Recently, OPPO globally launched the public beta of their latest operating system–the ColorOS 12. Thanks to their existing AI underlying technology, the previous versions are already stable and becoming closer to the user. Their new ColorOS 12 doesn’t have simple texts only, but it also comes with improved visually informative layouts to help users operate the device in the safest and fastest way.
The ColorOS 12 is not just an ordinary skin. It packs tons of features and privacy while having a closer feel to the stock Android 12 experience. The AI in the background was also upgraded to help those visuals provide a seamless user experience, and that’s how OPPO’s ColorOS 12 will make your life easier. So let’s run down everything we know about the latest ColorsOS 12 based on Android 12.
READ: Synology Active Backup for Business Review – Why it’s a must-have NAS Business Solution
Table of Contents
Cleaner UI Overhaul
Space matters for easy usability, OPPO’s Infinite Design concept is still present and even improved in the ColorOS 12. The UI is lightweight, clean, and highly customizable with softer icons and advanced animations. Every user can understand the UI as it is adaptable and the amount of information is balanced. It is user-friendly, and as expected, we did feel the improvements.
Acrylic Icons
Thanks to the new balanced ColorOS 12 UI layout and UI elements with reduced information density and smoother animation, the new icon designs are livelier. The icons received an Acrylic texture focusing on shadows and lighting, giving depth to the visual and making them alive. The transparent plastic material on its colorful icons is an excellent refresher to the design overhaul, which is pleasing to look at and easy on the eyes.
Wallpaper Color Scheme Customization
Setting up a wallpaper will automatically change the color scheme of the UI based on the color of the wallpaper itself. It adds a visual aesthetic. OPPO also added a bunch of customizations so you can now choose the colors of your wallpaper with a color picker.
Improved Personalization
Again, personalization plays an improved part in the new ColorOS 12. The personalization page is more concise, and the UI of the stock camera app is also improved with rounded icons. Volume UI is also different from its past versions, and the visual info of every layout is redefined and flattened. The AOD also received a few options to customize the visuals off-screen, thanks to the Omoji and Portrait Silhouette, which we will talk about later on.
READ: realme GT Master Edition – Real-Life Street Photography Test!
Upgraded Multi Window
Multi-window mode has new functions as well when opening tabs or in current running apps. By swiping up to the top edge of the existing running app, the windows will be moved to another layer of the screen, turning it into a pop-up window. The window can be pinned to the left side for easy access, snapped inside the app to lock them on top of the current running app, or just remain floating and can be resized to your liking. This is a great feature that unlocks the potential of a multitasking experience.
Quick View Cards
The new ColorOS 12 has a customizable card layout widget on the home screen that shows helpful information. It’s like a dashboard with aesthetic visuals and concise elements. When you look at it after unlocking the device, you will see a clean environment with easy access to toggles and information. It is indeed a great visual improvement while having access to the widget’s function.
Added Privacy and Improved Security
Moving on to the second main improvement of the ColorOS 12, the new OS prioritized privacy without any gimmicks. It has improved security and privacy features from Android 12, including Privacy Dashboards, Approximate Location Sharing, and Microphone and Camera Indicators. It still has Private System, Private Safe, App Lock, and more that remain in the ColorOS.
Privacy Dashboard
One of the most anticipated and newest features from Android 12 is the Privacy Dashboard, and we can still see it in the ColorOS 12. It basically records and displays a timeline of what your apps are doing to the camera, microphone, location, and other functions that need your permission inside your phone. It is a subtle feature that you can quickly access to understand how your device processes sensitive information.
READ: OPPO A54s with Helio G35 chipset, 5,000mAh battery goes official
Privacy Indicators
Your OPPO phone will display an indicator at the very top right of the screen when an app is accessing the camera, mic, or GPS. It’ll flash a simple dot for you to quickly determine whether one of your sensors is turned on. We often see this feature on laptops, and they adopted it in the new ColorsOS 12.
Moreover, there’s also a quick On and Off toggle on the notification panel to block all apps from accessing the microphone or camera. It is a useful and reliable feature that ColorOS 12 offers to users who deal with private matters as it limits permission to use unwanted apps.
Approximate Location
Apps that require location access are quite shady for some. ColorOS 12 has a simple solution. You may set apps to use your approximate location instead of the actual location. It is a reliable feature as you can now share places without revealing your precise location—a convenient and simple feature.
Furthermore, ColorOS 12 also adopted a lock device feature that allows you to lock the stolen or lost device using the cloud and limit access to personal information. But the best here is that it allows you to disable USB debugging or NFC if someone is trying to access essential data.
Remove Metadata when Sharing
One of the particular features we love on the ColorOS 12 is you can now remove private info such as location, phone model, and camera settings before sharing the photo. This way, you can’t be exposed when someone tries to get information about the image you sent.
Family Space
Lastly is the Family Space, a shared platform that can exchange information, share photos, share schedules, and other media within the user’s space. Whether used by friends or family, this feature secures users from data leaking and enables them to send files without using different cloud and messaging services. It also has real-time synchronization of settings to help your guardian or parents who struggle with operating the device—a useful and reliable feature for your inner circle.
Smarter AI Underlying Technology
Like we said earlier, OPPO is upgrading its OS to function more while maintaining the cleanliness of the UI. The new ColorOS 12 features a lot of upgraded underlying technology that you may or may not notice as it is happening in the system’s background.
READ: Seagate’s FireCuda 530 gaming storage now available in the Philippines
Quantum Animation Engine 3.0
The Quantum Animation Engine (QAE) improves the smoothness of system animation across the UI. It simulates the movements in a particular gesture. When your finger leaves the screen, it will continue to follow the direction you have made. An example is sliding or pushing a window to the desired location in a multi-window view. It will surely benefit those OPPO phones with lower refresh rates, as the higher refresh rate is already smooth in the ColorOS.
AI Self Fluid System 2.0
It is the partner of QAE 3.0. It is about launching apps fast and lag-free. It recognizes and tracks the user’s behavior over time, allowing the device to quickly predict a user’s habit and give the user a seamless experience when launching apps. Much like a timely defragmentation and resource allocation after collecting user’s habit information.
AI System Booster
AI System Booster is a background process that automatically cleans and defrags storage and lowers memory usage by 30%, reduces background consumption by 20%, and increases battery life by 12%. This is the primary underlying technology that ColorOS 12 has that can reduce lags and stutters after prolonged usage. It’ll also reduce your device’s aging rate to less than 3% after three years of daily use.
Android 12 and ColorOS 12 Seamless Functions
Now that you have read all of the main ingredients of the ColorOS 12, this segment is for the users who want a fun and valuable feature that aids or helps them navigate the device freely. Add the AI and the smooth animation on its new UI layout, these features will come in handy.
READ: Sony Xperia Pro-I with 1-inch sensor, ZEISS lens officially launched
Omoji
One of the latest features from ColorOS 12 is the Omoji. These are the fun features for the family that OPPO is still implementing even though their main upgrade is performance.
Omoji is an app that generates a 3D-animated character or creates your own from scratch and uses the Omoji avatar into other apps such as OPPO account avatar, video calls, and even in AOD. After launching the app, we created multiple Omojis and we customized different categories such as the face, hair, etc. You can also set different colors for each to find the perfect Omoji for you. There’s also plenty of headwear, accessories and glasses if you want to style your Omoji with up to 100 million combinations.
Furthermore, We like how it copies our facial expressions and reactions in real time. The Advance Face Capture Algorithm that uses 77 pinpoints to capture excellent and precise face detection has a real-time response in detecting different facial expressions. It’s a fun new app to try and it performs well. Moreover, you can also adjust the background color of your Omoji to your likings, and it supports up to 30 seconds of video recording. You can also select expression presets that you can put to AOD so whenever you will use the phone you will be greeted by your own Omoji which is amusing.
One-Handed Mode
The one-handed mode received a new way to transition easily and with convenience. When enabled, a quick swipe-down gesture in the middle of the app will pull the full-screen app into half of the screen where your thumb can easily reach the portion window. It is a great additional feature that is on the ColorOS 12.
Color Vision Enhancement
Lastly, the Color Vision Enhancement aids colorblind people to pick the color of choice in the color scheme for a better UI layout. You’ll take a Color Vision Test, and you will arrange colors by hue to process a color perception that you can easily see.
READ: OPPO Reno 6 5G Review – The Best Overall Phone so Far?
Other Features
Practical features such as PC Connect are still implemented in the ColorOS 12. This feature enables cross-screen interconnection from Phone to PC with a shared clipboard and controls with a small amount of latency. Not to mention, ColorOS 12 also has a 3-Finger Translate powered by Google Lens, FlexDrop, and Phone Manager that allow the users to stay productive in different scenarios.
Overall
We can say that they really made it smarter, and using the ColorOS 12 on OPPO Phones, they let us maintain our privacy and protect us in our everyday life. The recommendation and the intelligent AI underlying the UI are working and on point. We felt how the team of coders elevated the user experience, and it’s impressive. Even some users that are not as tech-savvy may feel the faster response, too. Ultimately, there are two things that you should remember about the ColorOS 12 — peace of mind and companionship.
Rollout Plan
Expect rollouts of the ColorOS 12 update this 2021 and 2022 to over 110 models with 150 million users. The first rollout will come to the OPPO Find X2 Pro and Reno6 5G in November 2021, next rollout will be in December 2021 to these devices: Reno6, Reno5 Marvel Edition, Reno6 Z 5G, and A74 5G. Meanwhile, Seven devices will be added from the first half of 2022. This includes the Reno 10x Zoom, Reno5 5G, Reno4 Z 5G, Reno4, Reno3 Pro, Reno3, and A94. The OPPO A74 will receive its update in the second half of 2022.
