Oppo has launched its newest smartphone in South Africa. The Reno 7 5G looks sparkly, takes good selfies, is quick enough for texting and social media, and everyday browsing. The smartphone can make a massive impact on the continent.
What is it?
The Oppo Reno 7 is a 5G flagship smartphone for someone who wants a little more than average. Lifelike details at your fingertips made possible with Reno7 5G’s ultra-high-resolution 64MP rear camera trio and the Sony-powered 32MP front camera.
Combined with OPPO’s special Smart Skin Tone Protection AI, front or back, day or night, the video subject stands out in front of the beautifully blurred backdrop. According to Oppo, the Artificial Intelligence (AI) recognises scenes and enable Ultra Night or Live HDR to ensure all your moments, big or small, are in bright, vivid detail. Therefore, there won’t be any gloomy, dim restaurant lighting to damper your date night, or any harsh sunlight to ruin your beach day.
Reno 7 5G has a dual-view video feature that captures both sides of the fun. You just need to tap the split-screen layout (dual-video view) that catches your eye and record from both sides of the camera simultaneously.
From age to ethnicity, the Portrait Retouching AI has 193 control points that identifies your features so you can spotlight your natural charms. With 8 adjustable retouching options for the front camera, you will always be ready for the big screen. The Reno 7 5G also features a 6.4in AMOLED display with a hole-punch cut out hosting the front-facing 32MP camera sensor. The screen supports 90Hz and 60Hz refresh rates, with a maximum touch sample rate of 180Hz.
Highlights:
- Portrait Mode: OPPO Reno7 5G puts DSLR-like lens quality in a smartphone package.
- Digital Retouching: Take control of your own beauty with a variety of retouching effects in video.
- Bokeh Flair: Create jaw-dropping bokeh effects with delicately blurred backgrounds in photos and videos.
- AI Highlight Video: Ultra Night and Live HDR Algorithms automatically adjust light settings for crystal clear videos at night or with bright backlight.
- AI Colour Portrait Video: Bring out the colour of life by making backgrounds black and white.
- Dual-View Video: Add a new dimension to storytelling by recording from both the front and back cameras simultaneously
Performance
The device runs smoothly and it is speedy for a mid-tier phone. The Reno 7 5G is powered by one of MediaTek Dimensity 900 5G system-on-chips running ColorOS12, Oppo’s newest operating system. ColorOS12 is based on Android 11. Gaming gets a bit of a software boost through HyperBoost and AI Frame Rate Stabiliser.
The midrange chip comes with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, plus a microSD slot and room for another SIM card.
Oppo’s Reno 7 gets a 4,500mAh battery, which supports 65W SuperVooc charging technology. The company says it will get the phone fully charged in 31 minutes and a 5-minutes charge will buy you 2 hours of gaming.
Why should you care?
Oppo is the world’s fourth biggest handset brand, and is slowly expanding its range in South African after arriving here late last year.
“OPPO knows that high-quality photo and video capabilities are a priority in today’s smartphones. The Reno7 5G delivers extremely high performance imaging through a range of advanced technologies and clever features. We’re thrilled to introduce this device in South Africa and offer local creators an affordable but premium tool to express their creativity.”
– Bradley Young, Head of Training at OPPO South Africa
This may well be what every smartphone manufacturer would claim, but it is a reality that our lifestyles now revolve around our handsets, and their capabilities. With a 6.4-inch display and a super battery charge, the Reno 7 5G offers the ability to use a smartphone as a small computer, providing a productivity platform for those who cannot afford two separate devices, and allowing it to be used anywhere at any time. This capability is the key to smartphones enhancing lifestyle, across both leisure, studying and working lives.
Biggest negatives
- Oppo uses its own interface, ColorOS, which adds ‘bloatware’ to the standard Android operating system. While it does add rich features to Android, it also gets in the way of standard functions.
- One of the most absurd examples is that one has to ‘Allow camera to make and manage phone calls’. Why? Because it ‘requires the Phone permission to read your phone state’. Seriously?
Biggest positives
- We use smartphones as our daily driver (calls, texting, music, social media, gaming, streaming, video conferencing etc). For that sort of usage, even on days that it doesn’t, that 65W fast-charging makes it easy to get back on the move again.
- One of the benefits of the ColorOS interface is that it includes FlexDrop, which allows apps running within apps by minimising the app window.
- Excellent for multitasking and productivity on the move.