OPPO F5 Review: All about the selfies

We have told you so much about the OPPO F5 already. The flagship device from OPPO Mobile was launched in November 2017 in the country with a price tag of Ksh.31, 990. The OPPO F5 is the company’s first Full HD+ (2160×1080) with a Full-Screen display to be unveiled in Kenya, featuring the groundbreaking A.I. Beauty Recognition Technology.

Since then, OPPO has gone ahead to release two more devices; The OPPO F5 Youth and the OPPO F5 6GB Christmas edition in what it says is to give their fans more choices to suit their need and budget. The OPPO F5 Youth is retailing at Ksh.26,990 while the OPPO F5 6GB is being sold at Ksh.39,990.

That said, we have been interacting with OPPO F5 for close to two weeks now, trying to understand is the device is worth spending your money on. Truth be told, OPPO made some upgrades to the device compared to its predecessor the OPPO F3. The OPPO F5 is a good device, a solid budget Android device with an impressive selfie camera and ultra widescreen. This, together with other features makes the OPPO F5 compete favorably with other brands like the Infinix ZERO 5 and the TECNO Phantom 8, which were launched around the same time the OPPO F5 was launched. So, what does the device have to offer?

Design, Build and  Display

First, let me admit the OPPO F5 metallic design is one of the things I love, it gives the phone a premium look. I like what the company did with the screen, in fact, this is the things you will notice first. Similar to what I have seen on the iPhone X which was launched in Kenya just the other day, almost the entire front of the phone is display and OPPO is giving you a 6-inch with an 18:9 aspect ratio, pretty good is you asked me.

The bezel-less design is striking and the curved edges make the phone feel really smooth as well as comfortable to hold in the hand.

The power button and dual-SIM tray on the OPPO F5 are located on the right while the volume buttons are placed on the left side.

At the top is where you have the mic and the micro USB port, 3.5mm audio socket and the speakers are all at the bottom.

The fingerprint which works really well is on the other hand is.

Software and Performance

The OPPO F5 comes with 4GB of RAM, 32GB of internal storage and a 2.5GHz octa-core 16nm processor. Well, the octa-core processor and 4GB of RAM handles all the apps really well. Browsing through the interface social media apps is smooth and seamless. I will give the OPPO F5  a plus for its multitasking capabilities.

Switching between apps, from basic ones to the high-intensive ones is quite easy. Thanks to the split screen feature you can also use some of the apps side by side. Bottomline, unless you do heavy multitasking of apps, the processor is good for above average use.

The OPPO F5 is based on OPPO’s ColorOS 3.2 interface and runs on Android 7.1.1 Nougat software. I love the ColourOS, it’s quite colorful, highly customized and the icons designs and settings layout are pretty good, similar to what we have seen in all the OPPO phones. One thing I also noticed is that the recent apps button on the OPPO F5 does not offer a quick switch feature which is a native feature for Android devices. This means, notifications can’t be swiped in one go, you have to tap delete after the swipe.

For those who love gaming, the OPPO F5 does not disappoint, however graphically intensive the games are. First, you have a good display, and this combined with a processor projects games with some really good frame rates.

OPPO F5 uses a MediaTek Helio P23 with eight Cortex-A53 which is very efficient and contributes to a better battery performance of the OPPO F5

Camera

OPPO is known for their camera phones and remember the OPPO F5 belongs to the company’s F-Series of smartphones known for their good selfies. The OPPO F5 features fully packed selfie capabilities. Unlike most flagship devices being launched in the market currently, OPPO decided to skip the dual front camera setup and instead chose to focus on new technologies working behind the OPPO F5 scenes. These technologies do a great job.

The selfie camera on the OPPO F5 is 20-megapixels, combined with an Artificial Intelligence (AI) recognition technology to process selfies with beauty mode. Well, we have seen the beauty mode on previous OPPO smartphone including other mid-range devices, but OPPO wants to stand out by incorporating AI. But how does this AI work? Well, when the beauty mode is activated, OPPO’s ‘’complex algorithms’’ analyzes your face and applies the right skin enhancement filters. I also love the fact that you can actually alter the contours of your face. 

The images produced look more natural, the overall quality of the image is also quite appealing, especially in daylight. Low Light selfies, however, turn our average as the front camera has no dedicated flash rather it uses the screen flash. Maybe OPPO should have considered just having an LED  flash.

The rear camera, on the other hand, is 16-megapixels and performs really well in daylight. The colors and detail are all good. You also get the usual modes – Panorama, Beauty, and HDR.

Battery

One aspect that is always a critical deciding factor for me when looking for a smartphone to buy is the battery life. I need a battery that can last me for long since I don’t like carrying power banks around and the Oppo F5 did not disappoint. The 3200mAH battery on this device does some good job: It charges faster, approximately 2 hours and can last you for up to two days even if you are a heavy user. I was on social media all the time, played games, took photos and the battery was still able to push me for extra hours.

This is actually one of my favorite features of the Oppo F5. I had however expected the the smartphone to feature a fast charging technology, but OPPO decided to give it a miss. But still, the battery does its job exceptionally well. One other feature I would have loved to see on the OPPO F5 is the USB-C type charger. Hopefully, OPPO will include it in its future flagship devices.

Verdict, Pricing and Availability

I love the Oppo F5, for Ksh.31,990 the device a good smartphone you can get. The specs are good and if the camera, more specifically the selfie camera, is one of the things you always look out for when buying a smartphone then Oppo F5 is definitely something you should consider . The camera is the standout feature of the smartphone and delivers exactly what it promises.

Added to this is the impressive display which I really loved, the great battery life which makes the OPPO F5  a strong competitor in an already crowded segment in the Kenyan market.

OPPO F5 Specs Summary

Buy the OPPO F5