The Mi A2 wasn’t the most popular. Xiaomi realized their mistake, releasing the new and improved A3. The device is a powerful mid-ranger, but is it worth the purchase? Let’s talk about this below.
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If you want a phone that comes in many colours, the A3 is not for you. It only has 3 colour choices. They are grey, blue, and white. Xiaomi gave them pretty neat names, which is a plus in our books. The white is called the ‘More Than White’ and has a rainbow effect. It’s stunning.
The phone has a glass body. It’s built well, with Gorilla Glass 5 on its back. The glass is super strong. We would’ve loved it if the A3 came with an aluminum frame, but there is plastic instead.
Not only is it a fingerprint magnet, but it’s incredibly slippery. We had it slip out of our hands multiple times. But in terms of ergonomics, it fits comfortably into palms.
The Mi A3’s glass back is curved, making it look more expensive. It also makes it comfortable.
We have a complaint. It’s not a major deal, but there’s some wording on its back.
The device is big. It stretches 6.09 inches. It is not slim, Its dimensions are 153.5 x 71.9 x 8.5 mm.
How do you feel about camera bumps? The Mi device has one.
In other news, it comes with a MicroSD slot. It also a headphone jack and USB-C port. Remember how we said the A2 didn’t do so well? One of the reasons was because it didn’t have a headphone jack or microSD slot.
There’s no fingerprint sensor on its back. It’s optical and extremely slow. It’s clear that Xiaomi only placed it to make the handset feel more premium.
We love Super AMOLED screens. They allow for vibrant viewing experiences. What’s so great about them is that they’re available even in affordable devices.
The A3 has a pretty decent screen-to-body ratio. Considering how small its notch is, this isn’t a surprise. Its ratio is 82.5%.
Unfortunately, you’re not getting the sharpest display. The Xiaomi device has a 720 x 1560-pixel screen. When the phone’s price is taken into account, such a resolution is not the end of the world.
You might like to know that its screen can handle a beating. Gorilla Glass 5 is on it.
We have some bad news:
Its screen can’t handle the outdoors. Its maximum brightness is 363 nits. 500 is the gold standard, which it’s far from.
There’s a 4030 mAh unit in place. It lasts well over a day. The battery is much larger than the A2’s. Its predecessor had a 3000 mAh unit.
The phone utilizes an 18 W fast charger. This isn’t a surprise as most phones of this price come with fast charging. With the help of Quick Charge 3, you can expect it to charge from 0-100% in about an hour and a half.
The Xiaomi device has the Snapdragon 665 inside. It’s a processor you’d see in more expensive devices, like the Oppo A11. Everyday tasks a breeze. The phone runs more extensive games as well.
The mid-ranger was released a year ago. That’s why it runs Android 9 out of the box. If you’re expecting Android 10, we’re happy to say that it received the update.
We’re fond of its memory variants. You can get the device in 64 and 128 GB of space, along with 4 and 6 GBs of RAM. If you don’t remember, you can expand its storage.
We, unfortunately, found its camera app slow – it takes an especially long time to load.
There is a triple set-up on its back. The primary sensor is a 48 MP wide lens. Its secondary sensor is an 8 MP ultrawide lens and its tertiary sensor is a 2 MP depth sensor.
Its camera enhances colours. Depending on the setting you’re in, it can be especially strong. Saturated images are our favourites.
Its wide-lens is handy. We think its HDR mode is especially great. Considering the A3’s price, its HDR mode is a powerhouse.
A lot of mid-rangers struggle with low-light shots, the Mi A3 is no different. There’s a lot of noise. When you take a look at its low-light pics, it’s clear that they’ve heavily been processed.
If you’re a fan of the device, you might want to see it compared with phones that are just as good.
It is larger than its Xiaomi counterpart. It comes in at 6.4 inches. We’re all for a large phone. We’re happy about this. Although it’s larger, it’s not built as well; its body is plastic. The plastic on it is glossy, so it’ll catch a range of scruffs and fingerprints.
If you’re looking for a device with heft, you’ll be disappointed that the mid-ranger is only 165 grams.
Like its counterpart, it comes with a Super AMOLED screen. Not only does it come with a colourful screen, but it is more immersive than the A3’s. This is as you get less bezel action. The handset has a 84.9% screen-to-body ratio. Its screen resolution is sharper too, at 1080 x 2340 pixels.
The glass on its front is Gorilla Glass 3. It’s not as tough as Gorilla Glass 5, so be careful.
Inside the phone, you are getting an Exynos processor. It is the Exynos 7904 chip. It packs a punch but is not as good as the Snapdragon 665. You will be running Android 9 out of the box. You’ll be happy to know that you can update it to Android 10. It comes with One UI 2.0. We’re huge fans of how the UI looks. We think Samsung did a really good job with it.
In terms of its memory variants, you can pick it up with 32 and 64 GB of space. Along with this, 3 and 4 GB RAM are at your disposal. If Its memory options aren’t enough for you, know that you can expand its storage.
There is a 4000 mAh battery on it. Is it something to write home about? Not really – it’s a bit smaller than the Mi phone. It lasts about the same time, though. The handset utilizes 15 W fast charging. This means it’ll fully charge in around 2 hours.
Let’s talk about its camera. There is a dual set-up on its rear. The primary sensor is a 16 MP wide sensor, while the second one is a 5 MP ultrawide one. When it comes to its front camera, a 16 MP shooter is present.
Unlike the Mi A3, the A31 is made from plastic. We like the ways its back looks – there’s a cool monochromatic effect. It not only is 0.5 inches taller, but it’s around 7 grams heavier. The plastic on its back is glass-like, so we’re happy.
Something we’re not happy about is the fact that its screen is not Super AMOLED. It is a regular IPS LCD, which means colours aren’t very vibrant. What’s more, the handset doesn’t have the sharpest display. But it’s better than its counterpart’s at 720 x 1600 pixels.
What about its screen-to-body ratio? It is the same as the A3’s.
The glass on its front is Gorilla Glass, but it’s only Gorilla Glass 3.
Let’s talk about its insides. It runs Android 9. There has been no news about it receiving the Android 10 update – don’t get your hopes up.
Its processor is the Mediatek Helio P35. It’s a good mid-range chip but is not as powerful as the chipset in the Mi.
We think its memory variants are really good. You can pick it up with 64 and 128 GB of space. Along with this, 4 and 6 GB of RAM is available. Yes, you can expand its storage.
In terms of its battery, a unit that’s 200 mAh larger than its Xiaomi counterpart’s is present. The phone will last around 2 days. To charge it, you’ll be using regular 10 W charging. I don’t know about you, but this doesn’t sound very appealing.
Camera-wise, there are 3 sensors on its rear. They are a 12 MP wide lens, a 2 MP macro lens, and a 2 MP depth sensor. On its front, an 8 MP wide shooter is present.
The Y Max has quite a bit of heft to it at 210 grams. Its back feels well built, the phone is solid in your hands. When Huawei said it was a ‘Max’, they weren’t kidding. It stretches a little over 7 inches. It’s pretty much a phablet. With such a large screen, you get a more immersive viewing experience. We would’ve loved it if it had an AMOLED screen, though. You’re met with a regular IPS LCD one.
Its screen-to-body ratio is a bit better than the Mi A3’s. But it comes with a much sharper display. Its screen resolution is 1080 x 2244 pixels.
Out of the box, you’re met with Android 8. If you want to update it to Android 10, you can’t do so. Processor-wise, there is a Snapdragon chipset. It’s the Snapdragon 660, which is not as powerful as the 665.
There’s only a 128 GB storage variant available. With it, 4 GB of RAM is by your side. Yes, you can expand its storage with a microSD card.
The phone has a large battery. It is a gigantic 5000 mAh unit. Considering that its screen is so big, this is normal. It lasts well over a day. We’ve got some bad news for you. There is no fast charging. You will be charging the Y Max through regular 10 W charging. It takes over 2 hours to go from 0-100%.
It has a dual-camera set-up. Its primary sensor is a 16 MP lens, while its secondary sensor is a 2 MP depth sensor. In terms of its selfie camera, an 8 MP sensor is present.
When you pick the device up, you’ll be getting a great mid-ranger. Xiaomi is not very popular in Sri Lanka, but it’s clear that they know what they’re doing. The handset looks cool and when compared to alternatives, it gives them a run for their money. It even out beats newer alternatives, like the A31.
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