The POCO F1 (Review) is a great phone for its price. It is currently the cheapest phone to use the fastest processor available in the Android realm: Qualcomm Snapdragon 845. There’s enough RAM and storage, a dual-camera setup, 20MP selfie camera, stereo speakers, a dual-SIM card slot, IR Face Unlock and a 4000mAh battery. However, it still runs a slightly modified version of MIUI software, which some consumers don’t like.
If you’re one of those who hates MIUI but still like the POCO F1 for the hardware it offers at an uniquely-affordable price, there’s a way you can use stock Android UI on the phone. How? Well, you can install the Android 9 Pie-based Pixel Experience ROM on the device.
Install Android 9 Pie Pixel Experience ROM on POCO F1
An XDA senior member jhenrique09 has managed to develop Android 9 Pie-based Pixel Experience ROM for the POCO F1. While there was a Pixel Experience ROM for the phone, it was based on an older version of Android (8.1 Oreo) operating system. If you have some experience in tinkering with your phone’s software, you can flash this ROM to not only try out stock Android UI on your phone but also some Pixel-exclusive features. It comes with October 2018 Android security patch. The ROM also pre-installs GApps on the phone so that you don’t have to go an extra mile to install Play Store and other Google apps on the device.
Do note that it’s in its early build, and there are a few things that aren’t working, for instance, IR Face Unlock and Wi-Fi Hotspot. If these are the things that you rely on for your day-to-day usage, you should wait for a few days more till these issues get resolved in further builds of the ROM. If not, the Android 9 Pie-based Pixel Experience ROM for the POCO F1 should serve you a decent experience for daily usage. The developer has also worked hard enough to include the latest version of GCam app from the Pixel 3 and the Pixel 3 XL in this ROM. The Digital Wellbeing app also comes bundled in this ROM. You have to root your POCO F1, install a custom recovery, and then flash the ROM file.
Download Android 9 Pie Pixel Experience ROM For POCO F1
POCO F1 Is Great, But Are There Better Alternatives?
The POCO F1 offers excellent hardware for the price, but it doesn’t particularly look great. If you want a swankier phone, the ASUS Zenfone 5Z (Review) is a good option. It looks great, has a better quality screen and offers OIS in its dual-camera setup. Then there’s Mi A2, from Xiaomi’s own stable, which offers a stock Android UI, a sleeker body and a better camera. If you want an even better phone, have a look at the OnePlus 6 (Review), which offers much better looks, close-to-stock Android UI, Android 9 Pie, much better camera and 4K 60fps video recording, and faster charging.
However, if you look at the POCO F1’s price, there’s hard to beat in terms of features as well as performance. The POCO F1 features a 6.18-inch IPS LCD screen with Full HD+ resolution and notch, a 12MP+5MP camera setup at the rear with dual-pixel PDAF and 4K video recording at 30fps, a 20MP selfie camera and IR Face Unlock, a fingerprint reader, a dual-SIM card slot, and a 4000mAh battery with Quick Charge 3.0 fast charging. The phone runs MIUI 9.6 with POCO Launcher.
