Oppo recently launched its mid-range Oppo Reno 8T 5G smartphone in India. Introduced last year, Oppo Reno 8 series now includes Oppo Reno 8, Oppo Reno 8 Pro and Oppo Reno 8T. But what makes a good mid-range smartphone? Should offer good enough performance, backed by average battery, should look decent and the camera needs to be mediocre with at least one showstopper. Did Oppo Reno 8T strike the right balance?
Read our detailed review to find out the answer.
Design: A shimmery affair
Oppo Reno 8t 5G comes with a polycarbonate back that has a subtle shimmery finish and shows different colours when put under sunlight. My review unit was the Sunrise Gold colour variant. It also comes in a basic Midnight Black colour variant.
Unlike its pricier siblings, Oppo Reno 8T 5G comes with curved edges and a curved display. This makes it look more premium and the metallic edges are just a cherry on top. As for the camera, the company has ditched the rectangular camera island design, and went ahead with two circular camera modules instead. Frankly, I am happy with the new design language.
Thankfully, the smartphone back is not a fingerprint magnet, neither it is vulnerable to scratches, but I’d still recommend you slapping a cover to keep the curved display safe.
Overall, the smartphone is sleek (7.7mm) and light (171gm), making it quite handy to carry.
Oppo Reno 8T 5G is a head-turner for sure at a price of Rs 29,999.
Display: Gigantic but beautiful display
Oppo Reno 8T 5G comes with a 6.7-inch curved AMOLED FHD+ display that offers a 120Hz refresh rate. It lets users navigate throughout the UI smoothly. The display shows punchy colours that are vibrant with good contrast.
TL;DR you’d enjoy watching your favourite films and shows on the smartphone as the display offers a Widevine L1 certification that allows users to stream HD content from Amazon Prime and Netflix. Light gamers will also enjoy playing games on the handset, however, accidental touches can be a problem for some.
Curved AMOLED display is a crowning feature of the smartphone.
Performance and battery: Nothing to complain about
Oppo Reno 8T 5G is powered by Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 chipset and offers 8GB RAM and 128GB of internal storage that is expandable up to 1TB via micro SD card slot. The smartphone handled day-to-day tasks pretty well, including social media surfing, light gaming, WhatsApp video calling, clicking pictures and listening to Spotify. Switching between different apps was also quite smooth.
I did not face any lag or even heating up of the device. However, what was upsetting was the usual bloatware, that Oppo should now pay attention towards, high time! Android 13 also gives it extra brownie points as it offers a good amount of customisable options for users.
As for the battery, “ultra-fast charging” is one of the headlining features of the smartphone. It houses a 4,800mAh battery and supports s 67W SUPERVOOC fast charging. As claimed by the company, the smartphone did charge from 0 to 100 percent in around 45 minutes. Hence, if you are a charging procrastinator, this is the phone for you!
Camera: A fairly capable package
Oppo Reno 8T 5G features a triple rear camera that includes a 108MP primary sensor and a couple of 2MP sensors. In broad daylight, the camera captures good images with fine details and colour accurate. Even the front facing camera performed well. However, the subject detection was not exactly ideal and the beauty filter that makes you look like straight up ken doll does not really help in making its case.
In challenging light, you can notice noise and hazy details, however, I will not say that these are the dealbreakers.
Should you buy it?
At a price of Rs 29,999, Oppo Reno 8T 5G is the right choice for you if design and a big bright display are your priorities. The shiny finish gives it an edge over its competitors, however, if you are open to experimenting, you can always opt for Nothing Phone (1), which also lies in the same price bracket.
If you are into heavy gaming, this might not be the phone for you. Such buyers should consider buying Redmi K50i or OnePlus Nord CE 2 Lite.