No one is going to buy the Oppo N3 based on its specs. It’s not that it doesn’t hold up on paper – it boasts similar hardware to rival phones in its price range, but that’s not what’s going to catch anyone’s eye. The N3’s outlandish looks and oddball features are what make this lesser-known brand sparkle in the eyes of those looking for something different, something alternative, and, indeed, something weird.
At US$649, the Oppo N3 is probably the most bling for your buck, and it’s going to need that extra jewelry to persuade prospective buyers, because the top-tier Android phone competition is especially stiff.
Bells and Whistles
Usually we start off reviews talking about hardware and performance, but that’s probably not the first concern in the mind of a person who will buy the N3. Some might see the bonus doodads as unnecessary gimmicks, but others will find some real added value not to be dismissed. Let’s start from the top.
The phone sports Oppo’s trademark rotating camera. This one is motorized and can be controlled either with your hand or via the camera app. It rotates 180 degrees to snap some high-quality selfies. It’s not as fragile as it looks, either, boasting surprising sturdiness. On the flipside of the camera module is the earpiece.
For flipping between selfies and normal shots, this works great. But when trying to get a specific angle, I found adjusting the camera to be too slow and somewhat unresponsive. Best just to do that part manually.
Next, you’ll notice an extra button near the center of the phone’s back panel. That doubles as a shutter button for the camera and a fingerprint scanner. The scanner is cool, but it’s not much faster than just using a swipe code. Supposedly, you can rotate the camera using this button as well, but I barely got it to budge and instead just snapped more photos by accident.
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