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If you’ve read my earlier reviews of flip smartphones, you might already know that I’m a huge fan of the form factor. With technology increasingly taking up more space in our lives and handbags, I love a gadget that frees up space instead. The latest flip phone flagship to hit the streets is the OPPO Find N3 Flip. I loved last year’s version - the OPPO Find N2 Flip - so let’s see if the new version makes the love last longer.
Design details
There isn’t much difference in the cover display in terms of the layout. The 3.26-inch cover display stays the same size as last year. An upgrade that is very obvious is the circular camera island - which OPPO calls the Cosmos Ring. It’s way more conspicuous than the two-lens setup from earlier. The Find N3 Flip also gets its own alert slider on the left side, joining the OG OnePlus and now Apple, as a brand that offers this hardware functionality to its users.
I unfold the phone to reveal the massive 6.8-inch AMOLED main screen. With the display on, the crease across the middle is somehow the least visible I’ve seen on a flip smartphone so far. I’ve got the Cream Gold colour variant and it looks super classy.
Although it has a glossy finish at the rear, there were no scratches even at the end of a couple of weeks in a packed, cluttered handbag. Thankfully, nor is it a smudge-magnet. I love this attention to detail in design, including an undulating wave pattern on the hinge of the smartphone. Although barely perceptive to the naked eye, the company says there’s a curved glass back panel to provide a firm and comfortable grip. I spent some time watching Dream, where an arrogant professional soccer player has to coach a team of housing-deprived people to win the Homeless World Cup tournament. While watching the movie I realised how light the phone feels in my hand as I hold it for extended periods of time, despite being just shy of 200 grams.
Fun functionalities
Let’s dive a bit deeper into new features baked into to enhance the flip features. I have the option of choosing among a bunch of cute, animated animals as the wallpaper for my cover screen. On this wallpaper, I can only display the time, date, and one widget of my choice (from a pre-selected list). However, on a regular background, I can choose up to three widgets or apps to be pinned for quick access. I chose to display the weather, wireless earphones, and camera as my go-to apps. OPPO has stuck to its decision of retaining a vertical cover screen, so as to not compromise on delivering a bigger, better camera module. However, it’s also ensured that users get an increasing number of functions to access on the display. I love that the sheer range of apps goes beyond the regular to-do list, calendar, or clock to YouTube, GPay, Reddit, and Nike Run Club. There have never been more reasons offered to NOT flip your phone open.
Camera
On a flagship foldable, you get a flagship camera, of course. The Cosmos Ring on the OPPO Find N3 Flip houses a 50 MP primary camera with a 1/1.56-inch sensor, a 48MP ultra-wide camera with a 114-degree field of view, and a 32MP telephoto lens, said to be the very first on a clamshell-smartphone.
One feature I personally don’t like is that almost all photos I click are rendered with ProXDR display tech. According to OPPO, this technology “enhances photos to provide up to eight times more dynamic range compared to non-ProXDR displays. The effect of the ProXDR at times seems a bit too dramatic for my liking under certain lighting conditions, especially outdoors during the day. Only when I edit the photo does the effect no longer apply.
That said, the OPPO Find N3 Flip does take some fabulous photos both in daylight and in low-light conditions. Even portraits taken in low light or even with a strong backlight are captured well, with minimal washing-out of the subject or noise due to low light. Selfies captured on the front under-display camera were also quite sharp and pleasing. Some of the selfies I took under warm light take on a bit of a red tinge while AI does its thing while saving the image. It doesn’t exactly ruin the image in any way, but the shift is quite evident.
- Also read: Style, on a budget! Redmi 12 review
Tech Specs
The OPPO Find N3 Flip runs on a Dimensity 9200 octa-core processor. The only variant available offers 256 GB storage and a whopping 12 GB RAM. Sometimes the lack of choice is a good thing! There are no stutters or heating issues at any point of my usage, and there’s ample storage for the new games I’m trying out and the photos I’ve clicked.
The device is powered by a 4,300 mAh battery and might not be the biggest in terms of sheer capacity. However, it manages to keep me company for more than a day of moderate use - catching some Run BTS episodes, trying out some new casual games, and the daily ritual of doomscrolling on Instagram before falling asleep. The smartphone runs on ColorOS 13.2 (based on Android 13) and
There’s a fair bit of bloatware, which on a flagship is surprising to see! I just wish I didn’t have to go through the tediousness of having to uninstall each of those at startup.
Verdict
Clamshell smartphones have always been a luxury product. With the niche segment still in its early years, the improvements are alluring and the competition is still limited. Despite that, the OPPO Find N3 Flip still faces stiff competition from the already established legacy of the Samsung Z Flip series and the way-more-affordable Moto Razr+. However, to its credit, OPPO with the Find N3 Flip offers a meaningful increase in functionality, a great minimal-crease display, excellent battery life, and overall great user experience, which is what’s required to justify the hefty price tag.
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