<div>By now every-one knows that there's a Chinese phone on Flipkart that is in the habit of disappearing before you can get anywhere near it. For those who want it, it's like a round of KBC — try your luck. For those who don't, it's still a curious thing, this gadget that can take all of two seconds to sell out. Marketing gimmick, or genuine under-estimation of the potential market, we may never know. But we certainly can check out the device to see what the fuss is about.<br /><br />Beyond all argument, is the Xiaomi Mi3's price. For the same amount, until recently, Indian customers have been treated to cheesy products, compromised in some way or the other. What the Mi3 offers, first off, is a good build and a classy look and feel. In fact, the Chinese phone maker has constantly been accused of copying Apple in many ways. Xiaomi is certainly busy gobbling up Apple's share in China.<br /><br />The Mi3 itself doesn't look very Apple-ish. It's got a smooth silver matte and very neat back and is solid but light. The Mi logo looks exceedingly classy glinting at the bottom of the panel. It's got very rounded sides, making it easy to get your hand around but it's also tall, bringing in a little awkwardness to that grip. You also have to watch it doesn't slip. I'm not convinced it's a one-handed device because that involves using your finger at the correct angle, not just reaching across the screen. <br /><br />It isn't just about the price but what you get for that price. What used to be — and in some cases still is — the stuff of top- tier phones that cost around Rs 40,000 is now housed in a device about one third the price. With the Mi3 you needn't worry about getting a sluggish or lag-riddled phone. The hardware has the device performing well and the software doesn't interfere with the performance. It's fast enough at browsing, navigating, switching apps, etc. Benchmark tests also bear that out. The device doesn't overheat or guzzle up power. The battery is a big one for the size of the phone and on my moderate usage, it lasted the day. The screen looks good and the sound is okay.<br /><br />Xiaomi's interface is pretty different from the regular Android look. You'll immediately see that there's no separate level for apps which are organised Apple style. Instead of their being too many gimmicks, the focus is on giving the user customisation options. So there are themes you can download and use, including one especially for India. It's a simple yet adaptable interface with enough apps to get a user started. In China, many downloadables for Xiaomi phones are paid, but in India, that's not the case yet.<br /><br />The camera on this phone is no low light specialist, but that's a problem for most smartphones. I found the colours dark and lifeless on indoor low-light shots, but with a big improvement if one uses the HDR mode which is quite nice and natural rather than giving you artificial looking images. There's also an easy panorama mode and more to fiddle with. Daylight shots have good detail and colour. Overall, good for the price.<br /><br />Interestingly, the Mi3 uses a standard SIM card.<br /><br />The one thing that remains untested is the after sales service. That's where the older players still have an advantage. Should newer companies like Xiaomi manage to work in that piece of the puzzle, the others who've been charging the earth for their products have had it. <br /><br />(This story was published in BW | Businessworld Issue Dated 08-09-2014)</div>
BW Reporters
Mala Bhargava has been writing on technology well before the advent of internet in Indians and before CDs made their way into computers. Mala writes on technology, social media, startups and fitness. A trained psychologist, she claims that her understanding of psychology helps her understand the human side of technology.
