The Chinese producer Xiaomi presented in recent days the Xiaomi Redmire 3, the new device of the company that, although designed and designed for the low-end market, is characterized by mid-range specifications.
In fact, we are talking about a device characterized by a truly incredible quality / price compromise, especially if related to the technical data sheet and the "premium" materials that distinguish it.
The Xiaomi Redmi 3 is available on TopResellerStore.it with shipping from Italy and Italian 24 months warranty at a price of approx. 170 € with discount code GIZCHINA.
Is Xiaomi Redmi 3 already the best-buy of 2016? Let's find out together!
Xiaomi Redmi 3, the review of GizChina.it
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Sales package
The Xiaomi Redmi 3 sales box is characterized by the new design adopted by Xiaomi for its latest devices. We are talking, in fact, of a very small white cardboard box, with the device shown on the front and some technical specifications on the back.
Inside, in addition to the smartphone, we find the following accessories:
- wall power supply with 2A output;
- user manual in Chinese language;
- pin to extract the SIM slot;
- a Micro USB-USB cable.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Design and materials
Xiaomi Redmi 3 is part of the new line-up of the Chinese manufacturer characterized by a "premium" design (thanks to the materials used in the construction of the body) and lines that "remember" Meizu devices.
It might interest you: Meizu MX5 vs Xiaomi Redmi Notes 3: the comparison of GizChina.it!
As already seen on the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, the Xiaomi Redmi 3 features a metal unibody design with a non-removable battery.
The interwoven silver texture called "Plaid" and applied by the company to the back-cover of the device is interesting. However, this detail might not make you twist poco the nose to purists and to those who prefer a clean and more sober design.
The construction is good, but the metal rear body is characterized by a very thin thickness (only 0.3 mm) and, in general, while offering a good grip, it offers a sensation to the touch & feel that is certainly cheaper than that tested with devices superior category.
The dimensions of the device are of 139.3x69.6x8.5mm, for a weight, battery from 4100 mAh not removable, of 144 grams.
The weight is well distributed and the terminal is very manageable thanks to the diagonal of the display is not particularly large. From this point of view, an applause to Xiaomi that, despite the provision of a battery from 4100mAh, has nevertheless managed to keep rather small overall dimensions of the device.
Let's briefly see the arrangement of keys and inputs:
On the right side we find the on / off button and the volume rocker, both made of metal and with an excellent stroke.
On the profile we find the double SIM slot with supports to a Nano SIM and a Micro SD, which can be replaced by a micro SD up to 128 GB to expand the memory.
At the top we find the headset capsule, the 5 mega-pixel front camera and the brightness and proximity sensors.
On the front profile we find the 3.5 mm headphone jack, an IR sensor to control the TV and a second microphone to reduce ambient noise.
At the bottom we find the classic navigation keys placed outside the non-backlit screen. Below the home button there is an LED RGB (settings settable in settings) very similar to the one mounted on the Xiaomi Mi 4.
On the lower profile, however, there is the micro USB port with OTG support and the main system microphone.
On the back, finally, we find at the top the main camera from 13 mega-pixel with single LED flash and the single system speaker placed at the bottom
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Display
The display is a unit from 5 inches diagonal with resolution HD 1280 x 720 pixel. In our tests the panel proved to be very valid, both in the faithful reproduction of colors, also adjustable via software through the appropriate option, and for the viewing angles.
The maximum brightness is not particularly high (average), but still allows in all circumstances a good reproduction of content, thanks to the appropriate sensor that works well in changing light.
Obviously, compared to a Full HD panel the definition is less, but the good reproduction of all the elements confirms that such a resolution is not necessary on a panel by 5 inches.
The side frames are well optimized with a fairly small side thickness.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Audio section
The audio sector is characterized by a single system speaker placed on the back of the device that returns a good quality audio with a fairly high and clean volume.
A small step prevents the sound from being excessively muffled when the device is placed on a shelf. This shrewdness allows you to enjoy good content reproduction even in “desktop” playback, with a volume that is only slightly “damped”.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Hardware and performance
The device is driven by the octa-core processor Qualcomm Snapdragon 616 8939v2 with 8-bit ARMv64 architecture (4 x Cortex-A53 of 1.5 GHz + 4 x Cortex-A53 of 1.2 GHz), supported by 2 GB of DDR3 single channel RAM to 800Mhz, a Adreno GPU 405 and 16 GB of memory internal eMMC 4.5 expandable via micro SD.
The performances guaranteed by this chipset are excellent, especially if we compare them to the price range of the device. All applications and games tested are well rendered and executed, with only some lag and slowdown in the most extreme multitasking.
This is because MIUI's multitasking management is not optimal, a ROM that leaves less than 1GB of RAM free at startup.
This circumstance affects the user experience, especially in the fast switch between multiple applications. In fact, applications are often recharged with a waiting time of a few seconds for reopening.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Cameras
The rear camera is characterized by a sensor from 13 mega-pixel accompanied by a single LED flash.
The quality of the shots is of a good standard considering the price range. The details captured are many even if, at night, the device suffers a lot both in focusing times and for the presence of digital noise in the shots.
Good macro, fast and accurate both autofocus and shooting (even in HDR).
Also good flash, which uniformly spread the light on the subject portrayed.
The front camera consists of a sensor from 5 mega-pixel that allows you to make selfies rather defined and of good quality.
Following all the shots made with the Xiaomi Redmi 3:
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Connectivity and telephone part
The connectivity sector of the Redmi 3 is well functioning, it is equipped with dual SIM (one micro and one nano), with support for 4G (hot switchable between the two SIMs).
Cell exchanges are generally fast, even if the transition from 4G to HSPA is sometimes problematic (you remain without a signal for a few seconds). Fortunately, this has occurred only sporadically.
The WiFi (802.11 b / g / n) is stable and characterized by an average reception and the GPS (with A-GPS and Glonass) is accurate and fast in the fix.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Internal memory
The device is characterized by an internal memory from 16 GB expandable via micro SD up to 128 GB using one of the two SIM slots (thus renouncing the use of two SIM cards).
An external mass storage device can be connected via OTG protocol to read and write your files.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Battery
As anticipated in the introduction, the battery supplied to the Redmi 3 is a well unit 4100 mAh which guarantees excellent autonomy, obviously also thanks to the diagonal and the resolution of the display and the processor poco energy-intensive.
The installed (non-removable) drive guarantees 4 hours / 4 hours and 20 screen minutes on with intensive use and both active SIM and up to 5 hours with use of a single SIM and mainly under WiFi network.
The times of one full charge from 0 to 100% I am about 3 hours with the included charger e 2 and a half with a fast charger, like that Quick Charge of Aukey.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Software
The operating system installed on the Redmi 3 is Android Lollipop 5.1.1 customized by the proprietary interface MIUI 7.1.
As already seen on Xiaomi Redmi Note 3, Xiaomi Redmi 3 is unfortunately characterized by the bootloader blocked and this affects the ability to install custom ROM and get root permissions. To do this you will need to be patient and have a minimum of experience.
The system is very fluid, except in the start-up phase where it is necessary to wait a few seconds too long to have the device fully functional and without lag and jamming.
In general, the ROM runs well even if it is still in a "primordial" state of development and therefore needs some fixes that will certainly be offered by the next software releases.
Xiaomi Redmi 3 - Final considerations
The Xiaomi Redmi 3, confirming the incredible reliability of Xiaomi and the quality of its productions, is a strong candidate for the title of "best buy 2016" in the low-cost price range. However, we are just at the beginning of the year and considering the "frenzy" with which so many (excellent) devices have been launched in the last months of 2015, it is most likely still a bit early to award the title.
The only aspect on which it will be necessary to reflect before venturing into the purchase is that relating to one's propensity to modding, as the block of the bootloader has certainly complicated those procedures that, such as the installation of the firmware in Italian, up to poco long ago they were very simple to perform.
The Xiaomi Redmi 3 is available on TopResellerStore.it with shipping from Italy and Italian 24 months warranty at a price of approx. 170 € with discount code GIZCHINA.
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