Oppo F3 Diwali Edition Review: Good performance with even better looks
Oppo is one of the most popular Chinese smartphone manufacturers in India. The brand has managed to develop itself into a somewhat premium undertaking. Oppo has managed to set itself apart from the likes of other Chinese smartphone brands by offering long-lasting smartphones. Not only has it come up with devices that have good quality but it has also strategically chosen its target group.
Oppo has received a good response from the Indian market. Its flagship model Oppo F3 has been launched in several versions and the latest of the lot is Oppo F3 Diwali Edition. It is a vibrant and well-decorated smartphone that rightly deserves all the attention that it grabs.
Let's go ahead with the review to find out how good the device actually is!
Specifications: Oppo F3 redecorated!
Oppo F3 Diwali Edition's specifications are no different from the originally launched Oppo F3. The device has the same 5.5-inch HD IPS LCD display. The display has a resolution of 1080 x 1920 pixels and it boasts a pixel density of 401 PPI. The display of the device also has a protective covering of Corning Gorilla Glass 5.
The smartphone is powered by octa-core MediaTek MT6750T processor which is clocked at 1.5GHz. The device has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of internal storage. The storage of the mobile phone is expandable to 256GB via microSD card support.
Oppo F3 Diwali Edition also has a rear snapper with 13MP sensor and dual LED flash. The front camera is a pair of dual lenses, one with 16MP sensor and the other with an 8MP sensor. The front camera setup has a wide angle lens and a normal lens for selfie lovers. There is no flash for the front camera.
The smartphone runs Android Marshmallow 6.0 which was a disappointing factor. Oppo F3 has the ColorOS 3.0 UI. The device is powered by a 3,200mAh battery and it has micro USB 2.0 along with 3.5mm audio jack.
The specifications of the device are not too impressive given the price segment it lies in. Moreover, Oppo F3 came out in May 2017 and it ran Android Marshmallow 6.0. The Diwali Edition version could at least have come with Android Nougat.
However, let's go ahead with the review and find out if the device is incorporated with quality features or not.
Design: Captivating color!
Oppo F3 Diwali Edition is all about an attractive design with a bright and unique color. The smartphone comes in bright red color with golden antenna bands. Not only is the device eye-catchy it is also quite unique in its own sense. There are premium devices that come in a decorated red shade, yet Oppo has tried to introduce few elements here and there to set the handset apart.
The front panel of the device boasts the dual cameras on top along with earpiece. The base of the front panel has the home button which also has a fingerprint sensor on it. The back button and multitasking buttons are placed on the either sides of the home button.
The rear panel has a striking Oppo logo engraved in the center. The antenna bands on the top and bottom of the rear panel are in gold color as well. The camera on the rear panel also has a golden perimeter as the periphery of the camera lens.
The power toggle is on the left side edge of the device whereas volume rockers are on the right edge. The speakers along with micro USB 2.0 port and 3.5 mm audio jack are at the bottom edge.
The device certainly attracts attention and while I was using it several of my friends had their eyes stuck on the smartphone. Several others confused it for iPhone 7 Red in a glance.
So the Oppo F3 Diwali Edition knows how to grab attention. It has a handy form factor and is easy to use with a single hand as well.
Camera: All about selfies and groupfies!
One of the key features of the Oppo F3 is the dual camera setup on the front panel that includes a wide-angle lens. It makes it easier for users to click group pictures using the self-portrait camera. The front dual camera setup is being adopted by consumers in India more popularly as compared to the rear dual camera setup in the budget price range.
No doubt the dual camera setup is a lot more sophisticated especially in smartphones that use the setup for portrait photography. But the quality and bokeh effect produced in premium smartphones is yet to be inherited by camera phones in pocket-friendly range.
However, talking about the rear camera of the Oppo F3 Diwali Edition, the smartphone has a 13MP sensor for the snapper accompanied by a dual tone LED flash. The camera clicks more than decent pictures in bright daylight. The pictures are well exposed and have a natural and lifelike saturation.
Low light performance for the smartphone is also appreciable enough. The dual-tone flash fires optimum amount of light at the object, however, there is some amount of noise in low light pictures which is nothing to be worried about.
The front camera setup is also quite impressive. The 16MP self-portrait camera clicks pictures with an optimum amount of detail and white balance. It develops vibrant pictures with natural saturation. The device also captures good quality videos. It is capable of capturing videos at 30 frames per second at a resolution of 1080p. Th fact that the camera fails to offer 4K video recording is disappointing.
Performance: Gamers heads up!
The octa-core MediaTek processor on the smartphone coupled with 4GB of RAM performs quite well. The Soc and RAM integration on the device is impressive. I played Asphalt 8 and Modern Combat's latest version on the smartphone and the graphics were glitch free. There was no lag while gaming although the overheating seems to be an issue.
As far as the day to day performance of the smartphone is concerned, there is nothing that will probably disappoint you. The fingerprint sensor on the home button is pretty quick and even repeatedly using it for dozens of times does not cause any fluctuation at all.
Operating system and User Interface: Android Marshmallow??
Oppo has not taken any solid step to update its latest version of F3. The device runs Android Marshmallow which is certainly a drawback. The market is already flooding with mobile phones that run Android Nougat and several brands already have plans of upgrading their operating systems to Android Oreo.
Oppo F3 Diwali Edition certainly crosses the affordability barrier and had Oppo proffered the Android Nougat on it, it would have been a valuable addition.
What seems to be the case with several Chinese smartphone manufacturers is the added pressure of UI synchronization with the OS. We have already seen this for Gionee and ZTE's undertaking Nubia. Unlike its homeland rivals, Oppo F3 also has a bundled and heavy UI.
Talking of the user interface, the smartphone runs Color OS 3.0 which resembles very closely to iOS in terms of home screen and settings menu display. None the less, Color OS also imparts several features to the smartphone.
The OS is bulky but the usability of the mobile phone remains unaffected by it. It is clean and simple to use.
Display and speakers: Made to entertain!
The Oppo F3 Diwali Edition has a 5.5-inch HD IPS LCD display. The display is sharp enough and well illuminated, however, there are smartphones from Samsung that come for a similar price tag and boast Full HD and AMOLED displays. Since Oppo has not introduced anything new in the device users will have to do with the LCD display.
The speakers on the device are loud and have a clear sound output.
Battery: 3200 mAh lasts through the day!
The 3200mAh battery on the Oppo F3 Diwali Edition is built to last. The smartphone, when used humbly, can survive up to 19 hours on a single charge. I also performed a full-fledged test of the device which included long gaming sessions and use of cellular data and Wi-fi along with GPS.
The device survived more than 13 hours which was quite impressive considering the fact that I was ruthless in my manner of use.
The smartphone also charged up pretty quickly. It juiced up its fill in less than two hours. The device does lack the USB Type C port, however, the quick charging compensates for it.
Conclusion: Is red color your cup of tea?</strong>
Oppo F3 Diwali Edition provides for all sorts of smartphone users including gamers, photography enthusiasts, shimmery design lovers and battery nazis. Certainly, several users will stay away from it for its "too attractive" red color that grabs undivided attention.
Android Marshmallow certainly pulls it down in terms of competitiveness but its UI makes up for it. The smartphone performs well and if you still feel that Rs. 18,990 is too much to pay for a red colored smartphone, you can always choose to go for the original Oppo F3 which is available in several sober yet appealing colors. It even costs a grand or two less.
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