Xiaomi has launched Poco F3 on 2021, March 22, at a surprisingly low price, along with Poco X3 Pro. Xiaomi, with its Poco F series, mostly comes with high-end devices in not so flagship price category. The Poco F3 is a rebranded version of Redmi K40 as both are the subsidiaries of Xiaomi. This Xiaomi Poco F3 review will assuredly explain to you, that, how Poco F3 is one of the best options available in the smartphone market with brilliant gaming performance.
POCO F3 Price & Variants in Pakistan
In Pakistan, the price of the phone of 6GB – 128GB variant is 55,999 PKR, and 8GB-256GB is 63,999 PKR. On the other hand, in the USA, it launched at the price of $394.99 (128GB 6GB RAM) and $409.99 (256GB 8GB RAM). Although on the official Mi Website in Pakistan its price is stated more as compared to the open market.
POCO F3 Specifications at a Glance
The highlighted specifications of Poco F3 are Qualcomm Snapdragon 870 processor, 6.67” AMOLED display, Dolby Atmos dual speaker, and high-resolution 48MP Main Camera.
| Xiaomi POCO F3 | Specifications |
| Launch date | 2021, March 27 |
| Price in Pakistan | 55,999 PKR (6GB – 128GB) 63,999 PKR (8GB – 256GB) |
| Design | Dimensions 163.7 x 76.4 x 7.8 mm Weight 196 Grams (6.91 oz) Waterproof IP53, dust, and splash protection Build Plastic Frame Glass Front and back Protection Gorilla Glass 5 SIM Dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by) |
| Display | Display Size 6.67 inches Type Super AMOLED Resolution 1080 x 2400 pixels Display Colors 16M Colors Refresh Rate 60Hz to120 Hz Pixel Density 395 PPI (pixels per inch) Features Capacitive Touchscreen, Multi-touch |
| Platform | Chipset Qualcomm SM8250-AC Snapdragon 870 5G (7 nm) OS Android 11, MIUI 12 for POCO GPU Adreno 650 CPU Octa-core (1×3.2 GHz Kryo 585 & 3×2.42 GHz Kryo 585 & 4×1.80 GHz Kryo 585) |
| Storage | RAM 6 GB, 8 GB Internal Storage 128 GB, 256 GB Card Slot No UFS 3.1 |
| Camera | Rear Camera 48 MP (wide) + 8 MP (ultrawide) + 5 MP (macro) Video 4K@30fps, 1080p@30/60/120/240/960fps, gyro-EIS Flash LED flash, HDR, panorama Front Camera 20 MP (wide), HDR Video 1080p@30fps, 720p@120fps |
| Colors | Night Black, Deep Ocean Blue, Arctic White |
| Sensors | Fingerprint (side-mounted), gyro, accelerometer, proximity, color spectrum, compass |
| Battery | Type Li-Po 4520 mAh, non-removable Charging Fast charging 33W, 100% in 52 min (advertised) |
| Sound | Loudspeaker Yes, with stereo speakers 3.5mm jack No |
Unboxing of the Beast
The black cover with the yellow box of the Poco F3 gives a very premium feel. Inside the box, you will get a warranty card, booklet, SIM ejector pin, 33W power adapter, transparent silicone case, 3.5mm-to-USB-C adapter( because no headphone jack), and of course, your device.
Xiaomi Poco F3 Review – Design & Feel
Firstly, let’s take a look at the beautiful, eye-catchy, and engaging design of the device. Mostly we get a plastic back covering in a mid-range segment of the smartphone, but Xiaomi Poco F3 is presenting a glass back. Glossy and glass back of device feel so premium in hands. The only problem you may encounter is that you have to clean the glass back of your phone quite often because the moment you touch there will be a fingerprint.
Because you will be gaming a lot as Poco F3 has been in news for its gaming performance. But Poco has already solved this problem by providing a back cover in the box. If it still bothers you, then you can go for Arctic White or Deep Ocean Blue colors; since they have a matte finish back. And, for a shiny and glossy finish on the back, you have the option of the Night Black version. Plus it can act as an emergency mirror for you.
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The phone is pretty thin and lightweight, with a dimension of 163.7 x 76.4 x 7.8 mm and a weight of 196 g (6.91 oz). The best thing is that it is not just a svelte but a solid smartphone at the same time as it is protected by Gorilla Glass 5. The phone features IP53 dust and splashes protected. The side-mounted fingerprint scanner integrated into the power button is also fast and accurate as it will unlock your device just like that.
Display Quality of the Device
If you are someone who prefers a big screen, brighter display, and smooth swiping, then, most certainly, you need to head over to Poco F3. Because in $400 there is so much to be appreciated. A 6.67 inches AMOLED panel (1080 x 2400 resolution) is definitely a plus point.
On top of that, you will experience super smooth swiping and scrolling thanks to a 120 Hz refresh rate that modifies depending on the content to save battery.
On the top center, the punch-hole selfie camera won’t distract you while using the phone because it is super tiny. Additionally, the colors on the phone are pretty accurate, and the brightness of the Poco F3 can go to 1300 nits (peak). We can say that Xiaomi Poco F3 is without a doubt a fabulous budget-oriented flagship device.
Poco F3 Camera Review
Xiaomi Poco F3 features triple back cameras: the first lens has 48 MP for wide-angle photos, the second lens has 8 MP for ultrawide shots, and lastly, the 5 MP macro lens for detailed shots. The phone has Sony IMX 582 Quad-Bayer 1/2″ sensor.
Here I am not saying that you will see some extraordinary photography from the device, but in just $400, it is still not a bad deal. Because in most scenarios you will get satisfactory and wondrous clicks from the phone and, it is 48MP, which is surprising again in this price segment. The phone also supports night mode for low lighting which is hit or miss. It is not the flagship camera phone but in the given price category it performs alright.
POCO F3 Daylight and Indoor camera performance
For standard daylight shots, the Camera results are pretty good and provide details, especially if you are using sunlight as a light source. If we talk about indoor photography, you definitely need some good lighting. So, Overall the colors of the pictures will be accurate with a decent dynamic range, but in low lighting, they can get blur.
Tele-Macro Lens
Undoubtedly, the Telemacro lens will astound you at this budget. Using the Telemacro lens, you will see vivid, bright, detailed enough images.
Ultra-Wide Camera Performance
Moving on towards the ultra-wide-angle, the performance of the phone is pretty satisfactory. But you found issues in color accuracy. We all love blurred background means a fine portrait mode because it gives us an impression of DSLR. Yeah, Poco F3 features Portrait mode that will render amazing results. However, good lighting is a prime condition.
POCO F3 Selfie Camera Review
Moving on towards the Selfie Camera, we see that the phone has outfitted with 20MP (ƒ/2.45) punch-hole camera. The performance of the front camera is decent, with an adequate dynamic range, exposure, and accurate colors. So, In a nutshell, your selfies will be good enough to post on social media.
Video Quality
Apart from perfect images, we all want to record our special moments but with the good video quality. If we talk about the video quality, the Xiaomi Poco F3 is able to record videos at 4K 30FPS. While recording videos on Poco F3, you will find decent stabilization and audio quality with vivid colors.
One thing that needs to be mentioned here is you can’t shift to a wide-angle lens if you are initially recording video from the Main Camera. On the other hand, the Front Camera features a 1080p 60FPS video recording. However, while recording from the camera you may find stabilization issues. Additional features like Slow-motion, Time-lapse, anamorphic crop, Dual Video, and Short video are also available.
One thing that POCO needs to fix is the shifting of colors while shifting lenses. While reviewing camera performance, we have observed a noticeable difference in colors in switching lenses.
Poco F3 Performance Review
The phone is powered by Qualcomm SM8250-AC Snapdragon 870 Chipset, which is not the latest one but still so close to Snapdragon 888 (The current highest performance chipset) that you barely can feel the difference. From the hardware point of view, Poco F3 gives more than enough to satisfy users because they will use the second-fastest chipset. Means at an affordable price Poco F3 is one of the best handsets with such gaming performance, currently available in the market. If you are looking for a mobile that suits your high-end gaming needs then be sure to read our review of the best gaming smartphones of 2021.
Qualcomm, recently announced Snapdragon 778, with amazing specs. Make sure to read our take on its specs and performance.
Poco F3 runs on Android 11, MIUI 12 operating system along with Octa-core CPU. Means you are not getting extra bothering and annoying advertisement in the user interface (UI). However, there are lots of bloatware that are pre-installed on the device.
Fortunately, you can remove most of them. Apart from that, you may find some lag on the software side. One more thing that needs appreciation is the fastest UFS 3.1 storage and 360Hz touch sampling rate that we observe in flagships. Other than that it supports 5G connectivity.
Poco F3 Gaming Performance
Now let’s talk about the gaming performance of the smartphone. It would not be wrong if we say that Poco F3 is one of the best gaming smartphones of the year 2021, as it comes with Adreno 650 GPU.
High-end and best mobile games like PUBG run without a glitch. Also, you can do heavy gaming with the highest frame setting without facing issues. And while playing games, 6.67 inches AMOLED display act as the cherry on top.
Plus, to lower the temperature of the phone, Poco F3 features LiquidCool Technology 1.0 Plus. So, Overall, Poco F3’s gaming performance quality is smooth and incredible in comparison with the price.
Poco F3 Battery
We can understand to keep the phone lightweight and, sleek Xiaomi has cut the size of the battery a bit; otherwise, it could have been 5000mAh. But surprisingly, Poco’s 4,520mAh battery is able to last a whole day even with heavy usage. Moreover, to compensate for less battery, fast charging comes to assist.
Poco F3’s gaming performance and excellent battery life are the two major aspects. In less than 60 minutes, Poco F3 fast charging support will again bring life to your device. So, in regular day-to-day applications, battery life would not bother you.
However, you need to be a little careful in two scenarios; 5G and GPS. Because while using 5G connectivity and GPS application, you may necessitate your charger before 24 hrs.
| Pros | Cons |
| 6.67 inches AMOLED display | No wireless charging |
| Decent Cameras | No headphone jack |
| 5G Connectivity | Lacks IP certification. |
| Amazing gaming performance | |
| Gorilla Glass 4 Protection |
Final Verdict
Usually, we consider the device a flagship killer when it got one or two flagship features. Since we have already gone through the Poco F3 review and found so many flagship features. That is why in a nutshell, we can say that F3 is a budget flagship device. In only 53,999 PKR, the phone is a perfect blend of high-end features. Especially for gaming purposes, the phone will not disappoint you. It adds an extra point when combines with 6.67 inches AMOLED display. So, Poco F3 can be the device you have been looking for.