Redmi Y3 camera review in depth

The main reason for considering the Redmi Y3 is its 32-megapixel front camera, and now it's time to see how it fares when pitted against the competition. Xiaomi has smartly used a 4-in-1 oversampling technique that saves an 8-megapixel image by default. This reduces the file size so photos take up less space on your phone and are easier to share. You can, however, shoot using the full 32-megapixel resolution using a toggle in the viewfinder.

In daylight, the Redmi Y3 captures detailed selfies when shooting at the full sensor resolution and when combining four pixels into one. The main difference in the two modes is that when shooting at 8 megapixels, there's generally much better detail in background objects, which is not the case when using the full 32-megapixel resolution. There's a big difference in file sizes too. The oversampled shots are usually under 6MB while full-resolution shots come in at around 21MB. Saving a 32-megapixel file also takes a hair longer.

When compared to similarly priced phones such as the Redmi Note 7 and the Asus ZenFone Max Pro M2, the Redmi Y3 certainly has the sharpest selfies but we're not convinced that they're the best in terms of quality overall. Beauty mode was disabled on all the phones for our comparisons.

We prefer the overall look of selfies taken by the Redmi Note 7. Skin tones look a lot more natural and the highlights and exposures aren't blown out, like on the ZenFone Max Pro M2. The Redmi Y3 still has the best details in objects in the background but selfies themselves look too oversharpened. Adding beautification does fix this a bit.

In low light, the oversampling definitely helps in reducing noise, which is present when shooting at the full 32-megapixel resolution. Selfies shot with the Redmi Y3 were sharper and more detailed, and overall more appealing when compared to those taken by competition. In pitch darkness, the Redmi Y3 has the most powerful flash of the three phones, giving you the best lit selfies. There's Portrait mode too, but the effect isn't very convincing.

You can shoot selfie videos at up to 1080p resolution. Quality is very good in daylight but videos get a little grainy in low light. The Redmi Y3 is supposed to have electronic stabilisation (EIS) for the selfie camera but this didn't appear to be working when we tested it, despite enabling it in the camera app's settings.

Other selfie-centric features include Palm Shutter, which counts down to release the shutter when it detects your palm; and Group Selfie, which takes multiple photos and combines them to try to create a frame in which everyone looks good. This latter feature didn't seem to work very well all the time.

At the back of the Redmi Y3, you get a 12-megapixel primary sensor with a f/2.2 aperture and a 2-megapixel depth camera, just like on the Redmi 7. There's AI scene detection which can be switched on or off if needed. Interestingly, AI scene recognition isn't available for the selfie camera, like it is on the Redmi Note 7.

Autofocus speed is average at best, and while shooting videos, we found the continuous autofocus to be a little iffy as we had to tap the screen a couple of times to ensure it focused properly.

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