Rumour | Android 10 update doubles gaming performance for the Pocophone F1

The Pocophone F1, better than ever at over a year old? (Image source: Gizchina)

Xiaomi may have taken its time in delivering Android 10 to the Pocophone F1, but the OS upgrade apparently brings more than just minor changes to the device. Some people are even claiming that the update brings drastically improved gaming performance, which would be a boon for the almost eighteen-month-old handset.

Alex Alderson, 01/24/2020 🇷🇺

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Xiaomi started issuing Android 10 to the Pocophone F1 the other day, albeit seemingly in batches. Rumour has it that the update brings more than just an OS upgrade too. According to multiple sources, the update brings improved gaming performance for the device, and potentially up to double framerates in some games.

The rumour seemingly started with Ksk Royal, a YouTuber who published a video about the Android 10 update for the Pocophone F1. At around 3:10 into the video, he demonstrates the option to switch between Graphics Drivers within Developer Options, with the "Game Driver" yielding much considerably higher benchmark scores than the "Default" one. Additionally, the "Game Driver" can be configured to activate on a per-app basis, allowing the Pocophone F1 to utilise it only in cetain games, for example.

There have been reports of improved in-game framerates, too. Our review unit could only average around 40 FPS in PUBG Mobile running Android 9.0 Pie, for example, but some people state that their units can now achieve 60 FPS on the new driver.

We do not have a Pocophone F1 to hand to test the "Game Driver", nor if this option was present on older builds of MIUI. Let us know in the comments of your experiences with Android 10 on the Pocophone F1. We would also be interested in knowing whether the "Game Driver" has brought performance improvements to your device, too.