Xiaomi is the leader in the budget smartphone category, and the company has tasted huge success with the Xiaomi Mi4 series. The Chinese smartphone maker launched the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 a few months ago, and this is the first Xiaomi phone to get an all-metal body and a fingerprint sensor. Meanwhile, the Xiaomi Redmi 3 was released just a few days ago and is an entry-level smartphone with great design and specs.
Both the Redmi Note 3 and the Redmi 3 look great, but they do come with quite a lot of differences under the hood. Let’s find out.
Design and Display
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 looks premium in its metal avatar. Of course, it does not get any special pattern and just gets a metal matte finish on the back, but the result is a subtly stylish phone. On the other hand, the Redmi 3 gets a full metal body and shape similar to the Redmi Note 3, but it also gets an interesting pattern at the back that can be a love-it-or-hate-it factor.
Coming to the display, the Redmi 3 features a 5-inch HD screen, while the Redmi Note 3 comes with a 5.5-inch FullHD screen.
Processor and Memory
The Xiaomi Redmi 3 gets an octa-core Snapdragon 616 SoC clocked at a maximum of 1.5GHz chipset, and also gets Adreno 405 GPU. There’s 2GB of RAM in it with 16GB internal expandable memory.
The Redmi Note 3 flaunts a 64-bit MediaTek Helio X10 clocked at 2.0GHz. You can choose between 3GB/4GB of RAM and 16GB/32GB of internal storage. Both the phones run MIUI 7 based on Android Lollipop.
Just a few days ago, Xiaomi launched the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro, which comes with a 1.8GHz hexa-core Snapdragon 650 processor and Adreno 510 GPU.
Camera and Battery
The Redmi 3 comes with a 13MP rear camera with f/2.0 aperture, LED flash, and PDAF. There is a front 5MP camera for selfies. The phone gets its power from a 4,100mAh battery.
Meanwhile, the Redmi Note 3 also gets a 13MP camera with f/2.2 aperture, PDAF, and dual-tone dual LED flash. Though the Snapdragon-version gets a 16MP rear camera with PDAF and f/2.0 aperture. The Redmi Note 3 flaunts a 4,000mAh battery.
Extras and Price.
There isn’t much to talk about, but the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 comes with a fingerprint sensor at the back. The Redmi 3 does not get a fingerprint sensor, but given its price, its okay.
The Redmi Note 3 (MediaTek version) costs around $178 for the 2GB/16GB version, while the 3GB/32GB variant sells for around $209. The price for the Snapdragon-version is not known yet. The cheaper Redmi 3 costs $106.
Verdict
You cannot really compare the Redmi 3 and the Redmi Note 3, as both fall into different price segments. So if your budget is around $100, close your eyes and pick the Redmi 3. But if you can stretch your budget up to $210, then you won’t get a better deal than the Redmi Note 3.
What’s your pick?