Big screen, hefty battery, and fun design; I am talking about the Poco M3, which until the announcement of the Redmi Note 9 4G, looked like a standalone product with unique features.
It so happened that now excellent Xiaomi remained only among the senior state employees and then under the Redmi brand. The most sophisticated flagships of the company, even in Chinese stores, are inadequately expensive. And then suddenly, the lovers of cheapness decided to help out Poco, who, after the release of Poco M3, announced that he was stronger, gained experience, and was ready to “overthrow mountains” alone. From now on, he does not want to be a “dancer” company with Xiaomi and is prepared to increase his prestige in the public’s eyes.
In theory, the Poco M3 should be a comfortable mobile phone, both in terms of its capabilities and purchase cost. Let’s try to figure it out with all this “beauty” because even with all the characteristics, this Poco smartphone does not work as expected.
Practicality Rules, but with a Catchy Detail
Since the advent of smartphones with a drop-shaped notch for the front camera, they have been teased, annoyed, and scolded with the last words for the monotony and dominance of such devices. And now, there are no more words and associations left to somehow describe the solution with a drop-cut in an original way.
Therefore, I suggest simply considering that the facade of the Xiaomi Poco M3 is the most typical smartphone for our days, which received a display with relatively small frames. There is a selfie camera in the hole in the center, and such a cutout is called a “drop.”
They tried to achieve some degree of premium because the back panel, although made of plastic, is textured and friendly – no-frills in usability. The smartphone lies in the palm of your hand comfortably, reliably, and tactilely pleasant.
The Poco M3 came in black, but it comes in three colors, including blue and yellow. Although an extensive battery is fitted inside, the smartphone’s dimensions are within normal limits, and the laurels of a bulky device do not pretend to.
Another sign of this year is the identification means in the side power button. In Poco M3, the manufacturer decided to abandon the fingerprint scanner on the rear panel, even though the coverage area is higher on the “back” and accidental presses are minimized.
The designers wanted Xiaomi Poco M3 to achieve a kind of integrity and solidity of the body. Nothing would distract attention from the design of the primary camera. In any case, the Poco M3 fingerprint scanner is handy and hassle-free.
In the upper part of the back cover, there is a glossy substrate for the central camera unit and the brand logo almost along the entire width. Original and zakos for the premium OnePlus 8T Cyberpunk 2077.
A separate headphone jack is present, you can charge the smartphone using USB Type-C, and another pleasant discovery in the Xiaomi Poco M3 is a full-size slot. In addition to two nano-SIM, there is a separate place for a micro USB memory card. Beauty, no agony of choice! There is a cover in the kit, and the film is glued to the display “from the factory.” One of the nice things about the Poco X3 smartphone is its dual speakers. The sound is not extremely loud, rich, and deep. The gadget will not replace the music column, but watching the video and special effects in games “caress” the ear, the Xiaomi Poco M3 sounds impressive for its budget.
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Display
The Poco M3 has a 6.53-inch IPS screen with a resolution of 2340×1080 pixels; it is an elongated 19.5: 9 format. In terms of its capabilities and picture quality, it is essentially similar to other inexpensive Xiaomi smartphones. The pixel density is not excellent but sufficient to perceive the picture normally – 395ppi.
For most parameters, the smartphone display can be called normal in quality. Although “by eye,” it looks decent. There are no color rendition and viewing angles, but the maximum brightness is 400 nits.
It is unnecessary to count on the excellent readability of information on the matrix in direct sunlight with such an indicator. There are no premium features like increased hertz and increased sensor response rate, and wide color gamut.
Poco M3 is a budget smartphone, and it was necessary to save on something, and traces of a price reduction are visible in which matrix they preferred here.
Eight Cores and a Lot of Battery
Even if you accept that the display here is not from the “top” category, then you should accept one more thing: despite the screeching of rabid Xiaomi fanatics, it turns out that “Xiaomi smartphone hardware is not always the coolest for a dollar spent.”
Do not forget that a low price tag always has a downside, and this is savings. In the case of the Poco M3, the manufacturer should already say thanks for refusing to install lame budget MediaTek chips.
The Snapdragon 662 processor, which powers the Poco M3, belongs to the middle class. The chip offers a still modern technical process in 11 nm for a small price and will successfully cope with the main array of tasks. But at the same time, the chipset is not endowed with any “show-offs” of performance, and you definitely shouldn’t expect it to run modern games well without jerks at high graphics quality.
In this regard, the Poco M3 has nothing to please. The smartphone does not have any serious gaming potential and does not show much zeal in games. You should also be prepared because sometimes, in everyday tasks, Xiaomi Poco M3 will encounter minor difficulties.
In general, it gives the impression of a leisurely device, a persistent feeling that it does not “screw up” at the limit of its capabilities. Snapdragon 662 tries to cling to modernity and maintain bravado, but its power reserve has already evaporated.
The Snapdragon 662 has one more lousy feature – it is a “glutton” in terms of energy. Poco M3 tried to disguise this drawback by installing a battery with a capacity of 6000 mAh, and at maximum load, they try to “choke” the frequency of the chip so that it could eat less and not “fly up” high. But the tricks to increase the duration of the Xiaomi Poco M3 did not bring a special effect.
On the one hand, this is a smartphone with a 6000 mAh battery, and on the other, see which models are nearby in our proprietary rating of battery life. So, the novelty is only slightly behind the Xiaomi Mi 10T-Lite, which has a 4820 mAh battery and a 120 Hz screen.
And all because the chip has to “feed” a significant and gluttonous display with FullHD + resolution, and “crooked” developers applied their “skills” here. The miracle “we have super-autonomy here” did not happen.
The hardware in the Poco M3 will not be replaced, and one can only hope that over time the software flaws will be removed, and the operating time will be slightly tightened. But you should not expect that this will lead to a serious increase in stamina.
Therefore, in terms of autonomy, nothing extraordinary. The smartphone can withstand its two days under average load, but the idea of driving it “in three necks” will have to be abandoned. Fast charging in the Xiaomi Poco M3 is available, and that’s great. In reality, a charge from 0 to 100% occurs in 2 hours and 47 minutes. Long? But the battery is also not small here, and the charging speed is at the level of competitors.
The amount of RAM is 4 GB; the Poco M3 does not jump above its head here. There are two flash memory options: 64 GB and 128 GB. Provided that a memory card with a capacity of up to 512 GB can be installed in a smartphone, everything worked out perfectly in internal storage.
Triple Camera is an Unnecessary Luxury
The Poco M3 uses a 48-megapixel Quad Bayer sensor, and the company touts it as an advantage of the model. But the fact is that Xiaomi uses modules with such a resolution, starting with the Redmi Note 7, which debuted back in January 2019, so there is no need to talk about some “wow effect.” And in total, the Poco M3 received three cameras, but as often happens in the budget segment – they are here for quantity. Two of the three sensors are responsible for macro photography and software blurring of the background. As a result, only one module is removed.
Although the manufacturer persistently wants to create the impression that the Poco M3 camera is “pumped up” in its resolution against the background of the Poco M2, it usually takes pictures only during the day. It is essential for the main module under what conditions the shooting is carried out. During the day, the camera produces quite decent shots, of course, with an eye on the budget. The shooting quality naturally drops in the dark, and it is almost impossible to get a sharp frame. In all respects, the Poco M3 camera gives out that this is a budget solution and it was not “licked” here to the level of “above only a star.” The selfie camera was not a revelation either. It copes well with its duties, and this is an ordinary decision.
It may sound trite, but you should always make allowances because the Poco M3 is an economy option, which cannot compete with smartphones of a higher class in terms of status. He shoots with his own money, and objectively, in terms of photo/video shooting quality, calling him outright trash is the height of injustice. The smartphone usually creates pictures, and to upload a photo to a social network, it will do.
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Conclusions
Poco M3 is a reasonable proposition at the intersection of entry-level and mid-range devices. Yes, after the start of sales, it costs several dollars more than it should be. But do not forget about the harsh realities of the fallen exchange rate of domestic currencies. Now Xiaomi is trying to make money on the rush demand, but over time the price tag will settle down, and all the advantages of the Poco M3, however, like their troubles, will not go anywhere.
Objectively, this is one of the best smartphones in its price segment. There would still be NFC – and the price would not have been for him. But if we abstract from the lack of opportunities to make contactless payments, then Poco M3 is a decent smartphone of its level, not ideal and with many flaws, but close to our man’s dream “all-inclusive and no overpayment.”
Why Poco M3 is good:
- good screen;
- capacious flash drive + dedicated microSD card slot;
- practical body and unbroken design (back panel);
- moderate dimensions;
- two speakers;
- Infrared port;
- normal autonomy + fast charging.
Why Poco M3 is bad:
- the display lacks brightness;
- inexpressive opportunities for photo/video shooting;
- lack of NFC;
- the weak hardware platform for heavy games.
Where to Buy:
Poco M3 is available on almost all online marketplace, you can buy it following links bellow:
