OPPO Find N3 Flip Review: Should You Buy It?

If you saw the Find N2 Flip last year, the N3 Flip is an evolution of the same design that made its first visit to the US. Despite the similar appearance, the improved Flexion hinge is 25% stronger and still provides a gap-free design and a minimal notch on the screen. The N3 Flip improves its hardware with a new notification slider that offers mute, vibrate and call settings without unlocking the phone – a nice touch. The same IPX4 rating remains, but stronger Corning Gorilla Glass Victus protection protects the phone from drops. The internal display is bright to my eyes and it's clear that time has been spent on improving OPPO's clamshell hardware.

The cover screen also looks familiar to us (it's the same panel). While the N2 Flip was one of the largest outdoor displays when it launched, it's now one of the smallest options. However, OPPO has improved the software experience by supporting third-party apps as well as weather, timer, camera, calls, audio recorder and now a 3D pet widget. I had no problem accessing many useful tools without unlocking the phone.

As OPPO calls it, “Widgets” are a small collection of popular apps running on the Cover Screen, including X (formerly Twitter), WhatsApp, Gmail, Google Maps, Wallet and more. You don't need to download them separately (it's the same app, it just runs on a smaller screen), but you need to enable each of them in the settings menu. This information is available in the "Lab" section, along with warnings that errors may occur. I haven't found anything to detract from the experience, but the reception definitely feels extra.

My biggest complaint is that the screen is too small to comfortably fit the keyboard, and it still takes up a lot of screen real estate to see what's responding. Texting and emailing via Surface is a chore; I had to unlock the phone defeating the purpose of the screen. Even pressing some small buttons in the app is painful. Additionally, app support isn't as extensive as the full Android experience that the Motorola Razr offers on the front display. Your mileage will vary, but I wouldn't use the phone for long periods without unlocking it.

OPPO says the relatively small bezel screen ensures optimal visibility of the camera setup. It's a little hard to believe that the lens is in a tiny Hasselbland-branded camera body unlike other OPPO/OnePlus phones. I understand the desire for brand recognition in a crossover phone, but the phone is aesthetically different from its predecessor. When you see what competitors are doing with larger screens, the extra space is wasted.

However, OPPO has upgraded the UltraWide to a 48MP f/2.2 aperture model, and this time there's a third lens: a 32MP monster with a 47mm focal length that offers 2x zoom. It's not a huge change for long exposure photography, but it's a great addition for portraits. let's see.

First, OPPO's collaboration with Hasselblad focuses on the immersive aspect of color science. But what I like most is the look; This is a huge improvement over last year's questionable results. Most importantly, it looks the same no matter which three lenses you shoot with. This is usually a persistent problem with other brands. Detail on the first camera is solid, if not a little soft, with 100% cropping, and the new ultra-wide camera looks nearly distortion-free. If you want more from your camera, the Pro mode and editing tools are incredibly powerful.

When I saw the 2x lens on the spec sheet, I thought, "Oh, we're crunching the numbers, aren't we?" I couldn't have been more wrong. The 2x lens produces excellent images even at 5x, thanks to a good dose of image fusion. Press the camera shutter carefully. You can see the magic of the upgrade happening.

clearly

the technology with the equally beautiful Find

It's great for portraits and photography, and is my favorite of the three lenses. The only downside is that the telephoto lens doesn't always work well when taking close-up photos, producing sharper shots than if you were to rely on the main camera.

2x optical devices certainly have their limitations. It's not a long-term competitor to the Galaxy S23 Ultra's 10x zoom. OPPO lets you zoom up to 20x, but the results are mixed. Stick to 5x zoom, which is the case for the most part, and this camera package will not disappoint.

There's not much to say about selfies; For the results to be as good as all your other photos, you need to use the main camera. Textures and skin tones are excellent, as is software-added bokeh. The only notable drawback is that the camera's low position makes it easy to hide. It took me a while to get used to flipping the phone. Despite this disappointment, the internal camera is not good; I will limit myself to video calls only.

You wouldn't buy a foldable phone for gaming, but the Find N3 Flip still has us a little concerned about temperatures. It doesn't mean the phone is hot, but it tries to keep it cool.

First, performance is lower than what we saw in the MediaTek Dimensity 9200; It's close to Pixel 7's Tensor G2. It's still more than adequate for day-to-day work, and the device keeps you cool in-game thanks to the frame rate. To combat this, you can enable high performance mode. However, this low performance point suggests that battery life is excellent; The phone easily lasts all day. In our tests, it managed 10 hours of web browsing, 16 hours of video streaming, and just under five hours of extreme gaming.

Limited heat fate affects OPPO's SuperVOOC fast charging. Despite having a maximum power of 44W, which lasts only a few seconds, the phone spends most of its time charging below 20W. Thus, the Find N3 flip takes 52 minutes to charge and 23 minutes to reach 50%. That's faster than last year, but not too fast for a 4,300mAh battery. While we're being picky, 15W isn't great for a non-SuperVOOC charger and means the phone will charge more slowly using outlets and third-party power banks.