[REVIEW] OPPO R5 – The Slimmest Smartphone In The World

This article originally appeared on Vulcan Post.

Earlier this year, we talked about OPPO being the new smartphone contender in Southeast Asia. OPPO has seen even further success, and has just launched the OPPO R5. With a thickness of less than 5mm, the R5 is the world’s slimmest full high-definition smartphone. It’s also equipped with technology such as an octa-core Qualcomm MSM 8939 and a 5.2-inch AMOLED screen. 

Key Specifications:

Enough of the jargon, let’s get down to the review!

Unboxing

The R5 comes in a sleek sturdy black box, and opens to show the phone. Lift the flap, and you’ll see the usual – charger, earpiece, mini-handbook, and a metal clip for the Micro SIM.

According to OPPO’s press release, the R5 is built with first-grade steel and designed with a micro-arc frame to make the entire device smooth and strong.  It’s also ‘manufactured to fit your hand like a glove’, and you know what? That really rings true – you need to go to the nearest store to try it out yourself.

The first thing you’ll notice is that… the phone is really THIN. As mentioned, it measures less than 5mm in width, and that few millimetres compared to your average phone makes all the difference when you’re holding on to it.

My only gripe was that the back of the phone got uncomfortably warm after 10 minutes of photo-taking. We’re told that the R5 features a heat dissipation technology, so I’m not sure if this was an isolated issue. I didn’t encounter this problem after watching an hour’s worth of YouTube videos though – so this could be the fault of my overzealous photo-taking.

You’ll see the reason behind my enthusiasm over the R5’s camera here. With the front and rear camera at 5 and 13 megapixels respectively and an aperture of F2.0, coupled with the maximum focus time of 0.18 seconds, the camera is one of the R5’s strongest features. We’ll let the pictures do the talking, shall we?  (Tip: expand the photo, and you’ll be able to see how sharp the details are.)

We were told that the R5 takes vibrant pictures in low-light environments, so naturally, I had to test it, and you can judge for yourselves.

Of course, in the world of Instagram, what about food photos, you might ask? Don’t worry, we’ve got that covered too.

While a 13MP rear camera may be pretty normal in today’s standards, at 5MP, the R5’s front camera’s one of most advanced in the market. The camera function comes along with in-built filters, so you won’t have to do it via Instagram, or any social media platform you’re posting on. Because it’s such a great selfie camera, it softens your complexion too, and I could detect some blush on some of my selfies, too.

If you think it can’t get any better, the rear camera records videos in full HD.

New users may find the ergonomics of the R5 a problem – but only for a while. The power and volume controls are on the right side of the phone, and I found myself tweaking the volume control or switching off the phone by accident until I got accustomed to it. Like most phones, the volume control acts as a shutter too, so the sensitivity’s a plus in this case. The phone also took about 30 seconds to start up – another small issue, but it could be frustrating if you need it switched on urgently.

1 Week Review

While there are other larger phones in the market,  R5’s ultra-slimness is a plus (imagine holding on to your phone for a prolonged period!). Sleek and elegant, I’d give it a 10 out of 10 for aesthetics. Also worth highlighting is the phone’s VOOC mini rapid charging system, where a 30-minute charge will provide 75% battery life and a five-minute charge allows for a two-hour call.

With the quick-charging function, ultra-thin width, a rear camera that takes pretty decent shots and the 5MP front camera (because we’re livin’ in the era of selfies and selfie sticks), I’d say that theis would be especially perfect for people who’ve been bitten by the travel bug.

Every phone has its pros and cons, and for the R5, the pros definitely outweighs the cons. I had just one week with it, but it was enough to turn me from a “Oh, I’ll get a new phone only when my current one dies on me and may that be NEVER” to someone who’s looking forward to my next phone, and OPPO’s got itself a new fan (who was also quite reluctant to bid goodbye to my loan).

Just for entertainment’s sake, here’s a Facebook video about the R5’s durability (we’re not encouraging you to try it, of course!).  Somebody really did conduct some impact tests on YouTube. Watch the video to see how it fared.

You can visit the OPPO R5 site for more information.