Oppo shows off new ColorOS 12 following OnePlus merger

Oppo has announced ColorOS 12, the latest version of its Android-based operating system. The update will come to OnePlus phones as well as Oppo’s own phones in China, where OnePlus has used ColorOS since early this year. OnePlus recently announced that it would be combining the codebase of its OxygenOS with ColorOS due to the two companies merging several operations.

ColorOS 12 doesn’t look hugely different to 11, but it makes more use of contrasting colors and white space, with lower information density across many screens. Icons have been subtly redesigned to make more use of depth and texture. Oppo says it’s improved more than 300 animations throughout the UI while also making use of an AI engine to reduce lag and stuttering.

ColorOS 12 is based on Android 12 and adopts its upgraded privacy tools, like adding a notification in the status bar when apps activate the camera or microphone. As for new features, Oppo is adding the ability to operate its phones through a Windows 10 or 11 laptop, more tools to the sidebar that can be swiped in from the edge of the screen, and a strangely familiar 3D avatar feature called… Omoji. Yep.

ColorOS 12 will first be available on a new “Photographer Edition” of Oppo’s excellent Find X3 Pro flagship phone. In October, there’ll be a limited public beta in China for the Find X3 series and the OnePlus 9 series, expanding to earlier models in November and December. Overall, Oppo says that more than 110 models of phone and 150 million users worldwide will be able to upgrade to ColorOS 12.