Poco M3 Pro 5G review

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Introduction

The Poco M3 Pro 5G is yet another phone focused on offering 5G access on a budget. And while it's doubtful many people will be looking for such a thing, the Poco M3 Pro 5G has a lot more to offer than just speedy cellular connectivity.

The new Poco M3 Pro 5G has one particularly rich feature set, for an affordable smartphone that is. There is a 6.5" 90Hz LCD screen, the Dimensity 700 chip with 4GB or 6GB of RAM, a triple camera with a 48MP primary shooter, and a large 5,000 mAh battery capable of 18W fast charging. The phone runs on Android 11 with MIUI 12.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The connectivity options are abundant, too. There is 5G and everything that came before it. NFC is supported, too. You can use FM radio, and there is even a 3.5mm audio jack. The Poco M3 Pro 5G also offers an IR blaster, and it can be your universal remote. Bluetooth 5.1 and dual-band Wi-Fi are also available.

All of this sounds familiar, doesn't it?

That's because the Poco M3 Pro 5G is identical to the Redmi Note 10 5G, sans the different rear panel. While the Redmi had a matte plastic back with a small camera island, the Poco has a glossy glass-like rear cover with this massive black accent for the imagers. And that's how you tell those two apart!

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The Poco M3 Pro 5G sure seems like a decent entry-level smartphone, and probably one of its biggest treats is that it's cheaper than the Redmi Note 10 5G sibling. Let's take a closer look at the specs sheet now.

Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro 5G specs at a glance:

  • Body: 161.8x75.3x8.9mm, 190g; Gorilla Glass 3 front, plastic back, plastic frame.
  • Display: 6.50" IPS LCD, 90Hz, 400 nits (typ), 500 nits (HBM), 1080x2400px resolution, 20:9 aspect ratio, 405ppi.
  • Chipset: MediaTek MT6833 Dimensity 700 5G (7 nm): Octa-core (2x2.2 GHz Cortex-A76 & 6x2.0 GHz Cortex-A55); Mali-G57 MC2.
  • Memory: 64GB 4GB RAM, 128GB 6GB RAM; UFS 2.2; microSDXC.
  • OS/Software: Android 11, MIUI 12.
  • Rear camera: Wide (main): 48 MP, f/1.8, 26mm, 1/2.0", 0.8µm, PDAF; Macro: 2 MP, f/2.4; Depth: 2 MP, f/2.4.
  • Front camera: 8 MP, f/2.0, (wide).
  • Video capture: Rear camera: 1080p@30fps; Front camera: 1080p@30fps.
  • Battery: 5000mAh; Fast charging 18W.
  • Misc: Fingerprint reader (side-mounted); FM radio; Infrared port; 3.5mm jack.

Two things we would have liked to see improved on this Poco M3 Pro 5G by looking through its specs sheet. Some splash resistance would have been nice, and maybe the Dimensity 800U would have been the better choice. But at €179, we are still happy with what we get.

Unboxing the Poco M3 Pro 5G

The Poco M3 Pro 5G is packed within one of those signature yellow boxes, and you know there is a Pocophone inside even before you lay eyes on the actual branding. The bundle covers the basics and then some. Inside the box, you'll find a 22.5W charger and a USB-C-to-A cable.

The Poco M3 Pro 5G also ships with a transparent silicone case with a protective cover over the charging port - this way, it will be exposed to much less pocket lint.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The phone also arrives with this thin and cheap screen protector. It is good against scratches but is one giant smudge magnet, and we peeled it off right away.

Finally, you also get a bunch of Poco stickers, so you can show your love for Poco wherever you like - laptop, monitor, desk, fridge, and why not your car, right?

Design, build, handling

The Poco M3 Pro 5G may be using Redmi Note 10 5G internals, but it looks completely different. Poco has been trying and succeeding to break out of Redmi's looks, and we do like what we've seen so far. The new M3 Pro 5G is no exception - it seems completely different at the back, more premium if you will.

Poco M3 Pro 5G reviewRedmi Note 10 5G and the Poco M3 Pro 5G

While Xiaomi relies on a matte back with cool light effects for the Redmi Note 10 5G, the Poco M3 Pro 5G offers what looks like glass (though it's still plastic) rear panel, all glossy with a solid color - be it dark gray, yellow, or blue.

The camera island stays the same, but it has a completely different accent - there is this partial black strip now that engulfs the imagers, plus a reasonably large POCO insignia.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

We like Poco's interpretation better, even if the back is one giant fingerprint magnet.

The 6.5" IPS LCD screen occupies most of the front - it's a 90Hz FullHD panel protected by a flat piece of Gorilla Glass 3. There is a tiny punch hole centered at the top - here, you can see the 8MP selfie shooter.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The earpiece grille is above the screen panel, and next to it is hidden one of the ambient light sensors. There is no notification LED on the Poco M3 Pro 5G.

The other ambient light sensor is on the camera setup, next to the flash. And even if the said flash looks like a dual-LED one, there is just one bright LED beneath the diffuser.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The camera island isn't jutting out that prominently and that's why it doesn't make the Poco wobble much when lying on a flat surface. The three imagers here are the 48MP primary snapper, the 2MP depth sensor, and the 2MP macro cam.

The frame is made of plastic and has the same dark gray paint as the back but with a matte finish, making it quite grippy. It is flattened around the top and bottom, while the sides are a bit curved.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The hybrid-SIM slot is alone on the left. The right side houses the volume and power keys. The surface of the power/lock button doubles as an always-on fingerprint reader. It's plenty fast and reliable, but if you touch it a lot while taking your phone out of your pocket, you should change its trigger from touch to press and resolve the annoyingly often PIN requests.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The top of the Poco M3 Pro 5G packs the 3.5mm audio jack, the second mic for stereo audio in videos and noise reduction in calls, as well as the IR blaster.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The bottom is where you'd find the USB-C port, the primary microphone, and the loudspeaker. There is no second speaker on the Poco M3 Pro 5G.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The phone measures 161.8 x 75.3 x 8.9 mm and weighs 190 g - exactly as the Redmi Note 10 5G, and 5g heavier than the Realme 8 5G.

The Poco M3 Pro 5G is of reasonable size and feels great when handled. Thanks to its glass-like back, it also looks more premium than its Redmi counterpart. It is not slippery despite the glossy panel and seems to be a device of a solid build. Fingerprints and smudges stick on the back, but you can wipe them easily with a piece of cloth.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The Poco M3 Pro 5G has no ingress protection whatsoever, not even splash-resistance of water-sealed ports. And that's the only issue we have with its design and build. No matter the price tag, we think every smartphone should have some basic level of protection.

Display

The Poco M3 Pro 5G features a 6.5" IPS LCD screen with a small punch hole around the top. The panel has the usual extended 1080p resolution - 2,400 x 1,080 pixels - resulting in 400ppi density and 20:9 aspect ratio. A flat Gorilla Glass 3 piece is shielding the display.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The Poco M3 Pro 5G display supports a dynamic 90Hz refresh rate, just like the Redmi Note 10 5G. There is no HDR support.

MIUI is offering two Refresh Rate options - High (90Hz) and Standard (60Hz). The High setting is supposed to be dynamic - it should auto-switch between 30Hz, 50Hz, 60Hz and 90Hz depending on the shown content. The 30Hz support will be arriving at a later date, though.

Xiaomi says that UI should be drawn at 90fps for scrolling and kept at 50fps when static. The same goes for other static content across compatible apps. 60Hz should be used in games and streaming/local video playback, while 30Hz should be possible for compatible 30fps videos. Unfortunately, we cannot confirm this as the integrated Refresh Rate indicator always shows 90Hz, even when static picture is shown. The only exceptions are 60Hz for the file manager, games, and some video apps (Mi Video, Netflix).

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

Having said that - we cannot be sure that the screen is not working as promised. There is a chance that MIUI and Android are miscommunicating things. If we are to bet - we think Xiaomi is or will be offering the promised dynamic refresh rate support, and the issue we are seeing is because of an error or an early firmware build and will be eventually fixed.

Xiaomi has listed the screen's expected contrast ratio as 1500:1. The promised typical brightness is 400 nits, while the maximum - 500 nits. We've completed our display measurements, and we can confirm all of these numbers.

The Poco M3 Pro 5G screen has a maximum brightness of 413 nits in manual mode, but it can light up as bright as 536 nits when the outdoor mode kicks in. These, coupled with the impressively deep black level, make for an excellent contrast of 1475:1.

The minimum brightness we captured at point white was just 1.3 nit - impressive!

Display test 100% brightness
Black,cd/m2 White,cd/m2 Contrast ratio
Poco M3 Pro 5G 0.28 413 1475:1
Poco M3 Pro 5G (Max Auto) 0.366 536 1464:1
Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G 0.21 377 1795:1
Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G (Max Auto) 0.275 492 1789:1
Realme 8 5G 0.334 472 1413:1
Realme 8 5G (Max Auto) 0.408 577 1414:1
Poco M3 0.252 395 1567:1
Poco M3 (Max Auto) 0.277 439 1585:1
Realme 7 5G 0.376 484 1287:1
Realme 7 5G (Max Auto) 0.667 571 856:1
Samsung Galaxy A42 5G 0 395
Samsung Galaxy A42 5G (Max Auto) 0 570
OnePlus Nord N10 5G 0.304 440 1447:1
Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro 0 457
Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro (Max Auto) 0 725
Poco X3 Pro 0.327 458 1401:1
Poco X3 Pro (Max Auto) 0.4 534 1335:1
Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 0 475
Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 (Max Auto) 0 682

MIUI supports three different Contrast settings for the Poco M3 Pro 5G display, and they all correspond to the sRGB color space. With the Automatic contrast set to on, there is a noticeable blue tinge, and the colors aren't that accurate, though punchy. The same goes for the Saturated option.

The Standard Contrast setting has superb accuracy within the sRGB color space, and we captured an average deltaE of 1.9 for color accuracy.

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Display options

Finally, the Poco M3 Pro 5G supports Widevine L1 DRM out of the box, and you will be able to enjoy streaming content at the maximum Full HD resolution.

Battery life

The Poco M3 Pro is powered by a large 5,000 mAh battery, and it supports reasonably fast charging at 18W.

The Poco M3 Pro 5G posted an excellent result in our battery test with a 121-hours Endurance rating - the same as the Redmi Note 10 5G, and close to the Realme 8 5G and Realme 7 5G. It did an excellent job across all test scenarios - calls, web browsing, video playback and demonstrated decent standby performance.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

Our battery tests were automated thanks to SmartViser, using its viSerDevice app. The endurance rating denotes how long the battery charge will last you if you use the device for an hour of telephony, web browsing, and video playback daily. More details can be found here.

Charging speed

Xiaomi is shipping the Poco M3 Pro 5G with the same 22.5W charger we saw bundled with the Redmi Note 10 5G. The Poco M3 Pro fast charging maxes out at 18W, which means it is over-qualified for the job. But if you have other compatible devices, you'd be able to fast charge those with this adapter, too, and you'll need to carry one or a couple of chargers less.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The bundled charger takes the Poco M3 Pro 5G 5,000mAh battery from 0% to 33% in half an hour. That's not exactly fast, but it's enough to last you at least a day.

30min charging test (from 0%)

  • Realme 7 Pro
    94%
  • Realme 8 Pro
    88%
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10
    65%
  • OnePlus Nord N10 5G
    65%
  • Realme 7 5G
    57%
  • Realme 8
    56%
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro
    50%
  • Poco X3 Pro
    50%
  • Poco M3 Pro 5G
    33%
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G
    33%
  • Realme 8 5G
    29%
  • Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
    27%
  • Poco M3
    25%

A full charge is achieved in precisely 2 hours - the same as the Redmi Note 10 5G and 20 minutes faster than the Realme 8 5G.

Time to full charge (from 0%)

  • Realme 7 Pro
    0:37h
  • Realme 8 Pro
    0:38h
  • OnePlus Nord N10 5G
    0:52h
  • Realme 7 5G
    1:06h
  • Poco X3 Pro
    1:08h
  • Realme 8
    1:09h
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10
    1:13h
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 Pro
    1:21h
  • Poco M3 Pro 5G
    2:00h
  • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G
    2:00h
  • Samsung Galaxy A42 5G
    2:01h
  • Realme 8 5G
    2:20h
  • Poco M3
    2:30h

Note that the Poco M3 Pro starts charging fast only when it's booted. If it's dead and you forget to turn it on once you plugged it in, it will charge at the slowest speed possible.

Speaker quality

The Poco M3 Pro 5G offers one loudspeaker, and it's at the bottom of the phone. It scored a Good mark in our loudness test, in line with its 5G competition.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The sound quality is good, too, a match to the Redmi Note 10 5G. The output is richer than most of the budget phones we've tested. It has well-presented mid-tones and high-tones, unlike the Realme 8 5G that was good only for mid-tones, though the Redmi still lacks bass.

Use the Playback controls to listen to the phone sample recordings (best use headphones). We measure the average loudness of the speakers in LUFS. A lower absolute value means a louder sound. A look at the frequency response chart will tell you how far off the ideal "0db" flat line is the reproduction of the bass, treble, and mid frequencies. You can add more phones to compare how they differ. The scores and ratings are not comparable with our older loudspeaker test. Learn more about how we test here.

Android 11 with MIUI 12

The Poco M3 Pro 5G boots Android 11 with Poco-spiced MIUI 12 out of the box. The MIUI 12 version has been around for a while, and even if it uses an Android 11 base, you can't really tell that as it skins everything thoroughly. The Poco launcher uses a slightly different system theme, icons included, but you can change it to your liking.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

You unlock the screen via the side-mounted fingerprint scanner. The reader is easy to set up, blazing-fast, and the accuracy is superb.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

We advise you to set the unlock method to 'Press' as the always-on reader will often attempt reading your palm and/or other fingers and eventually disable the fingerprint unlock until you input your PIN. A 2D Face Unlock is available, too, but it is far less secure than the fingerprint option.

Security options - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Security options - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Security options - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Security options - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Security options - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Security options

The homescreens are business as usual - they are populated with shortcuts, folders, and widgets. The leftmost pane, if enabled, is Google's Discover.

The Poco M3 Pro 5G does not support Always-on screen, there are no Super Wallpapers either.

Homescreen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Homescreen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Homescreen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Homescreen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Homescreen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Homescreen

The Poco-fied MIUI 12 offers an app drawer, but unlike on the Redmi phones, you cannot disable it on the Poco M3 Pro 5G. It automatically organizes your apps into categories. The first is All, meaning it contains all apps. Then follow Communication, Entertainment, Photography, Tools, New, and Business. You can edit these categories or even disable them altogether.

App drawer - Poco M3 Pro 5G review App drawer - Poco M3 Pro 5G review App drawer - Poco M3 Pro 5G review App drawer - Poco M3 Pro 5G review App drawer - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
App drawer

Another interesting feature is the Notification shade split into Notification Center and Control Center. Indeed, this is precisely what the iPhones do, and you even summon them in the same fashion - pull down from the left part of the screen for the Notification Center, pull down from the right for the Control Center.

If you are not fond of this new split - you can disable the Control Center, and the shade will revert to its normal looks and operation.

Notification Center - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Control Center - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Options - Poco M3 Pro 5G review The old Notification Shade - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Notification Center • Control Center • Options • The old Notification Shade

The task switcher has not changed much. It shows all of your recent apps in two columns. Tap and hold on a card for the split-screen shortcut, or just swipe it left or right to close it.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

While the Redmi Note 10 5G lacked support for split screen multitasking it had Floating Window option. The Poco M3 Pro 5G can do split screen, but it doesn't support Floating Window. Weird.

Task Switcher - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Split screen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Split screen - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Task Switcher • Split screen • Split screen

Themes are a huge part of MIUI, and they are available on MIUI 12, too. You can download new ones from the Themes store, and they can change wallpapers, ringtones, system icons, and even the always-on display style.

Themes - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Themes - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Themes - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Themes - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Themes - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Themes - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Themes

Xiaomi enhanced MIUI 12 with a couple of additional privacy options. Now, when sharing stuff, like photos and videos, you can opt to remove location info and/or other metadata (incl. device info) and thus protect your privacy better. Neat.

Gallery - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Privacy Settings - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Gallery • Privacy Settings

MIUI also offers a Security app. It can scan your phone for malware, manage your blacklist, manage or restrict your data usage, configure battery behavior, and free up some RAM. It can also manage your installed apps' permissions and allow you to define the battery behavior of selected apps and apply restrictions only to the apps you choose.

MIUI 12 packs proprietary Gallery, Music, and Video player. In some regions, the music and video apps may include paid streaming options. Mi Remote for the IR blaster, as well as an FM radio app are available, too.

Security - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Security - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Music - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Video - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Mi Remote - Poco M3 Pro 5G review FM radio - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Security • Security • Music • Video • Mi Remote • FM radio

MIUI 12 supports Dark Mode, too, and you can even force it on wallpapers or restrict its application on incompatible individual apps.

Dark Mode - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Dark Mode - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Dark Mode - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Dark Mode - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Dark Mode - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Dark Mode

MIUI 12 is fully optimized to work on HRR displays, and it looks great on the Poco M3 Pro 5G. Everything is smooth and fast; animations are unobtrusive yet impressive, the attention to detail is excellent. We did enjoy working with MIUI on the Poco M3 Pro 5G's 90Hz screen for sure.

Some MIUI ROMs include ads in the default apps; it is a well-known thing.

How to disable ads - Poco M3 Pro 5G review How to disable ads - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
How to disable ads

The international ROM version of this Poco M3 Pro 5G does come with baked-in "recommendations" or ads, but even if they were enabled by default - nothing appeared through the UI. Still, if your phone does show ads - you can disable those even if it's a bit tedious to do it. For example, if you are annoyed by the app scanner's ads, just hit the settings gear and disable recommendations. Ads in the File Manager - Settings->About should do it. Themes - go to Settings and disable Recommendations. It's not ideal, sure, but at least you can get rid of them all.

Performance and benchmarks

The Poco M3 Pro 5G relies on MediaTek's most affordable 5G-enabled chip - the Dimensity 700 - it is the same SoC behind the Redmi Note 10 5G and the Realme 8 5G.

The Dimensity 700 5G chip packs a good octa-core processor with 2x 2.2GHz Cortex-A76 and 6x 2.0GHz Cortex-A55. The GPU is Mali-G57 MC2, and, of course, there is a 5G modem.

Finally, the Poco M3 Pro 5G is available in two variants, all containing LPDDR4X RAM and UFS 2.2 storage - 4GB RAM + 64GB and 6GB RAM + 128GB.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

Unfortunately, our Poco M3 Pro 5G came with a ROM version that has all benchmark apps banned and we couldn't run even a single test. Still, we've seen the same chip on the Realme 8 5G, working behind a similar 90Hz 1080p screen and we know what to expect from this particular piece of hardware.

The Dimensity 700 chip offers acceptable performance across all apps, including games. The CPU is perfect for this class, while the GPU may be a bit underpowered, but it still handles games pretty well, all things considered. Whether

it's a drop in resolution or visual effects, the Poco M3 Pro 5G, just like the Realme 8 5G, behaves great most of the time.

The Android OS with MIUI, as well as apps, browsers and even games ran smoothly on the Poco M3 Pro and we experience no lag or stutter. And that's more than enough for the asking €179 price.

Camera skills on a budget

The Poco M3 Pro 5G, just like Redmi Note 10 5G, has three cameras on its back and one at the front. The rear trio is as basic as they come - it has a 48MP primary shooter, a 2MP macro snapper, and a 2MP depth sensor. A single LED flash is the last thing of interest.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The Poco M3 Pro has a high-res main camera. It relies on a 48MP OmniVision OV48B 1/2" sensor with 0.8µm pixels, Quad-Bayer filter and PDAF. The lens is 26mm f/1.8. Night Mode is available on this imager.

The macro camera uses a 2MP Hynix Hi-259 sensor with large 1.75µm pixels. The lens is f/2.4, while the focus is fixed at about 4cm-5cm distance.

The third shooter at the back is a 2MP GalaxyCore GC02M1B monochrome depth sensor.

The selfie camera uses an 8MP OmniVision OV8856 1/4" sensor with 1.12µm pixels. It sits behind an f/2.0 lens, and the focus is fixed.

The default camera app is a typical MIUI affair - switching between modes is done by swiping left and right, and all available modes but Macro are on this rolodex. There are no zoom shortcuts here.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

On the opposite end of the viewfinder, you have a flash mode switch, an HDR switch, an AI toggle, and a magic wand with beauty effects and filters. You'll find some more options behind a hamburger menu, including the Macro mode, plus the shortcut to the settings. What you won't find is an option to set the output resolution.

There is a Pro mode for the main camera. Manual 48MP pictures are also an option. You can use up to 30s shutter speed and ISO up to 6400.

Camera app - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Camera app - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Camera app - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Camera app - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Camera app - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Camera app - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Camera app

Photo quality

The main camera saves 12MP by default (the actual resolution is 4,000 x 2,992 pixels). And the ones we took during the day are outstanding for this entry-level class. The photos are rich in detail and nicely sharp, the noise levels are low, the colors are mostly accurate, and the dynamic range is pretty good - even if Auto HDR was left on, it did not trigger even once.

Obviously, the foliage rendition is far from great - the grass is often smudged or artificially drawn, the tree crowns sometimes have this oil-painting effect, but let's get real - we've seen a lot more expensive phones do worse with foliage. In fact, the Poco M3 Pro did far better than expected.

Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 52, 1/2632s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 52, 1/2273s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 50, 1/2481s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 53, 1/2809s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
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Main camera, 12MP

There is an AI trigger on the viewfinder, but we aren't impressed by its processing in daylight conditions. The "AI" recognizes a bunch of scenes - Buildings, Sky, Greenery, Night, Cars, Pets, etc. and tweaks some parameters for a supposedly better look. Unfortunately, what we got is over-the-top contrast and unnatural-looking colors. But hey, if you like what you are seeing, by all means - go for the AI option.

Main camera with AI, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 52, 1/2632s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera with AI, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 52, 1/2273s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera with AI, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 51, 1/2445s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera with AI, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 54, 1/3289s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Main camera with AI, 12MP

There is a 48MP mode available, and it does some software trickery and pieces some good photos, though we are not sure if they are worth the megabytes. First, these 48MP shots are soft and quite noisy. When we downsized them to 12MP, we could see a bit more detail at some spots, but the improvements were minor, if any.

The 48MP photos do look more natural as they are less processed. So, if you want to avoid the camera's overprocessing and get more natural-looking photos, note that this doesn't mean better, then maybe you should play with this high-res mode.

Main camera, 48MP - f/1.8, ISO 50, 1/1420s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 48MP - f/1.8, ISO 50, 1/1302s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 48MP - f/1.8, ISO 51, 1/1224s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 48MP - f/1.8, ISO 51, 1/1645s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Main camera, 48MP

The Poco M3 Pro 5G has a 2MP monochrome camera serving as a depth sensor. And probably thanks to this little fella, the subject separation is indeed impressive, especially for this affordable price range. We did like the simulated blur a lot, too.

We can also praise the colors and the contrast, but the subjects are not as detailed as we would have liked. That's quite odd, as the Redmi Note 10 5G aced this mode across the board, sharpness included.

Main camera portraits, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 52, 1/1852s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera portraits, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 50, 1/1724s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera portraits, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 73, 1/50s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera portraits, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 51, 1/265s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Main camera portraits, 12MP

The Poco M3 Pro has a 2MP macro camera, and it can save some pretty nice photos, that is, if you get the distance right as the focus is fixed at about 5cm. And it takes a while to get used to this, believe us. Each of these pictures you are about to explore required at least seven tries.

But once you are a pro at getting your hand at 5cm away from your subject, then you can have detailed and lively close-up photos with good colors and contrast. If light conditions aren't ideal, though, the noise levels spike and the image quality quickly takes a turn for the worse.

Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Macro camera, 2MP - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Macro camera, 2MP

The 12MP photos we took at night with the main camera are great for this budget class. The resolved detail is a lot, even if some of it was smeared by the noise reduction processing. The colors look saturated and stay true to life; the contrast is good, too.

These were shot without HDR, so blown highlights are occasional.

Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 423, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 3194, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 1238, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 1752, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 1921, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 2015, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 2980, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Main camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 3199, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Main camera, 12MP

You can use HDR to restore the clipped highlights, but it will introduce a ton of noise, and we are not sure if this tradeoff is worth it.

HDR off - f/1.8, ISO 423, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review HDR on - f/1.8, ISO 417, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
HDR off • HDR on

The Night Mode also restores highlights, but it also brightens the entire picture. Looking at 100% zoom, we can see the improved exposure introduced more noise, which was then cleared by the aggressive processing, and a lot of the fine detail was smeared as well. Still, if a brighter photo is needed, Night Mode is the way to go.

Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 138, 1/33s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 441, 1/17s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 307, 1/25s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 428, 1/25s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 383, 1/20s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 402, 1/20s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 425, 1/14s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Night Mode, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 427, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Night Mode, 12MP

Finally, we liked the AI processing at nighttime. It offers more saturated colors, while retains the good qualities of the standard shooting mode. Sometimes it may even brighten the photo a bit. If you like this look better, you should definitely use it.

AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 406, 1/14s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 2654, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 1231, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 1713, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 1921, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 2013, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 2980, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review AI camera, 12MP - f/1.8, ISO 3199, 1/12s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
AI camera, 12MP

And here are photos of our usual posters taken with the Poco M3 Pro 5G. Here's how it stacks up against the competition. Feel free to browse around and pit it against other phones from our extensive database.

Photo Compare Tool Photo Compare Tool Photo Compare Tool
Poco M3 Pro 5G against the Realme 8 5G and the Redmi Note 10 5G in our Photo compare tool

The 8MP selfie camera saves magnificent photos. There is more than enough resolved detail, and the images are plenty sharp. The colors are okay, the contrast is superb, and the noise is kept nicely low. It sounds absurd, but we've seen flagships do worse, and that's why we are surprised to see such a good selfie cam on an entry-level phone.

Selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 51, 1/328s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 50, 1/170s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 54, 1/33s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 59, 1/33s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 51, 1/703s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 50, 1/191s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Selfies, 8MP

The selfie portraits are good, too, even if noisier. The subject separation is far from stellar, but it's rather okay for the class.

Portrait selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 50, 1/334s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Portrait selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 50, 1/162s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Portrait selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 56, 1/33s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review Portrait selfies, 8MP - f/2.0, ISO 50, 1/200s - Poco M3 Pro 5G review
Portrait selfies, 8MP

Video capturing

The Poco M3 Pro 5G supports video recording at up to 1080@30fps with its main camera and up to 720p@30fps with the macro one. There is no 4K mode, 60fps shooting is not available either.

The video bitrate is 20Mbps, while audio is recorded in stereo at high 256kbps bitrate. Optional electronic stabilization is supported, and it does a great job at the expense of minor loss of FoV.

The footage from the main camera has great colors, the contrast is good, and we liked the wide dynamic range. The level of detail is okay for 1080p footage on a budget.

And here is the Poco M3 Pro 5G in our video comparison database.

Video Compare Tool Video Compare Tool Video Compare Tool
1080p: Poco M3 Pro 5G against the Realme 8 5G and the Redmi Note 10 5G in our Video compare tool

Competition

It's no secret we had some hard time imagining why would anyone pick 5G connectivity above other (more important) features - be it a better screen, much faster performance, way better camera experience, splash resistance, and/or faster charging. But the truth is - even we can't really connect with the idea, the manufacturers saw some potential, and now there are plenty of 5G phones on a budget. But the Poco M3 Pro 5G is probably the cheapest among all of them.

Indeed, the Poco M3 Pro 5G is going to retail at €199 for its 4GB/64GB model. But the early bird price is €179, and that's nicely cheap, alright. And knowing Xiaomi, the phone will be frequently sold at this "promo" price even after the early bird campaign ends.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The Realme 8 5G is the first phone that comes to mind when thinking competition, of course. Its specs sheet is pretty similar to the Poco's - a 90hz LCD, Dimensity 700 chip, the same trio of snappers, a 5,000mAh battery with 18W charging. The pricing is identical, too - €199 retail price and €179 for the early adopters. The base model of the Realme 8 5G has 6GB of RAM, while the Poco M3 Pro comes with 4GB of RAM, and that'll be probably enough for some to choose Realme's offer.

Other makers like OnePlus, Samsung and Motorola are also selling 5G-enabled entry-level phones, but they start at about €250, making them less desirable than the Poco. Sure, OnePlus Nord N10 5G has stereo speakers and an ultrawide camera on top of the M3 Pro, while the Galaxy A42 5G impresses with a Super AMOLED screen and gaming performance. The Moto G50, on the other hand, has an inferior 720p screen, and yet it's more expensive, so it doesn't make much sense. But €70 or so on top of the Poco M3 Pro 5G price seems like a lot in this class.

Realme 8 5G OnePlus Nord N10 5G Samsung Galaxy A42 5G Motorola Moto G50
Realme 8 5G • OnePlus Nord N10 5G • Samsung Galaxy A42 5G • Motorola Moto G50

But Xiaomi's in-house competition is harsh, and it's going to be tough for the Poco M3 Pro 5G to stand out among its peers. Like the Redmi Note 9T - while it may have a 60Hz LCD screen, it offers faster graphics, stereo speakers, and splash resistance - at the same price at that.

The Redmi Note 10 5G deserves an honorable mention. It's the Poco M3 Pro 5G with Redmi branding (well, it's the other way around, really, but anyway...), but it's at least €20 more expensive, and it makes no sense of buying it unless you hate Poco's launcher that much.

Poco M3 Pro 5G reviewRedmi Note 10 5G and the Poco M3 Pro

And if 5G is not a must, then Xiaomi can sell you a flagship at that price. Indeed, we are talking about the €195 Poco X3 Pro with a 120Hz display, Snapdragon 860 chipset, plenty of snappers, 33W fast charging and all sorts of connectivity options.

Or maybe look at the €150 4GB/64GB Redmi Note 10, which packs a 60Hz Super AMOLED screen, a decent Snapdragon 678 hardware, four cameras at the back, two speakers, and a large battery with faster 33W charging support. We'd take this one instead of 5G and a 90Hz LCD, but maybe that's just us.

Xiaomi Redmi Note 9T Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G Xiaomi Poco X3 Pro Xiaomi Redmi Note 10
Xiaomi Redmi Note 9T • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10 5G • Xiaomi Poco X3 Pro • Xiaomi Redmi Note 10

Verdict

Xiaomi knows how to make a good phone, and the Poco M3 Pro 5G follows the same successful recipe - it packs the best features money can buy you at €179, with 5G being one of the highlights. We did like the 90Hz LCD screen - it was always smooth, bright enough and with great contrast. All four cameras do nice photos, you can play games mostly satisfactory, and the battery life is amazing.

Poco M3 Pro 5G review

The Poco M3 Pro 5G is not the fastest chap, that is for sure - the GPU is unimpressive, the charging is not that fast, there are no popular features like dual speakers or 4K video capturing. But right now, 5G is expensive, so we can only imagine where a large chunk of the budget went.

The Poco M3 Pro 5G is not a phone for everyone, obviously. If you want to join the first people getting access to 5G and all that instantaneous web load times, it's probably the cheapest way in. If 5G doesn't matter that much, just look elsewhere.

Pros

  • 90Hz LCD IPS screen, very good contrast.
  • Excellent battery life.
  • Good speaker quality.
  • Smooth MIUI 12.
  • Dependable camera day and night.
  • Outstanding selfies.
  • 5G, 3.5mm jack, IR blaster, NFC, microSD.

Cons

  • Mediocre GPU performance.
  • No ingress protection.
  • No stereo speakers.
  • No 4K video recording.

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