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Oppo's Reno series has really blown up the mid-range smartphone segment, given the compelling features against competitive prices. So is the case with the Oppo Reno 12, which promises a big, immersive display and very fast charging, besides a camera package that more than gets the job done—all wrapped up in a slick, stylish design. But how does it stand in what's surely one of the most competitive areas of the market? Let's dive deeper to find out.
The Oppo Reno 12 takes on board familiar design language, where there is a near-bezel-less display accompanied by a punch-hole cutout. The selfie camera is positioned within the top-left corner of this display. The vertically aligned quad-camera setup is arranged at the rear, which is made of glossy plastic that imitates glass. Though it does look a bit derivative as compared to some rivals, it still is sleek and comfortable to hold onto. There are three eye-catching color options available: Ocean Blue, Cosmic Black, and Shimmering White. The Reno 12 feels quite solid for its plastic construction. Its glossy back attracts fingerprints, though an included case helps a little. It is rather light and slim, making it fit for one-handed use.
The apparent star of this device would be its 6.5-inch AMOLED display. Scrolling and navigation are much smoother due to the higher refresh rate of 90Hz, which quickly becomes noticeable compared to conventional displays that come with a refresh rate of 60Hz. Colors are vibrant; viewing angles are nice—all these factors add up to make the Reno 12 very good for videos, gaming, or just surfing the web. The peak brightness goes as high as 1200 nits, so it stays pretty legible under hard sunlight.
The Oppo Reno 12 runs a Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G processor at its core—a very competent mid-range chipset that performs very well at more general, everyday tasks such as handling social media, surfing the web, or doing some light gaming. It will fire off most games with ease but may not be able to run highly graphically demanding games at the best possible settings. Oppo has provided this variant with 8GB RAM and 128GB of storage, which again shall be plenty for most users. There's no expandable storage option, so you will really be very careful of what you download in case you need more space leeway.
The Reno 12 runs Oppo's ColorOS 7, based on Android 10—the update to Android 11 has been promised. ColorOS provides a familiar Android experience with a few additional customizations and features. Some of them are quite useful, like the ability to customize app icons and gestures, but others feel a little gimmicky. The biggest downside is pre-installed bloatware—although it can be uninstalled, it does consume valuable storage space out of the box.
The under-display fingerprint sensor performs nicely and is well-placed. Face unlock is an option, though it may not be as secure as a fingerprint sensor.
However, on the back of the Reno 12, there is a 48MP main sensor, an 8 MP ultra-wide sensor, a 2MP depth sensor, and a 2MP macro sensor. The main sensor clicks detailed and peppy pictures under good light. The ultrawide sensor does its job and gives you a wider frame for those landscape shots or group photographs, which is really nice. The 2MP depth and macro sensors do feel like an afterthought and don't really add much to the setup.
Low-light performance is decent, but not one of the best features. The photos might look grainy, losing most of the details. It does have a night mode, but performance does not really get particularly enhanced. For selfies, there is the 16 MP front-facing camera. It gives out well-colored, well-lit pictures, but it can struggle with low-lighting.
The camera system, in any case, is good enough for casual photography. However, power users track some other place else for extraordinary camera quality.
Battery life is the strength of the Oppo Reno 12. The 4,000mAh battery comfortably lasts a day's session under moderate usage on a single charge. Even heavy users are unlikely to face battery anxiety before the end of the day.
But the Reno 12 absolutely crushed it with charging speed, thanks to Oppo's custom technology for 65W VOOC Flash Charge 4.0. With our test unit, 0-100% of battery takes slightly less than 35 minutes to get the full top-up. Such impressive charging rates ensure that battery life is a non-issue for most users.
The Oppo Reno 12 represents compelling value for this price tag. Large, immersive display with smooth refresh rate, excellent battery life, and unbelievably fast charging—these are just some of its tempting features available at a reasonable price. Its camera system is serviceable enough for casual photography, while the design, though not spectacularly new, is at least sleek and comfortable to hold.
Some caveats do exist, though. The performance, while adequate for most users, is not going to please power users who need the latest and greatest in processing power. The software, while customizable, comes with bloatware and is based on an older version of Android—though an update is promised. The camera system gets the job done, but some competitors do it a little better, mainly regarding low-light shots.
Oppo Reno 12 provides a very good option for users looking to experience the following:
Large and immersive display: This will definitely be great if you are a fan of watching videos, playing games, or surfing the web with the Reno 12.
Fast charging: The Reno 12 will ensure that you do not stay stuck to a socket all your life with such charging speeds.
Good battery life: While the battery life might differ from pattern to pattern, the Reno 12 is capable of lasting easily a full day on a single charge even to moderate use.
Competitive price: For the features provided, the Reno 12 has very competitive pricing.
The Oppo Reno 12 features a big 6.5" AMOLED display with a sharp FHD+ resolution of 1080 x 2400 pixels.
Does it have a smooth refresh rate display?
Yes, Reno 12 features a 90Hz refresh rate for a lot smoother and fluent view.
The back panel is made of a slightly glass-like glossy plastic, as is the frame. It's not the most premium of feels, but it does help keep the weight down.
No, the Oppo Reno 12 doesn't come with an official rating for water resistance.
You will have three striking color options: Ocean Blue, Cosmic Black, and Shimmering White.
It comes with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G processor, which is certainly more than capable for a mid-range chipset to handle normal day-to-day tasks.
