The much-awaited OPPO Reno 8 series launches on the 25 of October and in the manufacturer’s words, it is the most ambitious model yet. I’ve been using the 5G variant for a few weeks now and I can vouch for good looks, high performance, good resolution and good cameras among my first impressions. Most striking for me as a heavy user is the battery and charging system which we’ll look at later in this article.
I’ve always been a fan of OPPO phones since I started interacting with them about 3 years ago and this is an unbiased review out of user experience and sheer love for the phones.
Design
One of my most favourite external features on any device is a minimalist aesthetic. A device that is left to shine in its beauty and simplicity without many knobs and prints around it, and this is exactly what I get from the OPPO Reno8 5G. My piece came in a smudge proof shimmery black with just the power button on the right and volume rockets on the left. The top bears only a tiny mic, while at the bottom we have the speaker grille, charging port, receiver mic, and the SIM tray. I found this SIM tray positioning a unique and welcome change, since these are usually positioned on the side.
All these are encased in a single piece body with the camera bump at the back rising smoothly as one with the rest of the body, adding to the minimalistic design of the phone. This, and the high quality finish gives the phone lots of presence.
The phone does not have a 3.5mm jack as one might expect but there other options for media consumption. I’m using mine with OPPO Enco buds and sometimes the OPPO USB earplugs that came with a previous model.
What’s in the box?
I captured that in this video here.
Performance and storage
Still towards performance and storage, the Reno 8 5G comes with a ROM of 256GB and RAM of 8GB. These are enough to support even the most ardent multitaskers without struggle, and the ROM is enough to save more than enough videos, photos, and other media.
For when need arises, it also has 5GB extended RAM, a feature that allows for the use of your phone’s storage as virtual memory.
ColorOs
ColorOS is an OPPO user interface that is layered on top of the Android operating system. This gives OPPO users creative freedom to tweak their phones to a great level of personalization, not only in terms of look and feel but other areas like power conservation, convenience tools and app optimization. In the end, users have phones that truly reflect their personalities. It makes perfect sense why this is such an important feature. Because as a client, it is you who remains with the phone in the palm of your hand for days and maybe years on end. It better look like you want it to look. Since the OS is Android based, it has the full spectrum of Android benefits for a safe and up-to date phone.
Battery
OPPO has always gotten it right with their phone batteries and charging systems and the Reno 8 5G is no exception. This is rightfully so because what would be the point of having an all-superior phone if we can’t keep it on? For this device, OPPO has a 4500mAh battery, supported by an incredible 80W super VOOC charger that will do 0-100% in about half an hour. The battery is well optimized so that for a heavy user like myself, it is able to go the whole day without the need for a recharge or a power bank.
The power of fast charge is most noticeable when you have even just 5 minutes to spare to charge your phone because you’ll still get hours of full phone use without engaging any battery saving features.
OPPO has also supported the entire charging system with features like battery health engine and safety master to ensure battery longevity.
Cameras
The highlight of the camera for me is the dual Sony flagship sensors. Sony is a household name that is well known for top notch imaging for decades and is great to see this power in a phone. Other than the Sony sensors, the Reno 8 5G has an impressive 50MP back camera supported by an 8MP ultra-wide and a 2MP macro lens. For the end user, this power combination and partnership with Sony means high image quality, and a phone that will effortlessly handle all round imaging like ultra-night video, ultra HDR video, hyper lapse, slo-mo, portrait and everyday photography. With curiosity and exploration, the camera has additional settings that one can tweak to produce near professional pictures and videos, as well as fun ones.
Here are some photos I took with the phone, and I’ll be adding some more in the next few days.
Kid space
This is one among many niche features that are discoverable with a bit of time on the hands and some exploration of the phone. A feature that parents and guardian will love since you are able to limit a child’s app usage time and keep them away from sensitive features like online purchases. This is part of digital wellbeing which we all need.
Verdict
This is phone I would confidently give a thumbs up to. It is yet to launch and we are yet to know the exact prices but I’m thinking it will be in the region of Ksh.59,000/-. For the boxes that it ticks in terms of performance, looks, battery and storage, this is certainly a worthy purchase.
Some more photos I took with the phone.
My journey with OPPO.
Review – OPPO Reno 5
Review – OPPO Reno 5F
Review – OPPO Reno 6
Review – OPPO Reno 7