Oppo Find X8 Ultra Review: A Hardware Masterpiece Trapped in a Software Nightmare

This summer, I was determined to switch from my foldable favorite to a classic candy bar flagship. My top pick? The Oppo Find X8 Ultra, a phone I had reviewed before but overlooked. Once again, I tried to make it my daily driver – and once again, it fought me at every turn.

The specs are irresistible: Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Elite, 16GB RAM, 12GB virtual memory, and a monstrous 6,100mAh battery that crushes most of the competition in our custom battery tests. Not to mention, it has arguably the best camera setup of 2025: quad 50MP lenses including a 1-inch main sensor and dual zoom options (3x telephoto, 6x periscope).

Compared to the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra and Xiaomi 15 Ultra, the Oppo Find X8 Ultra either matched or outpaced them in every benchmark. Battery life? Better. Performance? Top-tier. Camera? Superb. It’s a dream machine on paper.

The phone also features strong stereo speakers, a gorgeous OLED display, excellent haptic feedback, an IP69 rating, and even a tactile camera shutter button – a rarity these days.

But while the hardware was everything I could ask for, the software experience was a disaster.

The ColorOS Conundrum

I expected some issues using the Chinese version of ColorOS, but I was confident I could handle them. Losing Google Discover, Circle to Search, and Gemini? Fine. I even prepped myself for a round of Chinese bloatware cleanup.

But real problems started right after migration. The SIM worked… sort of. I wasn’t receiving 2FA codes – including for banking apps and Telegram. That alone is a showstopper.

Then came the assistant drama. Breeno kept launching instead of Gemini, and even button remappers couldn’t override it. Nova Launcher? Sure, if you enjoy lag spikes and ColorOS fighting you with every swipe.

Google Pay? Kind of worked, until I tried adding a specific card and hit a wall.

I wanted this to work. I really did. But after days of hacks, workarounds, and half-broken features, I had to give up.

Why It’s Still a No

Despite its near-perfect hardware, I simply can’t recommend the Oppo Find X8 Ultra as a daily driver outside China. ColorOS’s restrictions on the Chinese variant cripple what could have been the best Android phone of the year.

And it’s not just Oppo. The Vivo X200 Ultra, which might have been an alternative, is also China-only. The Xiaomi 15 Ultra? At least it’s global, but the smaller battery paired with HyperOS 2 makes it less appealing. That leaves you with the Galaxy S25 Ultra, which lacks innovation but remains the most stable globally released flagship.

Until Chinese brands fully open their premium hardware to the world with usable global software, we’re stuck dreaming from afar.