Oppo Reno 8 review: Wonderful mid-range

In one look

Expert rating

Advantages

Stunning color changing finish
Two-day battery life
Quick Charge
Capable performance

The inconvenients

Mixed Camera Setup
Only two years of guaranteed software updates
No variable refresh rate

Our opinion

With a competitive price, stunning design, durable performance and an excellent main camera, the Oppo Reno 8 is a real challenger in the mid-range space.

Oppo has three phones in its Reno 8 range: the high-end mid-range Reno 8 Pro, the more affordable Reno 8 Lite, and then the Goldilocks model, the Reno 8.

While this phone doesn’t have the same flagship camera tech as the Reno 8 Pro, it still has a sleek build, fast charging tech, and a decent processor for the price. But is the Reno 8 really the best of the bunch?

Design and build

Stunning gold finish with Oppo Glow
IP54 rating
No case included

The Oppo Reno 8 is available in two color options: Shimmer Black and Shimmer Gold. I tested the latter option, which also comes with Oppo’s Glow finish. This means that under different lighting conditions and from different angles, the body reflects multiple colors, including reds, blues, and greens.

Overall, it’s a stunning high-end look – this author even got compliments on it. As the back is plastic, it feels sturdier than glass phones, and it doesn’t have the Reno 8 Pro’s nasty habit of throwing itself onto surfaces. The camera module is quite a statement, protruding from the left side with large circular lenses.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The phone is 7.67mm thick and weighs 179g which makes it slim by modern standards. It comes with an IP54 rating, which me ans it’s protected against limited dust and light splashes of water – but I wouldn’t recommend using it in really wet weather. No MicroSD card slot is included.

The Reno 8 comes with a USB-C port for charging, which doubles as a headphone port – you won’t find a headphone jack on this model. Like the Reno 8 Pro, this phone doesn’t include a case in the box. While Oppo claims this helps reduce waste, it’s an annoyance because the cases aren’t as readily available as those designed for flagship models.

Screen and speakers

6.43-inch FHD AMOLED display
Refresh rate up to 90Hz
Medium stereo speakers

The Reno 8 sports a 6.43-inch FHD AMOLED display with Gorilla Glass 5. The display is crisp and bright, with vibrant colors that pop.

The phone comes with a refresh rate of up to 90Hz, which might be disappointing if you’re a heavy mobile gamer hoping for a faster 120Hz display. There’s no dynamic refresh rate either. – you can only choose between the lower 60Hz option and the higher 90Hz version. Still, the screen is fine for day-to-day tasks like scrolling through social media and typing notes, so most people won’t really care.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The device’s under-display fingerprint sensor also works consistently – an improvement over what I’ve found on older Oppo phones.

The Oppo Reno 8 comes with two stereo speakers, which produce powerful sound with decent bass. However, the quality isn’t quite on par with the best phones, with additional audio processing software.

Specifications and performance

8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage
MediaTek Dimension 1300
Solid performance overall

You can only get the Oppo Reno 8 in one configuration: 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Under the hood is a MediaTek Dimensity 1300 chipset, the same processor found in the mid-range heavyweight, the OnePlus Nord 2T.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

This creates fast and responsive performance when in use, even when multitasking between many apps. I was able to browse social media, stream Twitch, take photos, and call my family with ease. The phone is even capable of some light gaming. However, if you are playing something strenuous, it will throttle the processor and heat up the phone a bit.

It’s not as powerful as the Reno 8 Pro, which manages to hold its own against some flagships, but it can certainly hold its own against similarly priced mid-range models from OnePlus and Google:

Battery life and charging

big old battery
80W fast charge

While the Oppo Reno 8 only has a 4500mAh battery, it goes a long way. I was able to stream video, browse the internet, scroll through Twitter doom and more for almost two days on average, even when using the highest refresh rate.

Our PCMark battery test also reflects this, with the phone scoring an impressive 14 hours and 18 minutes.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

In the box, Oppo includes an 80W SuperVooC fast charger, along with a compatible USB-C cable. No wireless charging or reverse wireless charging is included on the Oppo Reno 8.

The fast-charging technology is impressive, with the phone reaching 99% vacuum on a 30-minute charge. At one point, the phone was close to 1%, and a five-minute juice before I walked through the door made it last a few more hours.

It’s rare to find a phone with such an impressive battery and such fast charging – Oppo really excels in this area, especially for the price.

Cameras and video

Triple rear camera
Good main objective, other forgettable ones
Decent 32Mp selfie camera

The Oppo Reno has a triple camera setup, consisting of a 50Mp main lens with a Sony IMX766 sensor, along with a 5Mp wide-angle lens and a 2Mp macro lens. The main camera is the same hardware found in the more premium Reno 8 Pro. However, this phone lacks Oppo’s dedicated Marisilicon X NPU.

Overall this camera produces decent photos, performing best in bright daylight conditions, with indoor shots and darker environments losing some clarity. It captures moving things such as moving water and fireworks fairly well, even without the inclusion of OIS.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Like some other mid-range snappers, the HDR mode overpowers certain colors, especially greens on grass, which take on an unnatural hue. It’s a shame, because other elements are well highlighted with this one.

The opposite can be said for the 5Mp wide-angle snapper, which should really only be used for large landscape shots. The sky looked washed out, while building details looked hazy and muddy. The 2Mp macro lens is also an issue for getting a half-decent shot.

When zooming, anything up to 5x is useful for close-ups, but avoid anything higher than that. At 20x the camera shakes so much it’s almost unusable – this is where OIS would have really helped. Additionally, colors don’t have the same punch as when using the main camera without the zoom, and lighting glare is sometimes an issue as well.

Night mode isn’t as sharp as it is on Oppo phones with the Marisilicon X chip, with details sometimes blurring into each other, especially for distant subjects. It’s enough to lift lighter colors, however, and the night sky doesn’t have that jarring blue tint I’ve seen from Realme.

On the front, you get a 32Mp, f/2.4 selfie camera with Sony’s IMX709 sensor. While the images look relatively good quality, the bokeh effect struggles to identify textures such as fine hair, even on the lowest strength (which can only be adjusted before taking the shot). Shades are much brighter and more vivid in photos taken in brighter conditions.

Video recording is available from 4K up to 30 fps and 1080p up to 60 fps. Ultra Steady mode (available in 1080p) minimizes handshake, but I found the overall effect too loud and unnatural.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Software updates

Comes with Android 12
Only two years of guaranteed operating system updates

The Reno 8 comes with ColorOS 12.1, which is Oppo’s version of Android 12. Oppo’s Android skins are always user-friendly and well laid out. You can multitask between apps using either split-screen or floating windows – although gestures for these can be tricky.

There is annoying bloatware, with games like Piggy Go and Tile Master 3D. However, Oppo is not as guilty as Huawei and Xiaomi for this stuff.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

The phone has also been confirmed to get an update to ColorOS 13, but that won’t arrive until late 2022 or early 2023.

Oppo offers two years of guaranteed OS updates and three years of security updates. It’s not as impressive as rivals such as Samsung, whose devices have four years of operating system updates and five years of security updates. It would be good to see Oppo increase the duration of these updates in future models, especially with the cost of living which continues to increase.

Pricing & Availability

Prices for the Oppo Reno 8 start from £419 / $599. In the UK you can buy it from Oppo, Amazon, Currys and Carphone Warehouse without a SIM card, and under contract with Vodafone and EE.

Oppo phones are not officially available in the United States. However, you can still import it from sites like AliExpress.

While the Reno 8 Pro outperforms this phone with its Marisilicon X NPU, flagship chip, and better waterproofing, the Reno 8 is a more competitive option in the mid-range space, slashing in all the right areas to keep the price down. down.

For a similar price, you can consider either the OnePlus Nord 2T or the Google Pixel 6a. Alternatively, you can read our pick of the best mid-range phones for more options.

Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry

Verdict

Like the Reno 8 Pro, the Reno 8 stands out as a solid mid-range phone. It has a stunning design, strong performance, user-friendly operating system, fast charging and extremely durable battery life. The main camera is also largely impressive – although the other lenses aren’t anything to shout about.

While there are some notable downgrades to the Pro variant of this phone – including processor, refresh rate, camera software and IP rating, the £419 price tag sits much better in the market for midrange. It’s a real gem and a worthy rival to other phones from OnePlus and Google.