Xiaomi Mi A3 vs Mi A2

HIGHLIGHTS

• Xiaomi Mi A3 is a massive upgrade over the Mi A2 in terms of specs as well as design.
• Overall at Rs 12,999, the Mi A3 is a great smartphone.
• Xiaomi Mi A3 looks great and is a compact phone

iaomi Mi A3 Android One smartphone launches in India today. The third-generation Mi A series phone aka the Mi A3 is a much-upgraded version over the Mi A2 in almost all aspects. Be it design, hardware, cameras, battery or any other aspect Xiaomi Mi A3 is a massive upgrade over its predecessor Mi A2. The best bit about the Mi A3 is despite being an improved version of the predecessor it is pretty affordably priced. In fact, this is for the first that a Mi A series phone has been priced so aggressively in India. The Xiaomi Mi A3 launches in India with a starting price of Rs 12,999. Previous Mi A series phones aka Mi A1 and Mi A2 were priced on a slightly higher side but with the Mi A3 this changes.

The Xiaomi Mi A3 is a massive upgrade over the Mi A2 in terms of specs as well as design. For the Mi A3 Xiaomi uses glass body, brings back 3.5mm headphone jack, includes triple rear cameras, packs big battery, USB Type C port, and many more nifty features. Overall at Rs 12,999, the Mi A3 is a great smartphone. We at India Today Tech will have more to say about the Mi A3 Android One phone and its performance in the full review of the smartphone in the coming days. Before the full review let's compare the Mi A2 and the Mi A3 and note the changes that Xiaomi brings to its new Android One phone.

--Xiaomi Mi A3 looks great and is a compact phone. The Mi A2 offered Aluminum body but in comparison the Mi A3 users Gorilla Glass 5 on the back as well as on the front. Not just that Xiaomi has also used GG5 on top of the camera bump to make the smartphone even more durable.

--The build quality of the Mi A3 is excellent. The phone feels perfect in the hands. Not too big, nor too small. The Mi A2 also offered good build quality but it felt slight big in the hands. With the Mi A3 Xiaomi fixes this issue.

--In terms of display the Mi A3 comes with an sMOLED display that offers Full HD+ resolution. In comparison, the Mi A2 comes packed with a 5.99-inch LCD display.

--The Mi A3 includes Dot drop notch on the front that holds the selfie camera and increases the screen-to-body ratio. In comparison, the Mi A2 included thick bezels all around the phone.

--The Mi A3 is a good upgrade in terms of hardware as well. The Mi A3 is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 665 processor while the Mi A2 included Snapdragon 660 chipset.

--Some things that the Xiaomi Mi A2 missed were -- a 3.5mm headphone jack, expandable storage, and splash protection. With the all-new Mi A3 Xiaomi brings back all these things. The Mi A3 comes packed with 3.5mm headphone jack that sits on top of the phone, expandable storage of up to 256GB, and is also splash-proof or comes with P2i coating.

--The Mi A3 comes with an in-display fingerprint sensor. This is for the first time that a Mi A series phone includes fingerprint sensor under the screen. The Mi A2 included the fingerprint sensor on the back panel of the smartphone.

--The Mi A3 packs much bigger battery when compared to the Mi A2. The Mi A3 is backed by a 4030mAh battery while the Mi A2 packed a 3010mAh battery. The Mi A3 also comes with 18W fast charging support. The Mi A2 didn't have fast charging support.

--The Mi A3 includes three cameras on the back panel. The phone includes 48MP Sony IMX586 primary sensor, 8MP ultra-wide-angle lens and 2MP depth sensor. In comparison, the Mi A2 included a 12MP primary sensor on the back paired with 20MP secondary sensor. Xiaomi has improved the front camera setup as well. For the Mi A3 Xiaomi uses a 32MP camera sensor. In comparison, the Mi A2 comes with 20MP selfie shooter.

--The only thing that remains constant is the Android One software running the phone. Both the Mi A2 and the Mi A3 runs on Google Android One program. This means there is no MIUI, no Ads, and no third-party applications.

Xiaomi Mi A3 gets great pricing

For the Mi A3 Xiaomi not only upgrades camera, hardware, battery and design department but also changes the pricing strategy. For the first-ever time, a Mi A series phone has been introduced for price below Rs 15,000. The India price of the Mi A3 starts at Rs 12,999. This price is for the 4GB RAM/64GB storage model. The second model of the phone that comes with 6GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage comes for Ra 15,999.