Oppo Reno8 introduction is predictable

Oppo’s press conference during the unveiling of its latest Reno8 smartphone can be pre-drawn. Although the smartphone was already launched in the Chinese smartphone in July and therefore all the information has been available for a long time, this is allegedly a brand new promotion. A promotional method often used by Chinese smartphone manufacturers. There is one small difference though: the Reno series in China consists of three devices. Reno8, Reno8 Pro and Reno8 Pro+. Reno8 Pro is equivalent to Chinese Reno8 Pro+.

As always, a disproportionate attention is paid to the camera. Bragging about its own chipset “MariSollicon”, night functions and portraits. So far, previous generations of the Reno smartphone have been shown to take good photos and videos. But it’s not much more than that: Samsung, Apple and Google have done it better, and it seems that this is mainly due to software tuning.

While Oppo is collaborating with photography brand Hasselblad (owned by Chinese drone manufacturer DJI), the Hasselblad stamp is not behind the Reno8. Hasselblad seems to be held in reserve for Oppo’s best smartphones. Although this should not be seen as a minus for the Reno8. The previous collaboration between Hasselblad and Oppo’s sister brand OnePlus made no difference.

It also seems like they didn’t make an innovative choice in headquarters. No Hasselblad is good. But there is still a 2-megapixel macro camera on the back. We’ve found this camera on smartphones from Oppo’s parent company BBK Electronics for generations. OnePlus and Realme smartphones are also equipped with this completely worthless lens. We have shown in previous reviews that this lens can do very little (blur, noise, moderate brightness). By the way, manufacturers themselves know that the macro photography function is hidden in the camera settings. In fact, the limited number of megapixels of this camera is secretly omitted in the specs on the site.

Why do these brands continue to prefer this macro camera? Do BBK have excess stock on these lenses? To brag about the number of rear cameras? Or is there a practical use case that I’ve overlooked? Investigations have not yielded any answers so far.

However, its focus is on fast charging technologies. Just like other Oppo smartphones.

Oppo is a brand that likes to be inspired by Apple. This is reflected in the design and the high price. There is no significant choice here either. What Oppo hasn’t taken over from Apple is long-term software support. The brand should have made a choice in this area as well. With two promised Android version updates and four years of security updates, Oppo is far behind not only Apple but also Samsung and Google.

Oppo Reno8 comes in two versions: Reno8 and Reno8 Pro. The difference is in the more powerful chipset, more working memory and more storage memory with the Pro version. The Pro version is also slightly larger with a slightly better display panel.

Smartphones stand out very little, though, and Oppo smartphones should do it. While the market share in the Netherlands is low and the brand’s brand awareness is not high, the brand has been operating in the Netherlands for years.

Oppo Reno 8 series is available immediately from 529 Euros. The Pro version costs 749 euros.