Oppo Reno 10X Zoom first impressions: Shark fin camera is cool; OnePlus 7 has competition

Oppo finally debuted its long-awaited Reno series phones in India — **Oppo Reno and Oppo Reno 10X Zoom**  — at an event in Delhi on 28 May. The Reno 10X Zoom starts at Rs 39,990 for the 6 GB RAM + 128 GB storage and the higher end 8 GB RAM + 256 GB comes for Rs 49,990. I spent a while with the Oppo Reno 10X Zoom at the event, clicked a bunch of pictures and videos from the phone, briefly set up a few apps and there was not a moment of disappointment in terms of performance. The pricing starts at Rs 39,990 and goes up to Rs 49,990 which slots it between the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro. While we will be comparing the Reno 10X Zoom to the OnePlus 7 soon, till we do that, here are my first impressions of Oppo’s latest flagship. [caption id=“attachment_6719041” align=“alignnone” width=“1024”]  Oppo Reno 10X Zoom’s pop-up camera sports an LED light at the back. Image: tech2/Nandini Yadav[/caption]

No second thoughts about its design

Oppo Reno and the Reno 10X Zoom, both feature similar design language. It has a matte finish at the back, with a glossy strip in the middle like a Rhodesian Ridgeback’s, which reads “Designed by Oppo”. That does lend a certain artsy-ness to the design of the phone. The matte finish is also a plus point as it prevents visibility of smudges. [caption id=“attachment_6718971” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Oppo Reno 10X Zoom has a matte finish back. Image: tech2/Nandini Yadav[/caption] Since Oppo Reno and Reno 10X Zoom have no notch or bezel, the notification LED has been moved to the power button on the right edge of the phone. The top edge has the shark fin pop-up camera which sports the 16 MP front camera, and an LED flash unit on its back. The pop-up section also features the earpiece speaker. [caption id=“attachment_6719011” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Oppo Reno 10X Zoom features an LED notification light on the power button. Image: tech2/Nandini Yadav[/caption] [caption id=“attachment_6718961” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Oppo Reno 10X Zoom. Image: tech2/Nandini Yadav[/caption] The device gives you a good grip to hold on to, but because of the 6.6-inch display of the phone, you will find it easier to hold it with both hands. Also, the phone is a little too heavy at 210 grams, which is another reason you may not enjoy using it in one hand.

Gorgeous, no-notch, no-bezel display

That large size of the phone is thanks to the 6.6-inch FHD+ AMOLED display which looks absolutely gorgeous, with no notch or a bezel to limit that screen space. That’s also why Oppo calls it the panoramic display. I found the colours on the Reno 10X Zoom to be crisp and the text to be sharp. The brightness of the phone is good enough at 50 percent. [caption id=“attachment_6719001” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Oppo Reno 10X features a 6.6-inch AMOLED display. Image: tech2/Nandini Yadav[/caption]

It’s hard not to enjoy that 48 MP sensor and the 10X hybrid Zoom

While I was with the phone only briefly, and I couldn’t exactly test the camera in all possible lighting conditions, I did shoot a bunch of pictures and videos to get an idea of what to expect from the Oppo Reno 10X Zoom. [caption id=“attachment_6718991” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Oppo Reno 10X Zoom features a 16 MP selfie camera. Image: tech2/Priya Singh[/caption] In daylight, Oppo Reno 10X Zoom seemed to do a good job. The colour levels, the details, image sharpness seemed just right. However, the stabilisation in the video mode needs work. After a day of some heavy shoulder workout, my arms were shaky, and you can tell that evidently in the video sample in the Flickr album below. You will find a bunch of other high-resolution images I clicked from Oppo Reno 10X Zoom in the album. I did try out the 10X zoom on the Oppo Reno 10X as well. Now, even though Oppo calls it 10X Zoom, it is not 10X optical zoom but a 10X hybrid zoom. At 10X zoom, it manages to retain details. You can see the comparison of that below. Both these images were clicked at 1X and 10X Zoom from the same point. [caption id=“attachment_6718551” align=“alignnone” width=“964”]  Left clicked on 1X, right on 10X Zoom. Shot on Oppo Reno 10X Zoom.[/caption] [caption id=“attachment_6718561” align=“alignnone” width=“959”]  Left clicked on 1X, right on 10X Zoom. Shot on Oppo Reno 10X Zoom.[/caption] Another thing I noticed was the speed of the pop-up camera. While Oppo promises that even popping the shark fin up and down 200,000 times won’t spoil it, the speed at which the pop-up goes in bothered me personally. When you switch the selfie camera on, the shark fin pop-ups pretty quick, but when you shut it, it takes its own sweet time to go back in. The shark fin camera does have a fall-detection mechanism which allows the camera to pop back in when it detects a fall.

Specifications look promising

The specifications of the Oppo Reno 10X are undoubtedly top of the line. It features the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 SoC, 8 GB of RAM, 256 GB of storage, and 4,000 mAh battery. On paper, that’s the recipe for a great smartphone. Software-wise too, Oppo seems to have added a lot of tweaks like the HyperBoost tech to the device, which is aimed at making the gaming and overall performance of the phone better. It also comes with SuperVOOC 3.0 for fast charging. [caption id=“attachment_6718981” align=“alignnone” width=“1280”]  Oppo Reno 10X Zoom features a 4,000 mAh battery. Image: tech2/Nandini Yadav[/caption] However, what we look forward to finding out in our review of the Oppo Reno 10X Zoom is if it’s able to justify that price tag especially in an environment where it will be competing against the OnePlus 7, OnePlus 7 Pro. Oppo Reno 10X Zoom definitely has the design edge, but we will need to see how the 10X Zoom holds up in different lighting conditions and will the shark fin selfie camera deliver the goods as well.