Poco C3 Budget Smartphone Review: Well-Rounded Package In Sub 10K Segment

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The Poco C3 has a matte-textured rear surface. However, it has a gradient finish and a dual-tone design. Even with a shiny surface, the handset picks up a minimum of fingerprints and smudges. The handset gets a P2i coating that makes it splash-proof. It has a big form factor and at 194g and with 9mm thickness it has got a heft to it. Using the device with a single hand isn't a comfortable experience. While you will be able to complete basic tasks such as making/answering a call, texting, and browsing, you will need both the hands for anything extensive.

 

Rating:
4.0/5

Poco C3 Budget Smartphone Review

You only get a square-shaped camera setup with three sensors and the Poco branding at the bottom left of the back panel. The volume keys are placed alongside the power button on the right edge, while the left panel stores the dedicated microSD card slot. The 3.5mm headphone jack is placed at the top, while the bottom edge has the microUSB port and the speaker grille. We would have appreciated if the brand used a USB Type-C port. Overall, the Poco C3 dons a good looking skin; however, its bulky form factor is what you wouldn't like.

Now moving to the front, the Poco C3 flaunts a tall 6.53-inch LCD display. The panel offers a 720 x 1600 pixels HD+ resolution which is standard for this segment. Protecting it from scratches is the Panda Glass layer on top. Do note that the device ships without any protective glass out-of-the-box and you will have to get it from the market.

The device comes with an aspect ratio of 20:9 and has a waterdrop style notch for the selfie camera. The display performs well with 720p videos online. The color production is decent so are the viewing angles. However, the brightness levels seem to be on the lower side. The display appears dark in direct sunlight and you will have a hard time watching content outside.

Poco C3: Design And Display Performance
 

Poco C3: Design And Display Performance

The Poco C3 has a matte-textured rear surface. However, it has a gradient finish and a dual-tone design. Even with a shiny surface, the handset picks up a minimum of fingerprints and smudges. The handset gets a P2i coating that makes it splash-proof. It has a big form factor and at 194g and with 9mm thickness it has got a heft to it. Using the device with a single hand isn't a comfortable experience. While you will be able to complete basic tasks such as making/answering a call, texting, and browsing, you will need both the hands for anything extensive.

You only get a square-shaped camera setup with three sensors and the Poco branding at the bottom left of the back panel. The volume keys are placed alongside the power button on the right edge, while the left panel stores the dedicated microSD card slot. The 3.5mm headphone jack is placed at the top, while the bottom edge has the microUSB port and the speaker grille. We would have appreciated if the brand used a USB Type-C port. Overall, the Poco C3 dons a good looking skin; however, its bulky form factor is what you wouldn't like.

Now moving to the front, the Poco C3 flaunts a tall 6.53-inch LCD display. The panel offers a 720 x 1600 pixels HD+ resolution which is standard for this segment. Protecting it from scratches is the Panda Glass layer on top. Do note that the device ships without any protective glass out-of-the-box and you will have to get it from the market.

The device comes with an aspect ratio of 20:9 and has a waterdrop style notch for the selfie camera. The display performs well with 720p videos online. The color production is decent so are the viewing angles. However, the brightness levels seem to be on the lower side. The display appears dark in direct sunlight and you will have a hard time watching content outside.

Poco C3: Hardware Performance

Poco C3: Hardware Performance

The Poco C3 packs the MediaTek Helio G35 processor under its hood. The entry-level gaming processor has eight-cores and a base frequency of 2.3Ghz. It is combined with IMG PowerVR GE8320 GPU to handle the graphics. A bunch of smartphones powered by this processor have been announced in the recent times. The list includes the likes of the Realme C11, Redmi 9C, and the Micromax IN 1B.

The device handles not just the daily tasks but multitasking also fairly well. You won't find any lags while switching apps, even with multiple of them running in the background. The device performs swiftly in every aspect. The handset delivers well on gaming as well. You will enjoy your gaming sessions; however, the high-end graphics support is what you will miss here. Overall, the Poco C3 has decent processing capabilities.

Poco C3: Software And Benchmark Performance

Poco C3: Software And Benchmark Performance

The Poco C3 boots on the Android 10 OS. The device comes pre-loaded with MIUI 12 interface. You get features Android 10 features like Dark Mode, gesture-based navigation and Digital Wellbeing. The UI is similar to what you see on the Xiaomi smartphones with the same firmware. You need to swipe up on the home screen to pull-up the app drawer. There is pre-loaded bloatware. You can uninstall these third-party apps manually to make the UI look cleaner.

Now, coming to the benchmark performance, we ran three different tests on the Poco C3. In the PCMark benchmark's Work 2.0 Performance test, the device achieved a total of 5289 points. The handset scored 839 points in the 3DMark Sling Shot benchmark, while at Geekbench, the device logged 150 points in the single-core test and 490 points in the multi-core test. The device has scored decent points in all the benchmark tests.

Poco C3: Camera Performance

Poco C3: Camera Performance

The Poco C3 comprises three cameras at the rear panel to take care of the photography. The device offers a 13MP primary sensor which is accompanied by a pair for 2MP sensors for depth and macro imaging. You get standard set of shooting modes such as AI, HDR, and Portrait. The device is also capable of shooting Time-lapse and short videos. There is a Pro mode which you can access from the bottom of the camera app.

As far as the camera performance is concerned, the device does a fine job in capturing images in ample lighting situation. The detailing is decent and the images doesn't go grainy. The bokeh images look good and the background blur doesn't appear artificial. It is worth mentioning that there isn't any provision to adjust the blur intensity manually. The colours seem oversaturated in the HDR mode.

The low light shots aren't that great. The device comes void of any dedicated Night mode. There is a certain level of noise in the images with low-light surroundings. The selfie snapper on the Poco C3 is a 5MP lens with an f/2.2 aperture. It doesn't click super-clear selfies, however, it does its job for good social media uploads.

The Poco C3 prides itself on having three rear cameras, which is not something we see too often in this segment. You get a 13-megapixel primary camera, a 2-megapixel depth camera, and a 2-megapixel macro camera. For selfies, there's a 5-megapixel front camera. The camera app has the usual basic shooting modes, Auto HDR, and AI scene recognition. There's no dedicated low-light shooting mode.

Poco C3: Verdict

Poco C3: Verdict

Poco has been a successful brand when it comes to value flagship devices. However, off late, the company has been trying to grab a chunk of the budget segment as well. The company's ‘M' and ‘C' series are the latest bet in this segment. Speaking of the Poco C3, at an asking price of Rs. 7,499, you get a good set of internals that can handle several tasks with ease. Not to forget, the big 5,000 mAh battery that steals the show here. While you can get other options such as the Realme C11, Realme C15, and others powered by the same MediaTek Helio G35 processor, it's the pricing that which makes it a fair deal in its league. 

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