Design
- Well-built, sturdy design - the unique dual-tone ridged pattern similar to other Poco phones at the back looks really nice
- The front carries a dew-drop notch with decent bezels, which works for the price
- The textured back surface feels grippy and doesn't attract fingerprints
- The Face Unlock works decently in well-lit surroundings (though it leaves you at the helm of the passcode at night)
- It doesn't feel too thick or heavy even though it measures around 9mm and weighs 194g
Display
- Good 6.53-inch IPS HD+ display - the viewing angles and colours are pretty good, better than those of the Realme C12 and C15
- The brightness is also adequate (though, it could have been better)
Software
- MIUI 11 is as feature rich as ever, the overall interface on the phone is user friendly - Android 10 is running beneath all the jazz
- It packs in plenty pre-installed bloatware, the ads are still here, it isn't the perfect user experience
Performance
- Decent entry-level performance from the MediaTek Helio G35 SoC - good for day-to-day tasks and can handle a bunch of light to medium apps at once (though, there's some noticeable stutter in the animations and opening apps at times)
Camera
- Decent triple rear cameras for the price - a 13MP primary camera, a 2MP macro, and a 2MP depth sensor
- The quality of photos from the main camera is decent, given enough light - shots came out looking crisp and vivid
- The macro camera works nicely, it produces usable photos in well-lit conditions for social media
- Portrait mode works fairly well, even for objects
- The 5MP selfie camera can produce decent selfies during the day - photos maintain good color, and exposure levels
- The Redmi 9 really struggles in low light - details are generally weak when shooting at night
- Video quality is strictly average
Battery
- Very good battery life - easily able to go about a day and half or even longer, on a single charge
- The phone doesn't support fast charging and an hour of charge could only fill the battery to 40-percent charge
Verdict
- The Poco C3 is a good smartphone for first-time buyers, or for those wanting a cheap secondary phone
- Thought if you can spend little more, there are better options available from Xiaomi and Realme