OPPO N3Review in

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Smaller than its predecessor…

OPPO is among the first brands who boarded the large-screen bandwagon with

the N1

However, instead of upsizing the 5.9-inch display panel on its successor, the N3

sports 5.5-inch display – which is a good thing, since it makes it slightly easier

to handle

The phone has different design language than most phones in the market… the

top portion holds a swiveling camera while ports and buttons are on the right

and left edges

On the chin, there’s a hollowed-out arc hiding the LED dubbed as Skyline

Notification 2.0

The back hosts the fingerprint sensor that also doubles up as the O-Touch panel,

surrounded by a metal frame

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…but as unwieldy as before

While the size is smaller, the OPPO N3 is still thicker and heavier than most

phones in its class

In fact, with the heft of 192g, it’s among the most bulky phones out there

All this makes it difficult to use with a single hand and also affects

pocketability

The device has a unibody design and is constructed from plastic

Thanks to an aluminium band running along its edges, it has a premium

look and it also feels solid in hands

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A phablet-grade display that reproduces sharp visuals

While the display size has reduced, the resolution of 1,920 x 1,080

pixels remains the same… offering a rich pixel density of 403ppi

The IPS display offers sharp text and vibrant colours, and wide

viewing angles

Sadly, the brightness isn’t impressive and you might need to

increase it to the maximum level to read it outdoors

Protecting the display against scratches is a layer of Corning

Gorilla Glass 3

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Colourin' Android

The OPPO N3 comes with

Android 4.4 KitKat,

layered with the custom

skin dubbed ColorOS

Similar to its Chinese

counterparts, the

homescreen brings all the

apps and widgets at one

place

There’s also a dedicated

space for music and

photos on the homescreen

In terms of preloaded

apps, the phone offers

default Google apps along

with a Security Center

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The features are countless

Security Center is quite

useful, as it allows you to

check data consumption,

manage permissions,

among other things

The suite also has an app

encryption option, that

allows you password

protect a few apps and

you can also use the

fingerprint sensor with it

The phone supports

gestures, both when the

it’s on standby state as

well as when it’s awake

There’s also a one-hand

mode on the phone that

shrinks the screen

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A twister of a shooter…

The OPPO N3 takes the idea of its previous model to the next levelNot only does it sport a swivel camera that can be rotated 206 degress, it can now also rotate automatically thanks to the motorYou can control the rotation via the software interface or O-Touch panel at the backIn terms of specs, the device features a 16MP snapper which is supplemented by dual-LED flashThe same camera can be used for shooting selfies, making it quite an interesting choice for selfie enthusiasts

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… with good image quality

The 16MP shooter clicks image

that offer good amount of detail

and colour variance

We liked the landscape shots and

close-up shots, though the HDR

mode overexposes some areas

and thus isn’t impressive

Images taken in low light are nice,

and can be further enhanced with

the dual-LED flash

Numerous modes available on the

camera app give user the option

to capture the scene / object as

per their liking

Surprisingly, unlike other

flagships, it doesn’t have 4K

recording and can only capture in

1080p resolution

Close up

Long shot

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A speed demon

The muscle power comes from the Qualcomm Snapdragon 801 SoC,

a quad-core processor purring at 2.5GHz

The chipset is clubbed with 2GB of RAM

The hardware delivers zippy performance and blazes through basic

navigation and intensive games

Thanks to the Adreno 330 GPU, the experience of running heavy

games such as Badland and Riptide GP2 was awesome

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Store to your heart’s content

The OPPO N3 comes with

32GB storage on board

Users will be able to

access around 25GB out

of it for installation of apps

or storing their files

You can also utilise the

secondary slot, if you

don’t want to use it as a

dual-SIM device to add

more storage up to 128GB

The phablet also supports

USB OTG capabilities to

plug in flash drives

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Offers a day-long battery

Providing juice to the

OPPO N3 is a 3,000mAh

embedded battery

It allows the phone to last

a day comfortably,

though gaming or GPS

navigation will deplete

the battery faster

It clocked 8 hours and 30

minutes of video

playback time as part of

our standard battery test

You can make use of

various modes to extend

the battery life

The Super Power-saving

mode is quite handy for

emergency situations

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The innovations just doesn’t end with the specs

Unlike the N1, OPPO is

bundling its keyfob-like

accessory called O-Click

2.0

It connects with the

phone via Bluetooth and

act as a remote control

You can use it for tracking

the smartphone or

capturing images

remotely

It also allows you to

control the swivel of the

camera

The O-Click will also blink

in case of missed calls

and messages

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At a glance…

161.2 x 77 x 9.9 mm 192g 5.5-inch display, full HD resolution 2.5GHz quad-core processor 2GB RAM 32GB storage, expandable up to 128GB 16-megapixel motorised swivel camera with dual-LED flash 4G support, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC and GPS 3,000mAh fixed battery Android 4.4 KitKat

Pros and cons

Solid build Swivel camera mechanism and good image quality Fingerprint sensor O-Click accessory is quite handy

Thick and heavy construction Specs don’t match the current flagship standards

Pricing & verdict

Price: Rs 42,999

“OPPO has managed to carve its own niche with its devices, and the N3 makes that even more evident. It offers top-end specifications along with numerous innovations, be it the motorised swivel camera, the O-Click, and VOOC charging among others. However, its high pricing brings it against formidable options like the Samsung Galaxy Note 4 and Moto Turbo, if one is looking for phablets. Unless you want to stand out from the crowd or have some specific use cases for the swivel camera, the OPPO N3 isn’t a clear choice in its price segment.