The best and the worst

Although they share an ecosystem, there is no doubt that Poco has stolen Xiaomi the position when it comes to putting into circulation phones whose specs are above the price that we pay for them. At least when it comes to the market average, of course, and with the Poco X3 Pro they have done it again.

The phone came to raise the bar a bit from the previous Poco X3 NFC and to position itself as a companion, although below, of the Poco F3 and conquer the mid-range. The Poco X3 Pro seeks to position itself as the current reference in the mid-range as for the famous value for money, and he has stopped by our review table to see if he has really succeeded.

Xiaomi POCO X3 Pro datasheet

	Xiaomi POCO X3 Pro
Dimensions and weight	165,3 x 76,8 x 9,4 mm 215 g
Screen	IPS 6.67 inches 120 Hz 240 Hz touch, 450 nits Gorilla Glass 6, HDR10
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 860
RAM	6 / 8 GB LPDDR4X
Storage	128/256 GB UFS 3.1 (up to 1 TB with microSD)
Rear cameras	48 MP, f / 1.79, AF Wide angle 8 MP, f / 2.2, 119 ° 2 MP macro, f/2.4, FF 2 MP depth, f / 2.4, FF
Frontal camera	20 MP, f / 2.2
Drums	5.160 mAh Fast charge 33 W
Operating system	Android 11 + MIUI 12
Connectivity	4G, Bluetooth 5.0, WiFi 5, NFC
Others	Jack 3,5 mm Stereo Infrared Dual Sim (hybrid) Charger included Side fingerprint reader
Price	6 GB + 128 GB = (249 euros) 8 GB + 256 GB = 299 euros

The best of the Poco X3 Pro

The best: screen and sound to enjoy games, movies and series

Perhaps the Poco X3 Pro does not have an AMOLED panel as they do have other phones that fly a bit overhead, but it brings something to yours that is still rarely seen in mobile phones of its price: the refreshment at 120Hz. With this soft drink we will have more than enough fluidity to squeeze games, and it will not be noticed when we are facing a movie, a series or a simple YouTube video. And if we add the headphone jack and stereo speakers, the experience is much more round. Let’s not forget that it is compatible with HDR10 content. Great job.

The best: a battery to forget about the problems of day to day

Despite having a FullHD + screen and a 120Hz refresh rate, the truth is that the Poco X3 Pro’s battery has behaved quite well on a day-to-day basis, to the point of not having to disconnect this high refreshment once the tests. About eight hours of screen use that allows us to spend a day without problems, two if the use is not very high, and 5,000 mAh that charge at full speed. In an hour and ten minutes we have the internal battery charged to 100%. Without a doubt, one of the best of the Poco X3 Pro.

The best: its value for money

We have commented previously, Xiaomi and Poco have specialized in putting mobile phones into circulation that, although they do not stand out especially for any specific aspect, they do so as a whole because of their intimate relationship with the sale price. Everything that this Poco X3 Pro offers for 249 euros (in its version with 6GB and 128GB) is difficult to beat by any model of its competition. The phone has lights and shadows, but its price is a light that shines brightly.

The worst of the Poco X3 Pro

The worst: heats up too fast

Perhaps it is because the Poco X3 Pro is the phone that has been chosen to test the Qualcomm Snapdragon 860 and it needs to be polished, or because it looks a lot like a Snapdragon 855+ with some overclock, but the truth is that the X3 Pro gets too hot and too fast. It doesn’t burn, but it shows. During the tests it has heated up even using Spotify, we are not even talking about being immersed in a very demanding game. Something to keep in mind, without a doubt.

The worst: MIUI is a layer with many options but that weighs down the phone

It is true that in the tests we have disconnected the options that offered us a more personalized experience (advertising) and also the app scanner that runs after passing through Google Play (with more advertising), but the truth is that MIUI 12 does not go quite well in this Poco X3 Pro. Perhaps it weighs a lot for you that it is a mid-range phone, bordering on the high-end. The system should be thinner and maybe MIUI 12.5 will fix it when the time comes, but today things are like this. MIUI 12 hinders more than it helps.

The worst: a Poco X3 Pro that is not so pro

Xiaomi and Poco sew the Pro surname to a phone that is ahead of the Poco X3 NFC in terms of processor and some other feature, but that at the moment of truth is not so far from it. The processor provides an extra power that is not particularly noteworthy, for example, and in photography we have such a similar experience that we could be talking about both phones indistinctly. The two models are too close, and that leaves the Poco X3 Pro in a no-man’s-land between the X3 NFC and the Poco F3.

Some examples of the Poco X3 Pro camera

The photographic performance of this Poco X3 Pro is good, especially considering that we move in a price range of 250 euros. Its only problem is that the quality is virtually indistinguishable from that offered by its little brother, the Poco X3 NFC, and we expected a change for the better given the best category of the phone.

During the day we obtain good quality photographs, with defined colors and edges and, of course, at night everything falls and the much dreaded noise appears, although we can use HDR to improve the results, or the phone’s own Night Mode. The portrait mode complies with note except for some moments of “false background”, as in almost all Xiaomi.

Here are some examples of what the Poco X3 Pro is capable of doing in photographic matters, taken directly from the complete analysis of the mobile phone carried out by our colleagues at Engadget.

Poco X3 Pro, the opinion of Engadget Mobile

We get to the key part once we have known the best and worst of this Poco X3 Pro. Should I buy it or not? The simple answer should be yes, but as we have already told in this analysis the difference with the Poco X3 NFC is perhaps very short not to consider getting the older brother. Or even look up a bit and search for a Poco F3 with some offer.

The Poco X3 Pro is a good phone that also has its weaknesses, but overall it is a good phone. The autonomy and the screen stand out above everything else, and can be a purchasing factor if it is what we are looking for, a phone with which to watch movies and series, with good sound and a quality screen. If it’s raw power or an outstanding camera we’re looking for, it might not be our first choice. But as we have already said, for 249 euros it is difficult to resist.

If you want to see more tests, you can consult the analysis of the POCO X3 Pro in Engadget.

POCO X3 Pro – Smartphone 6 + 128 GB, 6.67 ”120Hz FHD + DotDisplay, Snapdragon 860, Quad Camera 48 MP, 5160 mAh, Phantom Black