Black Shark 5 Pro review Introduction.
Xiaomi's Black Shark gaming series has been around for some time and has built a good reputation. The latest addition to the proud family is the Black Shark 5 lineup, which was unveiled in March with a total of three models so far. What we have for review today is the top-tier Black Shark 5 Pro with all the bells and whistles and several more.
Its siblings are Vanilla Black Shark 5 and Black Shark 5 RS. These two lineups are a bit difficult to spot, but both include downgrades to the chipset, display, and camera sections compared to the Black Shark 5 Pro.
The Black Shark 5 Pro is a flagship device. A Snapdragon 8 sits on the core of the Gen1, which is currently dominating the smartphone's performance charts until at least the Snapdragon 8+ Gen1 starts appearing on real retail devices. Xiaomi cooled it with a pair of steam chambers, not, one on each side (4,323mm + 997mm). And it's not the only internal part that has been "doubled".
The Black Shark 5 Pro comes with 512GB storage but is split between 256GB UFS 3.1 and 256GB NVMe SSD storage. Black Shark has significantly improved random read and write functionality using the so-called DM cache technology. Also, fast LPDDR5 (6,400 Mbps) RAM can be used to create a RAM disk at times when more rapid storage is required.
The internal battery also boasts nice features like a decent 4,650 mAh capacity and 120W fast charging support. At full speed, it can charge the battery from zero in just 15 minutes, but an additional temperature control mode slows down charging in about 24 minutes. Also, the phone has a battery bypass mode for gaming while external power is plugged in. This is one of the few features that enhance the user experience, especially on a gaming device
Xiaomi Black Shark 5 Pro specs at a glance:
Body: 163.9x76.5x9.5mm, 220g; metal frame, glass back; Physical pop-up gaming triggers.
Display: 6.67" OLED, 1B colors, 144Hz, HDR10+, 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 395ppi; Always-on display.
Chipset: Qualcomm SM8450 Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 (4 nm): Octa-core (1x3.00 GHz Cortex-X2 & 3x2.40 GHz Cortex-A710 & 4x1.70 GHz Cortex-A510); Adreno 730.
Memory: 256GB 8GB RAM, 256GB 12GB RAM, 512GB 16GB RAM; UFS 3.1/NVMe SSD.
OS/Software: Android 12, Joy UI 13.
Rear camera: Wide (main): 108 MP, f/1.8, 1/1.52", 0.7µm, PDAF; Ultra wide angle: 13 MP, f/2.4, 120-degree; Telephoto macro: 5 MP, f/2.4, AF.
Front camera: 16 MP, (wide).
Video capture: Rear camera: 4K@30/60fps, 1080p@30/60/240fps, 1080p@960fps; HDR10+; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
Battery: 4650mAh; Fast charging 120W, 100% in 15 min (advertised).
Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); NFC.
In terms of pairing hardware, the Black Shark 5 Pro has symmetrical speakers with a 1.5cc cavity. The 5 Pro currently tops DxOMark's audio charts with 86 points (beating its predecessors by 5 points). The device also has four mics and two ambient light sensors - one on the front and one on the rear to fully control the brightness of the display.
The display is also the top hardware. The 6.67-inch AMOLED panel has a 144Hz refresh rate and 720Hz touch sampling. It has a 10-bit panel with HDR10 + support and promises excellent DCI-P3 color accuracy and coverage.
Avoiding camera setup a bit has been a common practice on gaming phones in the past, but at least on paper, it doesn't seem to be the case with the Black Shark 5 Pro. It has a large 108MP main cam with a 1 / 1.52 "sensor, a 13MP ultra-wide-angle camera (120-degree), and a 5MP telephoto macro lens. It focuses from a distance of 3-7 cm. - For your action.
It all starts with a reasonable domestic MSRP of CNY 4,200 ($ 660 / € 595). A global release is also planned for the next date.
Unboxing
The Black Shark 5 Pro ships inside a sturdy two-piece box with lots of green accents and aggressive geometric shapes. Everything is safe, and there's a plastic swing for the phone inside, so we're happy with that.
Accessory packages are actually plentiful by modern standards. First and foremost, you get a 120W charger. It’s a proprietary Xiaomi brick that is a little heavier than your average wall ward but not so big, making it feel “dense”. It uses GaN technology.
The model is officially known as MDY-13-EE and is rated for the following outputs: 5V @ 3A (15W), 9V @ 3A (27W), 11V @ 6A (66W), 20V @ 5A (120W).
Here are a couple of interesting details. First, this particular brick can supply only 120W with a power grid of about 220 volts like in Europe. If you have 110V, the total maximum output will be 20V@4.8A (96W). Second, the brick still depends on the USB Type-A to Type-C cable. Which is rated for 6A, which is proprietary, so you hold on to it.
In addition to the charger and wiring, our Black Shark 5 Pro box comes with a sturdy and great-quality plastic case. Also, some "gamer" stickers.
Unfortunately, there is no 3.5mm dongle from the Type-C, which would be appreciated in the absence of a 3.5mm jack on the phone.
This seems like a good place to start, as there are several additional, optional accessories on offer for the Black Shark 5 Pro. Things like a new version of the Black Shark active external cooler, and a special case to optimize its functionality. Also, some beaver button attachments for the pair of pop-out side triggers on the Black Shark 5.
Although we haven't found any of these toys in our review kit, we haven't been able to test them yet.