which mid-range smartphone is better value for money?

Realme GT 6 joins the ever-interesting list of affordable flagship models like the iQOO Neo 9 Pro, Xiaomi 14 Civi, POCO F6, Motorola Edge 50 Ultra and others. This only makes the choice of picking that one perfect phone a bit complicated for customers. However, we now bring the comparison of Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 to help make this decision a bit easier. Let’s get started.

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: specs at a glance

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: price in India

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: design

Design-wise, both phones look almost identical. We get a centre-positioned punch-hole cutout on the front with slim bezels around the screen. However, the Realme GT 6 looks slightly more modern, thanks to curved edges. Flipping to the back, you see triple cameras on both models and interestingly enough, the placement is also similar i.e. without any borders. However, the Realme GT 6 has a vertical strap, which offers a dual-tone design.

Where Realme takes the edge is with its metal frame compared to the plastic chassis on the POCO F6. We also get a glass back panel on the Realme but is prone to smudges. This offers a premium feel when you hold it in your hands. While POCO F6 offers only an IP64 rating for splash resistance, the Realme GT 6 has an IP65 rating for water resistance. Design and build wide, the Realme GT 6 is the clear winner but the price difference is also quite significant.

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: display

Both the Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 offer an AMOLED display and the colours look punchy and vibrant. The gaming and media-consuming experience is a delight and is eye-pleasing. There is Dolby Vision support on both models. 

Where Realme wins brownie points is with its peak brightness levels of a whopping 6,000nits compared to just 2,400nits on the POCO F6. This is really handy for viewing content on the screen even under harsh sunlight. There is also an LTPO panel, which adjusts the refresh rate dynamically based on the content on the screen and helps preserve the battery life. POCO F6 uses a 12-bit AMOLED panel, which is still great.

We also get the second-generation Corning Gorilla Glass Victus protection compared to the first-generation layer. This should offer better protection against drops and scratches. In the display section, Realme GT 6 takes the lead.

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: performance

Both Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 are powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 chipset. We should get a similar range performance, with the phones capable of handling everything you throw at them. They stood their ground even under heavy multitasking and high-end gaming.

While POCO F6 has managed to score 1509605 in the AnTuTu benchmark Realme GT 6 sits slightly below at 15,01,830 on the same benchmark. The Adreno GPU was able to offer impressive graphics as well.

It looks like Qualcomm Snapdragon 8s Gen 3 has some sort of throttling issue as both Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 face significant throttling during the Burnout CPU throttle test under intense load. While Realme GT 6 could only operate at 40 percent, POCO F6 is slightly better by operating at 53 percent. However, this throttling didn’t really have any effect on the real-world performance.

All said and done, the performance of both phones is equally good and there won’t be any major differences.

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: cameras

In terms of cameras, Realme GT 6’s camera setup is quite versatile as we get a 50MP telephoto camera, which is missing on the POCO F6. This is especially useful when you want to click long-range photos without losing details in the process.

However, the primary camera sensors on the Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 are equally good. Both phones were able to handle dynamic range better and the colour accuracy is also on point. The secondary 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens on both does the job of clicking wide FoV pictures and the results are quite good. 

On the front, the Realme GT shows its dominance again, thanks to a larger 32MP camera compared to a 20MP lens on the POCO F6. The larger sensor means the resulting images are slightly sharper. For cameras, the real winner is the Realme GT 6.

Realme GT 6 vs POCO F6: battery, software

Realme GT 6 is again the winner in this segment too as we get a larger 5,500mAh cell compared to a 5000mAh unit on the POCO F6. This difference in capacity translates to real-world usage as well. The Realme phone was able to last a bit longer and was able to offer slightly better battery life. 

The 5,000mAh battery on the POCO F6 lasted for about 11 hours and 42 minutes on the PCMark battery test at 80 percent screen brightness. While the Realme GT 6 did marginally better at 15 hours on the PCMark battery test. 

The 90W charger of the POCO F6 was able to charge from 20 to 100 percent in about 30 minutes. While the Realme GT 6 took 26 minutes to charge from 20-100 percent. In this department though, there’s not much difference.

The Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 boot Android 14 OS out of the box. Both models will receive  three years of major software updates and four years of security updates.

Conclusion

Realme GT 6 and POCO F6 are both good phones but when we pit against each other, the former comes out with winning colours. The main advantages are the inclusion of a telephoto sensor that allows for zoom shots, a brighter display at 6000nits, a larger 5,500mAh battery with a slightly faster 120W charging speed and a premium body with a metal frame. While the POCO F6 is still a good buy, the Realme phone does better in these departments. If you have the budget and are looking for a better phone, the Realme GT should be your choice.