POCO is back to its old tricks, pushing the boundaries of what a performance smartphone should cost and deliver. The Xiaomi sub-brand just dropped the POCO X8 Pro Series, and for the first time, it is bringing a Pro Max model to the lineup. If you thought battery anxiety was a thing of the past, POCO is making absolutely sure of it with some of the most overkill spec sheets we have seen this year.

(Update, March 19: Our POCO X8 Pro Max review is up!)

The headliner is undoubtedly the POCO X8 Pro Max, which we at REVU already unboxed before. The phone is built around a huge 8,500mAh silicon-carbon battery. That is enough juice to comfortably push through two days of heavy use on a single charge. And when it does eventually die, it supports 100-watt wired HyperCharge and 27-watt reverse charging to get your other devices back up to speed.

@revuphilippines Unboxing the POCO X8 Pro Max! 📦 8,500mAh battery and the global debut of MediaTek Dimensity 9500s — this one's a beast. 🔥 More at www.revu.com.ph! #POCOX8ProMax #POCOX8Pro #POCOX8ProSeries #RevuDotComDotPH @POCO Philippines @Xiaomi Philippines @Xiaomi @monch @Alora Uy Guerrero ♬ original sound – REVU Philippines

The POCO X8 Pro Max unboxing video we uploaded before the launch. Our review should be up by tomorrow, March 18

The Pro Max is the first smartphone to globally debut the 3nm MediaTek Dimensity 9500s chipset, paired with up to 16GB of LPDDR5X Ultra RAM and 512GB of UFS 4.1 storage. To keep thermals in check during heavy workloads, POCO included a large 5,800-square-millimeter 3D IceLoop cooling system.

The device features a 6.83-inch 1.5K AMOLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision, and a peak brightness of 3,500 nits, all protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 7i. For durability, it’s wrapped in a metal frame with a fiberglass back and carries a ridiculous suite of ingress protection ratings: IP66, IP68, IP69, and IP69K.

POCO X8 Pro Max specs

• 6.83-inch AMOLED display, 1.5K resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, ProHDR, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 3,500 nits brightness, Corning Gorilla Glass 7i
• 3nm MediaTek Dimensity 9500s chipset
• Immortalis-G925 MC12 GPU
• 12GB/16GB LPDDR5X Ultra RAM
• 256GB/512GB UFS 4.1 storage
• Dual rear cameras: 50-megapixel main, 8-megapixel ultrawide
• 20-megapixel front camera
• Android 16 with HyperOS 3
• 8,500mAh battery with 100-watt wired charging
• IP68/IP69K rating
• Color options: Black, White, Blue

If 8,500mAh is too much phone for your pocket, the standard POCO X8 Pro scales things back just a bit. It packs a 6,500mAh battery in a more compact body and runs on the new MediaTek Dimensity 8500-Ultra processor, kept cool by a 5,300-square-millimeter dual-layer IceLoop system. It sports a slightly smaller 6.59-inch display but retains the 3,500-nit peak brightness and Gorilla Glass 7i. Both models feature a 50-megapixel main camera and a 20-megapixel front-facing shooter. The Pro Max gets a Light Fusion 600 sensor, while the standard Pro uses a Sony IMX882.

The company is also keeping its Marvel partnership alive with the POCO X8 Pro Iron Man Edition. The device features a black and gold chassis inspired by Stark Industries armor and comes with a customized Iron Man-themed user interface to match.

POCO X8 Pro specs

• 6.59-inch AMOLED display, 1.5K resolution, 120Hz refresh rate, HDR10+, Dolby Vision, 3,500 nits brightness, Corning Gorilla Glass 7i
• 4nm MediaTek Dimensity 8500-Ultra chipset
• Mali-G720 MC8 GPU
• 8GB/12GB LPDDR5X RAM
• 256GB/512GB UFS 4.1 storage
• Dual rear cameras: 50-megapixel main, 8-megapixel ultrawide
• 20-megapixel front camera
• Android 16 with HyperOS 3
• 6,500mAh battery with 100-watt wired charging
• IP68/IP69K rating
• Color options: Black, White, Mint Green

Both smartphones run on Xiaomi HyperOS 3 and come with Google Gemini and Circle to Search built-in. The most interesting software addition for us, though, is the Ticket Purchase mode. POCO claims this feature optimizes touch response, screen performance, and processing power to give users an edge when trying to secure tickets during high-demand online sales. Cool, right?

Another neat trick is Xiaomi Offline Communication, which allows for voice calls over short distances without a cellular network.

POCO continues to aggressively undercut traditional flagships. Globally, the standard POCO X8 Pro starts at an early-bird price of $299 for the 8GB RAM + 256GB storage model, goes up to $329 for the 8GB + 512GB version, and tops out at $359 for the 12GB + 512GB variant. The POCO X8 Pro Max costs $429 for the 12GB + 256GB configuration and $459 for the 12GB + 512GB model. The 12GB + 512GB POCO X8 Pro Iron Man Edition hits the global market at $399.

Speed to the max with the POCO X8 Pro and the first ever POCO X8 Pro Max.
A performance flagship that feels overpowered for everything you do.
Starting from just $299. Grab yours now！🛒 pic.twitter.com/0imjbDKQaC

— POCO (@POCOGlobal) March 17, 2026

Global pricing

In the Philippines, the series goes on an early-bird sale from March 17 to March 26 through Shopee, Lazada, and TikTok Shop. The standard POCO X8 Pro currently sells for ₱15,499, the POCO X8 Pro Max starts at ₱18,999, and the Iron Man Edition is priced at ₱18,999. Given the rising costs of flagship components like the Dimensity 9500s and these large batteries, the brand’s pricing strategy here reflects a slight premium over last year’s models, but still heavily undercuts traditional flagships offering similar performance.

Prices in the Philippines