Without a doubt, the Poco F1 is capable of knocking out leading smartphones in many departments. I do not think any other manufacturer can dare to challenge this striking combination of pricing and specs at this time. However, it does look like that Poco has left some bits unfinished while attempting to build the perfect smartphone that meets the price and performance expectations.
We’ve come to witness issues which range from lack of attention to detail, or issues from migrating elements from MIUI to the new environment called “MIUI for Poco“. Poco has also acknowledged many of these bugs, yet there are some issues which either have to be addressed or acknowledged by the company yet.
So, here’s a list of all the issues which I have personally come across while using this phone for the past couple of weeks, or learned about from user reports on Twitter and Reddit.
1. Lack of HD Support Netflix
Yes, the issue has been brought up a lot and there seems to be no solution in sight. The Poco F1 is incapable of playing HD videos on VOD apps such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Google Play Movies. The lack of a Widevine L1 license limits the Poco F1’s video playing capability to a maximum of 540p.
This is an issue that was highlighted with OnePlus 5 and 5T last year and comes back in light with Pocophone’s enormous popularity. For now, Poco is investigating the issue but let me tell you, the license prohibits granting access to this feature via OTA. Just for a head start, you might have to visit a service center to get the issue resolved, if Pocophone decides to fix it.
2. Cramped Status Bar
The Poco F1 UI, or MIUI in general, falls short when it comes to the utility of the notch. While the notch helps add a tall display, the trade-off in this case is that you lose out on the notifications. This is largely due to cramped display area surrounding the notch.
So there’s no other way of seeing current notifications without dragging the notification tray down. This is bad, especially if you prize your privacy and have disabled notifications on the lock screen. This is despite the fact that you actually get an option to display different notification badges and activity indicators in the status bar.
Poco could have used the free space at least when the clock is not displayed on the status bar, but since that is not so this part of the display is typically wasted.
3. Mystery of the Hidden Clock
Following up with the last point, there is something fishy with the way MIUI for Poco deals with the clock which is on the left of the notch. The clock in not visible on the home screen when the stock clock widget is used, while it emerges when you switch to another screen or open an app. The feature is lifted off of MIUI too.
The problem, however, is that when you open the app drawer from the homescreen, the clock stays hidden. On the other hand, when the app drawer is opened from a any other page, where you can see the clock anyway, the clock stays. I know this is a small issue and might not bother a lot of people, but it takes away from the perfection that a good UI demands.
4. Not OK, Google
You might be feeling ill-fated if you’ve recently bought the Poco F1 and are greatly dependent on Google Assistant. I say so because the Poco F1 currently lacks support for “OK Google” hotword detection and this is definitely a bug. Poco has acknowledged the issue and said that it is working on a fix.
5. Asymmetric Corners
Another issue that easily grabs attention is the poor symmetry between the left and the right edges of the screen when viewed in landscape mode. This, as I also mentioned in the full review of Poco F1, is because of the curvature of the bottom corners being much higher than most other devices, and this oversight leads to some elements being hidden or cut-off while in use. See our example below from PUBG Mobile.
The other half of the screen is not pleasing either simply because the corners start gently but end sharply, almost as if they were cut off before they could complete the curve.
6. No Chicken Dinner for Bad Shooters
Admittedly, the LCD display on the Poco F1 is good but not as good as the AMOLED panels which grace more premium devices such as the OnePlus 6 or the more expensive Galaxy S9+. Of course, the LCD panel helps Poco keep colors closer to original but an issue which has bugged many PUBG Mobile enthusiasts is ghost touch on the Poco F1.
Many Poco F1 owners have complained of difficulty in using multi-touch inside games. While playing PUBG, users find it difficult to point the reticle or crosshair, when using the joystick.
Initial speculations suggested that it was because of the well-known bug in MIUI which results in ghost-touch when you swipe three fingers down for a screenshot. But disabling the gesture does not fix the issue on Poco F1. I haven’t personally faced it – or have failed to take note – but listening to many users adding to the echo, I believe Poco has enough reports to find a solution soon.
7. Sound Control on PUBG
Another issue that can trouble some hardcore PUBG players is the sub-optimal volume control in the game. While there’s no problem in toggling the volume normally, the volume control breaks when you switch on the mic on to chat with teammates.
Noticeably, the icon also changes to that of a loudspeaker. This issue, too, has been recognized by Poco and is likely to be fixed in the next update.
Poco F1 Bugs & Issues: Killing the Flagship Ambition
I have no doubt that the Poco F1 is highly capable and reliable but the above-listed issues mar the everyday user experience. Despite so many great features, we can’t help but feel some corners have been cut, which is bound to be noticed by users. Hopefully, many of these will be fixed through software updates.
Xiaomi and Pocophone have taken note of many of these issues in this forum post, and we hope there’s a solution in the works for most of them. Meanwhile, we promise to keep you updated on the issues and let you know as and when Xiaomi or Poco fixes them.
