The Black Shark 4 Pro is a smartphone that has a digital assistant built inside that wants to interact with me in ways that the Google Assistant, Siri, Alexa, or Cortana never could. The cartoon Shark Chan mascot is a feature that shines out on an otherwise unremarkable gaming phone. It is intended to be a kind of assistant that helps you become familiar with the many options on this phone.
The Black Shark 4 Pro is a gaming phone that offers features that haven’t been done before, such as high refresh rate displays, absurdly high RAM levels, and an additional USB-C port for proprietary accessories like controller grips or cooling fans.
Design
The Black Shark 4 Pro’s design is simple and unassuming. The two tiny toggle switches that hide two more pop-out buttons to the right of the phone’s front are its most intriguing feature. You can programme these buttons to do a variety of things, such as taking screenshots or skipping media tracks. ..
The 4 Pro is a gaming phone that you can use its extra buttons to control gameplay when the phone is in landscape mode. The Black Shark logo that flashes green on the back of the phone when it is unlocked is also a nice touch. You can also use that light to receive call and message notifications, or you can completely turn it off.
The Galaxy S10 is a more advanced phone than the majority of phones. It has more in-the-bag features than most phones, such as a 3.5mm headphone jack, a fingerprint sensor, volume controls, and USB-C for charging and data transfer. The total size is 163.8 mm by 76.4 mm by 9.9 mm (which converts to 6.45 inches x 3.01 inches x 0.39 inches). ..
This phone is a bit too heavy and clunky for our taste, but it’s well-crafted and feels good in the hand. The camera hump on the back is by no means unsightly. Although there are additional color choices, we received our review unit in black. Shadow Black, Misty Grey, Cosmos Black, Dark Blue, and Silver make up the entire variety.
Display
The Black Magic 4 Pro’s display is really, really, ridiculously attractive. A 6.67-inch AMOLED screen with a 2400 x 1080 resolution and a lovely 144Hz refresh rate can be found here. In addition, Black Shark touts its support for HDR 10+, 111% DCI-P3 calibration, and 1,300 nit peak brightness. Of course, gamers need to pay close attention to the refresh rate: It can go up to 144 Hz. This, by no means, can be utilized in all mobile games.
Although at least 90 Hz would undoubtedly be feasible, we only managed to get a maximum of 60 Hz while testing it with PUBG Mobile. Here, the phone manufacturer must make some adjustments in addition to the game designer. However, because they use more battery power, high frame rates are frequently avoided by manufacturers.
Black Shark 4 Pro review: Software
Xiaomi’s JoyUI, which is based on its flagship MIUI programme, is installed on the Black Shark 4 Pro. In general, it’s not an awful operating system; however, we occasionally yearned for the elegance and simplicity of Android’s original, stock version. This is another example of how Xiaomi likes to pack a lot of features, settings, and utilities into its OSes.
The Shark Space app is a useful addition to the Black Shark 4 Pro phone, but it’s not absolutely necessary. Although the phone can be adjusted and customized to a great extent, there may be a few settings and applications that are unnecessary, such as the Mi Video app and the Shark Chan gaming assistant. However, JoyUI is generally not too difficult to use. ..
Hardware and performance
The Black Shark 4 Pro is a powerful phone that has a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor. This processor is paired with up to 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM and 256GB of UFS 3.1 storage. The phone also has a “sandwich” liquid cooling system that maintains optimal thermals, which helps the phone perform well in benchmark tests. ..
The iPhone SE’s A15 Bionic processor scored 3,742 on the Geekbench 5 test and a 3DMark Wild Life average frame rate of 35.2 FPS. However, the RedMagic 6R processor achieved a multi-core score of 3,652 and matched the average FPS.
The OnePlus 10 Pro outperforms the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (3,682 multi-core) in the OnePlus 10 Pro, suggesting a change in priorities with the 8 Gen 1. However, graphics performance has significantly improved.
The Galaxy S8 is a phone that never shows any lag, regardless of the games you run on it. The same holds true for your regular activities, including as multitasking and swiping between apps. While newer components may offer faster speeds, this phone offers a good price-to-performance ratio and does not suffer from temperature spikes that would slow it down.
Black Shark 4 Pro review: Camera
The Black Shark 4 Pro has a better camera than its predecessor, but it’s still not what most people would call a flagship.
The 8Mp ultrawide lens is perfect for capturing stunning images of large objects or landscapes. It has a focal length of 24mm and a wide angle of 85mm. The 5Mp macro lens is perfect for taking close-up shots of small details or animals. It has a focal length of 2.8mm and a wide angle of 18mm.
When shooting in low light, it’s important to use the dedicated night mode to get the best results. This will reduce the noise level and make images look softer. However, using optical image stabilization (OIS) would be able to correct the wobble better than electronic image stabilization (EIS).
Although there is still a noticeable difference in detail between shots taken with the main lens and those taken with the 119-degree ultrawide, this difference only becomes more pronounced as light levels start to wane. Only in the best lighting conditions is the ultra-wide lens ideal for landscape or group photos. The 5Mp macro lens is something we should keep quiet about, in part because it took us so long to locate the mode in the Camera app that we assume Black Shark intentionally concealed it.
The iPhone XS Max has a 120-degree ultra-wide camera that is more than wide enough for group selfies, but it performs worse in low light than the wide camera on the rear. ..
Battery life
The Black Shark 4 Pro’s biggest flaw is its battery life. It can only last for three hours before it needs to be charged again, which is not enough for an average person who spends three hours a day on their phone. ..
We are disappointed with the Black Shark 4 Pro because it doesn’t offer enough battery life to last the full 24 hours. We hope that Xiaomi will release a larger battery for their mid-range devices in the future.
The Xiaomi Black Shark 4 Pro is a powerful and fast charger that will help you get the most out of your devices. It comes with a 6A USB-C cable and a 120W power supply, so you can charge your devices quickly and easily. The Black Shark 4 Pro also delivers on its promise of going from 0% to 100% in an astounding 20 minutes.
We are not entirely at ease with the amount of heat that an electronic device emits, especially when it’s being charged. That can be dangerous for you and your house as well as being risky for the battery’s longevity. Would we compromise safety for accelerated charging? No, and neither should you. You will learn our article on Black Shark 4 Pro review.
Price and availability
Black Shark 4 Pro review: Conclusion
The Xiaomi Black Shark 4 is a good gaming phone that has a mechanical trigger trick up its sleeve that makes the buttons more reliable than those on competing gaming smartphones with touch solutions. The phone’s appearance is somewhat understated, and unlike other gaming phones, it doesn’t feature LED lighting effects. The smartphone is reasonably light, the camera takes good pictures, and the speakers can even simulate some bass. Although the battery runtimes could be longer, they are adequate for daily use. ..
