Oppo's Reno series is its flagship camera series of smartphones, where the company showcases the best it has to offer in terms of imaging. The new Reno11 is another new phone from Oppo that continues that legacy. Priced at Rs. 29,999, let's see how it performs, including in the camera department.
Design: The phone features a 6.7-inch curved display with slim bezels that are not symmetrical. Despite this, I didn't accidentally press it too frequently, which can happen with curved displays. The front-facing camera is located in the top-middle of the display, next to the ear-speaker grille. It is not very noticeable from a distance. The rounded edges and corners, along with the glossy sides, give the phone a premium finish. Moving to the back of the phone, there is an oval-shaped cutout for the triple camera system. The patterned design also stands out. The back has a shimmery, but not overly shiny, appearance, which contributes to the phone's overall design aesthetics. The right side of the phone houses the volume buttons and the power/lock key, which is located near the middle. The left side is left plain without any buttons or features.
On the top of the phone, there is a single outlet for loudspeakers, an infrared port, and a secondary microphone. The bottom of the phone has a dual SIM card tray, a primary microphone, a USB Type-C port, and a second outlet for loudspeakers. The phone weighs approximately 183 grams and has a thickness of around 8mm. It never felt slippery or too heavy to carry around. I tried the Rock grey color option, but it is also available in Wave Green, which has a more noticeable patterned texture on the back.
Display: The Reno11 features a 6.7-inch curved OLED display that supports HDR10+ and up to 120Hz high refresh rates. The display is known for its good viewing angles, vibrant colors, and high contrast, making it suitable for watching high-resolution videos and images. I prefer to use the display in natural mode over vivid for watching content throughout my use. It’s not the best display I have used on an Oppo device, but it’s still a sharp panel that doesn’t compromise on details. For HDR content, it does a decent job of handling bright as well shadow-y scenes without sacrificing on skin tones.
Cameras: Featuring a triple-camera system on the back – a 50MP (f/1.8) main camera (with OIS), a 32MP (f/2.0) telephoto camera, and an 8MP (f/2.2) ultra-wide camera – it’s pretty much the USP of this smartphone. The main Sony LYT600 sensor really shines when it comes to taking well-stitched and detailed shots from the phone. The colors and skin tones are more natural than previous Reno series phones, and low-light shots also seem to be improved in terms of less graininess and better focus on the subject. The Sony IMX709 sensor in the telephoto camera gives well-defined portrait shots where the bokeh effects don't appear too unnatural, offering a more refined take than some of the other phones in this price range, up to 2x zoom. The low-light performance can be a bit hit or miss. If you’re standing still with your subject not moving quickly, you can expect shots with good exposure and details in place, but that isn't the case very frequently. The camera app is quick and smooth to open and work with. There’s an added option where you can change the exposure settings while taking a shot, something you might like if you like to fiddle with your camera settings. The front-facing 32MP (f/2.4) camera takes sharp and well-lit shots that generally wouldn’t disappoint for your social media or personal use.
The Oppo Reno11 5G comes with MediaTek's Dimensity 7050 chipset, which includes an up to 2Ghz octa-core processor and Mali G68 GPU. It also features 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB of UFS2.2 internal storage (the base model has 8GB + 128GB). The phone runs on Oppo's ColorOS 14.0, which is based on Android 14 and comes with the January 2024 security patch.
In terms of day-to-day tasks, the Oppo Reno11 5G handles calling, messaging, and web browsing with multiple tabs open without any issues. It can also handle tasks like watching YouTube while scrolling through social media apps. However, it would have been better if Oppo had used a more up-to-date chipset instead of the Dimensity 7050. While you can play games like Badland and Asphalt 8 smoothly, the phone may struggle with more demanding games like Fortnite or BGMI at medium to highest settings.
ColorOS 14 has a couple of nice features, such as File Dock, which allows you to copy and paste files from a side-handing dock, and Smart Extract, which lets you extract text or information from a screenshot. However, apart from these new features, ColorOS largely looks and feels similar to previous versions. It also comes with several pre-installed third-party apps, though they can be uninstalled if desired.
Performance and software: The Oppo Reno11 5G comes with MediaTek's Dimensity 7050 chipset (up to 2GHz octa-core processor, Mali G68 GPU), along with 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB of UFS2.2 internal storage (the base model comes with 8GB + 128GB). It runs on Oppo's ColorOS 14.0, based on Android 14, with the January 2024 security patch. The phone handles day-to-day tasks such as calling, messaging, web browsing with 5-6 tabs open, and watching YouTube in the background while scrolling through social media apps just fine. It would have been better if Oppo had upgraded the chipset from the dated Dimensity 7050 to something more up-to-date. However, you can play games such as Badland and Asphalt 8 smoothly. The phone is unable to handle games like Fortnite or BGMI at medium to highest settings without showing any sluggishness. There are a couple of nice features in ColorOS 14, such as File Dock, which allows you to copy any file, keep it in the side-handing dock, and paste or use that file anywhere else by dragging it from the dock whenever you need to. Another useful feature is Smart Extract, which allows you to extract text or information from a screenshot that you just took. Other than these new features, ColorOS looks and feels very similar to how it has been for a while, with quite a few third-party apps pre-installed out of the box that can be uninstalled. Oppo promises 3 years of OS upgrades and 4 years of security updates for this device.
Battery: The phone is powered by a 5,000mAh battery unit and comes with a 67-watt SuperVooc charger inside the box. I usually get about a day's worth of usage from a full charge under similar workloads, and I rarely run out of battery in the middle of work. The phone charges from 1% to full in about 50 minutes without any major heating issues.
Other bits: The phone's WiFi, GPS, and Bluetooth performance is nothing to worry about, while the loudspeakers are also loud and clear for videos and gaming purposes when you aren't around many people.
Verdict: The strengths and weaknesses of the Oppo Reno11 are quite clear. It excels in the camera and battery departments, and it also boasts a sleek design. However, its chipset and gaming performance are not as impressive. Therefore, this smartphone is ideal for people who prioritise camera performance, whether it's the rear or front camera, over gaming and having the latest chipset available in the market today.
