After a lacklustre second half of 2015, Xiaomi has started 2016 with not one, but two bangs: the Redmi Note 3 and the Mi 5. The former is the company’s new mid-range handset that goes on sale in India from tomorrow, while the latter is the company’s flagship smartphone for 2016 that is already up for sale in China and will be coming to India in April.

Like with the release of any other smartphone, potential customers have a lot of questions regarding the Redmi Note 3, and in this article, we try to answer some of them.

Q) What are the full specifications of the Xiaomi Redmi Note 3?

A) The full specifications of the Redmi Note 3 are as follows:

• Dimensions: 150 x 76 x 8.65mm
• Weight: 164g
• Display: 5.5-inch Full HD
• Chipset: Snapdragon 650 – Hexa-core chip clocked at 1.8GHz
• GPU: Adreno 518
• RAM: 2/3GB RAM
• Storage: 16/32GB, microSD card slot
• Rear Camera: 16MP at the rear with PDAF and an f/2.0 aperture, Two-tone LED flash
• Front camera: 5MP
• Battery: 4050mAh non-removable battery, Quick Charge 1.0
• Connectivity: 4G LTE support, Wi-Fi b/g/n/ac, Bluetooth 4.1, Hybrid SIM (nano + micro), microUSB 2.0
• Sensors: Fingerprint sensor, Gyroscope, Accelerometer, Proximity, Infrared, Compass, Light sensor
• Software: Android 5.1 with MIUI7

Q) Is the display on the Redmi Note 3 protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass?

A) No, Xiaomi has not used Corning’s Gorilla Glass on the Redmi Note 3. However, the front glass on the handset has been strengthened to make it less prone to scratches and cracks, and it also comes with an oleophobic coating to repel fingerprints and oil.

Q) Does the handset come with a complete metal unibody build? Does it still feel cheap?

A) The Redmi Note 3 is the first handset in Xiaomi’s Redmi Note lineup to come with a metal unibody design. The handset feels very premium in hand thanks to its metallic chassis and rounded corners, unlike the Honor 5X, which despite coming with a metal build did not exactly feel premium in the hand.

Q) What makes the Snapdragon 650 chipset inside the Redmi Note 3 so special?

A) The hexa-core Snapdragon 650 chipset inside the Redmi Note 3 features 2x Cortex-A72 cores clocked at 1.8GHz and 4x ‘LITTLE’ A53 cores clocked at 1. (Alprazolam) 4GHz. The ‘big’ A72 cores from ARM is the company’s latest architecture for smartphones that delivers better performance while consuming less power. In benchmarks, the Snapdragon 650 chipset easily beats the likes of the Snapdragon 808 and even Snapdragon 810 in sustained performance.

Q) Is the display on the Redmi Note 3 protected by Gorilla Glass?

A) Yes, the Redmi Note 3’s 5.5-inch display is protected by Corning’s Gorilla Glass.

Q) How much RAM does the Redmi Note 3 come with?

A) Xiaomi offers the Redmi Note 3 in 2/3GB RAM variants. The former comes with 16GB of storage space, while the latter comes with 32GB of internal storage.

Q) What version of Android does the Redmi Note 3 runs on?

A) Out of the box, the Redmi Note 3 runs on MIUI 7.1, which is based on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop. The handset will receive the Marshmallow update, though it is unclear when.

Q) How many fingerprints can you register on the Redmi Note 3?

A) You can register up to five different fingerprints on the handset.

Q) What else can the fingerprint scanner be used for?

A) You can use the fingerprint scanner on the Redmi Note 3 to take pictures.

Q) Why cannot I lock apps using the fingerprint scanner on the handset?

A) At the time of writing this article, this feature was only available in the beta build of MIUI 7 for the Redmi Note 3. The final version should be released with this feature baked in within a month.

Q) Can the Redmi Note 3 record videos in 4K resolution?

A) Not by default, but you can use the Google Camera app from the Google Play Store to do this.

Q) Does the Redmi Note 3 feature Quick Charging?

A) Yes, but only Quick Charge 1.0. Xiaomi says that the handset can charge from 0-50% in 1 hour, though a full charge takes more than 2 hours.

Q) Does the handset feature USB OTG support?

A) Yes, it does.

Q) Are the capacitive buttons on the Redmi Note 3 backlight?

A) Yes, they are, and you can also customise their timeout.

Q) Can you use the fingerprint sensor on the Redmi Note 3 to lock apps?

A) Yes, it is possible to use the fingerprint sensor on the handset to lock apps. It can also be used for authentication purposes in apps like LastPass and Paytm, and for clicking pictures.

Q) Does the Redmi Note 3 feature an RGB notification LED? Can it be customised?

A) The handset does come with an RGB LED, but it cannot be easily seen from certain angles. The LED light can be customised for different notifications, but not on a per-app basis.

Q) What is the maximum supported microSD card size on the handset?

A) The Redmi Note 3 can support microSD cards of up to 128GB, even though its official spec sheet says otherwise. I am personally using a 128GB microSD card on the handset right now.

Q) Is the Redmi Note 3 a dual SIM phone?

A) Yes and No. The phone comes with a hybrid SIM slot that does allow you to use two SIM cards at the same time, but then you cannot use a microSD card.

Q) What does the Hybrid SIM slot on the phone mean?

A) It means that at any given point of time, you can use either one SIM card and one microSD card or two SIM cards ( nano + micro).

Q) Does the Redmi Note 3 support 4G and VoLTE? Is it compatible with Reliance Jio network?

A) Yes, the Redmi Note 3 is fully compatible with Reliance Jio’s network. It also supports VoLTE.

Q) Does the handset support 4G LTE from Airtel, Vodafone and other Indian operators?

A) The Redmi Note 3 supports 4G LTE and VoLTE network of all major Indian operators.

Q) What can the IR blaster on the Redmi Note 3 be used for?

A) The IR blaster on the Redmi Note 3 can be used to control all electronic items around you that can be controlled via a remote control. This includes items like TV, AC, music system, and even your DLSR.

Q) Where can I purchase the Redmi Note 3 from?

A) For now, the Redmi Note 3 goes on sale every Wednesday on Amazon India. You need to register first to take part in the flash sale first. The handset is also available for purchase in Gold color every Wednesday through Mi.com.

Buy: Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 on Amazon

If you have any other questions about the Redmi Note 3, drop in a comment ad we will answer them for you.