Introduction

Do we have a good one for you today – the LG G3 goes up against the new Xiaomi Mi Note Pro.  I know many of you are saying this is not a fair comparison because the LG G3 came out in May 2014, but you would be wrong – the LG G3 stands up very well to the Mi Note Pro and has made picking a winner very tough.

Both devices are great looking, well-built and feel good in your hand.  The LG G3 has a rounded plastic back with a metallic finish that looks sharp, is very comfortable to hold, although can feel a bit slippery at times.  The Xiaomi Mi Note Pro is all about glass and metal – it uses 2.5D Gorilla Glass for the display and 3D Gorilla glass for the back and a metal frame to hold them both together.  The display curves down slightly and the back curves up, to form a sort of ‘cup’ – all very elegant, clean and premium looking.

Both devices actually share a few things in common – besides being similar in physical size, the displays are close in size, they both boost QHD resolution and LCD technology.  They have the same, 3000mAh, size battery and they share the same 13MP size main camera.  They have the usual suspects – Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and MicroUSB port for charging and data transfer.

Please take a deliberate look at the detailed Specifications Comparison chart below and here you will see just how these two great devices stack up against one another – click on the “View Full Comparison” link at the end of the chart to expand the details.  After that, we will look at each individual device in greater detail and point out some of its pros and cons.  From all of this information we will try to determine the winner based on specs and execution of design and functions.

Xiaomi Mi Note Pro

Xiaomi held a big event in Beijing last month to show off their newest and most high-end device to date, the Mi Note Pro.  Made of glass and metal, it is very reminiscent of the Xperia Z series or older iPhone.  A polished and beautiful phablet that looks and feels the part of a premium flagship device.

The Mi Note Pro sports a 5.7-inch QHD IPS LCD display with the same resolution as the LG G3 – 2560 x 1440 pixels, albeit with 515 pixels-per-inch (PPI).  For processing power, Xiaomi chose Qualcomm’s latest 64-bit octa-core Snapdragon 810 with four cores clocked at 2.0GHz and four cores clocked at 1.5GHz.  This processor is two steps up from the Snapdragon 801 used in the LG G3.  The Mi Note Pro finally brings us 4GB of RAM to work with that 64-bit processor and 64GB of fixed internal storage with no room for expansion.

The camera uses a 13MP sensor with autofocus, dual-tone LED Flash and OIS that matches up quite nicely with the 13MP shooter found on the LG G3.  The Mi Note Pro uses a rather large 4MP front-facing camera (FFC) for social media selfies and video chatting – certainly a step up from the 2.1MP FFC on the LG G3.  The non-removable battery comes in at 3000mAh versus the 3000mAh removable battery in the LG G3.

Besides the usual features we mentioned in the introduction, I need to mention that while the Mi Note Pro does have 4G FDD-LTE capabilities, it is only for bands 3 (1800MHz) and 7 (2600MHz)…so check with your carrier or Xiaomi’s website to insure compatibility.  It is also a dual-SIM device so you can use more than one phone number – good for traveling in foreign countries.  It does have a large bottom mounted speaker that has enhanced audio circuits for better sound, especially through a headset.  It should be running Android 5.0 Lollipop with Xiaomi’s MIUI 6 running on top and comes in black, white and gold, and will run you approximately $532 unlocked and should be available in March.

LG G3

Remember the excitement that the LG G3 caused when information began leaking about it, all the way up until its final release? We could not wait to see that QHD display with 538 PPI or if the back was actually metal or simply plastic that looked like metal.  What we got was a well-built, solid device with some of the smallest bezels we had ever seen and a curved back that felt great to hold.

The LG G3 comes with a 5.5-inch IPS LCD QHD (lots of initials) display and it packs a whopping 538 PPI.  The 5.7-inch main display of the Xiaomi Mi Note Pro matches up very nicely with the same QHD resolution and 515 PPI.  The other big difference is in the LG G3’s Snapdragon 801 quad-core processor clocked at 2.5GHz, which is now pass© compared to the newer 64-bit, 810 found in the Mi Note Pro.  The 3GB of RAM and 32GB of internal storage with a microSD slot for expansion is pretty impressive…the Mi Note Pro is pushing the envelope to 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage – however, no room for expansion.  A 3,000mAh battery powers both devices.

The camera areas differ slightly – the LG G3 packs a 13MP sensor, Dual-Toned LED flash, OIS+ and their newest Laser Autofocus for quick and precise focusing.  The Mi Note Pro also uses a 13MP sensor, with a single LED Flash, standard Autofocus, but does pack in OIS.  The LG G3 has the rather pedestrian 2.1MP FFC compared to the 4MP on the Mi Note Pro.

The LG G3 does offer wireless charging and an FM Stereo Radio, but is still officially using Android 4.4 – however, but Android 5.0.1 Lollipop updates are on their way out as we write this article.  You can find the LG G3 for as little as $0 on a two-year contract and all the way up to $199, or it will run you about $600 off-contract.  It is available on all four major US carriers.

…And The Winner Is…

Summary

I told you this would be a tough one to call – with the LG G3 having the same display resolution, the same battery size and being removable, having internal memory expansion, the Laser autofocus and cheap price – I almost called this one a tie.

I opted for the Xiaomi Mi Note Pro as the winner – it competes head-to-head with the LG G3’s display, camera and battery size.  It does not have expandable internal memory, but 64GB is quite a bit as standard and with more people using the cloud to store their data, less internal storage is needed.  What it does have is a 64-bit Octa-core Snapdragon 810 with 4GB of RAM that fits very nicely with Android’s newest 64-bit 5.0 Lollipop OS.  It also has a great bottom mounted speaker and special audio for experiencing fantastic sounds through your headset.  The build quality of glass and metal certainly out shines the LG G3’s solid, but still plastic structure.  The Mi Note Pro should also be using Android 5.0 out-of-the-box, with its own MIUI on top and you get all of this at a very reasonable $532 off contract.

In finding fault with the Xiaomi Mi Note Pro, it would have to be its limited FDD-LTE bands, so not everybody in the US can enjoy its 4G LTE speeds.  But if you decide you pick the LG G3, rest assured that you will be getting a rock solid device at a terrific two-year contract price – something not available to Mi Note Pro users.

Please hit us up on our Google+ Page and let us know which device you would pick as the winner of this comparison and WHY…as always, we would love to hear from you.