Oppo F3 Plus review: Double take

Performance

A Snapdragon 653 chipset lies at the core of the Oppo F3 Plus experience. In essence, it is a refresh of the Snapdragon 652, with the main improvement being the X9 LTE modem. Beyond that, the refreshed chip also comes with a 10% or so overall performance improvement over its predecessor. To test that theory out, we have the Lenovo Phab2 Pro in our charts, which comes with the S652.

Just like the 652, the Snapdragon 653 inside the Oppo F3 Plus has a setup of four Cortex-A72 and another four Cortex-A53 units. The former are now clocked a little higher at 1.95 GHz. The chip is coupled with 4GB of RAM - ample for multi-tasking.

On the graphics side, there is the Adreno 510, so, there is practically no change there over the Snapdragon 652.

Kicking things off with GeekBench and its CPU tests, we unfortunately ran into a few problems. GeekBench 4 kept crashing on our review unit, which forced us to resort to posting GeekBench 3 and 4.1 results. The older ones are arguably not relevant anymore, while version 4.1 introduced some major changes to score calculation, breaking direct result comparability yet again.

GeekBench 4.1 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  6754
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  6656
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  6301
• Oppo F3 Plus
  4695
• Moto G5
  2580

GeekBench 4.1 (single-core)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  1991
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  1986
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  1832
• Oppo F3 Plus
  1438
• Moto G5
  618

GeekBench 3 (multi-core)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  7375
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  7252
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  7202
• Huawei P9
  6558
• Huawei Mate 8
  6323
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  5970
• OnePlus 3T
  5956
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  5873
• Oppo F3 Plus
  5636
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  5103
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  4885
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  4368
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  4194
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  3861
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  3695
• Oppo F1 Plus
  3242
• Meizu m3 max
  3021
• Oppo F1
  3014
• Oppo F1s
  2967

GeekBench 3 (single-core)

Higher is better

• OnePlus 3T
  2560
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  2487
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  2161
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  2120
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  2072
• Huawei P9
  1819
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  1742
• Oppo F3 Plus
  1621
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  1543
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  1536
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  1451
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  933
• Oppo F1 Plus
  857
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  806
• Meizu m3 max
  781
• Oppo F1s
  706

Moving on to compound synthetic benchmarks, there is AnTuTu 6. Again, we saw the Snapdragon 653 in the Oppo F3 Plus perform as expected. The Galaxy C9 Pro came in just a bit below the F3 Plus, working on the same chipset.

The scale was pretty linear after that, with the Snapdragon 652 Lenovo Plab2 Pro, and Snapdragon 650 Xiaomi Mi Max and Redmi Note 3 following. The Snapdragon 625 gave up some power in its quest for better battery endurance. Still, the Oppo R9s and Samsung Galaxy C7 were not that far behind.

AnTuTu 6

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  174435
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  174070
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  168133
• OnePlus 3T
  165097
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  155185
• LG V20
  141945
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  140324
• ZTE Axon 7
  129926
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  113397
• Huawei P9
  98069
• Huawei Mate 8
  91609
• Oppo F3 Plus
  91458
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  85181
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  83557
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  76186
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  74488
• Oppo R9s
  66081
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  62818
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  60767
• Oppo F1 Plus
  51299
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  50109
• Meizu m3 max
  48334
• Moto G5
  43755
• Oppo F1
  35353
• Oppo F1s
  30657

Basemark OS 2.0 tells much the same story, with only a little variance here and there.

Basemark OS 2.0

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  3406
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  3376
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  3298
• OnePlus 3T
  2678
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  2434
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  2381
• ZTE Axon 7
  2346
• LG V20
  2159
• Huawei P9
  2068
• Huawei Mate 8
  2017
• Oppo F3 Plus
  1890
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  1770
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  1687
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  1596
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  1426
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  1362
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  1222
• Oppo F1 Plus
  1092
• Oppo R9s
  1091
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  987
• Oppo F1
  961
• Moto G5
  795
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  497
• Meizu m3 max
  335
• Oppo F1s
  269

Graphics performance turned out quite predictable as well. The Adreno 510 handled casual gaming load with ease. Numbers in the high "teens" definitely don't sound like much, but in real-world testing, we only observed the occasional stutter or slow down in really demanding applications, like Asphalt 8.

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  57
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  50
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  50
• OnePlus 3T
  49
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  44
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  40
• LG V20
  40
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  37
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  26
• Huawei P9
  18
• Huawei Mate 8
  18
• Oppo F3 Plus
  17
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  17
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  16
• ZTE Axon 7
  15
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  14
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  14
• Oppo R9s
  10
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  9.8
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  7.2
• Moto G5
  7.1
• Oppo F1 Plus
  7
• Oppo F1
  5.8
• Meizu m3 max
  5.5
• Oppo F1s
  5.1

GFX 3.0 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• OnePlus 3T
  48
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  47
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  41
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  40
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  36
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  34
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  27
• LG V20
  25
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  23
• Huawei P9
  19
• Huawei Mate 8
  18
• Oppo F3 Plus
  17
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  17
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  15
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  15
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  14
• ZTE Axon 7
  12
• Oppo F1
  11
• Oppo F1s
  10
• Oppo R9s
  9.7
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  9.7
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  9.6
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  7.5
• Moto G5
  7.1
• Oppo F1 Plus
  7
• Meizu m3 max
  5.5

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (1080p offscreen)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  42
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  39
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  36
• OnePlus 3T
  33
• ZTE Axon 7
  31
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  30
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  30
• LG V20
  29
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  25
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  18
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  11
• Oppo F3 Plus
  10
• Huawei P9
  10
• Huawei Mate 8
  10
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  9.8
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  9.4
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  9.1
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  9
• Oppo R9s
  6.2
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  6.2
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  4.7
• Moto G5
  4.6
• Meizu m3 max
  3.6
• Oppo F1 Plus
  3.3
• Oppo F1s
  2.4

GFX 3.1 Manhattan (onscreen)

Higher is better

• OnePlus 3T
  33
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  32
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  30
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  23
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  23
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  19
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  18
• LG V20
  17
• ZTE Axon 7
  15
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  13
• Oppo F3 Plus
  11
• Huawei P9
  11
• Huawei Mate 8
  11
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  11
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  9.4
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  9
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  9
• Oppo R9s
  6.1
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  6.1
• Oppo F1s
  6
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  5.1
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  5
• Moto G5
  4.6
• Meizu m3 max
  3.6
• Oppo F1 Plus
  3.3

GFX 3.1 Car scene (offscreen)

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  25
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  25
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  23
• OnePlus 3T
  20
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  20
• LG V20
  20
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  18
• ZTE Axon 7
  15
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  13
• Huawei P9
  6.5
• Oppo F3 Plus
  6
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  5.8
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  5.5
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  5.5
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  5.3
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  5.2
• Oppo R9s
  3.4
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  3.4
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  2.5
• Moto G5
  2.5
• Meizu m3 max
  1.9

GFX 3.1 Car scene (onscreen)

Higher is better

• OnePlus 3T
  20
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  20
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  19
• ZTE Axon 7
  16
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  13
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  13
• LG V20
  12
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  12
• Huawei P9
  7.1
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  7
• Oppo F3 Plus
  6
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  5.8
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  5.5
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  5.4
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  5.2
• Oppo R9s
  3.4
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  3.4
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  3.2
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  2.7
• Moto G5
  2.5
• Meizu m3 max
  1.9

BasemarkX offers a more easily quantifiable comparison of pure graphics performance. When it comes to the Adreno 510, we can clearly see the Oppo F3 Plus is leading the pack.

Basemark X

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  43862
• Samsung Galaxy S8
  42370
• OnePlus 3T
  36958
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  36506
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  36062
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  34951
• ZTE Axon 7
  32243
• LG V20
  29385
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  24281
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  23513
• Huawei P9
  16942
• Oppo F3 Plus
  16695
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  15814
• Huawei Mate 8
  15593
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  15487
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  15210
• Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 (S650)
  14717
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  14619
• Oppo R9s
  10519
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  10445
• Moto G5
  7475
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  6754
• Oppo F1 Plus
  6204
• Oppo F1
  5314
• Meizu m3 max
  5219
• Oppo F1s
  419

Basemark ES 3.1 / Metal

Higher is better

• Samsung Galaxy S8
  1189
• Samsung Galaxy S8+
  1111
• Samsung Galaxy S8+ (SD 835)
  817
• Meizu Pro 6 Plus
  642
• OnePlus 3T
  641
• ZTE Axon 7
  606
• Xiaomi Mi Note 2
  556
• Xiaomi Mi 5s Plus
  538
• LG V20
  526
• Sony Xperia Z5 Premium
  482
• Huawei P9
  341
• Huawei Mate 8
  311
• Oppo F3 Plus
  261
• Samsung Galaxy C9 Pro
  261
• Lenovo Phab 2 Pro
  251
• Xiaomi Mi Max
  238
• Samsung Galaxy A7 (2017)
  229
• Oppo R9s
  143
• Samsung Galaxy C7
  137
• Sony Xperia XA Ultra
  131
• Moto G5
  100

All things considered, while we the Oppo F3 is no chart-topper, the Snapdragon 653 is not a huge step down from today's flagship chips. The Snapdragon 835 or the Exynos 8895 certainly beat it handily, but the differences in everyday usage were negligible. There is a potential futureproofing argument to be made here, but that's more for flagships to worry about than mid-rangers.