Coolpad launched a couple of devices to further strengthen their budget segment. The Coolpad Mega 3 was launched at Rs 6,999 and Coolpad Note 3S at Rs 9,999.
Today we are pitching Coolpad Note 3S against a device with a similar name but impressive specs i.e. Redmi Note 3. It’s been almost a year since Xiaomi unveiled Redmi Note 3 which still holds on pretty strong in the budget segment. Can the new offering from Coolpad outshine the Redmi Note 3? Let’s find out. Note that based on the pricing, we have taken 16GB variant for the Redmi Note 3. Also, Coolpad Note 3S will be available from December 7 exclusively on Amazon India.
Design and Display
Starting with the design, Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 3 come with a metallic unibody design which feels extremely premium in the hands. The power button and volume rockers are placed on the right side and the SIM tray on the left. There is also a fingerprint scanner at the back. The 3.5 mm Headphone jack and infrared blaster sit on top with the micro-USB port at the bottom. Complementing the premium design is the beautiful 5.5-inch Full HD (1080 x 1920 pixels) IPS LCD display. 
Coming to the Coolpad Note 3S, the device also features a unibody metallic design with a mesh-like pattern if looked closely. The power button on the Coolpad Note 3S is located on the right side with volume rockers on the left. The fingerprint scanner is placed at the back of the device with 3.5 mm headphone jack on top and micro-USB port at the bottom. For the display, the Note 3S comes with a 5.5 inch HD Dual Curved glass display with a Resolution of 720 x 1280 pixels.
Overall, the display on the Redmi Note 3 will surely be more crisp and vibrant. Also, we liked the design language on Redmi Note 3 more.
Processor and Memory
Underneath the display, things get really interesting. Starting with the Redmi Note 3, the device is powered by a 1.4 GHz Hexa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 650 with Adreno 510 GPU. It comes with 2GB RAM and 16GB internal storage which is expandable up to 256GB via micro SD card. 
On the other hand, Coolpad Note 3S features a 1.36GHz Octa-Core Qualcomm Snapdragon 415 64-bit Processor with Adreno 405 GPU. It comes with 3GB RAM and 32GB internal storage which surprisingly is only expandable up to 32GB via microSD card.
While the Redmi Note 3 runs on Android 5.1.1 Lollipop (to be upgraded to Marshmallow) with MIUI on top, Coolpad Note 3S runs on Android 6.0 Marshmallow with Cool UI 8.0 on top out of the box.
Redmi Note 3 certainly comes with a much superior processor but lacks in terms of RAM and internal storage. However, the memory expansion limit of 32GB on the Coolpad Note 3S is really a bummer despite it having 32GB of internal storage. To have best out of your buck, we would recommend you add a bit more money and go for the 32GB variant of Redmi Note 3.
Camera
Coming to the photography, Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 3 features a 16-megapixel rear-facing camera with f/2.0 aperture, PDAF, Dual-LED flash. The front camera is a 5-megapixel shooter with f/2.0 Aperture and 1080p video recording capability. Overall, the camera performance on the Redmi Note 3 is commendable if not the best in this price range. The photos come out pretty good if clicked carefully. In low light, however, the camera does struggle a bit but for this price, Redmi Note 3 is a good buy in terms of camera. 
On the other hand, Coolpad Note 3S features a 13MP rear camera with LED Flash, f/2.2 aperture combined with a 5-megapixel front facing shooter with f/2.2 aperture. We are yet to test out the Note 3S so we would recommend you to wait for our detailed camera testing before we can compare it with the Redmi Note 3’s camera.
Battery and Connectivity
Well in the battery department, there is no comparison as Redmi Note 3 features a massive 4050 mAh non-removable battery compared to Coolpad Note 3S’s 2500 mAh battery.
Further, for connectivity, both the devices come with built-in Wi-Fi 802.11 b/g/n (b/g/n/ac on Redmi Note 3), 4G VoLTE, Bluetooth v4.0 (v4.1 on Redmi Note 3), GPS etc.
Wrapping Up
Now for the verdict, it can be really confusing if your budget is strictly restricted to Rs 9,999 as Redmi Note 3 offers better battery, display, and design and, on the other hand, Coolpad Note 3S offers better RAM, internal storage. We don’t know about the camera as yet so we would restrain from commenting on that aspect. If you can live with 2GB RAM and 16 GB internal storage (which is expandable) then you should not think twice before going for the Redmi Note 3. If not, then Coolpad Note 3S is a decent option. Also, for a second thought, we highly recommend you to invest a little more money and go for the 32GB variant of Redmi Note 3 which comes with 3GB RAM or else you can also buy Coolpad Note 5 which comes with 4GB RAM.