A couple of days back, Xiaomi announced its cheapest fingerprint enabled smartphone, namely the Redmi 3 Pro. This will be an upgraded model to the existing Redmi 3 model which was announced back in January. The specs of the device are now similar to the specs offered by the Redmi Note series, which is why we thought it would be a good idea to pit the Redmi 3 Pro vs Redmi Note 3 Pro in this comparison. Both have slightly different specs, and are targeted at a slightly different market, however, given that the pricing of the Redmi 3 Pro has nearly reached to the level of the Note series, they can now be considered very close to each other.
So, without wasting anymore time, let’s move on to the Redmi 3 Pro vs Redmi Note 3 Pro comparison.
DESIGN:
Design wise, both are very similar looking handsets. That’s not surprising given that they fall in the same family, i.e. the Redmi series. The new Redmi 3 Pro has abandoned the plaid design that was seen on the Redmi 3 and instead features a plain metal back cover with the fingerprint sensor on board. The camera and the flash are located on the top left corner.
Coming to the Redmi Note 3 Pro version, it features a similar plain back design, with a fingerprint sensor on board. The camera and the flash are located around the top center portion. Both the models feature a metal body.
Coming to the dimensions, which is quite interesting, the Redmi 3 Pro comes with a 139.3 x 69.6 x 8.5mm body while the Note 3 Pro features a 150 x 76 x 8.7mm body. What’s interesting here is that despite having a large battery, the smaller and much more compact Redmi 3 Pro is thinner than the Note model. In case you are wondering about the weight, the Redmi 3 Pro is lighter at 144 grams as opposed to 164 grams of the Note 3 Pro.
HARDWARE:
Specs wise there are quite a few differences. The Redmi 3 Pro comes with the Snapdragon 616 octa-core chip, which comes from a series that powered mid-range smartphones. On the other hand, the Redmi Note 3 Pro is powered by the Snapdragon 650 chipset. This chip is slightly more powerful than the SD616 given that it comes with dual Cortex A72 cores. On the other hand, the SD616 is all Cortex A53 cores. Another important difference is the GPU inside, Adreno 405 on Redmi model as opposed to the faster Adreno 510 on the Redmi Note model.
Coming to the memory, the Redmi 3 Pro has just one variant, 3GB RAM + 32GB with MicroSD (hybrid slot) for up to 128GB expansion. On the other hand, the Note model has 2GB + 16GB and 3GB + 32GB variants.
For camera, the Redmi 3 Pro sports a 13MP f/2.0 sensor with PDAF and single LED flash. On the other hand, the Note 3 Pro comes with a slightly better 16MP sensor with PDAF, f/2.0 aperture, and dual tone flash. Both have 5MP front facing cameras.
Coming to the displays, the Redmi 3 Pro is much more compact sporting a 5-inch 720p screen. On the other hand, the Redmi Note 3 Pro comes with a 5.5-inch 1080p display.
Battery is of similar capacity and sufficiently large on both the phones. The Redmi 3 Pro has a 4100mAh battery while the Redmi Note 3 Pro comes with a 4000mAh battery. However, considering the 720p 5-inch screen and the super efficient SD616 with Cortex A53 cores, expect the battery life on the former to be much better.
Finally, both the models run on Android 5.1 with MIUI 7 on top. And yes, as mentioned above, both have fingerprint sensors.
Here’s the specs summary:
| Redmi 3 Pro | Redmi Note 3 Pro | |
| CPU | 1.5GHz Snapdragon 616 (eight Cortex A53)
Adreno 405 GPU |
1.8GHz Snapdragon 650 (2xCortex A72 + 4x Cortex A53)
Adreno 510 GPU |
| Display | 5-inch 1280 x 720p screen | 5.5-inch 1920 x 1080p screen |
| RAM | 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM (maximum 128G Expandable via Hybrid slot SIM2) | 2GB RAM + 16GB ROM / 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM
(128GB Expandable via Hybrid slot SIM2) |
| Camera | 13MP f/2.0 rear with single LED flash
5MP front |
16MP f/2.0 rear with dual tone flash
5MP front |
| Battery | 4100mAh | 4000mAh |
| Other Features | Fingerprint sensor, dual SIM dual standby, 4G LTE, | |
| Size | 139.3 x 69.6 x 8.5 mm | 150 x 76 x 8.7 mm |
PRICE:
Both the phones are priced quite near to each other. The newly announced Xiaomi Redmi 3 Pro retails at an official price tag of 899 yuan ($138). Now, the base variant of the Redmi Note 3 Pro i.e. the 2GB RAM + 16GB storage model also retails at the exact same price. The 3GB RAM + 32GB ROM variant retails for 999 Yuan ($154).
CONCLUSION:
So, both are pretty good smartphones. The Redmi 3 Pro is ideal for someone who wants a compact screen and a very long lasting battery. On the other hand, if you are looking for a larger and better display, a decent battery that will last an entire day and specs that can play almost every Android game out there, then Redmi Note 3 Pro is your best bet.
So, which one do you think is ideal for you?
