Xiaomi today introduced the Redmi Note 3 in India. The phone is priced at Rs. 9,999 for the 16GB model, and Rs. 11,999 for the 32GB model. With 5.5-inch FHD display and fast charging capability, Redmi Note 3 bears a metal unibody alloy chassis with curved edges including a fingerprint scanner.
During the launch event, Hugo Barra, Global Vice President, Xiaomi said that the new metal unibody included with Redmi Note 3 throws open a new chapter in the design of smartphones. He also stated that the device will be fully charged within 3 hours with the first 50% of battery charging is less than an hour.
Unlike its previous counterpart, Redmi Note 3 is designed to deal with slimmer form factor with a weight of 165 grams and will be sturdy rather than slippery feel. Redmi Note 3 comes with Silver, White and Rose Gold color options.
Xiaomi India revealed to us that the company decided to come up with two models of Redmi Note 3 to cater to call sections of people. He further revealed that there is a growing trend among youths to purchase a smartphone with increased internal storage, and the product team has aptly listened to the voices.
While the 2GB RAM model will have an internal storage of 16GB, the 3GB RAM variant comes with 32GB of storage capacity with a higher price tag. Both models will have the capability to expand the storage to up to 200GB using microSD card.
Specs wise, Redmi Note 3 boasts a pixel density of 403ppi, Snapdragon 650 processor alongside 4050mAh non-removable Li-Po battery, which is capable of delivering up to 4 days of standby time.
Xiaomi says it manufactured the Redmi Note 3 display in such a way to provide excellent viewing angles, better color reproduction in addition to enhanced outdoor visibility even in bright sunlight.
The latest version of MIUI 7.0 integrated with Redmi Note 3 offers new themes, battery improvements, wallpaper carousel and provides modules for minimizing response time and battery life including Child mode to protect the device from unauthorized access.
On the photography front, Redmi Note 3 features a 16MP primary camera, backed by a 5MP front-facing camera. The camera supports Phase Detection Autofocus (PDAF), dual-LED flash, touch focus, face and smile detection with the ability to share images after its capture.
Redmi Note 3 comes with significant improvements such as a bigger display with a higher pixel density, fingerprint sensor among others when compared to Note 2, which was released in December 2014.
In addition to 4G dual-SIM support, Redmi Note 3 supports a wide range of large appliances including DSLR cameras via infrared, LTE Category 7, VoLTE with HD voice. Moreover, the smartphone can download content up to 300Mbps and also upload files up to 100Mbps through 4G, says Xiaomi.
On the content side, Redmi Note 3 comes bundled with free two months access to Hungama music store, where purchasing Redmi Note 3 will be allowed to download songs at no cost at all for first two months.
Redmi Note 3 will be available exclusively on both Mi India official site and Amazon India on March 9 at 2 PM via a flash sale at Rs.9999 (16GB) and Rs. 11999 (32GB) respectively. Xiaomi also mentioned that Redmi Note will go on sale on rest of the other e-commerce, offline portals including Flipkart, Snapdeal and physical stores.
Xiaomi also hinted at the imminent launch of Xiaomi Mi 5 in India including a Bluetooth speaker for Rs. 1999, which will be available in India during Holi. The company also announced the launch of a 20000mAh power bank in India.