This handset is a mid-range one and has one of the best batteries we’ve seen at this price point so far this year. But of course, a strong battery is not the only reason you buy a smartphone, so what is the Redmi 3 like as your daily driver?

The technical bits:
The Redmi 3 uses Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 616 chipset paired with an octa-core CPU. The CPU is configured with four cores running at 1.5GHz and the other four at 1.2GHz. The pay off with this configuration is that whether you’re running intensive tasks such as games or simply browsing through Facebook, the phone is snappy.
We did notice the phone didn’t keep up with us once multiple applications had been opened and not closed properly. This is easily solved by closing unnecessary apps and freeing up some of the RAM. That having been said, there is 3GB of RAM on-board the Redmi 3 and you’ll be able to watch a YouTube video, browse through Facebook, Twitter and Reddit while swiping on Tinder before you start to notice a slow down.
Driving the display is an Adreno 405 running at a peak 550MHz. We played a few many hours playing Subway Surfer and never encountered any game-breaking lag or stuttering.

Design:
The Redmi 3 looks like a handset that should cost at least R2 000 more than it does. The aluminum body, the subtle camera bump, even the volume rockers and unlock button have a slightly premium feel to them.
This was what made the Redmi Note 2 such a winner for me earlier this year, it was a cheap phone that gave a user a premium experience, this feels like a repetition of that mantra.
You might also have noticed the fingerprint scanner at the rear of the handset and our experience with it was great. Placing your finger on the scanner unlocks the phone in a second and it only ever failed when my finger was dirty or damp.
Camera:
The 13MP snapper which has phase detection and an f/2.0 aperture for great photos in the dark. At the front is 5MP sensor with an f2.2 aperture which is fine for selfies in the dark but maybe try and get a bit of light around you for better results.
The cameras are fine but not great.
Monster of a battery:
Perhaps the best part of the Redmi 3 is how long you can go between charges. Heavy use (using the phone as a WiFi hotspot, Bluetooth on, screen brightness at 100% and applications syncing in the background) got us one day of use.
With average use, we managed to get two days of use from the battery with the handset only needing to be plugged in when we went to bed that evening.
With light use, you can squeeze three days of life from the Redmi 3.
Overall its a good smartphone that sets itself apart from the other brands however, its now competing against the likes of the Redmi Note 2 and the Redmi Note 3 in this price point.