Thank you for this information man

yeah. the price difference is just ridiculous, not to mention nerfing the storage speed too, and how the US version of the 12R seems to have eSIM support, but not the version we get here in MY/SG. I think still not sure how prone to the green line issue the Ace 3 will be though. I personally think that it's due to wear and tear on the display due to heat. my sister has a xiaomi 11t pro that had the same green line issue show up after a software update, but i don't think the software itself is the issue, but rather the update process which usually heats up the phone a lot. and updates sometimes occur while the phone is charging, and in her case, also the phone was in a thick case and sitting on top of her bed too which made the phone really hot. that's my guess at least. so it might not be as bad for phones these days since the processors run cooler and most phones from china have pretty good heat dissipation hardware too. but well that's just my guess at least. Anyway, ace 3 pro is launching in china today IIRC in like 30+ mins or so? haha

@@axhng hmmmm, looking forward to the Ace 3 Pro, might be worth considering

I dont think there will be lines, the panel is from BOE

@@jaylikesfrieskekwxdxdxd even then, having peace of mind knowing that you can claim warranty repairs locally is a pretty big deal over here in MY/SG region, instead of having to relay the broken global import device to your original seller , which then forwards the phone back to China , it will take a long time till you get your phone back, that's assuming the seller you bought it from even bothers to help you with any aftersales service

@@ryanrocksize5 To be fair in my experience of ordering CN rom phones I never had any problems

Thanks! :)

ah, thanks for the reminder... i always forget to mention the auto-brightness. it was like this for the OnePlus 11 too. I find OPPO/OnePlus devices' auto-brightness not as good as other brands for sure. Also, it always seems quite eager to boost the brightness and slow to adjust down. So if i'm indoors but a stray spotlight hits the phone, the screen would suddenly just become too bright, and then i'll have to manually adjust it down. and they don't seem to "learn" from user preferences at all. :/

hi there, the phone at around 2:20 is the Redmi K70 Pro. It's just part of hyperOS i guess. i don't see a way to change the way the folder looks on ColorOS or OxygenOS too. that blur/frosted/translucent effect that look nicer to me as well. 😅

@@axhng Omg, thanks, Its true 😫

Thanks for the suggestion, but unfortunately I probably wouldn't be reviewing those devices since they don't really interest me as much. from what I see from reviews in CN, they are not the best when it comes to gaming performance, which is something that I look for in a phone these days. 😅

hi, the main thing to note is probably that some google features won't work. Like Google Location History (affects Google Opinion Rewards, Google location timeline), Nearby Share (nearby file sharing i think? and maybe Android Wear won't work properly? not too sure about this since I don't use those features), and no Android Auto. There might be others I'm not aware of though since I there are a lot of google services I don't use. then the more minor stuff is probably notifications delay for some apps, but that can be easily fixed by changing app settings to let them run in background. there are CN apps preinstalled too, but most of them can be removed. then there are some CN specific features that won't work without a CN oppo account like some of their AI stuff. the plus side of CN ROM is that they have more options for customisation compared to Global OxygenOS/ColorOS, and they offer more granular controls over app permissions. This is just software, and hardware wise the Ace3 seems to be slightly better compared to the 12R. UFS 4.0 vs 3.1, and Ace3 has the Pixelworks X7 Visual Processor (some gaming features uses this for frame interpolation, etc).

i did get OTA update when i was using it. it has basic google services and able to install play store, and regular GPS works, so google maps, etc works. just that Google Location History doesn't.

the difference isn't huge and specs wise the Ace3 looks better. bigger battery, better screen, better fingerprint sensor, and OnePlus tends to have slightly better gaming performance where as Xiaomi usually is a little more conservative. But you'll have to see if having a curve screen is annoying enough for you or not... screen protectors for curve screens are harder to apply, and also cost more. Personally I tried a few, and the type that works best is the UV film type that similar to the ones they give out of the box. But they're still not as lasting as glass, especially the oleophobic coating, they are harder to apply since you literally only get 1 chance. a single speck of dust, and that's it. I think i probably ruined 2 before i got it right. even then, those are still more expensive than tempered glass. if you can wait a bit, perhaps you could consider the upcoming Nord 4 as well which is a little less powerful, but should have a flat screen, and will be running global ROM which is easier i guess. For Ace 3 you'll have to make sure the phone has been region unlocked as well so you can use it outside of China, so a bit more hassle there. Redmi is a little more hassle free in this regard since they don't have region lock.

@@axhng thank you for the very fast reply, I really appreciated you take some time to write a very detailed review/option, I guess I will wait for a bit and see what the Nord 4 can offer and for the spec I think there's will be not much different from Ace 3V other than the design only

@@pudinichigo91 no problem! hopefully there'll be a bit more than that since for Nord 3 i think they upgraded the camera over the ace2v as well. since from photos the nord4 camera placement is different, it might mean they changed some other things too internally. performance wise 7+Gen3 is not too far behind 8Gen2 anyway unless you're planning to play very demanding games on it.

@@axhng yeah, I hope they will give better sensor for Nord 4 even just for main camera only, btw 1 last question, which one do you like/prefer for the software/UI between ColorOS vs HyperOS? I want to hear your experience or opinion why you like that software/UI compared to others

@@pudinichigo91 between the two, maybe CN HyperOS by a small margin. To me it has a nicer layout on the homescreen when it comes to large folders, I like the more iOS style control centre and notification centre, it has a bit more gaming features (like in genshin being able to run the game at higher resolution natively), it has a manual video mode (something that OPPO refuses to add for some reason), and i find HyperOS a bit better in terms of auto brightness adjustment. Just that xiaomi is a little slower when it comes to updates, and "smoothness" probably is a little behind ColorOS 14 (the latests few versions). Also, xiaomi isn't doing any of the nonsense region lock like OnePlus is doing for their CN phones, so it's a little easier in that sense too. But these will differ from person to person i guess and for some, might not be a deal breaker at all. 😅

Thanks! unfortunately i have no idea how the market is like in India since aliexpress got banned? perhaps you can check with reviewers from India who regularly reviews these CN phones? or perhaps can search on facebook since there might be independent importers? good luck!

just have to make sure that the device has been region unlocked. if not, it might not work properly after a while (calling functions will be blocked). if it's too much of a hassle, probably easier to just get the 12R instead since it's sold officially there. cause as far as i know, it's still not possible to do a proper conversion from colorOS to oxygenOS without complications and hassle.

i'm not sure how demanding the game is but SD8Gen2 is a lot more powerful and efficient compared to the 888. seeing that it could run even genshin quite well, i think most games should be fine?

personally, probably Ace3 since the hardware is better on paper. bigger battery, nicer screen, better fingerprint sensor, better build quality. I can live with CN software as well. the only thing is perhaps the curve screen which is a bit of a hassle when finding screen protectors. but if it's the K70 Pro, or K70 Ultra, then I'll probably lean towards those more since performance is something i care about. But if you want something with proper global ROM, then no choice but to go with the F6 Pro. 😅

xdaforums.com/t/ace-3-to-12r-how-i-converted-my-oneplus-ace-3-to-12r.4663519/ AFAIK, it's not easy? and there are issues still from what I've read. if you care about android auto, probably better just to get the official 12R instead or perhaps the 12. I think the CN version of the OnePlus 12 can be converted to global ROM with almost no issue (aside from hardware differences like no eSIM for CN version).

Actually im talking about flashing global rom with google play services installed and locked bootloader for banking apps etc. Its hybrid ROM for Google functions. But allows only manual/local OTA update. On ace 3 forum on xda, please check the thread title : [HOW TO] Install ColorOS "Global" edition and lock bootloader.

@@emrahpoland that seems like some sort of a hybrid ROM which seems to have its own "peculiarities" like being unable to get official OTA since it is not exactly "official". I guess if that's not an issue for you, it's fine. But since official CN ColorOS already works fine with banking apps, google pay, and I don't need android auto or google location history, I feel like it's too much hassle. 😅

no idea, but i believe all phones using OLED screens will have the chance of developing green lines when the panel gets damaged. I've seen it happen on xiaomi phones, sony phones, samsung phones, vivo phones, iphones, etc. It's mostly happening on older phones too, so we won't know for sure until much later. my guess is that it could heat related wear and tear since a lot of ppl have reported seeing the green line after a software update. my sister has a xiaomi phone (11T Pro) that developed a green line after an update and her comment was that the phone felt really hot at that time. the updating process will usually heat up the phone a lot and sometimes that update process happens while the phone is plugged in and charging. most ppl have their phones in a case too and what not. and things like placing the phone on their bed (which traps a ton of heat) doesn't help too. basically, i believe most phones will have the chance of developing green line since it's just a symptom of damaged OLED screen. If you're really concerned about it, just try your best to avoid dropping the phone, or making the phone run too hot too often.

hmm... i wouldn't recommend it over the Ace3, but it will be a good option if you absolutely don't want a curve screen? If you don't mind it, the Ace3 might still be a worth it since it does have slightly better hardware IMO. Better build quality, bigger battery, nicer screen (resolution is a bit lower but i found the colours and consistency a little better compared to the K70 Pro i had), and the fingerprint sensor position is higher and easier to use.

@@axhng I am also leaning towards the Ace 3, my only concern is the curved screen. I don't mind the look of it, but I think it is more prone to crack when accidentally dropped which will eventually happened. Thanks a lot for reply and insight, great review btw 👍

@@ChrisLuck-mz5mx thanks! no problem at all. completely understand on the curve screen part since that was a concern for me as well, plus it's a lot harder and more expensive to get screen protectors for curved screens. another option could be the K70 Ultra for a bit more? at least that would have a flat screen as well as a bigger battery like the Ace 3. the newer and more powerful chip will help it last longer, and it has IP68 too.

@@axhng Thanks! I will check it out as well

i have no idea about that since i'm not using global ROM. but it is working on the CN ROM colorOS. have used Google Pay on it without any issue.

​@@axhngI Wanna buy it...but they said it Chinese Version flash to global rom....does it safe though...😓

"they" i mean local seller😅

have you checked if you have allowed the necessary permissions? it's one of the items on the long list of things they ask you to turn on on first boot, and if you unchecked it and denied the permission, gamespace won't work IIRC. i think that settings is inside settings somewhere. I don't have the phone anymore so can't verify, but it might be under "additional services" or "additional settings".

@@axhng I enable everything and still not working😭

@@chovkimlim1030 hmm. how about in app settings? has it been disabled or anything of that sort? or permission to show it over other apps? if not then i'm out of idea. maybe a reboot, or even a factory reset might be needed...

​@@axhng3:42 it always show notification when I swipe

​@@chovkimlim1030 if it's a game in landscape mode, swiping from the side shouldn't be showing notification even if gamespace isn't working. or is the game you're playing being recognised as a game? IIRC i think some games have to be added manually in settings for gamespace. if the game isn't being recognised as a game, that could be a possible reason too.. hmm.

unfortunately no. if i'm not mistaken, only the US version OnePlus 12R will have eSIM support. Even the global version of OnePlus 12R in Singapore doesn't seem to support eSIM.

​@@axhngI have a Chinese version of OnePlus ace 3, Is there any way to use esim features ?

​@@axhngso OnePlus 12r supports esim but not in Singapore ? However it supports other regions?

I haven't kept up to date. But from the XDA thread I saw about the issues regarding flashing global ROM on the Ace3, I wouldn't recommend it though. I haven't tried it myself since I'm fine with using the CN version of colorOS. But if you're planning on getting it during 618 from China directly, the main issue is probably region lock though. Gotta make sure the seller can unlock it for you.

@@axhng I have received the phone. It looks like the seller has unlocked the region restrictions and flashed PJE110's ColorOS 14. Since I rarely use the phone and don't use most of the unrealistic features, it seems to be OK. The only problem now is that I can't upgrade from 14 to 14.1 because I heard that doing so will cause signal loss. Maybe I can wait for the custom ROM ColorOS update instead of the official ROM update.