Infinix has yet again released a 4G version of their phones to the market, and this time it’s a 4G LTE version of their very budget Infinix Hot 3 released earlier this year. If you read my review of the Infinix Hot 3, you will remember that I actually thought this device was quite impressive especially for its low price. The display was crisp, I loved the design and its performance was satisfactory but most importantly, the price was very pocket friendly. Now the 4G version is this and better in a number of aspects.
There are three major areas that have seen upgrades in this iteration of the Infinix Hot 3. These include the camera, processor and of course the 4G connectivity. All the other things are pretty similar, except for the more pronounced textured back cover. For the purposes of this article and the video, I will refer to the previous version as the 3G Infinix Hot 3 and this new one as the 4G version. Sure they have their own model numbers (Infinix X553 for the new 4G version and Infinix X554 for the earlier version) but it seems like a mouthful honestly, so bear with me.
The Camera
So both the front and back facing cameras have seen an improvement in Mega pixel count, although I am not too sure if the sensors have changed. The 3G version had an 8MP back and a 2MP front facing camera. These cameras were not outstanding really. You had to find the utmost right conditions in terms of lighting for it to produce good photos, but they mostly suffered from over exposure and over processing. The front facing camera was sub par as well.
The 4G version comes with a 13MP and 8MP camera combination. These cameras almost corrected the things I didn’t like about the 3G version. They are not perfect but, compared to the 3G version, they are miles better. Over exposure was reduced and color reproduction was quite good as well. Check out the video for some sample shots
The processor
We are used to Infinix devices using Mediatek chips but they decided to use a Qualcomm Snapdragon chip in the Infinix Hot 3 4G version. It comes with an entry level Snapdragon 415 chip octa core processor clocked at 1.4GHz. This spells better performance compared to the quad core Mediatek set up that is present in the 3G version.
In addition to this, the 4G version also comes with more memory,specifically 2GB of RAM compared to the 1GB of RAM present in the 3G version. I found the performance to be smoother, quicker and it better handled multitasking compared to the 3G version.
4G LTE connectivity
4G connectivity simply allows you to have faster internet speeds when browsing or downloading and uploading files and images to the Internet. These speeds can be up to 10 times faster compared to those experienced on 3G connectivity. That’s the pretty scenario that we look forward to when we see 4G, but sometimes this is not the case.
Globally 4G use and implementation has been on the rise with other countries preparing for 5G deployment, yet not all parts of our country have good 3G connectivity let alone 4G, but coverage areas are increasing day by day. If you are lucky and are in an area with good 4G coverage, then you must take advantage of these speeds and with this device you do not have to spend too much money doing so. It’s still a budget device giving you access to some awesome specs without a lot of compromise. I tried browsing on 4G with it and achieved some pretty fast speeds, so this is a plus for me.
With 4G being made more accessible, it makes sense to have a device that will take advantage of it.
There are a couple of things that I think still need fixing in the Infinix Hot 3 like the battery. The 4G version comes with the same size battery but I feel like it drains a bit faster than the 3G version probably due to the hardware upgrades. A bigger battery would have been welcomed.
Conclusion
Overall, I really have no complaints about this device. It is a better version of an already solid budget device. At a retail price of Kshs 11,699, it is still a really good deal. Like I said in the video, if you already have the 3G Infinix Hot 3, I don’t think you need to buy this device as an upgrade. You can just wait for the next phone in the Hot series. However, if you are still considering buying the Infinix Hot 3, I would strongly recommend getting the 4G version. It’s quicker and considerably better than the 3G version for just a few thousand shillings extra. If you can spare that, it’s a pretty solid device.
