Oppo Find X5

Oppo is known in China as a manufacturer of quality mobile devices, which usually also can be seen in the high price range of the products. Here in Europe, Oppo is a less well known brand but we at least associate the brand with the quality cameras in their devices. Oppo Find X5 is the year-old series of flagship phones from Oppo, which as the new series is now available in China, the older models are being sold at half the price of the original. Could this be a good opportunity to take the leap to Oppo's devices?

With a price tag of around five hundred euros, Find X5 is a mid-price device. At least on paper the device is a quality product in its current price range. The screen is a 6.55-inch AMOLED, with HDR10+ support and a 120Hz refresh speed. The chipset in the device is by today's standards the slightly dated Snapdragon 555, which still can perform at a more than satisfying speed. The phone supports wireless charging with the power of 30 watts and also 80 watts with SuperVOOC-charging from a wired charger. The battery in the basic model is only a 4800mAh one, which is a little too small for the capabilities of the device.

The main marketing point in the X5 is the camera, as all cameras in the X5-series are branded by a known quality camera company, Hasselblad. Before getting too excited though, Hasselblad is present only in the colour calibration of the camera, otherwise the camera is completely of Oppo's own manufacturing. In comparison to the more expensive Pro-model of the X5, this basic device only has a 2x optical zoom and the image stabilising is done with software instead of a physical stabiliser built in.

Despite this, the camera is excellent, especially considering the price. The 32 megapixel main camera is very sharp and the image definition is great. The stabiliser is good enough and you'll probably only miss a physical one only when zooming the image, as the software has a few troubles keeping up with the image. There is little to no noise in the image and the image can be focused with multiple different focal points. Considering the price, the camera is just about the best you can get for this amount of money right now.

The phone itself is the usual shape, but a very solid one as the build quality is very good. The glass back of the phone is a peculiarly velvety one, which feels very good in your hand and doesn't get overwhelmed with fingerprints. The camera island rises up very modestly and doesn't feel sharp or uncomfortable when the phone is kept in your pocket. Aside from the USB-C port in the bottom of the phone, no other ports can be found, as seems to be the modern trend. The phone also comes with a rubbery cover, which slides neatly in place and makes the grip a little more firm.

The main disadvantage of the device is the battery life. The 4800mAh battery gets drained in less than a day if the phone is used regularly throughout the day. In more active use, the battery life is even more dreary. Then again, with the wired charging the phone increases from 15% battery up to 90% battery in less than 30 minutes, so the problem is a minor one.

In everyday use the best feature of the Oppo phone is the excellent display, combined with a good in-hand feeling and decent weight. The display wraps a little around the edges of the phone and feels a little slippery, but the great design of the glass back compensates for this well. The display is a pleasure to watch, as the colours are vivid, the resolution is excellent and everything just comes together nicely. Where the display really shines, is the picture editing, as the effects of the edits are easy and quick to see.

At the moment the phone is equipped with the most recent version of Android, paired with Oppo's own ColorOS-operating system. ColorOS is your very basic operating system, which does what it is supposed to do and little else. There are very little unnecessary applications running with the OS, but there are no real innovations to see here, either. You've seen better and worse.

The speed of the phone is sure to satisfy most users. Even though it isn't powered by the latest hardware, all the games I tested ran without any problems, as did videos in 4K resolution. There are no hiccups or slowdowns in anything and all in all, operating with the phone is joyfully quick.

A year after it's release, Oppo Find X5 is a quality choice in its price range. Right now the more recent X6-series is also only available in China, so those after more recent Oppo hardware will have to wait. A year ago, competing in the premium price range, X5 was in a tight situation, but now it feels like a very compelling option, especially because of the excellent display and great camera.