ICYMI: Oppo A3 and A3x Announced! The Phones are “Durable” they Said

Durable… and?

About a month ago, Oppo announced the A3 and A3x in the Philippines. Supposedly catering to the service riders in the country, as well as those who want a phone that is secured throughout this rainy season. Both of these phones are MIL-STD-810H certified, a certification you would normally only find on rugged phones. Not only that, but it is also SGS Performance-tested and IP54-rated. Based on the promotional images, it can withstand drops and even was tortured by several content creators to prove its worth.

That’s great and all, and the phone looks nice. What are the other specs? Before we go on, let us just say that we’re not a tech blog judging a phone on its specs alone, we like to focus on a broader side of things and whether the phone is worth it based on its price alone, as well as consumer needs in the Philippines.

The specs? Okay, the Oppo A3 features a Qualcomm Snapdragon 6s 4G Gen 1 chipset. The name might sound alien to you. Don’t worry, we found out that it is essentially a rebranded Snapdragon 662, a chipset that was released four years ago! The phone has 6GB RAM and 128GB ROM and has enough space to fit in a MicroSD Card. As for the display, it features an HD+ (1604x720px) IPS LCD screen with 90Hz refresh rate and apparently,1000 nits brightness. The cameras are very typical for this type of phone. It’s the standard 50MP + 2MP setup, and a 5MP selfie sensor included. Aside from its durability, the phone boasts 45W fast charging. The charger is included in the box.

Among other things, the phone has a 3.5mm jack, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.1, dual-band Wi-Fi, and NFC. It runs ColorOS 14 based on Android 14.

Guess how much this tough nut costs? If you guessed PHP 6,499 or PHP 5,999. You’re completely wrong. It’s actually PHP 8,999. We understand that durability testing is expensive, very expensive. But still, there are way better options out there that are worth your while. It makes sense why durability is the main featurette here. Because when the phone eventually dies and lags (which is very likely the moment you buy it), you can throw the phone at hard surfaces, and it will still be alive.

How about the A3x? It’s essentially the same exact phone except now it uses a weaker 8MP rear camera and a 5MP selfie shooter, and a more reasonable price tag, at PHP 5,499 (4/64) and PHP 6,999 (6/128), where it belongs. The Oppo A3 comes in Starry Purple and Sparkle Black and the A3x comes in Nebula Red and Ocean Blue.

Before you get too excited about getting this phone because it is advertised as military-tested, please scroll down to the bottom of Oppo’s website so you can find disclaimers and footnotes. They are very important despite how small they look because they will help you set some expectations. Here are some noteworthy disclaimers that you might want to think about before buying the Oppo A3 and/or A3x:

•  OPPO A3x/A3 have passed the MIL-STD 810H military-grade shock resistance test and SGS certification, which include multi-angle drop tests, high-intensity impact tests, and other high-standards durability tests. Due to factors such as machine aging and personal usage habits, the experience may vary. Please refer to the actual experience.
• Display brightness is collected from OPPO Labs. The actual data will differ slightly due to the test software version and specific testing environment
• OPPO A3x/A3 has achieved the industry standard of IP54, and it also resists the splashes of multiple liquids including coffee and soup under the laboratory setting conditions. Due to factors such as machine aging and personal usage habits, the experience may vary. Please refer to the actual experience. Liquid damage is not covered under warranty.
• Only OPPO A3 with 6GB RAM has passed 36-Month Fluency Protection. “36-Month Fluency Protection” means that through the optimisation of software, hardware and other comprehensive technologies, OPPO A3 with 6GB RAM has passed the 36-month fluency testing in OPPO laboratory. “Fluency Protection” does not mean that there is absolutely no lag. Due to factors such as network environment and personal usage, the actual experience may be different. Please refer to the actual experience.

Now, this isn’t the first time Oppo did some military-level durability testing. They did so before with the Oppo A60. There, we covered more about what MIL-STD-810H means and what should you expect from it. In this case, please refer to remark 1 on top to know what kind of testing they did with the A3 and A3x.

SPECS:

• 6.7″ HD+ (1604x720px) IPS LCD, 90Hz refresh rate
  • MIL-STD-810H certification
• Qualcomm Snapdragon 6s 4G Gen 1/Snapdragon 662 (11nm)
• CAMERAS:
  • 50MP (Primary/A3 only), f/1.8
  • 2MP (Depth), f/2.4
  • 8MP (Primary/A3x only), f/2.0
  • FRONT: 5MP, f/2.2
• ColorOS 14 based on Android 14
• 5000mAh, 45W fast charging
• USB-C, 3.5mm jack, Ultra Volume Mode (up to 300%)
• 4G LTE, dual-band Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 5.0, NFC
• Nebula Red, Ocean Blue (A3x) | Starry Purple, Sparkle Black (A3)
• PRICE:
  • Oppo A3x:
    • 4/64: PHP 5,999
    • 4/128: PHP 6,499
  • Oppo A3:
    • 6/128: PHP 8,999

Source: Oppo A3, Oppo A3x