Review Xiaomi Note 3 - a thin smartphone with a great camera, but some drawbacks
Xiaomi Mi Note series smartphones have long been appreciated by those who need a large diagonal. These are top-notch devices with good speed and a camera, but without any special “designer” problems, it suffices to recall Xiaomi Mi Note 2, which has become almost a hit. But in the third smartphone of the series, the company decided to slightly change the policy, and at the same time reduce the price. Let's see what came of it.
First, let's look at the technical specifications. They are interesting.
What we have here the main thing? And the fact that Xiaomi refused to use the top chipset in Mi Note 3, and instead of the expected Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 delivered the Snapdragon 660. This is a very good, economical and fast processor, with performance at the level of the last year's top Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 (more on this in part testing), but in fact here the smartphone cheaper.
Otherwise, everything is not bad - there is 6 GB of RAM, good value for the top. Also used two cameras at 12 megapixels, one wide-angle with f / 1.8, and the second for telephoto, with f / 2.6. Previously, the IMX318 1 / 2.6 "sensor with f2.0 was used, so the main camera is definitely better. In general, the camera" two "is the same as in Xiaomi Mi 6 ( we are looking at a review ).
Otherwise, everything is as before - a powerful battery (taking into account the economy of 660 "dragon", of course), the new OS (there will be an update MIUI, but the dates have not yet been announced).
The device looks great, although the screen here is now IPS. The matrix is bright and contrast, it is one of the best IPS-ok on the market.
The central button works as a fingerprint sensor, its functionality as always on top. On either side of it are the touch buttons back and the context menu, highlighted by dots.
The front camera is located on top, next to it is a voice speaker. We'll talk about the camera a little later, but everything is fine with the speaker, no complaints about the sound quality.
A USB Type-C connector is used, and below are the grilles behind which the speaker and microphone are hidden. There is no stereo effect, but the sound quality and voice transmissions are very good.
On the left there is only a slot for two SIM cards. I draw your attention to the fact that microSD can not be installed, this is a feature of the Note series starting from the second.
Above you can see only the infrared port and the second microphone for noise reduction. Yes, you guessed it, the smartphone does not have a headphone jack, it is assumed that you will use Bluetooth or an adapter.
On the right is the on / off button, as well as the volume rocker. The quality of workmanship is excellent, a real-life smartphone looks much better than in the photo.
The smartphone weakly collects fingerprints, apparently a special coating. On top are the same two cameras, as well as an outbreak.
Below there is only the emblem Xiaomi and inscriptions in Chinese.
The traditional box from Xiaomi is black and strict.
Front view of her.
Included is also a case that looks very nice. I put it on my smartphone and go like this, without it the device is still too slippery.
The kit also has a USB Type-C cable, a headphone adapter, charging with QC 3.0 support, and a paper clip.
The device looks great and is very ergonomic, it is comfortable to hold in your hand. But there is a feature with the fact that there is no headphone jack and microSD. Someone immediately stops reading here and goes to curse in the comments :)
I drove the traditional tests for the smartphone. Let's see how the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor showed itself, since it's a new one.
As you can see, the performance of 3D and the processor is very good. By itself, the percentage is slower than that of the 820, but the graphics are faster.
Let's see what PCMark will show us.
Here, too, everything is not bad - the built-in memory is fast, and there is a lot of RAM, so performance is good in everyday tasks.
As I said, the module here is the same as that of the Xiaomi Mi6, so, some of the images look in that review .
I will add some more photos to make it clear for those who do not want to climb into a separate article.
Good detail in low light.
Even on the grass there are few artifacts, the compression level is excellent.
Photographed from the window of the plane, the detail is very ok.
Although, here, of course, rather depends on the species.
In the dark, it works very, very well.
Built-in HDR works as it should, although it sometimes overestimates the shutter speed.
The front camera is designed for the Chinese. Just kidding, a good front camera.
In the premises, the quality of shooting is quite good.
There is a High ISO mode for night shooting. I did not quite understand him, it seemed to me that he too overestimated the exposure.
A special portrait mode makes “bokeh” at the expense of the second camera and also reduces the contrast, so that people are more attractive.
Total - the camera is really very, very good. Of course, it does not reach the Korean flagships, but among the Chinese it is one of the best.
Xiaomi made a very interesting smartphone, if, of course, you are not afraid of the lack of a 3.5 mm jack and microSD. Good performance, ergonomics, interesting design (well, not interesting, concise), a lot of memory. What is most interesting is that compared to Note 2 it is also cheaper, with, in my opinion, the best camera.
Price: find out the current 64 GB , 128 GB
First, let's look at the technical specifications. They are interesting.
Specification
- Screen: 5.5 inches, IPS, 1920 x 1080 pixels
- Chipset: Qualcomm Snapdragon 660, Adreno 512
- Memory: 6 GB + 64 GB or 6 GB + 128 GB, no memory card slot
- Camera: dual 12 MP (27 mm, f / 1.8, OIS and 52 mm, f / 2.6) main, 16 MP frontal
- Operating system: Android 7.1 + MIUI 9.0
- SIM Card: Two
- Wireless interfaces: Wi-Fi .ac, Bluetooth 5.0 LE, NFC, GPS
- LTE: FDD B1 2100MHz, FDD B3 1800MHz, FDD B5 850MHz, FDD B7 2600MHz, FDD B8 900MHz
- Navigation: GPS, Glonass, Beidou
- Fingerprint scanner
- Proximity sensor, lighting, magnetic field, pressure, accelerometer, gyroscope, step counter
- Battery: non-removable, Li-Ion 3500 mAh, quick charge QC 3.0
- Dimensions and weight: 152.6 x 74 x 7.6 mm, weight 163 grams
- Price: find out the current 64 GB , 128 GB
What we have here the main thing? And the fact that Xiaomi refused to use the top chipset in Mi Note 3, and instead of the expected Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 delivered the Snapdragon 660. This is a very good, economical and fast processor, with performance at the level of the last year's top Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 (more on this in part testing), but in fact here the smartphone cheaper.
Otherwise, everything is not bad - there is 6 GB of RAM, good value for the top. Also used two cameras at 12 megapixels, one wide-angle with f / 1.8, and the second for telephoto, with f / 2.6. Previously, the IMX318 1 / 2.6 "sensor with f2.0 was used, so the main camera is definitely better. In general, the camera" two "is the same as in Xiaomi Mi 6 ( we are looking at a review ).
Otherwise, everything is as before - a powerful battery (taking into account the economy of 660 "dragon", of course), the new OS (there will be an update MIUI, but the dates have not yet been announced).
Appearance and ergonomics
The device looks great, although the screen here is now IPS. The matrix is bright and contrast, it is one of the best IPS-ok on the market.
The central button works as a fingerprint sensor, its functionality as always on top. On either side of it are the touch buttons back and the context menu, highlighted by dots.
The front camera is located on top, next to it is a voice speaker. We'll talk about the camera a little later, but everything is fine with the speaker, no complaints about the sound quality.
A USB Type-C connector is used, and below are the grilles behind which the speaker and microphone are hidden. There is no stereo effect, but the sound quality and voice transmissions are very good.
On the left there is only a slot for two SIM cards. I draw your attention to the fact that microSD can not be installed, this is a feature of the Note series starting from the second.
Above you can see only the infrared port and the second microphone for noise reduction. Yes, you guessed it, the smartphone does not have a headphone jack, it is assumed that you will use Bluetooth or an adapter.
On the right is the on / off button, as well as the volume rocker. The quality of workmanship is excellent, a real-life smartphone looks much better than in the photo.
The smartphone weakly collects fingerprints, apparently a special coating. On top are the same two cameras, as well as an outbreak.
Below there is only the emblem Xiaomi and inscriptions in Chinese.
The traditional box from Xiaomi is black and strict.
Front view of her.
Included is also a case that looks very nice. I put it on my smartphone and go like this, without it the device is still too slippery.
The kit also has a USB Type-C cable, a headphone adapter, charging with QC 3.0 support, and a paper clip.
The device looks great and is very ergonomic, it is comfortable to hold in your hand. But there is a feature with the fact that there is no headphone jack and microSD. Someone immediately stops reading here and goes to curse in the comments :)
Performance tests
I drove the traditional tests for the smartphone. Let's see how the Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 processor showed itself, since it's a new one.
General performance tests
- Antutu: 116800
- 3D Mark Sling Shot Extreme: 1370
- 3D Mark Ice Storm Unlimited: 25840
As you can see, the performance of 3D and the processor is very good. By itself, the percentage is slower than that of the 820, but the graphics are faster.
Work tests
Let's see what PCMark will show us.
- PCMark Work 2.0 perfomance: 6012
- Computer Vision score: 3280
- Storage score: 3868
Here, too, everything is not bad - the built-in memory is fast, and there is a lot of RAM, so performance is good in everyday tasks.
Camera tests
As I said, the module here is the same as that of the Xiaomi Mi6, so, some of the images look in that review .
I will add some more photos to make it clear for those who do not want to climb into a separate article.
Good detail in low light.
Even on the grass there are few artifacts, the compression level is excellent.
Photographed from the window of the plane, the detail is very ok.
Although, here, of course, rather depends on the species.
In the dark, it works very, very well.
Built-in HDR works as it should, although it sometimes overestimates the shutter speed.
The front camera is designed for the Chinese. Just kidding, a good front camera.
In the premises, the quality of shooting is quite good.
There is a High ISO mode for night shooting. I did not quite understand him, it seemed to me that he too overestimated the exposure.
A special portrait mode makes “bokeh” at the expense of the second camera and also reduces the contrast, so that people are more attractive.
Total - the camera is really very, very good. Of course, it does not reach the Korean flagships, but among the Chinese it is one of the best.
Other tests
- The number of fingers "multitouch" - 10 pieces, that is, the maximum.
- GPS works well, there is GPS and Glonass, Beidou also works
- 20 Band LTE no
- NFC works correctly, there are no problems with Android Pay and using the Troika card.
- Due to the work of fast charging (maximum 2A 9V), the smartphone charges in 1 hour and 15 minutes
- The battery life in the normal cycle (quite active use) - almost two days
Total
Xiaomi made a very interesting smartphone, if, of course, you are not afraid of the lack of a 3.5 mm jack and microSD. Good performance, ergonomics, interesting design (well, not interesting, concise), a lot of memory. What is most interesting is that compared to Note 2 it is also cheaper, with, in my opinion, the best camera.
Price: find out the current 64 GB , 128 GB
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