The CMF Phone 2 Pro went on sale on Monday – do you have plans to pick one up? We have a detailed review, which can help you make up your mind.
Nothing CMF Phone 2 Pro 5G
The phone is available globally, costing €250/£220/₹19,000 for the base 8/128GB model and €280/£250/₹21,000 for the 256GB upgrade (still with 8GB of RAM). And when we say “globally”, we’re including the US – the 8/256GB phone is available for $280 via the Beta Program.
There’s a lot going for this phone, but the key thing is the camera – especially that 50MP 2x (50mm) telephoto camera is rare in this price range. It’s joined by a 50MP main (fairly large 1/1.57” sensor but no OIS) and an 8MP ultra-wide. Okay, it’s not groundbreaking, but keep in mind that the Phone 1 really only had a single 50MP cam on the back and that was it.
CMF Phone 2 Pro
The 6.77” 12-bit HDR10+ display with 3,000 nits peak brightness is also better than average for the class. There are some other perks too, like a microSD slot, the add-on back with MagSafe magnets (but no wireless charging) and so on. The Dimensity 7300 Pro is essentially unchanged from the original, but it was overpowered for its class, anyway.
CMF Phone 2 Pro highlights
But the CMF Phone 2 Pro is in a higher price bracket, so let’s have a look at the competition. The Samsung Galaxy A36 can be found for around €330 for an 8/128GB model, making it quite a bit pricier than the CMF model. It has better water resistance (IP67 vs. IP54) and its 50MP main camera does have OIS, though it uses a smaller 1/1.96” sensor.
There’s an 8MP ultra-wide and 5MP macro, but not telephoto. The battery capacities are the same at 5,000mAh, but the A36 has a higher charge rate (45W vs. 33W). This one lacks a microSD slot, while the Snapdragon 6 Gen 3 is comparable with the Dimensity. The Galaxy will get twice as many OS updates, 6 in total.
Samsung Galaxy A36 • Xiaomi Poco X7 Pro
The Poco X7 Pro can be found for under €300 and this is with 256GB storage. It has the higher-end Dimensity 8400 Ultra and an even fancier 12-bit display with Dolby Vision, a 6.67” panel with a higher 1220p+ resolution. It has top of the line water resistance (IP69) and a large 6,000mAh battery with fast 90W charging. The downside is that the camera is closer to the A36 than to the CMF – 50MP main (1/1.96” OIS) and 8MP ultra-wide. The Poco will get the same number of OS updates as the CMF phone, three.
The Motorola Edge 60 Fusion is a bit pricey at the moment, €330 for a 256GB unit, but the old Fusion had plenty of price cuts in its time. This one also uses the Dimensity 7300 with a microSD slot and a 10-bit OLED display with a higher 1220p+ resolution and 4,500 nits brightness. It’s rated IP69 too.
The camera features a 50MP main (1/1.56”) with OIS and a 13MP ultra-wide, but no telephoto. The battery is about the same size at 5,200mAh but with double the charge rate (68W).
Motorola Edge 60 Fusion • Xiaomi Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G (Global)
How good is a 50mm telephoto camera, anyway, when the 50MP main can already do decent 2x shots? The answer to that will be in our review. But the Redmi Note 14 Pro 5G takes a different approach – the 200MP main camera is quite good at both 1x (binned to 12.5MP) and 2x shots. While you can get 200MP shots, it’s not worth the increase in file size.
The Note goes for around €250 for a 256GB unit and uses basically the same Dimensity 7300 Ultra chipset with 3 OS updates but no microSD slot. The 6.67” 12-bit Dolby Vision display with 1220p+ resolution is similar to the Poco. The 5,110mAh battery with 45W charging is a bit better than what the CMF phone has, while the IP68 rating is much better (even if it’s not IP69).
So, what do you think – is the CMF Phone 2 Pro the perfect phone for you or are you looking at a different model in this price class?
