Redmi Note 3 Pro vs Lenovo Vibe K4 Note Full Camera Review, Comparison

Xiaomi has refreshed its best mid-range Android line with the new Redmi Note 3 Pro that comes equipped with a Snapdragon 650 hexa-core chipset. But another great contender to the Pro is the new entry of Lenovo, the Vibe K4 Note. Though, there’s a gap in hardware chipset power, could the Vibe K4 Note (A7010) par the Redmi Note 3 in other areas? Let’s find out in our Ultimate Comparison covering camera and benchmark to speaker and battery.

More comparisons and reviews

• Redmi Note 3 Pro vs K4 Note Camera Comparison
• Lenovo Vibe K4 Note Full Review
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 Pro Review
• Redmi Note 3 vs Xperia M5

Design and build quality

The Redmi Note 3 Pro or Snapdragon version is identical to the Redmi Note 3 with Mediatek chipset. The body is made from aluminum and features dual SIM support. Behind is fingerprint scanner that works fast as on the Lenovo Vibe K4 Note.

The Vibe K4 Note, on the other hand, is made of polycarbonate with a rubbery finish and removable back cover. It has an expandable storage and dual SIM support, perhaps its advantage.

If you want a more premium build yet overused design, then that’s what the Redmi Note 3 is here for. The Vibe K4 Note doesn’t have those premium feels but it has flexible and rugged design especially the microSD card slot.

Display and viewing experience

Packing a 1080p IPS LCD display on each, the Lenovo K4 Note produces brighter and more neutral colors than the Redmi Note 3. The latter has a slightly warmer display. While both are sharp as the other, the K4 Note rocks a Gorilla Glass 3 protection that is absent on Redmi Note 3.

Camera in low light, daylight, selfie

The 16MP camera of the Redmi Note 3 Pro produces slightly sharper, more detailed shots on daylight shooting. The color, however, is warmer than the more natural shots of Lenovo K4 Note with 13MP camera.

Daylight and HDR

On night shooting, the K4 Note did pretty well in most shots than the Redmi Note 3. Although there were shots it struggles in post-processing.

Night, sunset and low light with flash

On selfie, the K4 Note produced wider angle and brighter low light portrait photos.

Selfie portrait

The two phones shoot at 1080p Full HD video.

Performance and benchmarks

The Hexa-core Snapdragon 650 in Redmi Note 3 with 3GB RAM and 32GB non-expandable storage proved to be faster than the octa-core Mediatek 6753 chip on K4 Note with 3GB RAM and 16GB memory. The benchmark scores have a huge gap while actual performance is not that far. Overall, both are capable hardware with minimal stuttering.

AnTuTu benchmarks

• Xiaomi RN3 Pro – 65009
• Lenovo VK4 Note A7010 – 38318

Battery and charging time

The larger 4050mAh capacity in Redmi Note 3 lasted longer in our battery test and in actual usage. We get around a day and a half on Note 3 and a day on K4 Note. Charging the Note 3 takes a longer time with its larger juice while K4 Note can be filled for around 2 hours.

Speaker and audio

In loud speaker comparison, back-firing mono speaker on Note 3 is matching the power on the front-facing stereo speakers of the K4 Note. The latter, however, has Dolby Atmos built-in for audio accessories.

Price and Verdict

With a close retail pricing at P10,900, the Redmi Note 3 trumps the Vibe K4 Note (P10,900) in performance, design, and larger battery while the latter still remains a good option with a richer audio experirence, brighter display, expandable memory and more reliable low light shooter.

Another advantage of K4 Note, perhaps, is the Virtual Reality support out of the box.

It’s just a matter of personal preference in the end. If you were to pick, which phone will you buy and why?