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OPPO N3 camera shootout

We take a look at the most unique feature of the OPPO N3: the camera.
By
December 9, 2014

So far, we’ve unboxed the OPPO N3 and given you our first impressions. While our official review is in the works, let’s take a look at one of the most important features of the device: the camera.

On almost all current smartphones, two cameras are included: one in the front, another in the back, and they’re almost never the same resolution. OPPO aims to fix that problem on the N3 thanks to the addition of a rotating camera mechanism. Is the camera more of a gimmick, or is it the way cameras should be on every smartphone? Let’s find out.

You’ll notice right away that the N3’s camera doesn’t have any problem capturing detail in well-lit indoor shots. The highlights are bright and crisp and the darks are true-to-life and prominent, making for an all-around great shot for a 16MP shooter. Colors are vivid, and we oftentimes struggled to take bland shots… especially in well-lit rooms. The 100x zoomed in photos are a bit more smudgy than we would have liked, though it still makes for a decent shot if you’re looking to take some long-distance photos.

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The rotating aspect of the camera isn’t just convenient for taking selfies, it also helps with getting the right angle with rear-facing shots. Moving it up and down can help capture the right angle, reducing the need to move your arms around to get the shot lined up.

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Dimly-lit shots seem to be somewhat of a problem with the OPPO N3, as they usually are with today’s smartphone cameras. Most poorly-lit images turn out to be too dark, but resorting to using the flash doesn’t really help much either. The flash tends to fill the subject with too much light, making for an awkward looking photo. Using the fill light really helps with low-light shots, though colors still tend to be washed out. You may need to decide between either the flash or fill light, depending on your situation.

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Dimly-lit shot using flash
Dimly-lit shot using fill light
Dimly-lit shot using fill light

Overcast outside shots provide great lighting all around the photo, and even tend to lean towards the warmer side of spectrum. When it comes to self-shots, though, images tend to come out much cooler than we’d like. They aren’t bad shots, but they aren’t the most accurate.

The OPPO N3 can capture 1080p video, and we found the quality to be only slightly better than average. While it’s great for personal Vloging or quick videos to share on social media, the videos we took weren’t very sharp and could use a bump up in bit rate.

Turning to the software, quite a few camera modes are included in the camera app, and you can even download more if you’d like. Colorful Night, HDR, and Macro Mode are the three most useful modes we’ve found on the camera. Information regarding different modes, the O-Click remote, and more can be found in the video above.

Summing it all up, we found that the added “wow” factor of the rotating camera, sharp photos and true-to-life colors make for a great overall camera experience. Though it struggles a bit in low-light and video capture, we wouldn’t have a problem recommending this to most people. So, what did you think? Does the N3’s camera impress, or is it just another gimmick? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments, and of course stayed tuned as we’ll be sure to bring you the full review over the next little bit.