Infinix Hot S3 Review: Dependable And Good Looking

Infinix has launched its selfie-centric phone, Hot S3 in India that comes with several lucrative features like an 18:9 display, 20MP selfie camera, Android Oreo-based software and 4000mAh battery. While this sounds as good as it gets for the starting price of Rs. 8,999, how well do all these features add up?

Well, we have been using the phone for a few days now and have shared our experience in our detailed Infinix Hot S3 review. But first, let’s get the specs out of the way.

Infinix Hot S3 Specifications

Also Read: Best looking phones under Rs. 10,000

Infinix Hot S3 Design and Build

Infinix Hot S3 sticks to the modern design trends and is one of the better-looking phones in its class. The phone has an 18:9 screen but the fascia isn’t quite bezel-less.

The Inifnix Hot S3 back cover has a neat metal finish. It’s made of plastic, though, which is an acceptable compromise for the price. The rear camera juts out slightly, but the bundled TPU protective case evens out the hump. There are no flexes or creaks in the body.

The choice of 5.7-inch (18:9) display size ensure that the phone is reasonably compact and easy to manage. It also feels fairly light for a phone with 4000mAh battery. The fingerprint sensor on the rear is accessible and so are the power button and volume rocker.

• The Infinix Hot S3 is comfortable to hold and looks elegant.
• A protective case is bundled in the box.
• The 18:9 display isn’t quite bezel-less. The 2.5D glass laden fascia still looks appealing.
• The regular USB port is present at the bottom. The audio jack is present at the top.
• The SIM tray has 2 SIM card slots and a dedicated MicroSD card slot.
• Navigation buttons are on the display.
• Rear mounted fingerprint sensor is accessible and fast. You can assign each finger to open a particular app while unlocking.

Infinix Hot S3 Display

The 5.7-inch display has HD+ (1440 X 720) resolution. The text on the screen isn’t super-sharp but I am sure most people won’t notice any difference.

The display can get very bright for comfortable outdoor usage, has high contrast and punchy colors (a little over-saturated, even). The white point, however, feels off and the display has the harsh blue tint that we have come to associate with cheap displays. The auto-brightness keeps brightness on the higher side and we ended up resorting to manual brightness.

• You can not adjust color saturation or temperature from display settings, but the phone does have a night mode (Bluelight filter) that is softer on the eyes.
• Overall display quality is average at best.
• The colors and contrast and fine, but the white balance is off.
• For the price, the display resolution felt optimum too.
• There is no Gorilla Glass on Infinix Hot 3 display. The screen is shielded by dragon trail glass, though.

Camera Performance

The 20MP front camera takes center stage here. In broad daylight, you can shoot detailed, good-quality selfies from the phone. While indoors, the quality deteriorates steeply and you will have to keep your hands steady for decent shots. The images turn out a tad over-saturated.

The front camera is assisted by a broad selfie flash that often fires even when the ambient light is adequate. The phone also has a makeshift portrait mode but don’t expect much from it. The camera interface isn’t very user-friendly.

The 13MP rear camera is an average performer as well. You can shoot workable shots in good outdoor lighting but the camera largely struggles indoors.

• The camera performance is at par with what we get on most affordable phones in this class.
• The selfie camera can shoot some detailed shot outdoors in broad daylight.
• Indoors and in low-light, the camera performance left us wanting for more.
• The rear camera is an average performer as well.

Infinix Hot S3 Camera Samples

Infinix Hot S3 Performance and Software

The Hot S3 is powered by Snapdragon 430 paired with 3GB/4GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage. For the review, we have the 3GB RAM variant with 32GB of storage (around 23 GB available at user end).

The Snapdragon 430 still qualifies as a decent affordable phone chipset. It isn’t exceptionally fast but can get the job done without any stuttering or lag. The day-to-day usage on the Infinix Ho S3 is smooth. We didn’t encounter any abnormal freeze or stuttering. We didn’t face any issues with gaming either. Casual and heavy games both ran without any issues.

Infinix Hot S3 Benchmark Scores

The XOS software is feature rich and a bit bloated. The phone has an app drawer that you can access with a simple swipe-up action. The UI also has extensive gesture support. The best part is that is based on latest Android Oreo. We aren’t exactly impressed with the design of the interface, but this is a subjective flaw. The UI is, nevertheless, well optimized and smooth.

• The Snapdragon 430 powered phone is a decent performer.
• The experience with normal day-to-day usage is mostly smooth.
• High-end games that we tried ran extremely well.
• The software is feature rich, and its based on Android Oreo. The phone also has extensive gesture support.
• Gyroscope and Magnetometer sensors are present.
• Loudspeaker is very loud. Audio quality is nothing to write home about.

Infinix Hot S3 Battery backup and connectivity

The 4000mAh battery on the phone can comfortably last for a day or more. However, fast charging isn’t supported.

The phone supports VoLTE on both SIM cards. ViLTE is also supported. We didn’t face any issue with call quality.

• Battery backup is excellent.
• A 5V-2A charger is bundled in the box. Fast charging isn’t supported.
• 4G VoLTE and ViLTE are supported on both SIM cards.

Infinix Hot S3 Review – Should you buy it?

Infinix Hot S3 will retail exclusively on Flipkart. The 3GB RAM/32GB storage option costs 8,990 and the 4GB RAM/64GB option costs 10,990 INR.

For the price, the Hot S3 has a lot to look forward to including an 18:9 display, elegant design, excellent battery backup, workable set of cameras, and Android Oreo-based software. The selfie camera should be a marketing advantage.

Overall performance is better than rivals like Honor 9 Lite and Redmi Y1 but falls slightly short of Snapdragon 625 phones like Redmi Note 4. The only major downside of the phone is its display quality.

If you want a phone that conforms to the contemporary trends without spending too much, the Infinix Hot S3 seems as good as it gets for now under Rs. 10,000.