OPPO N3

While the phablets, as a category, might have garnered the attention of smartphone manufacturers in the recent months, OPPO is among the first brands who boarded the large-screen bandwagon. In fact, the N1, with its gargantuan 5.9-inch display, was closer to a tablet than a smartphone. The Chinese company couldn't possibly go any bigger when it came to the display panel on its successor, the N3, and instead chose to reduce its screen size. We’re glad it did so – since now it’s easier to handle with its 5.5-inch display.

Though the Find 7 from the brand’s stable offered a superb resolution of 2K pixels, it has stuck to a resolution of 1,920 x 1,080 pixels for the N3. However, the display size has also reduced from the 5.9-inches on the N1 to 5.5-inches, which helps it to offer a rich pixel density of 403ppi. The IPS display panel offers sharp text and lovely colours with wide viewing angles.

While most manufacturers play with Android OS to customise its looks and features, Chinese brands take it to the next level by changing the usual actions too. The OPPO N3 is no different, and it comes with the latest iteration of the brand's custom layer called Color OS, which is based on Android 4.4.4 KitKat.

Without a doubt, the rotatable camera unit of the OPPO N3 is its calling card and hence it’s paramount to gauge its capabilities. In terms of core specs, the phablet boasts impressive credentials as it comes equipped with a 16-megapixel snapper with optics from Schneider Kreuznach. The camera features 1/2.3” sensor and also gets assistance from a dual-LED flash to shoot in low-light conditions. The camera module can be rotated in any direction to shoot the subject from any angle, but you can also automate the rotation.

Sitting at the top of the OPPO’s portfolio, the N3 sports powerful hardware. Its 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. While the device boasts loaded internals, it’s a notch below today’s flagships which draw power from latest-gen processors and 3GB RAM, not to mention the fact that many boast 64-bit architecture. In our usage though, the hardware delivers zippy performance, be it while doing basic navigation or playing games. Thanks to the Adreno 330 GPU, the experience of running heavy games such as Badland and Riptide GP2 was awesome and smooth rendering of graphics added to the fun.

Fuelling the OPPO N3 is a 3,000mAh non-removable battery. In day-to-day usage, the device usually lasted almost a day with the mixed use of voice calls, 3G and navigation via GPS. However, if you’re an avid gamer, then the phone’s battery will give up in a matter of hours. As part of our battery test, the phablet was able to run a 720p video on loop for about 8 hours and 30 minutes.

With the OPPO N1, the brand also introduced O-Click, a small keyfob-like accessory which acted as a Bluetooth remote. Now with the O-Click 2.0, the manufacturer has not only improved its design and usage, it has also bundled it for free with the N3. It acts as a tracker for your phone (if it’s in your vicinity), so in case you aren’t able to find it, you can make it ring. You can also use the O-Click for remotely capturing images or controlling the rotation of the camera.