POCO X3 GT Unboxing, First Impressions, Camera Samples

A few days back, POCO released the third member of the X3 family in the Philippines—the X3 GT.

Meet POCO X3 GT

Sitting in between the X3 Pro and F3, the POCO X3 GT with a PHP 15,990 starting price (8GB/128GB) up to PHP 17,990 (8GB/256GB) is arguably the most attractive handset in its class.

Why? The device is the most affordable to use a Gorilla Glass Victus protected display, 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 1100 5G SoC, and 67W Turbo Charging technology.

Moreover, it has strong overall specs including a 6.6-inch 120Hz 1080p LCD screen, 5,000mAh battery, LiquidCool Technology 2.0, 64MP triple-cam, 16MP selfie cam, WiFi 6, IR Blaster, stereo speakers, and Hi-Res Audio, among others.

After a few days of using it, here's what's initially think about it. read on.

Unboxing/Accessories

The box and the phone

The POCO X3 GT arrived in a black box showing the POCO logo, X3 GT branding, and a 5G icon emphasizing that it is a now and future-ready device.

Everything inside

Inside, you will see another box containing the case, paper documents, some POCO stickers, and the SIM ejector tool.

After that, the user will be greeted by the POCO X3 GT itself. Next are the 67W in-box power brick and the USB-A to USB-C data/charging cable.

Unlike other Mi phones like the Redmi Note 10 5G, this one has no pre-installed screen protector suggesting that POCO is confident about the durability of its Gorilla Glass Victus protected display.

As usual, there are no earphones with a microphone as a freebie.

Build Quality/Design

Gradient back design

For a mid-ranger, the POCO X3 GT is made out of mostly impressive materials. The back is glasstic and the frame is made out of solid polycarbonate material, but the front glass panel is protected by Corning's Gorilla Glass Victus (7) technology.

The most affordable with tough Gorilla Glass Victus protected display yet!

Gorilla Glass Victus is a premium glass protection commonly found on higher-end smartphones—mostly expensive flagships. This glass protection promises to be more resilient than past Gorilla Glass protections designed to survive drops on hard and rough surfaces up to 2 meters.

I personally dropped the handset face front table high and it didn't get any damage. However, after a few days, we noticed that it has hairline scratches even if we are taking care of the handset.

This means that even if it has Gorilla Glass Victus, it would have been better if it has a pre-installed screen protector.

Another thing that makes this device a bit special for the price is its SIM card tray has a red rubber gasket which means that it is somehow resistant to water splashes. Not and overall.

The back cam and the dual SIM tray

In terms of design, it has the usual 3D curved back design making it comfortable in the hands. The back also features a rectangular-shaped camera island containing its 64MP + 8MP + 2MP triple-camera setup and dual-LED flash. It is a bit thick and might be a bit prone to damage when dropped without a case.

The paint colors available are Stargaze Black, Wave Blue, and Cloud White. The unit that we are using is the Stargaze Black with a glittery finish on the lower half and a more chrome-like finish on the upper half of the back.

The back has a glossy finish so, it is prone to fingerprint smudges unlike other back designs with a matte-like finish.

Large and smooth screen

In front, it has a large 6.6-inch display with a 120Hz refresh rate, DynamicSwitch technology, FHD+ resolution, and a top-center punch-hole housing the 16MP f/2.45 selfie shooter.

High-refresh rate display!

Similar to a lot of mid-range smartphones with an LCD panel, it has a slim top and side bezels, but the chin bezel is quite thick.

But still, this is a pretty immersive display with accurate-looking colors and a high refresh rate.

Top, bottom

On top, you will see its IR Blaster (remote control), the first speaker, and the first microphone. Below, you will find the second speaker completing its stereo setup, USB-C port, and the second microphone.

Left, right

Noticeably, it has no 3.5mm headphone slot. So, to enjoy its Hi-Res Audio, use a purchase a USB-C dongle or use a Hi-Res wireless headphone.

On the left, you will see a small hole to access its dual SIM card tray. On the right, it has volume up and down keys as well as the power key that doubles as the side fingerprint reader.

Unlike other phones with an embossed side-button, this one looks like a traditional power key.

The handset measures 163.3 x 75.9 x 8.9 mm and weighs 193 grams making it a bit thicker and heavier than most phones at this price point.

First Camera Samples

Despite being tagged as more of a gaming and performance-focused smartphone, the X3 GT also has strong camera specs at the back. At the back, it is sporting a triple-camera setup including the 64MP f/1.79 main shooter with PDAF focus, 8MP f/2.2 120-degree ultra-wide-angle, and the 2MP f/2.4 macro camera.

Daylight ultra-wide

Daylight

X3 GT's back cameras clearly did a good job in daylight for both the main and ultra-wide shooters. The weather is a bit gloomy the day we took these photos and its AI didn't try to make the shots too bright. It resulted in high-quality shots with accurate colors and a natural overall look. Even the ultra-wide cam is not that distorted.

1x

10x zoom

Since it has a large camera sensor, it is capable of doing decent digital zoom crops. It only has up to 10x digital zoom. Not bad.

Main cam

Macro

As expected, similar to most large sensors, it will struggle with super-close-up shots. Fortunately, it has a macro mode with the 2MP f/2.4 sensor that works nicely in daylight.

Main indoor

2x zoom

We also noticed that the quality of images didn't degrade that much for indoor shots as long as you are in a condition with decent lighting. Most of the shots we took retained their actual colors without visible grain.

Main cam low light

Ultra-wide cam low light

In low light, the primary shooter of the POCO X3 GT impresses by producing images with crisp details and less grain even at night. The shot is not overexposed with unnatural colors as well.

The ultra-wide camera struggled with softer details. But, this is still considered decent for a secondary camera at this price point.

Main cam Night mode

Ultra-wide cam Night mode

With the help of the Night mode, you can get even better results with HDR-ish effect using both the main and ultra-wide cams in low-light scenarios without moving subjects. This mode is very useful, especially for the ultra-wide camera.

16MP selfie cam sample

For selfies, its 16MP f/2.45 snapper shoots crisp images in daylight. It has face beauty by default, but it is not overpowering and won't make your skin too bright or white, unlike other selfie shooters.

We have yet to try it in other scenarios.

For videos, this device has up to 4K 30fps at the back and 1080p in front. It also has plenty of modes like VLOG, Short video, Dual video, Time-lapse, and Slow-motion that we will explore in the coming days.

POCO X3 GT Specs

Display: 6.6-inch 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass Victus protected LCD (LTPS) screen w/ 120Hz refresh rate, DynamicSwitch (30Hz/48Hz/50Hz/60Hz/90Hz/120Hz), 240Hz touch sampling rate, FHD+ 2400 x 1080 resolution at 399 ppi

CPU: 2.6GHz 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 1100 octa-core processor

GPU: Mali-G77 MC9

RAM: 8GB LPDDR4X

ROM: 128GB/256GB UFS 3.1

Back Camera: 64MP f/1.79 w/ PDAF + 8MP f/2.2 120-degree ultra-wide-angle + 2MP f/2.4 macro + dual-tone LED flash

Selfie Camera: 16MP f/2.45

Battery: 5,000mAh w/ 67W Turbo Charging

OS: Android 11 w/ MIUI 12.5

Connectivity: WiFi 6, dual 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.2, OTG, NFC, GPS L1CA+L5, GLONASS, BeiDou, Galileo, NavIC, dual SIM

Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic

Others: Side-mounted fingerprint sensor, face unlock, IR Blaster, stereo speakers, Hi-Res Audio, Hi-Res Wireless Audio, Dolby Atmos, X-axis linear motor, LiquidCool Technology 2.0, USB-C, Colors: Stargaze Black, Wave Blue, Cloud White

Dimensions: 163.3 x 75.9 x 8.9 mm

Weight: 193 g

Price: PHP 15,990 (8GB/128GB), PHP 17,990 (8GB/256GB)

As of the moment

Strong AnTuTu score!

Chipset alone, the POCO X3 GT is a force to be reckoned in the PHP 15K to 18K range. So far, it is really fast and responsive even in demanding tasks like gaming and content creation. MediaTek's Dimensity 1100 is very good so far.

5G works!

Moreover, it has a strong build, fluid display, super-fast charging, capable cooling solution, decent cameras, clear-sounding stereo speakers, and good 5G signal reception, among others.

Powerful performance for an affordable device!

Overall, our initial impressions about the device are strong. Even if we are not yet done with our full review, this is a device that we can recommend as early as now.

On paper, its PHP 17,990 variant is also a good alternative to the PHP 17,990 POCO F3 with a slightly higher chipset and better AMOLED screen, but with a smaller memory configuration, lower battery capacity, slower charging, and lower resolution primary back camera.

Stay tuned for our full review.