Xiaomi MI3 owner review and discussion

Comments on price before shipping:

Price:
Mi3 (Metallic Grey) : 13999.00
Promotional Offer :-400.00 (see the pic below)
Shipping Charge : 90.00 (1-day guarantee)

https://i.imgur.com/mmvMS...pg

tech comments coming soon…:cool:

More info or discussion can be found at :
http://en.miui.com/for…hp

any one received till now?

Got the phone yesterday but the phone is not taking SIM card – as in, it says SIM not detetced. Was running around the non-existent Xiaomi service centers only to later know that Flipkart will need to replace the phone if any issues in first 30 days.

Now waiting again – no communication from flipkart yet.

Using the phone from last 24 hours. Here are a few observations from limited usage

1) Looks : Phone looks much better in flesh than online photos. Its sleek and very light weight but looks too tall. Build quality is very good.

2) Display : Amazing display. One of the best displays i have seen on mobile phones. I compared it with samsung Note 3, Moto x and few other phones. Except Note3 display, most of the other mobiles doesn’t come anywhere close to this phone.

3) Call Quality : Decent to say the least. Nothing much to mention. Speakerphone volume is strictly average. Its not loud.

4) OS : I read very positive reviews about MIUI ROM but im not impressed. I would any day prefer the stock ROM. MIUI ROM as of now seems very buggy to me. Phone froze up on me couple of times since the damn themes don’t respond. Themes on Xiaomi websites are not impressive either.

5) Battery : Only one word comes to mind when i speak about MI3 battery and thats " WOW". Battery does last long, really long.. even with 10 % charge left it will run for few hours during moderate use like phone calls, sms.

6) Performance : ran Antutu benchmark and got a solid 36k. 36k antutu score on a phone costing 14k rupees is unbelievable. compare this my bro whose moto X scores 21k points in antutu after spending 25k on that phone.

Overall, im extremely happy with the purchase. Its worth every penny. I took this phone to office yesterday and people who have not heared but xiaomi before could not even believe that you can get these specs for 14k. I bet a lot of them are going to be on flipkart during next sale :p.

BREAKING NEWS

17.64% DISCOUNT ON MI3

MRP 16999 DEAL PRICE 13999

supports WCDMA (850/900/1900/2100MHZ)

USB 2.0 OTG

goss8877 wrote:

h3. BREAKING NEWS


17.64% DISCOUNT ON MI3


MRP 16999 DEAL PRICE 13999

supports WCDMA (850/900/1900/2100MHZ)

USB 2.0 OTG

Received the Phone in the evening and using since then.

I got it in Rs.13599/-

No issues so far!!!

Installed few apps and working fine.
Google play was a bit-lagged initially probably only once during setup.
Battery was quite stable. Little hot during charging. Takes a bit more time to charge.
Played Iron Man 3,…amazing handling.:cool:
WiFi seems faster

Got 11.88Gb free!!!:roll:

Updating MiUi KxdMiBe 18.0 (620MB)

Xiaomi Starters Guide !

Suggestions :-
Keep Calm !! Everything can be changed ! Sulking won’t fix the issues but searching and sharing things will ! So if you get to know something new please share .

Issue 1 :- SIM Tray Ejection Fear
Guys SIM tray is definitely a bit more rigid when compared to other phones but that does not mean that it does not eject. A little extra pressure using the pin ejector will do the job. Use the ejector tool to remove the SIM tray. Do not use safety pins etc etc .

Issue 2 : The software provided by them (mounted as a CD Drive is in Chinese and i cannot read it :
This was not good on their part to not replace the chinese Translation files with corresponding English Language Files. They could have done a better job on this. On the downside that MIManager tool will be hardly used by you in your lifetime. However if you wanna see the software in english a small fix will do the job. Please follow the instructions mentioned below :-

1) Download the zip from the link given below :-
https://mega.co.nz/#!bB931TJI!rdZYGBmE3sDgZ129L...

2) You will find three files in the zip

Extract these files on the computer.

3) Once you have extracted the files on your computer open Windows Run Menu.
To Open run Menus : Press Windows key + R . the run menu on your machines should be like that :-

Now type APPDATA and click on ok !!

This should open your User Name/Appdata/Roaming Folder :

Now you have to go back one step to Username/Appdata folder :-

You will see three folders :

• Local
• LocalLow
• roaming

Now you have to open the Local Folder :

Here You will see MiPhoneManager folder . Open that folder . inside that there is a main folder. Open that.

4) Now copy the files from the zip that you extracted earlier into the above main folder :
Now when you copy it will show up a prompt :

Just click on copy and replace (for all the three files !!! ) .
Voila you have now successfully used English translations for the MiPhoneManager !!!!!

Other guides continued in the next post !!

Great work bro, KG added

Xiaomi Mi 3 Flashing & Rooting Guides

> For Flashing a MIUI update manually check out Point no. 1
> For Rooting your Stable ROM check Points 3 and 4.
> For installing a CWM Recovery check point 5.

1) Regarding MIUI Updates :

You will usually receive OTA updates. For those who have received the phones would have received an OTA update of ~620mb .

If you are not successfull in Downloading OTA you can always manually flash updates after downloading the FULL stable ROM Pack from the link below :

http://en.miui.com/download-101.ht...34

In order to flash a new update package (Only in the case you are not able to download OTA !! ) use the following guide with instructions ( Awesome Guide ! ) :

http://en.miui.com/thread-11047-1-...ml

2) What is the difference between different MIUI versions (Dev , ported , local , Stable etc etc !)
Go to this link :-

http://en.miui.com/thread-24860-1-...ml

This explains what each ROM is and what is its purpose !

3) How do i go into fastboot mode or go into system recovery ?

Fastboot mode :- Volume Down + Power Button !

Recovery mode :- Volume Up + Power Button

This will be how your recovery looks :

Remember when you boot into recovery touch will not be applicable since the stock recovery is not touch based recovery (like Philz , TWRP , EXT4 etc etc ) !!

Use your volume up and down Keys to up and down ! Use power button to select and option.

There is another method of booting into the recovery by going into the Updater app on Xiaomi Mi3 :
Updater app is clubbed inside tools folder

Click on Reboot to Recovery mode to automatically reboot to recovery:

*Avoid going into the fastboot mode ! In order to get out of fastboot mode you have to long press Power + volume up keys. Or if you have a PC and have Android ADB installed . connect your phone to PC and in terminal type :-

fastboot reboot*

When you are in Fastboot mode your MiPhoneManager will detect your phone in Fastboot mode:-

4) I want to Root my Stable ROM
Got to this link :-
http://en.miui.com/thread-20694-1-...ml

Note :-
This root script has issues with Latest 620mb OTA update !!
The previous versions are being rooted successfully !

For everybody’s convenience i am adding the links for the files needed for rooting :-
1) update.zip for MI 3 4.4 based ROM’s (should be renamed to update.zip while flashing as mentioned in the guide in the above link !)

https://www.dropbox.com/s/y7x94f4jw6fabbw/MI3_W...

2) Super SU for MI 3 4.4 based ROM’s

https://www.dropbox.com/s/y7x94f4jw6fabbw/MI3_W...=

Everything is explained clearly in the link mentioned !!!

Once rooted you are the King And you already know what to do next !!!

5) I don’t like the Stock Mi3 recovery . i wanna use CWM (ClockworkMod) recovery.
go to this link to install CWM :-

http://en.miui.com/thread-13682-1-...ml

again for convenience i am adding the links to recovery :-

1) Stock Mi3 Recovery
https://www.dropbox.com/s/krit142jua9kvpm/cwm_s...

2) CWM Recovery
https://www.dropbox.com/s/gv70g1fe6uh0nig/upda....

Clearly explained in this link .

Please bookmark all of these links !!! They will come handy !!

Register on MIUI Forum :-
http://en.miui.com/for...hp

Ask questions !! There are lots of people who will not blink an eye to help you out . the community is one of the best communities in terms of custom ROM communities !! Ask , Share and Learn new stuff

Remember to every problem there is a solution ! Try concentrating on finding solutions !! Problems will always be there ! Finding the solutions is the key

Rest i will post the phone usage review next !!

Amazing help akshat. Some karma for you.:-}

akshat2912 wrote:


Remember to every problem there is a solution ! Try concentrating on finding solutions !! Problems will always be there ! Finding the solutions is the key

Loved this

Awesome !! Thanks for posting this.

any updates about root this rom ?

@akshat awesome Tuts/guide keep them coming.

Just received my phone. It is awesome. No Sim card tray problem it is as smooth as it should. No extra pressure was put to open, just a little press popped it open. No words to describe its speed and smoothness(still in balanced mode).
I’ve seen lot of users complaining that their screen goes off during call and takes long time to wake up. Yes it will go off and take long time to wake up.
There is a simple solution, remove the stock screen gaurd. It obstructs the proximity sensor(well most of the sensor including the front cam) so as soon as you make a call screen will go off and only when the call is completely cut it will wake up.
Check removing the screen gaurd it will work as it should.

i posted on different thread but copy paste for your info…

just received my phone…

i am puzzled. Can i use my micro sim from my S3 on this phone?

Are they supposed to provide a micro sim tray too?

Saw this for one review

“A micro-sim card tray is provided too along with the normal-sized sim card tray inside the phone. This is very thoughtful from Xiaomi which means that there’s a big chance you don’t have to worry about your sim card size. (Sorry, nano sim card user, your size is not supported."

If they can provide this in other markets wtf is stopping xiaomi from including it in India. none of the high end phones come with the normal sim,

you can cut your normal sim but wtf can you do if you have a micro sim, and where should i search for the fu***ing adapter….

i am so pissed off with xiaomi coz they have treated us indians with indifference. going out now to search for the adapter, neighbourhood shop wants 150

breadcrumb wrote:

any updates about root this rom ?

Sir follow this
http://en.miui.com/thread-20694-1-...ml

You can easily root the stable build on your phone

this is same as the fourth point in the above post !

oldmonk wrote:

i posted on different thread but copy paste for your info…

just received my phone…

i am puzzled. Can i use my micro sim from my S3 on this phone?

Are they supposed to provide a micro sim tray too?

Saw this for one review

“A micro-sim card tray is provided too along with the normal-sized sim card tray inside the phone. This is very thoughtful from Xiaomi which means that there’s a big chance you don’t have to worry about your sim card size. (Sorry, nano sim card user, your size is not supported."



If they can provide this in other markets wtf is stopping xiaomi from including it in India. none of the high end phones come with the normal sim,

you can cut your normal sim but wtf can you do if you have a micro sim, and where should i search for the fu***ing adapter….

i am so pissed off with xiaomi coz they have treated us indians with indifference. going out now to search for the adapter, neighbourhood shop wants 150

Go to the center of your Service provider . (Like Vodafone Care , Idea centre, Airtel Live etc etc ) …. they would give you a mini-SIM instead of a micro – SIM for 20/- . If you are not willing to spend 20/- you can go on a dharna against Xiaomi for only providing mini-SIM slot and not micro SIM slot.

wolverine20 wrote:

@akshat awesome Tuts/guide keep them coming.

Just received my phone. It is awesome. No Sim card tray problem it is as smooth as it should. No extra pressure was put to open, just a little press popped it open. No words to describe its speed and smoothness(still in balanced mode).
I’ve seen lot of users complaining that their screen goes off during call and takes long time to wake up. Yes it will go off and take long time to wake up.
There is a simple solution, remove the stock screen gaurd. It obstructs the proximity sensor(well most of the sensor including the front cam) so as soon as you make a call screen will go off and only when the call is completely cut it will wake up.
Check removing the screen gaurd it will work as it should.

Lol if anyone has not removed it do remove it the front cam will be totally blurred otherwise

though haven’t got my mi3 ..

@akshat How is the update? stable for daily use? From reports from MIUI forum seems to have lot of bugs??
http://en.miui.com/thread-29330-1-…ml

Akshat, I can’t seem to flash any zip file in the Mi Recovery (CWM or Root). I am on stable ver. 18. Anyone with any luck..?

somnaath wrote:

Akshat, I can’t seem to flash any zip file in the Mi Recovery (CWM or Root). I am on stable ver. 18. Anyone with any luck..?

Those files are not compatible with 18.0 (mentioned !! ) updates will be out soon !

akshat2912 wrote:

oldmonk wrote:

i posted on different thread but copy paste for your info…

just received my phone…

i am puzzled. Can i use my micro sim from my S3 on this phone?

Are they supposed to provide a micro sim tray too?

Saw this for one review

“A micro-sim card tray is provided too along with the normal-sized sim card tray inside the phone. This is very thoughtful from Xiaomi which means that there’s a big chance you don’t have to worry about your sim card size. (Sorry, nano sim card user, your size is not supported."



If they can provide this in other markets wtf is stopping xiaomi from including it in India. none of the high end phones come with the normal sim,

you can cut your normal sim but wtf can you do if you have a micro sim, and where should i search for the fu***ing adapter….

i am so pissed off with xiaomi coz they have treated us indians with indifference. going out now to search for the adapter, neighbourhood shop wants 150

Go to the center of your Service provider . (Like Vodafone Care , Idea centre, Airtel Live etc etc ) …. they would give you a mini-SIM instead of a micro – SIM for 20/- . If you are not willing to spend 20/- you can go on a dharna against Xiaomi for only providing mini-SIM slot and not micro SIM slot.

I just moved here :

http://en.miui.com/thread-29746-1-…ml

(I also updated ROM using updater)

oldmonk wrote:

i am on international roaming now, isnt it so easy to judge people….

In that case, you are an exception. Many people here will whine for even 20 bucks (though have bought the mobile for few grands).

wolverine20 wrote:

@akshat How is the update? stable for daily use? From reports from MIUI forum seems to have lot of bugs??
http://en.miui.com/thread-29330-1-…ml

the only issue i validated among them was the issue with their default browser which is leading to an FC. However i hardly use their browser and i already installed it since i only use chrome and Javelin broswer which have no issues at all. Network is stable for me with no issues .

Also the Sound is the same as it was earlier . I use poweramp so no difference felt. ViperFX also function also works well. The major difference i can observe is on the RAM . It is subsequently taking less RAM with optimizations. Also further use Greenify for further RAM saving. I have no problems with the updates as far as one day usage is concerned . Can be used as daily driver ! Anyways if you face any issue we can always downgrade within 5 minutes using updater so no harm in updating !!

No doubt. One of the best phone of 2014