Billed because the true successor to the long-lasting Poco F1, the brand new Poco X3 Pro has some large footwear to fill. Not everybody needs all the newest fancy options – some patrons with tight budgets like having decisions on the subject of telephones that prioritise the cameras, battery life, and even gaming efficiency. The Poco F1 was all about its high-end processor and made no apologies about lagging in different departments. With a brand new concentrate on the youth market, Poco has chosen a barely totally different strategy for the X3 Pro. Interestingly, guardian firm Xiaomi has additionally just lately launched the Mi 11X (Review) in India, which in different markets is often known as the Poco F3 and is a better match to the F1 when it comes to value. Which of those telephones do you have to select? We’ve acquired the solutions.
Poco X3 Pro value in India
The Poco X3 Pro has been launched beginning at Rs. 18,999 with 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. If you need 8GB of RAM, there’s one other variant priced at Rs. 20,999, however storage stays unchanged. If you contemplate your self an influence person and anticipate to make use of this cellphone closely for a number of years, you would possibly discover the distinction between 6GB and 8GB of RAM. There are three color choices: Graphite Black, Steel Blue, and Golden Bronze.
In phrases of positioning, the Poco X3 prices lower than the Poco F1 (Review) did at launch time, though that mannequin obtained a number of value cuts and was usually discounted on sale. It will compete with the Redmi Note 10 Pro Max (Review), Realme X7 5G (Review), Moto G60 (Review), and a number of other different well-liked latest fashions.
The Poco X3 Pro is 9.4mm thick and weighs 213g
Poco X3 Pro design
The Poco model is clearly concentrating on youthful patrons who like flashy designs that can stand out anyplace. We’ve seen daring colors, distinctive digital camera module shapes, and crowd pleasing patterns on some just lately launched Poco telephones. Unsurprisingly, the X3 Pro seems to be loads just like the Poco X3 (Review), with the identical sort of outsized digital camera module within the centre of the rear which seems to be like a circle with the highest and backside flattened out.
Two-thirds of the rear panel has a frosted matte end, however there is a thick stripe proper down the centre which isn’t solely shiny and reflective, but in addition has a sample of diagonal traces that you will see at sure angles. This a part of the rear picks up fingerprints simply, and so they stand out much more as a result of the matte areas on both facet stay comparatively clear. There’s an enormous Poco emblem on this stripe as nicely, nevertheless it’s outlined and never stable like on the X3, which makes it a bit much less in-your-face.
Not everybody will like how massive and heavy the Poco X3 Pro is. It weighs 213g and is 9.4mm thick, that are each above common for this section. The physique is rated IP53 and Poco refers to this as “splash-proof”, and it is all the time welcome. The entrance is manufactured from Corning Gorilla Glass 6.
On the entrance, there is a 6.67-inch show with a digital camera gap on the top-centre. There’s a notification LED hidden within the speaker grille proper on the prime, however whereas this can be a well-liked function, it is not actually seen until you are taking a look at this cellphone head-on.
Poco has gone with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor which is barely recessed. The quantity buttons are proper above it. On the left is the hybrid dual-SIM tray which implies you will should sacrifice a second SIM if you wish to use a microSD card for extra storage, or vice versa. Xiaomi’s trademark IR emitter is on the highest, together with a gap for higher sound via the earpiece when used as a second speaker. On the underside, you will discover a 3.5mm audio socket, a USB Type-C port, and the first speaker.
The fingerprint sensor is embedded in the ability button on the best
Poco X3 Pro specs
The most attention-grabbing factor concerning the Poco X3 Pro is its Qualcomm Snpadragon 860 SoC. This is a comparatively unusual processor and we’re seeing it in motion for the primary time. Qualcomm hardly ever gives a number of 800-series fashions in a 12 months, however now we have now not solely the flagship Snapdragon 888, but in addition an 870 and 860 within the combine. It is a barely tweaked model of the Snapdragon 855 from a number of years in the past, however that is nonetheless fairly highly effective by right now’s requirements. It echoes the Poco F1’s use of the Snapdragon 845 which was a bit dated however nonetheless very succesful for its time.
The Snapdragon 860 has eight CPU cores with one operating at 2.96GHz, three at 2.42GHz and 4 extra at 1.8GHz, and in addition options the Adreno 640 built-in GPU. It doesn’t have an built-in 5G modem, and whereas 5G is just not a sensible actuality in India but, Poco would possibly appear to be a bit behind the curve since most different producers are pushing this as a giant promoting level on the sub-Rs. 20,000 value degree.
You get a reasonably large 6.67-inch full-HD+ LCD display screen. It does have a 120Hz most refresh fee and 240Hz most contact sampling fee, in addition to HDR10 assist. There’s a reasonably beneficiant 5,160mAh battery and 33W quick charging, with an identical charger included within the field. Poco has used UFS 128GB of three.1 storage and 6GB or 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM. In different nations, the higher-end variant has 256GB of storage, however market segmentation was seemingly calculated in a different way for India. Other specs embody dual-band Wi-Fi 5, Bluetooth 5, GPS, stereo audio system, and high-res audio certification.
Being an offshoot of Xiaomi, Poco’s telephones run MIUI. We’ve spoken about MIUI 12 intimately in our latest evaluations of the Redmi Note 10 and Mi 11X, plus all their siblings. The UI is filled with options reminiscent of a Game Turbo for optimisations and shortcuts, a Video Toolbox overlay, and a Second Space for privateness. You can customise the notifications shade to behave like iOS with break up sections for fast toggles and notifications, and you may also swap between on-screen buttons and gestures for navigation. There are a number of preloaded apps together with the GetApps retailer and Themes browser which do generate quite a lot of spammy notifications, and also you additionally should disable the Glance lockscreen carousel in case you do not need to see promoted content material.
The hybrid dual-SIM tray means you will have to decide on between a second Nano-SIM and a microSD card
Poco X3 Pro efficiency
You ought to now anticipate completely clean efficiency in informal on a regular basis use while you’re paying round Rs. 20,000 for a smartphone, and that is what the Poco X3 Pro delivers. The {hardware} is greater than sufficient to run all of your social media and communication apps, plus informal video games and productiveness instruments. I did not really feel any slowdowns when switching between a number of heavy apps.
Benchmark assessments present how good the Snapdragon 860 SoC is. AnTuTu 9 reported a rating of 5,43,796 which is outstanding for a cellphone at this value degree. In distinction, the Redmi Note 10 Pro Max managed 2,71,830 and the Realme X7 5G scored 3,35,698 (although scores for older variations of AnTuTu aren’t instantly comparable). In Geekbench 5’s single-core and multi-core assessments, the X3 Pro managed 752 and 1,892 factors respectively. The 3DMark Wild Life graphics assessments posted a rating of three,476, whereas GFXBench’s T-Rex and Car Chase scenes ran at 119fps and 39fps respectively.
The display screen on the X3 Pro is not the very best that I’ve seen at this value degree, when it comes to color replica. It’s high-quality for informal use however in case you actually like your content material to pop, you is likely to be a bit of underwhelmed. The excessive refresh fee is sweet, and HDR kicks in when enjoying movies on YouTube. The digital camera gap is on the bigger facet by right now’s requirements and also you would possibly discover it distracting in lighter scenes in movies. Stereo audio system are good to have, and whereas those on the Poco X3 Pro are loud and adequate for sound results in video games, they will not actually allow you to get the very best out of high-quality music.
All these capabilities collectively make for a stable gaming workhorse. I fired up COD Mobile and Asphalt 9: Legends, and each of them ran with none hitches. Gameplay was satisfying total. The higher rear of the X3 Pro did get a bit heat, and the big digital camera bump on the again did typically get in the way in which when holding the cellphone horizontally. A protecting case ought to assist with each these items.
Usage is usually nice. The fingerprint sensor works nicely and is simple to seek out by contact alone. Face recognition can also be fast. Not everybody will discover this cellphone snug to make use of, particularly one-handed, due to its bulk. The predominant irritations come within the type of advertisements on the Glance display screen and promotional content material in GetApps notifications, which may be disabled with a bit of digging via the cellphone’s settings.
Battery life is sort of stable. You ought to simply be capable to get via a full day even with an hour or so of gaming. With average use, you would possibly even be capable to stretch to a day and a half. The Poco X3 charged to 55 % in half-hour and 93 % in an hour utilizing the bundled 33W charger, which isn’t unhealthy in any respect.
The major and ultra-wide-angle cameras have decrease resolutions than these of the extra reasonably priced Poco X3
Poco X3 Pro cameras
In an attention-grabbing twist, Poco has gone with decrease resolutions for the X3 Pro’s rear cameras than it did with the Poco X3. You get a 48-megapixel major digital camera and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide one, in comparison with 64 and 13 megapixels respectively on what is meant to be a lower-end mannequin in the identical sequence. Of course, sensor and lens high quality are rather more essential than decision alone. It might be attention-grabbing to see how the Poco X3 Pro delivers, and whether or not persons are prepared to look past the same old “bigger is better” advertising message. There’s additionally a 2-megapixel macro digital camera and a 2-megapixel depth sensor.
Poco X3 Pro daytime digital camera samples (prime: normal; backside: ultra-wide)(faucet to see full measurement)
The digital camera app is identical that we have seen on latest Xiaomi telephones. It’s feature-rich, however some controls are buried, for instance switching to or from the macro digital camera takes a number of faucets. The predominant digital camera mode switcher is a carousel above the shutter button, and there is a spillover menu with much more modes such a Short Video, Vlog, Dual Video, AI Watermark, Clone, and Long Exposure.
Poco X3 Pro daytime close-up digital camera pattern (faucet to see full measurement)
Poco X3 Pro daytime macro digital camera pattern (faucet to see full measurement)
When it involves photograph high quality, the Poco X3 Pro is not the strongest in its section. It will take adequate images in case you’re an informal person, however colors do not pop as a lot as I’d have appreciated, and dynamic vary is not very robust. There’s an affordable quantity of element in daylight pictures, however do not anticipate essentially the most sensible textures. The ultra-wide-angle digital camera after all captures poorer particulars and compression does appear rougher, plus there’s some perspective warping on the edges of frames.
Close-up and portrait pictures are first rate, since cellphone cameras are usually a lot better when coping with topics within the foreground. There’s some pure depth of subject which all the time makes pictures stand out properly. It’s troublesome to focus precisely with the macro digital camera since there is no method to know in case you’re standing too shut or too removed from the topic, and on the finish of the day, the standard of output would not justify spending an excessive amount of time attempting to get it proper.
Poco X3 Pro low-light digital camera samples (prime: normal; backside: ultra-wide)(faucet to see full measurement)
As for low-light pictures, the Poco X3 Pro did battle in darkish environments at night time however did an okay job when there was adequate synthetic lighting. Textures are murky and element is weak. Night mode would not all the time brighten pictures a lot however can enhance distinction and make factors of sunshine in opposition to darkish backgrounds look a lot much less blown-out. It works finest when there’s actually little or no ambient gentle, and that is particularly evident with the ultra-wide digital camera which does not all the time produce usable outcomes at nighttime with out Night mode.
Poco X3 Pro selfie digital camera samples (prime: daytime portrait; backside: low-light)(faucet to see full measurement)
The 20-megapixel entrance digital camera would not ship essentially the most natural-looking pores and skin tones, and the default smoothening is simply too aggressive for my style. Selfies taken within the day in addition to at night time are good, however not nice. Portrait mode does nicely with separating the background although focus is not all the time excellent.
Video recording goes as much as 4K 30fps with the first rear digital camera. There’s no stabilisation and I did discover fairly a little bit of jitter in video recorded whereas shifting, regardless of the decision. Just like with stills, the standard is okay for informal use however you may get higher at this value degree. Video shot at night time, beneath brilliant streetlights, is grainy and boring.
There’s a 3.5mm jack, USB Type-C port, and speaker on the underside
Verdict
Poco clearly had one purpose in thoughts for the X3 Pro, and that was to ship the very best CPU efficiency at across the Rs. 20,000 value degree. Arguably, it has succeeded. This is a cellphone that can do very nicely for gaming and can really feel snappy and responsive for the foreseeable future. If you desire a machine that feels premium however do not need to spend an excessive amount of, this might be a compelling choice. There are additionally different positives – the IP53 ranking and stereo audio system are each good to have, and in case you’re wanting for daring design, you will get it.
On the draw back, the display screen is a bit of underwhelming and the cameras are simply common. If 5G is one thing that might be essential to you and also you need to use all that CPU energy for the following few years, the X3 Pro will not match the invoice. It’s additionally fairly cumbersome and heavy.
It’s straightforward to see that younger patrons will like what the X3 Pro has to supply, however this cellphone is not for everybody. Do take a look at our record of the very best telephones priced beneath Rs. 20,000 in case you’re wanting for extra of an all-rounder.
