The Poco M3 was unveiled at a livestreamed event today, and at the same time, Poco Global is breaking out as its own brand independent of Xiaomi. This comes after 6 million Poco phones have been sold in more than 35 global markets, making it a very successful sub-brand. Its latest budget handset boasts an enormous 6,000 mAh battery, a large 6.53-inch display, and a triple camera system headed up by a 48MP main sensor.
Since it starts at $149, the Poco M3 is a decidedly budget affair in contrast to Poco's higher-specced budget flagship offerings. It's powered by a modest Snapdragon 662 chipset with Adreno 610 GPU. The cheapest model comes with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage, while a $169 variant ups the capacity to 128GB.
SPECS
SoC |
Qualcomm Snapdragon 662 |
RAM |
4GB (LPDDR4X) |
Storage |
64GB (UFS 2.1) or 128GB (UFS 2.2) (microSD expandable) |
Display |
6.53" FHD+ Dot Drop display |
Rear cameras |
48MP main, 2MP macro, 2MP depth |
Front camera |
8MP |
Battery |
6,000 mAh (18W fast charging) |
Headphone jack |
Yes |
Software |
MIUI 12 for POCO (Android 10) |
Other |
Dual speakers, Hi-Res Audio certified, side-mounted fingerprint sensor, FM radio, IR blaster, DualSIM |
Dimensions |
162.3mm x 77.3mm x 9.6mm |
Weight |
198g |
Colors |
Cool Blue, POCO Yellow, Power Black |
Price |
$149 or $169 |
Triple cameras are on board, but we can probably only expect half-decent photos from the 48MP main shooter — 2MP macro and depth sensors continue to be questionable inclusions on budget hardware. Other notable features include a headphone jack, expandable storage, and dual speakers with Hi-Res audio. Biometrics security is also on board in the form of a side-mounted fingerprint scanner and AI face unlock.
Availability in Europe begins on Black Friday, which means the pricing will be dropped to $129 and $149 for each model, respectively. You grab one from the Poco site, Amazon, AliExpress, or mi.com.