same thing in the dark. It is very difficult to notice a difference compared to the initial shot.

Ultra wide-angle mode: 8 Mpx, f / 2.2, 119 °

Like the vast majority of its congeners, the Poco M4 Pro offers an ultra wide angle. In its segment, none of them really stand out. The smartphone is no exception to the rule and delivers fairly poor performance in our test scene. However, it is difficult to really hold it against him.

Oppo A54 5G (8 Mpx, f / 2.2)

Poco M4 Pro (8 Mpx, f / 2.2, ISO 56, 1/50 s)

The result during the day is not famous. The general colorimetry tends towards red, as we often see at Xiaomi. The scene is pretty much readable, but lacks sharpness. Digital smoothing erases a lot of detail. Opposite, the Oppo A54 is doing better and offers better exposed content.

Oppo A54 5G (8 Mpx, f / 2.2)

Poco M4 Pro (8 Mpx, f / 2.2, ISO 3200, 1/15 s)

At night, the M4 Pro does not follow. The image is blurry and almost unusable.

Front module, portrait and video mode

The Poco M4 Pro has a 16 megapixel front sensor supported by a lens opening at f / 2.5. The result is quite convincing for this price range, especially without a depth sensor. The colorimetry is slightly too pale and we would have liked a little more sharpness, but there is still a way to take decent selfies as long as you don’t move too much. Portrait mode works pretty well on short hairstyles, but it can be easily misled by long hair and flyaways.

The smartphone can shoot up to Full HD at 60 fps, but this mode does not benefit from electronic stabilization. The whole is quite fluid, even if the sensor has trouble managing the transitions to the highlights. The image lacks a bit of sharpness and we also note the presence of a slight digital noise. It is not a videographer’s smartphone, but as with photography, it will suffice for sporadic use.