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There’s another Xiaomi 5G-ready smartphone to look forward to in the Philippines in June besides the Redmi Note 10 5G.

(Update, June 6: Our review of the POCO M3 Pro 5G is up!)

(Update, June 1: A 5G phone for as low as P8,990 [$188], with early-bird prices starting at P7,490 [$157]! This is the POCO M3 Pro. See complete pricing and availability details for the Philippine market here.)

The POCO M3 Pro 5G, which we spotted on Lazada Philippines ahead of its global announcement last May 19, will be launched not just here but in other Southeast Asian markets as well come June 1.

Xiaomi’s regional team announces the POCO M3 Pro 5G’s virtual Southeast Asia launch

The MediaTek Dimensity 700-powered POCO M3 Pro 5G is a hit in western Europe, where the brand sold more than 50,000 units of it in the first 48 hours. We don’t know how well it will fare vis-à-vis the Redmi Note 10 5G in the Philippines, considering the local team seems to be all out in promoting the latter. As it should be, of course.

In case you didn’t know, the POCO phone and the said Redmi model are one and the same on paper. Even the prices are quite similar; they both cost from around $200 or roughly P9,632. The difference boils down to the design. In the end, it’s going to be a win-win for the consumer (more choices) and for the mother brand (market share).

POCO M3 Pro 5G specs

• 6.5-inch FHD+ LCD DotDisplay with 90Hz refresh rate (DynamicSwitch technology), 91% screen-to-body ratio, Corning Gorilla Glass protection
• 7nm MediaTek Dimensity 700 octa-core processor with built-in 5G modem
• 4GB/6GB RAM
• 64GB/128GB UFS 2.2 storage, expandable up to 1TB
• Triple rear cameras: 48-megapixel main, 2-megapixel macro, and 2-megapixel depth-sensing
• 8-megapixel front camera
• Side-mounted fingerprint scanner
• 5,000mAh battery that supports 18-watt fast charging
• IR blaster
• 3.5mm headphone jack
• NFC
• POCO UI based on Android 11
• Colors: POCO Yellow, Cool Blue, and Power Black

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