Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro vs Samsung Galaxy S21

Compared 2 smartphones : Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro Manufactured in May, 2021, with display 6.5 with chipsetMediaTek Dimensity 700, vs Samsung Galaxy S21, Manufactured in February, 2021 with chipsetSamsung Exynos 2100. Below are specs, tests, pros and cons for each device

Key Differences

Device key advantages
Reasons to choose Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
  • Larger display: 6.5in
  • Higher battery capacity: 5000mAh vs 4000mAh
  • Newer Bluetooth version: 5.1 vs 5
  • Infrared port
Reasons to choose Samsung Galaxy S21
  • Higher pixel density: 421ppi
  • Higher refresh rate: 120Hz
  • Lighter design: 169g vs 190g
  • Supports newer USB: 3.2 vs 2
  • Supports Dolby Atmos
  • Built-in eSIM

Versions

Available versions and configurations
Memory Options - 4/64 GB
- 6/128 GB
- 8/128 GB
- 8/256 GB

Review

Key Specs Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S21
Display
Color accuracy, sharpness & brightness
Camera
Main & front camera tests
Performance
App & system performance
Games
3D gaming performance
Battery
Battery life, charging speed & type
Connectivity
Connectivity features
NanoReview Score
Overall score by NanoReview
Adjust each parameter’s importance to find the best match for you.
Customize your score
Function
Importance (Weight)
Display:
Camera:
Performance:
Gaming:
Battery:
Connectivity:
Higher weight means greater impact on NanoReview score.

Tests & specs

Specs & test comparison

Display

Display quality comparison
Type IPS LCD Dynamic AMOLED
Size 6.5 in 6.2 in
Resolution 1080x2400 pixels 1080x2400 pixels
Aspect ratio 20:9 20:9
Pixel density 405 ppi 421 ppi
Refresh rate 90 Hz 120 Hz
Adaptive refresh rate No Yes (48-120 Hz)
Max brightness 500 nits 800 nits
HDR support No Yes HDR10+
Touch Sampling Rate 180 Hz n/a
Screen-to-body ratio 83.8 % 85.9 %
Features n/a - DCI-P3
- Always-On Display
Display test
Peak brightness (auto)
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
532 nits
Samsung Galaxy S21
854 nits
sRGB gamut93.5 %99.5 %
PWM (Flicker)n/a240 Hz
Response time33.5 ms5 ms
Contrast2512:1∞ Infinite

Design & Build

Design and ergonomics comparison
Height 161.8 mm (6.37 in) 151.7 mm (5.97 in)
Width 75.3 mm (2.96 in) 71.2 mm (2.8 in)
Thickness 8.9 mm (0.35 in) 7.9 mm (0.31 in)
Weight 190 g (6.7 oz) 169 g (5.96 oz)
Water resistance No IP68
Back panel Plastic Plastic
Frame Plastic Metal
Colors - Black
- Blue
- Yellow
- White
- Gray
- Pink
- Purple
Fingerprint sensor Yes In-Button Yes In-Display
Screen-to-body ratio
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
83.8 %
Samsung Galaxy S21
85.9 %

Performance

Testing Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro and Samsung Galaxy S21 In benchmarks
Processor
Chipset MediaTek Dimensity 700 Samsung Exynos 2100
Max Frequency 2200 MHz 2900 MHz
CPU Cores 8 (2 + 6) 8 (1 + 3 + 4)
Architecture - 6/2 (Cortex-A55)
- 2/2.2 (Cortex-A76)
- 4/2.2 (Cortex-A55)
- 3/2.81 (Cortex-A78)
- 1/2.91 (Cortex-X1)
Process TSMC Samsung
Transistor Size 7 nm 5 nm
Neural Processor Yes Yes
Graphics Mali-G57 MP2 Mali-G78 MP14
GPU Cores 128 896
GPU Frequency 950 MHz 854 MHz
FLOPS 243.2 GFLOPS 1530.4 GFLOPS
GeekBench v6
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
698
Samsung Galaxy S21
1331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
1841
Samsung Galaxy S21
3593
Geekbench 6 (Single-Core)6981331
Geekbench 6 (Multi-Core)18413593
AnTuTu 10
AnTuTu 10
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
393792
Samsung Galaxy S21
903780
CPU134816253391
GPU62084281676
Memory94084158352
UX102808210361
NanoReview Score393792903780
3DMark Wild Life
3DMark Wild Life
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
1104
Samsung Galaxy S21
5715
Max Surface Temp.41.5 °C38.9 °C
Stability99 %66 %
Graphics Test6 fps34 fps
Graphics Score11045715
PCMark 3.0
PCMark 3.0
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
7916
Samsung Galaxy S21
13123
Writing score944916101
Web score585011909
Video editing46767097
Data manipulation659810153
NanoReview Score791613123

Memory

RAM
RAM Size - 4 GB
- 6 GB
8 GB
Memory Type LPDDR4X LPDDR5
Memory Frequency 2133 MHz 2750 MHz
Channels 2 2
Storage
Storage Capacity- 64 GB
- 128 GB
- 128 GB
- 256 GB
Storage TypeUFS 2.2UFS 3.1
Memory CardMicroSDNo

Software

OS Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 13) Android 11 (Upgradeable to Android 14)
OS Size 19.2 GB 28.1 GB
UI Skin MIUI 14 One UI 6.0

Battery

Volume 5000 mAh 4000 mAh
Max Charging Power 18 W 25 W
Battery Type Li-Po Li-ion
Removable No No
Wireless Charging No Yes (15 W)
Reverse Charging Yes Yes (Wireless)
Fast Charging Yes (33% in 30 min) Yes (55% in 50 min)
Full Charge Time 2:00 h 1:35 h
Battery Life Test
Battery Life
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
24:46
Samsung Galaxy S21
17:54
Web Browsing10:01 h06:01 h
Video Playback14:26 h11:06 h
Games05:48 h04:21 h
Standby Mode122 h95 h

Main camera

Matrix 48 MP 12 MP
Photo resolution 8000x6000 pixels 4000x3000 pixels
Zoom Digital Optical, 1.1x
Flash Dual LED Dual LED
Stabilization Digital Optical
8K Recording No Up to 24FPS
4K Recording No Yes (Up to 60 fps)
1080p Recording Yes (Up to 30 fps) Yes (Up to 60 fps)
Slow Motion 120 fps (720p) 960 fps (720p)
Wide-angle lens n/a 120 °
Lenses count Standard: 48 MP
Macro: 2 MP
Depth: 2 MP
Standard: 12 MP
Telephoto: 64 MP
Ultra-wide: 12 MP
Features - Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- Bokeh effect
- Pro mode
- RAW support
Main lens
Matrix48 MP12 MP
Aperturef/1.8f/1.8
Focal length26 mm26 mm
SensorOmniVision OV48BSony IMX555
Sensor size1/2.01/1.76
Pixel size0.8 μm1.8 μm
AutofocusPhase autofocusPhase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
StabilizationDigitalOptical
Telephoto
Matrixn/a64 MP
Aperturen/af/2.0
Focal lengthn/a28 mm
Sensorn/aSamsung Bright S5KGW2
Sensor sizen/a1/1.72
Pixel sizen/a0.8 μm
Stabilizationn/aOptical
Ultra-wide lens
Matrixn/a12 MP
Aperturen/af/2.2
Focal lengthn/a13 mm
Sensorn/aSony IMX563
Sensor sizen/a1/2.55
Pixel sizen/a1.4 μm
Stabilizationn/aDigital
Main camera DxOMark results
Photo quality
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
129
Video quality
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
137
Overall camera score
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
n/a
Samsung Galaxy S21
133
Bokehn/a70
Previewn/a72
Zoomn/a126

Front camera

Matrix 8 MP 10 MP
Photo resolution 3264x2448 pixels 3872x2592 pixels
Aperture f/2.0 f/2.2
Focal length n/a 26 mm
Sensor OmniVision OV8856 Sony IMX374
Sensor size 1/4 1/3.24
Pixel size 1.12 μm 1.22 μm
Autofocus No Phase autofocus (Dual Pixel)
Stabilization Digital Digital
Video resolution 1080p (Full HD) at 30 fps 2160p (4K) at 60 fps
TOF 3D sensor No No

Connectivity

Wi-Fi version Wi-Fi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac) Wi-Fi 6 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac/ax)
Wi-Fi features - Dual Band
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
- Dual Band
- Wi-Fi MiMO
- Wi-Fi Direct
- Wi-Fi Hotspot
- Wi-Fi Display
Bluetooth version 5.1 5
Bluetooth features LE, HID, A2DP LE, A2DP
USB type USB Type-C USB Type-C
USB version 2 3.2
USB features - Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- OTG
- Charging
- USB Storage Mode
- USB-Host mode
- OTG
GPS - GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
- QZSS
- GPS
- GLONASS
- Beidou
- Galileo
NFC* Yes Yes
Infrared Port Yes No
Connectivity
SIM Count*22
SIM TypeNanoNano
SIM ModeDual SIM StandbyDual SIM Standby
eSIM Support *NoYes
Hybrid SlotYesNo
2G BandsGSM 850 900 1800 1900 MHzGSM 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
3G BandsWCDMA Band 1,2,4,5,8WCDMA Band 1, 2, 4, 5, 8
LTE Bands*LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B17/B20/B28/B32/B38/B40/B41/B66)LTE (B1/B2/B3/B4/B5/B7/B8/B12/B13/B17/B18/B19/B20/B25/B26/B28/B32/B38/B39/B40/B41/B66)
LTE category1824
5G SupportYesYes

Sound

Speakers Mono Stereo
3.5 mm Jack Yes No
FM Radio Yes No
Dolby Atmos No Yes
Speaker Test
Max Volume
Xiaomi Poco M3 Pro
93.5 dB
Samsung Galaxy S21
87 dB

Other

Class Mid-range Flagship
Announced May, 2021 yr January, 2021 yr
Release Date May, 2021 yr February, 2021 yr
Launch Price ($) 200 800
Sensors - Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
- Hall Sensor
- Barometer
- Proximity Sensor
- Gyroscope
- Accelerometer
- Ambient Light Sensor
- Compass
- Fingerprint sensor
* Attention! Config, frequencies, NFC, and other specs may vary by region.

Results

After analyzing the data, we consider Samsung Galaxy S21 the clear winner in this comparison.

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