POCO has officially launched the F9 Series in the Philippines, bringing the POCO F9 Ultra and POCO F9 Pro to the local market. The new lineup focuses on flagship performance, 185Hz displays, upgraded cameras, and longer battery life.

Both phones are now available through Shopee, with an Early Bird promo running from September 1 to 16, 2026. Buyers can also get a free REDMI Buds 8 Active, 1+1 Years Warranty, and up to six months of screen replacement at any Xiaomi Service Center. Shopee also offers a rebate on top of the Early Bird promo.

POCO F9 Series pricing and availability

The POCO F9 Ultra comes in Dark Cherry and Black, with three storage configurations:

• 12GB + 256GB: PhP 55,999 SRP | PhP 45,999 Early Bird | PhP 41,920 with Shopee Rebate
• 16GB + 512GB: PhP 59,999 SRP | PhP 48,999 Early Bird | PhP 44,600 with Shopee Rebate
• 16GB + 1TB: PhP 89,999 SRP | PhP 79,999 Early Bird | PhP 73,600 with Shopee Rebate

Meanwhile, the POCO F9 Pro comes in White, Aurora Green, and Black:

• 12GB + 256GB: PhP 49,999 SRP | PhP 33,999 Early Bird | PhP 30,600 with Shopee Rebate | PhP 29,300 with Lazada Rebate
• 12GB + 512GB: PhP 54,999 SRP | PhP 35,999 Early Bird | PhP 32,400 with Shopee Rebate | PhP 31,500 with Lazada Rebate

POCO F9 Ultra

The POCO F9 Ultra is the higher-end model of the two. It runs on the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Mobile Platform and pairs it with the VisionBoost D8 chipset. This enables Smart frame rate of up to 185FPS, with Smart frame rate and AI Super Resolution able to run simultaneously. POCO says the F9 Ultra also achieved an AnTuTu score of 4,165,108, the highest recorded on a POCO smartphone.

For gaming, the F9 Ultra supports 185FPS across more than 20 titles natively, while five additional games can reach 185FPS through Smart frame rate. It also features a 4,800Hz instant touch sampling rate, 480Hz 10-point touch sampling rate, 200Hz gyro sampling rate, and POCO 3D IceLoop cooling.

It also gets a 6.9-inch 185Hz HyperRGB AMOLED display. The panel uses POCO HyperRGB technology and the new M11 luminescent material, reaching up to 4,500 nits of peak brightness and 10,000 nits for HDR content. The phone also supports Xiaomi Vision Care and TÜV Rheinland Quadruple Eye Care certification.

On the back, the F9 Ultra introduces dynamic lighting that can react to calls, notifications, gaming, and music.

For audio, the F9 Ultra uses dual symmetrical 1115D stereo speakers and a 1620 independent subwoofer to deliver a 2.1-channel audio setup. Sound by Bose tuning also brings Dynamic and Balanced sound profiles.

The phone packs an 8,050mAh battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless HyperCharge. It also supports 27W wired and 22.5W wireless reverse charging.

For photography, the F9 Ultra has POCO’s first 200MP ultra-clear camera system with OIS. It is paired with a 5x periscope telephoto camera, 10x lossless zoom, and up to 20x AI Ultra Zoom. A 32MP front camera handles selfies.

POCO F9 Pro

The POCO F9 Pro takes the F Series experience into a slightly more compact package.

It also uses a flagship Qualcomm mobile platform alongside the VisionBoost D8 chipset, enabling the same 185FPS Smart frame rate capabilities. It gets the same HyperRGB AMOLED display technology, but on a smaller 6.59-inch 185Hz panel.

The F9 Pro has a 6,330mAh battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless HyperCharge. It also supports reverse charging at up to 27W wired and 22.5W wireless.

For photography, the phone gets POCO’s first 200MP main camera system with OIS. It is paired with a 50MP 2.5x floating telephoto camera that can focus as close as 10cm, making it suitable for both close-up and long-distance shots.

The F9 Pro also gets Sound by Bose technology, using dual symmetrical 1115F super-linear stereo speakers and a Sealed Cavity Design.

Both phones also support POCO’s new Game Audio mode, which boosts the volume of footsteps while retaining other in-game audio cues to help players identify sounds and their direction more easily.

The POCO F9 Series is now available in the Philippines through Shopee, with Early Bird offers running until September 16, 2026.

POCO has officially unveiled the F9 Series in Singapore, introducing the POCO F9 Ultra and POCO F9 Pro. The new flagship lineup brings upgrades across performance, displays, cameras, battery life, and audio, alongside the latest chapter of POCO’s partnership with Bose.

Both phones will be available in Singapore starting September 1, 2026, with Early Bird offers running until September 17, 2026. The promotion is available through mi.com and POCO’s official stores on Shopee and Lazada. Buyers can get gifts worth up to SGD 595, along with additional perks including three months of YouTube Premium, three months of Google AI Pro, one free screen replacement within six months, and two-year quality assurance.

POCO F9 Series pricing and availability

The POCO F9 Ultra comes in Black and Dark Cherry and is available in three configurations:

• 12GB + 256GB: SGD 1,199 RRP | SGD 1,099 Early Bird
• 16GB + 512GB: SGD 1,399 RRP | SGD 1,299 Early Bird
• 16GB + 1TB: SGD 1,699 RRP | SGD 1,599 Early Bird

The POCO F9 Pro comes in Black, White, and Aurora Green, with two storage configurations:

• 12GB + 256GB: SGD 899 RRP | SGD 849 Early Bird
• 12GB + 512GB: SGD 999 RRP | SGD 949 Early Bird

During the Early Bird period, F9 Ultra buyers also receive a free REDMI Buds 8 Pro, while F9 Pro buyers get a free REDMI Buds 8. Both models come with the other launch perks while stocks last.

POCO F9 Ultra

The POCO F9 Ultra leads the lineup with the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Mobile Platform and the VisionBoost D8 chipset. POCO says it achieved an AnTuTu score of 4,165,108, the highest ever recorded on a POCO smartphone. The dual-chip setup also enables Smart frame rate of up to 185FPS, with Smart frame rate and AI Super Resolution able to run simultaneously.

The F9 Ultra also features WildBoost Engine, support for 185FPS gaming across more than 20 titles, and up to 185FPS through Smart frame rate in five additional games. It also packs 4,800Hz instant touch sampling, 480Hz 10-point touch sampling, 200Hz gyro sampling, and POCO 3D IceLoop cooling.

For the display, the F9 Ultra gets a 6.9-inch 185Hz HyperRGB AMOLED panel. It uses POCO HyperRGB technology and the new M11 luminescent material, with up to 4,500 nits of peak brightness and up to 10,000 nits for HDR content. It also supports Xiaomi Vision Care with TÜV Rheinland Quadruple Eye Care certification.

The phone introduces dynamic lighting on the back, with personalized effects for calls, notifications, gaming, and music.

Audio is another highlight, with dual symmetrical 1115D stereo speakers and an independent 1620 subwoofer creating a 2.1-channel setup. Sound by Bose tuning offers Dynamic and Balanced sound profiles, while Game Audio mode enhances footsteps for better directional awareness during gaming.

The F9 Ultra packs an 8,050mAh battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless HyperCharge. It also supports 27W wired and 22.5W wireless reverse charging.

For photography, the F9 Ultra features POCO’s first 200MP ultra-clear camera system with OIS, alongside a 5x periscope telephoto camera. It supports 10x lossless zoom and 20x AI Ultra Zoom, while a 32MP front camera handles selfies.

POCO F9 Pro

The POCO F9 Pro brings the same flagship dual-chip architecture to a more compact form factor. It uses a Qualcomm flagship mobile platform alongside VisionBoost D8, supporting Smart frame rate of up to 185FPS.

It features a 6.59-inch 185Hz HyperRGB AMOLED display, using the same HyperRGB technology and M11 luminescent material as the Ultra.

The F9 Pro also gets a refined design, with the Aurora Green variant featuring POCO’s first full-panel luminous design. The back can produce a soft glow in darkness after exposure to sunlight or indoor lighting, with users able to create luminous patterns using a blue-violet laser pointer.

For audio, the F9 Pro uses dual symmetrical 1115F super-linear stereo speakers with a Sealed Cavity Design. It also gets Sound by Bose tuning and the new Game Audio mode.

The phone packs a 6,330mAh battery with 100W wired and 50W wireless HyperCharge. It also supports 27W wired and 22.5W wireless reverse charging.

For cameras, the F9 Pro features the same 200MP main camera system with OIS, paired with a 50MP 2.5x floating telephoto camera capable of focusing as close as 10cm. Both phones also support 4K video with Live cinematography features, including automated focal transitions and fluid lens shifts.

The POCO F9 Series is available in Singapore from September 1, 2026, with Early Bird pricing and launch promotions running until September 17, 2026, while stocks last.

Hear me out.

Heejin is a K-Pop idol who first debuted with LOONA in 2018. She’s the group’s center, an all-rounder performer, and has a face that I adamantly believe people would go to war for.

She’s also not necessarily the first name that comes to mind for casual K-Pop fans.

That’s the POCO F9 Ultra.

It’s an all-rounder too. Great performance, a stunning display, unreal battery life, capable cameras, and a design with plenty of personality. On paper and in practice, it’s arguably just as capable as any other flagship on the market.

But when it comes to top-of-mind Android flagships, Samsung’s Galaxy S Ultra series still owns that conversation. POCO has spent the last few years trying to punch into that space, and the F9 Ultra might be its most convincing attempt yet.

Not because it does one thing exceptionally well, but because it does almost everything really well.

An all-rounder, by design

The first thing that struck me about the F9 Ultra was its weight.

It’s heavier than I expected, although I mean that in a good way. There’s a certain heft to it that makes the phone feel substantial in the hand.

And then there’s the Dark Cherry Red finish. It’s gorgeous.

The F9 Ultra looks very much like a POCO F Series phone. That’s something I appreciate. There are plenty of slab smartphones out there that could swap logos and look almost identical. POCO, meanwhile, has been developing a visual language for the F Series.

The camera module remains familiar from the last two generations. It gives the F Ultra a sense of continuity instead of making every new generation look like a completely different phone.

The dynamic lighting adds some flair. Sound by Bose is also incorporated into the camera module, giving it another distinctive touch.

But that Dark Cherry Red? POCO should make this a staple color.

Virtual Angel

Then there’s the display. The 6.9-inch 185Hz HyperRGB AMOLED display is a feast for the eyes. Much like Heejin.

So naturally, I spent a lot of my time watching some of her covers and mindlessly staring at her Instagram Reels and posts. For research, obviously.

The colors look rich and accurate. Everything is crisp. Whether I was watching something at home, sitting in a cafe, or previewing photos from an event, the display consistently looked fantastic.

It’s also a particularly good panel for a phone that encourages you to consume so much media. The combination of its size, refresh rate, and color reproduction makes pretty much everything more enjoyable.

The past few weeks have been pretty gloomy where I am, so I can’t say much about how the display performs under direct sunlight.

But in every other environment I’ve used it in, I’ve had very little to complain about.

The F9 Ultra doesn’t merely have flagship-level display specifications.

It has a display that feels flagship-level.

Pixel Memory

POCO has been making a bigger push with smartphone photography, and the F9 Ultra takes that seriously with its first 200MP main camera and 5x periscope telephoto.

The good news is that the cameras more than deliver. Photos taken anywhere from 1x to 5x look good enough to proudly show off on social media.

The zoom looks great in the gif below.

But the detail loss is more apparent in the zoomed in photo of the building.

Even 10x is pretty darn decent.

You lose some detail, as expected, but I was still impressed with how clear some of the photos came out.

A good example is the NBA House Philippines event, where I took photos of my point god, Jason Kidd, while he was on stage. I was roughly three-quarters of a basketball court away from him, yet the F9 Ultra managed to capture usable shots at significant zoom.

Here are more samples from my time at NBA House Philippines.

On regular days, whether I’m shooting in ample indoor lighting or daylight, the F9 Ultra cameras more than deliver.

They look awesome.

Dining

Night/ Low light

Daylight

Of course, this is where the Galaxy S26 Ultra conversation eventually comes in.

The F9 Ultra isn’t going to erase Samsung’s 10x zoom camera advantage. But for the vast majority of photos I took, I was more than happy with what came out of this phone.

The F9 Ultra doesn’t need to be the absolute best camera phone in every situation. It just needs to be good enough that you don’t feel like you’re compromising. For the most part, it is.

She doesn’t get tired

There’s a Heejin anecdote that feels particularly appropriate here. In a vlog some years ago, Heejin showed that she could hold a proper plank for over nine minutes.

If you’ve ever tried holding a plank, you know exactly how ridiculous that is.

There was a time when I could hold one for a little over a minute. Even that was tough.

Nine minutes is impeccable endurance. And, like Heejin, the POCO F9 Ultra’s endurance is top-notch.

I mentioned going to the NBA House Philippines event and taking lots of photos (Including the NBA x One Piece collaboration figures below).

That activity barely made a dent in the battery. I started the day at 100 percent at around 10am. By the time I left at around 4pm, the phone was still sitting at roughly 80 percent.

That’s six hours of use that included taking photos, scrolling through social media, doing some photo editing, and whatever else I happened to be doing that day.

Long-lasting might actually be an understatement.

The 8,050mAh battery is one of the biggest reasons the F9 Ultra feels different from a lot of other flagships.

And when you do eventually need to top up, the phone supports 100W wired charging. I tested this with a 100W charger, going from 38 percent to 100 percent in one hour and 19 minutes.

That’s not the fastest charging time I’ve encountered, but combined with the battery’s endurance, I rarely found myself worrying about charging in the first place.

That’s ultimately what good battery life should do. Make you stop thinking about battery life.

Video Game: the F9 Ultra takes the stage

I’ve said this before, but mobile gaming isn’t really my thing.

So testing gaming performance on phones can sometimes feel like a bit of a chore.

The F9 Ultra made it easier.

I played Neverness to Everness, which I’d like to think is a reasonably demanding game, and the phone handled it with absolute ease. I didn’t spend hours gaming on it because that’s simply not how I use phones. But the experience was enough to reinforce what the hardware already suggests.

The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, paired with the VisionBoost D8 chipset, makes everyday interaction feel smooth and seamless.

Apps open quickly. Multitasking feels effortless. You can jump between chat apps, doomscroll for an unreasonable amount of time, edit photos, and generally do whatever it is you do on your phone without feeling like you’re asking too much of it.

One thing I particularly appreciated was how easy it was to pick up where I left off. Apps could sit untouched for hours, even days, and I could come back to them without feeling like I was starting over.

That feeling stayed consistent throughout the week or so I had the phone with me. When it comes to general performance, the F Series is in the cream of the crop.

Honestly, it sounds good

POCO’s partnership with Bose gets another chance to shine through the F9 Ultra’s speakers.

I had ARTMS’ Hyper Ego EP on loop alongside the setlist from STAYC’s Stay Closer concert tour, which I’m going to later this month. Listening to them through the F9 Ultra almost felt like the first time I listened to 3D audio.

I’m not saying they sound the same. It’s the feeling I’m talking about. That feeling of hearing new sounds from a track you’ve listened to before. Little details that suddenly seem more noticeable.

The F9 Ultra’s speakers are clear, crisp, and genuinely pleasant to listen to. That’s especially noticeable when you’re watching videos or listening to music without headphones.

It’s not something I’d expect to make or break a phone purchase, but it’s another example of POCO taking an already capable flagship and finding ways to make the overall experience more enjoyable.

Much like Heejin’s voice, especially when she sings R&B.

A design that’s starting to bloom

Personally, I wouldn’t immediately recognize an F9 Ultra from across a room. But that’s a me thing.

It’s easy to dismiss slab smartphones as looking more or less the same. What I appreciate about the F9 Ultra is that POCO seems to understand that consistency can itself become an identity.

The camera module has remained familiar over the last few generations while POCO continues to play with colors, finishes, and textures. And the Dark Cherry Red is easily my favorite of the bunch.

The dynamic lighting also gives the phone some character without making it look like it’s trying too hard.

There’s a practical benefit to that camera design, too. The module is large, but it doesn’t turn the phone into a wobbling mess when you put it down on a desk or table.

It’s a small thing. But small things add up.

Ready to spread its wings

Now, about that Galaxy S26 Ultra.

The highest-end POCO F9 Ultra configuration comes in at €1,399.90 for 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Even at that price, it’s still less expensive than the base Galaxy S26 Ultra.

The 12GB + 256GB model costs €1,099.90, while the 16GB + 512GB version costs €1,199.90. Early-bird pricing drops those to €829.90 and €899.90, respectively, while the 1TB model gets an early-bird price of €1,199.90.

That’s a lot of phone for the money.

If you’re only after overall performance, the F9 Ultra can, pound for pound, compete with Samsung’s flagship. You can even argue that POCO handily beats the Galaxy in battery capacity and charging.

Where Samsung maintains a clear advantage is video, particularly zoom video. That’s not necessarily something everyone uses all the time. But if it’s important to you, the Galaxy remains the better choice.

There’s also the simple matter of being mainstream.

Because Samsung is Samsung, you have an enormous ecosystem of cases and accessories to choose from. Finding accessories for a POCO is a much more niche affair.

But those aren’t necessarily deal-breakers.

If what you’re after is general utility, impeccable performance, a gorgeous display, long battery life, capable cameras, and a criminally underrated look, the POCO F9 Ultra makes a very compelling case.

Is the POCO F9 Ultra your GadgetMatch?

The POCO F9 Ultra doesn’t feel like a phone desperately trying to become the obvious choice.

It keeps punching up. Against the Galaxy S26 Ultra, it can hold its own in performance, display, battery life, charging, and general everyday use. It even undercuts Samsung on price, especially at its early-bird rates.

The Galaxy still has its advantages. Its video capabilities, particularly zoom video, remain stronger. Its mainstream status also means more options for cases, accessories, and other ecosystem products.

But the F9 Ultra makes a compelling case where it matters most: the overall experience.

There’s no single feature that defines this phone. Instead, it’s the combination of everything it does really well.

It’s fast. Its display is gorgeous. The cameras are more than capable. The battery is ridiculous. The speakers are genuinely good. And that Dark Cherry Red — I just can’t stop admiring it.

That’s what makes the Heejin comparison work for me.

Heejin isn’t defined by one thing, either. She’s an all-rounder. She’s been consistently good at what she does for years. She has fans who know exactly why she’s worth paying attention to. She just isn’t necessarily the first name that comes to mind for everyone.

The POCO F9 Ultra is in a similar position.

It doesn’t need to beat the Galaxy S26 Ultra at everything. It just needs to make enough of a case that someone looking beyond the obvious choice realizes there’s another flagship worth considering. Because of that, it’s an easy Swipe Right.

The F9 Ultra does exactly that. It’s not necessarily the phone everyone is talking about. It’s the phone people should probably be talking about.