OPPO Reno 4 Pro 5G review – The Very Best Mid-Range Smartphone*

This is our third Snapdragon 765G chipset review. Having run the rule over Nokia 8.3 5G and Google Pixel 5, it’s now OPPO’s time for judgement. Qualcomm’s mid-range chip is a quiet revolution in the smartphone industry; a chip powerful enough to keep pace with premium chips on everyday tasks. It also comes infused with 5G, keeping cost and power requirements down versus separate modules. OPPO Reno 4 Pro 5G aims at the very top of the mid-range market, surrounding its 765G in impressive tech and a helping of luxury.

At around €720/£649, all of its notions come at a price. However, it’s probably worth it considering the €1,000+ handsets it’s genuinely competing with in many areas.

Sometime Colour

Our Space Black review model is gorgeous. It’s sleek at 7.6mm thick. Its bezels are tiny, allowing the bright, sharp 6.5″ screen to shine. The overall shape and look from the front is a little ‘tried and true’, maybe even derivative.

However, the rear’s iridescent OPPO logo-infused outer casing and camera arrangement are beautiful and elevate the design. The rear’s glass outer twinkles a fleeting rainbow, lending it a sometime flash of colour. It needs to be seen to be appreciated. An aluminium frame is coloured black around the device edges and under the rear glass giving the multicoloured twinkle a darkness to pop from. It just adds to the premium look.

The camera arrangement resembles that of Apple devices. The lenses’ island almost rises from the rear such is the gentle edge at the interface between the two. The lenses themselves cut a sharp cylinder through the island.

OPPO Reno 4 Pro feels good in the hand. It’s dense and solid – the feeling of well-made. Despite a glass rear and long body (159mm), it isn’t actually difficult to hold onto.

Premium Face

The 90Hz AMOLED display only adds to the premium look. Incredibly bright with piercing blacks and supersatured colour, it’s of a flagship standard. Perhaps it’s a little oversaturated out of the box but there is a natural colour mode to fix this.

The high refresh rate makes scrolling pleasantly smooth though we wish there was more reason to notice the slickness. Outside of gaming there isn’t much 90Hz content.

The punch-hole notch resides in the top-left corner of the 20:9 display. The long-form of Reno 4 Pro means the notch will never really get in the way of your content. The 1,080 x 2,400 resolution is sharp enough for the size.

There is a small curve on both long edges of the screen. It suits the overall form and adds some visual intrigue to the device but it doesn’t wrap around enough to add any edge functionality. However, its short wrap also avoids inducing viewing angle-induced colour shifts.

All-Round Capture, Some Specialities

OPPO have opted for a wide feature set with Reno 4 Pro’s photo/video capture. Rather than focus on a couple of killer apps or hardware features, we get the works. Across its triple-lens setup we get an impressive array of camera options and mode. More impressively, each mode seems fully baked.

The 2x optical zoom doesn’t require too steady a hand and its sensor captures plenty of light. While it’s only 2x, any zoom shots are highly usable with your subject’s colour and detail intact. The AI support is excellent with scene selection and a default stabilisation that delivers detailed and well-toned images consistently.

The pro mode is, again, well-implemented. Crucially, competent users can actually take advantage of the camera’s hardware and maybe bleed a better shot than the AI-led auto modes.

Reno 4 Pro 5G captures photos with a natural colour and balanced tone that is pleasing to the eye. However, on the cusp of normal and night modes photos can can lack contrast, leading to shallow-looking images. It forces the user to use night mode where not completely necessary. This obviously takes more time to shoot and delivers a less detailed result.

Video, again, tries to service many possibilities. Captured clips are bright but balanced. The video is shot with the phone’s ultrawide camera allowing it to frame a little wider than other handsets. 120fps 1080p capture is nice to have but 4K60 would have been preferable. The dual-image stabilisation is as good as any in its price-range and coupled with the sensor’s talent for crisp detail, action capture is superb.

Decked Out

On models in our region, the SD-765G is matched with 12GB of RAM. This gives a smooth everyday performance that loves to multitask and switch between tasks. 256GB of on-board storage is generous but it’s not expendable.

Generally, you wouldn’t tell the difference between OPPO Reno 4 Pro 5G (or a Google Pixel 5) and a premium flagship until you ask it to do some serious heavy-lifting. Gaming is one such area where the disparity is apparent – it’s not bad to game on but if you are used to 60+ fps on Ultra settings then you will notice the downgrade.

Another area it doesn’t match the big boys is the handset’s battery life. Again, it’s not bad but that gigantic and gorgeous screen at 90Hz will see power-users reach for the charger in the evening on day one. Moderate users will still easily make it to bed on day one though.

It’s worth noting that of the three SD765G smartphones we have reviewed in the last few weeks, OPPO Reno 4 Pro has the lowest stamina. There is only a few hours difference between Reno 4 Pro 5G and Google Pixel 5 or Nokia 8.3 5G.

What is lacks in stamina it more than makes up for in charging power. The 65W Super VOOC charger will fill the device from 0% in 36 minutes. A 15 minute blast will fill it to 60%. This beats most phones, premium or not, hands-down.

Specifications

OPPO Reno 4 Pro 5G is another excellent entry to the expanding mid-tier of devices. An all-rounder that showcases the potential of the exalted chipset, the device has everything but raw power. The excellent video capture, incredibly brief charging time and inviting display are standout features of a device with plenty to sell it on.

The price may give a potential customer pause but OPPO Reno 4 Pro 5G is a contender.

Review unit provided by PR