OPPO Reno8 5G Unboxing, First Impressions, Camera Samples

The Reno7 5G released in early 2022 is a good camera-centric phone. But, it is almost the same in specs coming from the Reno6 5G.

Meet OPPO Reno8 5G

Thankfully, that changed on the newly announced OPPO Reno8 5G. The device now sports an improved and sleeker look, an upgraded chipset (finally), faster-charging speed, better cameras (one is even a custom selfie camera), and plenty of other improvements.

The price just increased by PHP 1,000 bringing the price up to PHP 27,999.

We unboxed it yesterday and there's what we think about it so far.

Unboxing/Accessories

The box

The same with all other mid-range OPPO devices. You get the green box with the OPPO branding and model name and all the inclusions inside. 

Everything inside

It includes the clear case, paper documents, SIM ejector tool, phone itself, fast charging power brick, and the USB-C to USB-A cable. It also has a pre-installed screen protector.

We are glad that, unlike other manufacturers, OPPO is including the 80W fast charging brick. Others will charge over PHP 1K for that fast charger alone.

Build Quality/Design

The back design

The OPPO Reno8 is easily one of the most stylish phones regardless of the price today.

Improved design!

At the back, OPPO used a boxier design again instead of a curved back. It has a nice glittery gradient finish in Shimmer Black or Shimmer Gold that may remind you of a matte glass design, a gripper to hold chamfered edges, and a near seamless camera hump. The hump has two big cameras that protrude though.

The display

In front, you will see a fairly large 6.4-inch Rigid AMOLED panel with slight curves on the edges. The top and side bezels are very slim. However, the chin is thick. To be frank, it reminds us of PHP 10K phones below. OPPO should do better next time.

Great quality display, but the chin bezel is thiccccc!

Anyway, OPPO is claiming that it has a 90.8 percent screen-to-body ratio and that is still immersive enough for most. It also has a top-left punch-hole to house its new 32MP RGBW Sony selfie camera.

To improve the picture quality of its display, OPPO added the O1 Ultra Vision Engine that uses AI deep learning to improve the colors and clarity of every frame of your video. This also has the Widevine L1 for HD Netflix and Amazon Prime as well as the SGS Eye Care Display certification.

There is a hidden fingerprint scanner underneath the bottom portion of its display as well.

Inside the device, it has a Super-Conductive VC Liquid Cooling System with larger liquid cooling and graphite area + a superconductive middle frame.

Top and bottom

On top, you will see the microphone on the top. Below, it has a single speaker, USB-C charging, a microphone below, and the SIM ejector tool with a green red rubber ring for some sort of water and dust resistance.

OPPO said that its 80W fast charging can charge its battery to 50 percent in just 11 minutes. This also has 5-layer charging protection and its battery has up to 1,600 charging cycles.

My other comment about its build is there is no IP rating for sure water splash and water resistance. There are no stereo speakers as well.

Left, right

On the side, you will see volume rockers. On the right, it has a power key with a green line in the center that provides some texture to remind its user that it is the power button even without seeing it.

The handset measures 160 x 73.4 x 7.67 mm and weighs 179 grams.

The selfie camera

For cameras, the device has a near flagship-worthy 50MP f/1.8 Sony IMX766 w/ All-Pixel Omni-Directional PDAF + 8MP f/2.2 119-degree ultra-wide-angle w/ EIS + 2MP f/2.4 4cm macro + LED flash.

For selfies, it has a 32MP f/2.4 Sony IMX709 RGBW. The selfie camera even has DOL-HDR technology for even better front-facing shots.

First Camera Samples

Daylight

Outdoor ultra-wide

Indoor Potrait mode

Indoor close-up

Low light main cam

Low light ultra-wide

Selfie sample

Using the main camera, the experience is clearly better than the Reno7 5G thanks to its larger and higher-end image sensor. It takes good images in different lighting conditions including against in against the light scenarios and even in low light thanks to its improved Night mode solution.

The ultra-wide camera is just alright, but it isn't that notable. Thankfully, its Night mode could help it take better images in low light. The macro camera is only usable in well-lit conditions as expected.

The selfie camera is looking quite good. The beauty mode is just on by default. But, you can always turn it off. What matter the most is it shoots with a lot of details and it has pretty good overall image quality.

OPPO Reno8 5G Specs

Display: 6.4-inch Gorilla Glass 5 protected Rigid LTPS AMOLED screen w/ 90Hz refresh rate, 180Hz touch sampling rate, O1 Ultra Vision Engine, FHD+ 2400 x 1080 resolution at 411 ppi

CPU: 3.0GHz 6nm MediaTek Dimensity 1300 octa-core processor

GPU: Mali-G77 MC9

RAM: 8GB LPDDR4X

ROM: 256GB UFS 3.1 expandable via microSD card slot up to 1TB

Back Camera: 50MP f/1.8 Sony IMX766 w/ All-Pixel Omni-Directional PDAF + 8MP f/2.2 119-degree ultra-wide-angle w/ EIS + 2MP f/2.4 4cm macro + LED flash

Selfie Camera: 32MP f/2.4 Sony IMX709 RGBW

Battery: 4,500mAh w/ 80W SUPERVOOC

OS: Android 11 w/ ColorOS 12.1

Connectivity: WiFi 6, 5G, 4G LTE, Bluetooth 5.3 LE (SBC, AAC, aptX HD, LDAC), OTG, NFC, GPS, A-GPS, GLONASS, BeiDou, QZSS, Galileo, dual SIM

Sensors: Accelerometer, light, orientation, proximity, gyroscope, sound, magnetic

Others: In-Display fingerprint sensor, Super-Conductive VC Liquid Cooling System, USB-C, Colors: Shimmer Black, Shimmer Gold

Dimensions: 160 x 73.4 x 7.67 mm

Weight: 179 g

Price: PHP 27,999

As of the moment

It has a very good display

The OPPO Reno8 5G is a clear step up over the Reno7 5G. The design looks cooler, the speed jump is noticeable, it charges really fast, and the cameras (including the selfie camera) are impressive out of the box.

Massive improvement over the Reno7 5G!

It even has the TÜV SÜD 36-Month Fluency Rating A rating ensuring that the device will perform smoothly for 3 years.

However, the competition is very fierce in the sub-30K range. It may have a hard time in terms of specs against heavy hitters like the POCO F4 GT, realme GT Neo3, and Nothing Phone 1. But from what we can see, it can win against the vivo V23 5G, Samsung Galaxy A73, and others.

Moreover, it has a few key selling points like its use of 80W fast charging and the custom 32MP Sony IMX709 that could attract those who need such tech.

We will be further testing this device in the next few weeks. We will be checking if all of OPPO's claims are legit. Stay tuned for our full review.

What do you guys think?