With a fresh design, a quicker system-on-chip, a somewhat bigger battery, and a new primary camera, Xiaomi is revamping its gaming phone. Can aspiring gamers purchase Black Shark 5 Pro?
Specs
Processor: 8 x 1.8–3 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processors with Cortex-X2 and A710 and A510 (Kryo) Waipio
Graphics card: Qualcomm Adreno 730
Memory: 12GB
Image: 6.67 inch 20:9, 2400 x 1080 pixel 395 PPI, capacitive touchscreen, AMOLED, 720Hz sampling rate, MEMC, bright: yes, HDR, 144 Hz
Hard disk: 256GB UFS 3.1 Flash, 256GB, 240GB Free
Weight: 220 g
Price: 899 euros
Hardware and Case
When Xiaomi unveiled its first Black Shark-branded phone a few years ago, it was a pioneer in gaming phones. On paper, the fifth version of the Pro model boasts a lot of the features you’d anticipate from a gaming phone, and at €799 (about US$799), it’s considerably less expensive than competitors like the Asus ROG Phone 5s.
The following models of the Black Shark 5 Pro are available:
*€799 for the Xiaomi Black Shark 5 Pro with 8GB RAM and 128GB of storage.
*€899 for the Xiaomi Black Shark 5 Pro with 12GB RAM and 256GB of storage.
*€999 for the Xiaomi Black Shark 5 Pro with 16GB RAM and 256GB of storage.
Unfortunately, the most expensive model was scarcely offered at the time of testing, and most customers are unlikely to benefit from a pure RAM upgrade for under €100.
There are alternatives for white and black, but the Black Shark 5 has a matte finish on the rear with lines that resemble circuit diagrams or futuristic machine markings, while the Pro model typically has a bolder design. Although it seems mediocre and can easily fold into the middle of the back, the smartphone fits comfortably in the palm.
Slow data transfers are caused by the USB-C port’s internal connection to USB 2.0 and the fact that it still needs an IP certification. NFC and Bluetooth 5.2 are integrated, though.
Use, software, and communication: Insufficient timely security updates
Wi-Fi 6 is a feature of the Black Shark 5 Pro, which is also a little quicker than its predecessor. You may easily get mobile Internet while going to the majority of locations thanks to 5G and support for a large number of 4G frequencies.
Black Shark 5 Pro runs Android 12 under JoyUI 13, which is used. At the time of testing, the security upgrades were dated March 2022, thus an update is urgently required. When questioned, the manufacturer’s update policy is “every few months for two years.”
There are two magnetic triggers that can be mechanically folded on the long side. Naturally, their primary use in design is as shoulder buttons, though many games allow for function assignment. They can also be utilized as extra buttons while using a smartphone regularly. Xiaomi has developed a few features, but not all of them are clearly explained when you read about them for the first time. The only solution is to look for them yourself.
The standby button on the right side of the casing houses the fingerprint sensor. It quickly unlocks the iPhone and consistently recognizes our finger. It is also possible to unlock using facial recognition, but only in 2D. There are two magnetic triggers that can be mechanically folded on the long side. They are plainly more insecure and shouldn’t be utilized, for example, for security unlocking in banking apps, as they are primarily intended to be shoulder buttons.
AMOLED 144Hz display
The screen appears to be the same panel as the Black Shark 4 model from before. The measured numbers vary somewhat here and there, however this could be because of the updated SoC and software.
Additionally, the AMOLED display may be relatively bright when required and has an enlarged Full HD resolution. Even with a limited screen area with backlight, we are unable to measure the 1,300 nits that Xiaomi claims is the maximum brightness using our spectrophotometer.
Performance, emissions and battery life
The producer provides the cutting-edge Snapdragon 8 Gen as a premium chipset. The system in a chip is necessary for it. In fact, the Black Shark 5 Pro performs 10–20% better in our benchmarks than its predecessor. A streamlined system is also ensured by the presence of quick memory.
Black Shark 5 Pro does not always outperform rivals using outdated chipsets in terms of graphics performance, nevertheless. This might be the case because the SoC overheats and needs to throttle quickly to prevent overheating.
This likely explains why, despite “Shark Space’s” “Ludicrous” performance level being activated, we were unable to exceed 60 frames per second in the games we tested. For this performance option, Black Shark advises using a separate cooler situated in the center of the device.
When playing games or listening to music, the stereo speakers on the phone’s sides can be turned up quite loudly if needed. Good low-mids are used to deliver this; only the passages with a lot of bass accents seem a little flat. There is no 3.5mm audio connector, although headphones can be connected through USB-C or Bluetooth. Additionally, the smartphone uses all aptX codecs that are currently on the market to interact wirelessly.
This battery has a 4,650 mAh capacity and charges at a rate of 120 W much more quickly. In contrast to the Black Shark 4, a handy 120 W charger is now included, cutting the charging time to just under 30 minutes. Additionally, the smartphone now requires a little more time. The Black Shark 5 Pro is obviously geared for performance rather than battery life, but 12:32 hours in our Wi-Fi test is still a respectable endurance.
Last Word: Outstanding game features
The Black Shark 5 Pro appears to be a cautious update over the model it replaces, featuring new hardware, an improved processor, and a camera with a little greater resolution. We are content with the quick storage, trustworthy fingerprint sensor, excellent stereo speakers, and quick Wi-Fi in daily use. There are numerous parameters available for each game in the home game mode “Shark Space.”
Although the Asus ROG Phone 5s, which is its competitor, lacks features like wireless charging, it has incredibly strong speakers and gives a lot of performance. Additionally, Nubia RedMagic 7s pro provides touch buttons for additional keys.
Read here more about the Nubia Redmagic 7s pro
Price
$689.00 at Amazon.com (29/January/2023)
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