Oppo Reno 10x Zoom: A power performer with capable cameras, unique design

Oppo is one smartphone brand that experiments boldly with camera modules and enables new ways of use through enhanced capabilities generation after generation. The recently-launched Oppo Reno 10x Zoom, the company’s new flagship, also has some outstanding imaging prowess. Besides camera-centric innovations, the phone also boasts a new design language, premium hardware and several software-based improvements.

Design (4/5)

The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom is neither thin nor lightweight, but its looks premium for its unicolour glass-metal sandwich design and obstruction-free front profile without any notch or punch hole for front camera and earpiece. The phone’s design is accentuated by a ‘Shark Fin’ mechanical pop-up module that houses a selfie camera and earpiece on the front side and a dual LED flash on the back.

Though the earpiece is part of the pop-up module, which rests inside the chassis, there is a tiny cut-out area on the phone’s front (in a thin space between chassis and display panel) to allow the earpiece to channel sound without causing any distortion or quality loss.

The phone’s back is covered with a matte glass, which is uniform and appealing. It sports a vertically aligned triple-camera module sitting within the frame. Below the module is a tiny dot-shaped metallic element that bulges out a little, protecting the glass covering and the camera module when the phone is kept on flat surfaces like table tops, desks, etc.

Display (3/5)

The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom has a 6.6-inch AMOLED screen of a fullHD+ (2340 x 1080 pixels) resolution. For a screen of its size, the fullHD+ resolution seems slightly underpowered, resulting in pixelated content rendering, especially when compared with phones of QHD+ resolution screens. Thankfully, a bright and vivid AMOLED panel compensates for the sharpness and makes the on-screen content lively.

The phone supports WideVine L1 DRM services required to stream high-definition video content via over-the-top (OTT) apps, such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Videos, etc. However, because of an unconventional aspect ratio, the screen is not fully utilised by these video-streaming services, and shows a thick black bar on either side when viewed horizontally.

Camera (4/5)

Most smartphones have more than one optic nowadays. But what differentiates the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom is its 13-megapixel periscope telephoto lens, which is part of its triple-camera module on the back. The lens is capable of up to 10x hybrid lossless zoom – something only Huawei’s premium offering P30 the Pro matches. Apart from a periscope telephoto lens, the phone boasts a 48-megapixel primary sensor with optically stabilised lenses and an 8MP ultra-wide lens of an f/2.2 aperture.

Technical details aside, the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom has a versatile camera set-up on the back, providing users a different breed of optics. While the phone’s primary camera comes handy while taking detailed shots in different lighting conditions, the ultra-wide lens proves useful in capturing landscape shots, and the periscope telephoto proves its zoom capability by bringing distant objects closer. Besides, the camera also has several modes, such as portrait, night, expert and panorama.

The phone’s 16MP selfie camera, which is part of the ‘shark fin’ pop-up module, is also a performer. It takes decent shots and has a portrait mode for enhanced bokeh effect. It also has an auto beautification setting that works across modes, allowing you to take enhanced selfies.

Performance (3.5/5)

Powered by Qualcomm’s flagship Snapdragon 855 system-on-chip, the phone boots Android Pie-based ColorOS 6 user interface. Though the OS has improved considerably from its previous iterations, it still has some flaws that dampen the phone’s overall performance and usability.

The OS is full of bloatware, some of which keep sending notifications with advertisements. The notification area has been tweaked to offer a comprehensive view, but the new setting icons are unreasonably large. Opening the notification and setting drawer is difficult, too, as it requires a swipe down from the top edge of the screen. This adds to the inconvenience, considering that the phone has a large screen.

Other than the OS flaws, the phone is a sleek performer. It handles day-to-day operations and power-intensive tasks with ease. Playing games on the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom is also a smooth experience, with no lag, jitters or thermal issues.

Battery (3/5)

The phone is powered by a 4,065 mAh battery, which is good enough to keep the show going for around a day. The phone supports the VOOC 3.0 fast charge technology, which charges around half the battery in 30 minutes.

Verdict (3.5/5)

Priced at Rs 49,990 (8GB/256GB), the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom is an all-round performer in the midrange premium segment. Consider this phone for its capable camera modules, a unique design language, and powerful performance. If 10x hybrid lossless zoom is not much useful, you might like to consider the OnePlus 7 Pro, which has a similar package but a better screen and user-friendly OxygenOS operating system.