Oppo was quick to enter the foldable race with the Find N series. Now, it has come to a point in the development of this form factor where it wants to solve the pain points associated with foldables. And that seems to be the focus of the Find N3 Flip, its new clamshell-type foldable.
The Find N3 Flip tries to do three things other foldables haven’t. One, it tries to make the cover screen much more effective by literally making it a miniature version of everything the phone can do. Two, it tries to bring in a three-camera system with a 50MP primary camera, 48MP ultra-wide and 32MP portrait camera. And finally, it tries to pack in a larger 4300mAh battery, much larger than any on a flip format phone so far. But does all this make the Find N3 Flip the best flip phone out there?
The cover screen
The 17:9 aspect ratio 3.26-inch vertical cover screen on the Find N3 Flip can do, or show, much more than what other cover screens have done so far. In fact, it is a smart take. By making this screen vertical and almost the same aspect ratio as the main screen, it can show all the apps in a miniaturised version here. For instance, I added Gmail here and could see all the unread emails, read them and even type in a quick reply. You do the same with a bunch of apps that Oppo has added in the settings for this screen, though it cannot understandably replace the main screen.
A vertical screen like this means you can record everything from portraits to reels by keeping this screen facing you and using the main cameras. This is very effective and again Oppo has done a smart thing here by making this screen vertical, the orientation in which most of this content is now captured.
Plus, the screen also does all the regular stuff like show notifications, give quick access to some apps and even let’s change the screen here. You can even nurture an interactive animated pet here, if it is the kind of thing that interests you. But full marks to Oppo for trying to make the screen something users will actually use.
Three Hasselblad cameras
Three cameras on a flip phone are pretty good but they also add value for money to the users who should not be expected to cut corners because they are paying more for a new form factor. I was most impressed by the portrait camera as it gave images with a clear focus on the subject and the right amount of bokeh. Even in video, there is the option to change the focal length, and this makes for a good cinematic blur-like effect.
It is not usual for an ultra-wide camera to come with a 48MP sensor. This results in some great detail when you are shooting in the 0.6x mode. And the macro also comes out with some interesting frames.
The zoom is good, but not great as it is more of a crop in the 50MP sensor. And this is where I was more impressed by the 2x than the 5x.
What else is good?
Interestingly, the cells of the battery on this phone are on both sides of the hinge, helping pack in more power. This means the phone lasts well over a day with one charge. And anyway, the fast charging tech that Oppo has perfected over the years lets you juice the phone back up significantly in under 30 minutes.
I really liked how Oppo has worked on the hinge. In fact, there is no daylight visible between the two sides when you set the phone up.
Also, instead of a crease, the 6.8-inch AMOLED screen has a slight dip where the hinge is. This is a nice way to tackle the main problem of the foldable design.
What is not good?
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I was revising the Oppo Find N3 Flip along with the Google Pixel 8 Pro and could not help but wonder why the former has so many preloaded apps. It is so overwhelming that you are forced to search for the gallery and other apps which make no sense on a new phone. Also, there are some apps here in Chinese which didn’t make any sense to me.
The camera apps take a couple of seconds to load which is very usual on a high-end phone these days. While I don’t think this is because of the MediaTek Dimensity 9200, which manages other tasks well, an update is due to fix this bug.
Should you buy the Find N3 Flip?
If you are looking for a flip-design phone that manages most tasks well and does not cut corners in terms of features or battery life, then this is a good phone to opt for. At Rs 94,999, however, Oppo seems to have missed out on an opportunity to undercut Samsung’s Flip phones on pricing and gain a decent market share.
