The Poco X3 GT is built for speed, as you can probably tell from its GT moniker. But we're not just talking about performance here, though it does come with MediaTek's latest high-end Dimensity 1100 chip. The X3 GT also happens to be Poco's fastest-charging phone yet. Its 67W fast-charging feature (0 to 100% in 42 minutes) is a lifesaver when you're rushing for your first appointment of the day, and you had forgotten to charge the phone overnight. In the 10 minutes it took for me to scarf down my breakfast, the X3 GT's battery went from 2% to 41%. That's good enough to last till the evening.
Quick specs
- 6.6-inch LCD screen (2,400 x 1,080 pixels), 120Hz refresh rate
- Dimensity 1100 5G chip with 8GB RAM and 256GB storage
- Triple cameras: 64MP (main), 8MP (ultrawide) and 2MP (macro)
- 5,000mAh battery
Its 6.6-inch display is not a slouch either in the speed department. Its 120Hz refresh rate (and 240Hz touch sampling rate) is up there with top models. But the X3 GT is a mid-range smartphone, which explains its 1080p LCD instead of an AMOLED. Colours are hence just a bit duller, while viewing angles are slightly reduced by a reflective sheen. But at least the screen is well protected as it uses the latest Corning Gorilla Glass Victus for the best scratch and drop resistance. The screen is decently bright (450 nits) and usable outdoors under the sun. There's no HDR for that extra visual oomph when watching Netflix, though.
However, I was pleasantly surprised by the X3 GT's audio performance. Thanks to its two speakers — at the top and bottom — there's proper stereo. Design-wise, the X3 GT is fairly standard for its price bracket. It has a 16MP hole-punch camera, a flat screen, and a curved plastic back. Instead of a more costly in-display fingerprint sensor, it has a side-mounted reader. There's no headphone jack and no microSD card slot. I was also less than impressed by the X3 GT's vibrations despite its claim of a flagship-class x-axis linear motor. While they are tighter than expected, they still felt weak. Cameras are good for a mid-range phone. The main 64MP camera takes crisp detailed photos in the day, though the ultrawide camera is noticeably weaker. Night mode is not too shabby either, with photos exhibiting less noise than expected.
With a Geekbench 5 CPU score of 689 (single) and 2,751 (multi), the X3 GT is solidly upper mid-tier. It's not as fast as the Poco F2 Pro (881 and 3,272), which has last year's flagship Qualcomm Snapdragon 865. But mobile games ran smoothly enough — PUBG Mobile consistently achieved over 30 fps in my testing. And while the X3 GT became warmer during game, especially the area near the camera module, it wasn't a concern. Battery life (10hr 51min at maximum screen brightness, 120Hz refresh rate) is merely good. But of course, its fast-charging feature helps in a pinch.
The Poco X3 GT is good for gaming, videos and music, thanks to its smooth performance and good audio. It is also very fast to charge, while its photography and battery life are decent, too. Its starting price of S$429 (my 256GB review set is S$499) just about undercuts other good mid-rangers like the Samsung Galaxy A52 (S$548) and Poco's own F3 (S$549). Get the Poco X3 GT on Lazada.
Note: Review unit provided by Poco.
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