Features

GadgetSnaps: OPPO Reno10 Pro 5G in Taiwan

Great camera versatility all day and night

Published

September 11, 2023

Vincenz

OPPO released not one, not two, but three variants in their newest Reno10 Series 5G lineup. As most of the people focus on the more premium Reno10 Pro+ 5G and the cheaper Reno10 5G models, the Reno10 Pro 5G has been sitting in the shadows — just like any middle-child (like me 👀).

Fun fact: It’s also the first time that OPPO is making a Pro variant of the Reno line widely available. Exciting times!

Triple Treat

Reno10 5G

The OPPO Reno10 Pro 5G is a downsized version of its ‘Plus’ sibling and a slightly upgraded one from the base model:

50MP f/1.8 main/wide with 1/1.56-inch sensor size (versus Reno10’s 1/2-inch 64MP f/1.7)
32MP f/2.0 2x telephoto (versus Reno10 Pro+’s 64MP f/2.5 3x periscope telephoto)
8MP f/2.2 ultra-wide

Taiwanderer

While it’s not my first time going to Taiwan, it was my first international trip without any work involved — and also a first traveling with my long-time high school friends.

COMPUTEX 2019

Last time I went here was for COMPUTEX 2019. That work trip made me fall in love with Taiwan.

1x wide | 3x digital

Now that the world has opened its borders for air travel, it’s also the perfect time to go back to where my wandering soul belongs.

Here’s a look at the streets and sights of Taiwan through the great camera versatility of the new OPPO Reno10 Pro 5G.

Fabulous Formosa

Taiwan’s former country name was “Formosa”, a name given by Portuguese sailors when they discovered the “beautiful island” during their voyage. These sights are testament to that.

Familiar face? That’s called the “Queen’s Head” which is an astonishing rock formation at Yehliu Geopark. There are even these mushroom and ginger rock formations.

This is just one among the many mesmerizing waterfalls you’ll find when you visit the Northern part of Taiwan around Yilan County.

Hidden Countryside

Taiwan isn’t just about stacks of buildings and factories. Once you go past Central Taipei, there are these picture-perfect naturesque views of the countryside.

Dreaming of a place like South Korea’s Pohang in the popular Korean series Hometown Cha-Cha-Cha? This hidden gem in a place far from the bustling streets of Taipei might just be your best bet. Even better if you go here during the summer time.

Not sure if this is a temple but it’s one landmark when visiting the tourist-packed Jiufen Old Street.

Shifen Old Street is another must-visit! Although throwing sky lanterns being held at the functioning rail road is the main attraction here, I just found the Jingan Suspension Bridge much more attractive because of how long and sturdy the bridge is despite the old age.

Urban Jungle

Unlike the countryside, going back to Central Taipei brings back these concrete-filled jungle with plethora of residential, office, and retail spaces.

In other parts of Taipei, nature still finds its way with these luscious parks and clean streets.

Exuding Grandeur

2x telephoto | 5x digital

1x wide | 2x telephoto

All these marvelous structures are the National Theater, National Concert Hall, and Liberty Square Arch. They are located at the Liberty Square near Chiang Kai-shek Memorial Hall.

Ultrarchitecture

Using the ultra-wide lens of the Reno10 Pro 5G, I was able to take even wider shots of these ultra-massive structures and interiors.

Believe it or not, there’s a massive moving wheel located at a mall’s 5th floor. That’s the Miramar Ferris Wheel.

It would be a big miss not to capture the famous Taipei 101 from a worm’s eye perspective.

Taipei on Top

Speaking of, we availed the priciest ticket going above the so called “Skyline460” at the topmost 101st floor with lesser tourists and window distractions.

A better treat since the 91st outdoor deck was closed due to an incoming typhoon (even though it was sunny out).

After an hour limit, we went back to the 89th observation deck and waited for the sun to set. Taipei’s skyline is one of the best to look at all day.

Equal Perspectives

As we’ve already transitioned to night time, it’s also a good time to test out the low-light capabilities of the Reno10 Pro 5G with these symmetrical perspective shots.

Livelier Nights

It would not be a complete Taiwan experience without exploring a night market. Shilin Night Market caters to cheaper food and goods.

Meanwhile, Ximending Night Market is meant for those who are into branded goods with a slash on price tags. It’s also a place to explore unique restaurants, cafés, milk tea shops, or snack stalls.

I opted not to shoot portraits as we already have a special feature about that using the Reno10 Pro+ 5G, but here’s a stolen shot of me taken by my friend as we enjoy gulping our fruit teas while munching that popular and extra large Hot Star chicken on the other.

Full on Food

Ending this write-up with my favorite part — and it’s none other than food!

I discovered this sweet treat from Northern China called “Tanghulu” through Reels. It’s essentially berries in a bamboo skewer coated in hardened sugar syrup. It’s delicious but the remnants are just ultra-sticky. Glad I was able to try one though.

Of course, trying and lining up for Din Tai Fung is a must in Taiwan because it’s a homegrown brand. While we have it back in the Philippines, what makes it very special is that it was actually my first time trying it — and it did not disappoint at all!

The Xiao Long Bao (whether pork, chicken, choco), dumplings, golden lava and choco buns, braised beef noodles, and even the fried rice are all to die for.

Even in small, underrated stalls, devouring these Taiwanese picks will still make you drool and full.

If you’re not fond of Asian cuisine, there are lots of food choices in Taiwan that cater to your cravings — such as this Bacon Pesto Pasta or the large AF Signature Burger from McDonald’s below.

Heck! Another first time here was eating South Korea’s staple Army Stew (부대찌개 / Budae Jjigae) in one food court near Taoyuan HSR Station.

It’s basically what Koreans ate during the end of the Korean War where food supply is scarce and the only option they have are American Army supplies (Spam, sausages, cheese) as well as what they possess (kimchi, noodles, meat/seafood, vegetables, gochujang, and gochugaru).

Phew! What a fusion and crossover of culture.

Last but definitely not the least, this rich and creamy brown sugar milk tea from the signature milk tea brand Xing Fu Tang to satisfy my sweet tooth.

Great camera versatility

What irks me when using midrange phones are those unnecessary camera sensors (*coughs* macro/depth/portrait) they place at the back just to say the phone has more than two cameras.

Fortunately, OPPO did the right thing by placing all the rear camera essentials on the Reno10 Pro 5G — which also applies to the Reno10 5G and Reno10 Pro+ 5G.

Despite not being the “best in the class” smartphone for mobile photography, using its camera was easy and enjoyable. And as someone who’s very keen to photography, I appreciate how OPPO delivered “pro-level” snaps that don’t look too processed after being taken — something I despise when using other phones, even the flagship ones.

While I haven’t used the additional features, you can also be extra creative by applying filters too and enjoy other modes too such as night, panorama, and most especially, its powerful portrait mode!

Slim yet full of power

I love how I never needed a powerbank when I used the OPPO Reno10 Pro 5G during this trip as it was able to give me a full-day of charge all thanks to its very sufficient 4600mAh battery — that’s despite having a slim and light chassis with a thickness (or should I say thinness) of just 7.9mm and 185 grams in weight.

That’s also with the consideration that I inserted a Taiwanese SIM and made the phone our portable 5G hotspot so my three other friends can also use the internet while we’re out and about.

In one instance, the phone ran out of juice after we reached our hotel around 10PM and I fell asleep quickly. Good thing there’s a bundled 80W SuperVOOC charger that tops up the phone in as quick as thirty minutes — very helpful when I forgot to charge it overnight and we’re already in a hurry going towards our first itinerary the next morning.

Moreover, I didn’t worry much about snapping a lot of photos as its base storage of 256GB is more than enough for my mobile photography needs. Usual midrange smartphones offer the usual 128GB storage or even a measly 64GB one.

And if you use third-party photo-editing apps, this extra storage space will also be handy especially when saving color-graded and/or post-processed photos that are quite bigger in size. There will be plenty of space for the #TravelGoals Stories you’ve edited and posted on Instagram as well!

A midranger that doesn’t feel like one

Stereotypes about midrange smartphones play around the word “middle” — having a so-so chipset, just enough battery capacity, tiny base storage, and mediocre cameras that may include senseless sensors just to say it has triple or quad camera system.

The snappy shutter, natural-looking image quality, plentiful camera modes, and camera flexibility between switching ultra-wide, wide, and telephoto zoom all deliver good shots that are post-worthy.

Plus the extra-handy features of having a big battery, super fast charging out of the box, and more than sufficient storage all contribute to the greatness of the OPPO Reno10 Pro 5G even if it’s “just a midranger”.

For its price and category, the OPPO Reno10 Pro 5G is and should be the standard of what a midrange smartphone should be like in 2023 and beyond.

The OPPO Reno10 series is available at its concept stores, official online store, Lazada, and Shopee for the following prices:

Reno10 Pro+ 5G: PhP 39,999
Reno10 Pro 5G: PhP 29,999
Reno10 5G: PhP 23,999

This feature is a collaboration between GadgetMatch and OPPO Philippines.

Features

Can the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G Survive?

REDMI Titan Durability Challenge!

Published

January 17, 2026

GadgetMatch and Michael Josh Villanueva

As someone who travels and is outdoors a lot, THE Michael Josh will be the first to admit that he is NOT gentle with his phones.

They live in his pockets, bags, hands. They get dropped, they get wet, and they get dusty.

So when REDMI asked him to test something they call “REDMI Titan Durability,” he figured the only fair way to do it was to put the REDMI Note 15 Pro+ 5G to the ultimate durability test.

Reviews

POCO M8 Pro review: Goin’ loco over this POCO

POCO starts 2026 with some bang

Published

January 15, 2026

Vincenz

Looking back at my first few months with GadgetMatch back in 2018 nostalgically evoked my Pocophone F1 core memory. It was touted as THE “flagship killer for less.”

Pre-pandemic, that “Pocophone” simply became “POCO” and became an “independent” kiddo who moved out of its parent’s house.

Almost eight years after that very first iteration, I’ve finally had my first (and long overdue) POCO-perience with the latest POCO M8 Pro.

Design: Repurposed with a purpose

While I have not held a POCO phone until very recently, I am still aware of the brand’s offerings over the years.

Seeing the POCO M8 Pro for the first time instantly reminded me of last year’s Redmi Note 14 Pro series. That’s not me saying POCO blatantly ripped the aesthetics as the POCO X7 also had the same design language.

Graphics by Vincenz Lee | GadgetMatch

Like a full circle moment, the aforementioned phones were launched back a year ago.

In all honesty, it still confuses me which direction Xiaomi is heading, especially with the non-stop rebadging of existing POCO and REDMI phones — just with scrambled internals and CMF (color, materials, finish).

Having said that, I still consider the M8 Pro a level up from the last M7 Pro. The former’s design felt like it was not given much importance.

The centered camera island with a squircle cutout seemed like a signature design element of Xiaomi’s newer midrange line moving forward.

I also love how the phone felt in my hands. Even with that plastic back, it felt grippy enough when held.

You have to be wary of fingerprint smudges though — especially if you rock the black colorway. Luckily, the green shade I have still looks clean despite those unwanted smears.

And, if you’re brave enough to clean it in running water, the POCO M8 Pro boasts not just one, not two, but quadruple IP ratings: IP66, IP68, IP69, and even IP69K. These used to be exclusive only among 2025 flagships.

Now Playing: IDOL I

Much like my fanaticism to anything tech, the same can be said with Korean Pop Stars. More known as “K-Pop Idols”, I have been a huge geek of K-Pop for 16 long years (and still counting).

Interestingly, after finishing a series that just ended in Netflix, IDOL I swiftly came by. Even if I am the type of viewer who values the drama’s synopsis more than the cast involved, this K-Drama instantly hit two birds in one.

For one, its starred by a true iconic idol herself: Choi Sooyoung — or one of the nine members of SNSD / Girls’ Generation a.k.a the ultimate 2nd generation K-Pop girl group I’ve been stanning since my youth.

Although Maeng Se-na here is a heartless and “selfish” lawyer, she is the opposite for being a huge (yet silent) fan of “Gold Boys” with Do Ra-ik as his “Ult” (or Ultimate Bias).

In a wild turn of events, the idol became a “murderer” overnight — blaming him for the sudden death of his co-member after waking up from their drinking session.

But, no matter how the general public looks at him as the prime suspect, finding faults against Ra-ik is difficult. That’s pointing out the fact that he was just sleeping in his bed while his former bandmate slash loyal friend got stabbed without clear answers.

I can pretty much say the same thing with the 6.83-inch screen of the POCO M8 Pro: I cannot see any fault at all.

For one, it’s an AMOLED display that made me enjoy binging the first four episodes non-stop. But, being able to display 68.7 billion Colors and 12-bit color depth aside from the usual HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support? That’s likely unusual for a phone in such price point.

And, with a 1.5K display resolution plus a pixel density of 447 ppi, it’s as crisp as it could get. Watching it outdoors is neither a problem with its mighty 3200 nits peak brightness.

While my eyes aren’t very sensitive to light and flicker, its 3840Hz PWM dimming and TÜV Rheinland Flicker-Free and Low Blue Light certifications are still worth mentioning — especially if you stay up all night binge-watching hours worth of titles like yours truly.

On Queue: Apink’s RE:LOVE + Chuu’s XO, My Cyberlove

Pumping up the volume by 60%, it’s expected that the POCO M8 Pro possesses a louder than ever sound output. However, my audio assessment doesn’t end just there.

Just like POCO starting the year with a bang, the K-Pop scene in January 2026 has already exploded with real hit bangers.

First and foremost, Apink finally gathered again to released their 11th Mini Album (their previous Mini Album dates back to 2020). As per usual, I used Apple Music to take full advantage of that Lossless format.

Their title track “Love Me More” not only brought a lot of the group’s nostalgic intro and dance break instrumental during their early days in the industry, it also reminded me of the pre-millennium K-Pop era back in the early 90s.

Pair that with b-sides such as “Sunshine” that sounded pure and soulful, this latest mini album will truly make Pink Pandas’ hearts flutter.

In addition, Chuu (LOONA) finally releases her 1st Full Album titled “XO, My Cyberlove.” It is a complete opposite of her first ever solo song “Heart Attack” almost a decade ago which highlighted her cutesy, innocent charms.

The comeback track of the same title is as quirky and whimsical as it gets. Not only does it highlight Chuu’s light yet ethereal vocals, but it shows her newer, more mature side.

Furthermore, lyrics that evoke unexpected budding love in this digital era where everyone enjoys making connections through the cyber world.

With POCO M8 Pro’s speakers, I fully enjoyed playing the entirety of her freshly-baked album while I was writing this piece. Teeny Tiny Heart and Love Potion are currently my fave b-sides from this release.

Such music fulfillment was possible with the Dolby Atmos stereo speaker setup and Hi-Res Audio support of the M8 Pro. Not only its proudly loud, the audio produced is full and immaculate with clear line between its highs, mids, and lows.

Performance: Adequate for most

On paper, the POCO M8 Pro runs Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 7s Gen 4 SoC based on a 4nm process. As confusing as it seems, this is different from the more powerful Snapdragon 7 Gen 4.

That being told, game settings will vary depending on how demanding one is.

For instance, CoDM (Call of Duty: Mobile) runs in Very High and Max settings upon first set-up.

Meanwhile, Racing Master (based on NVIDIA’s PhysX engine) can run Ultra settings at 60fps.

However, it throttles during the first two ranked races.

Fortunately, the game detects if it gets sluggish — suggesting lowering down the settings altogether.

Lastly, playing Zenless Zone Zero is doable but, at the lowest graphics by default.

You wouldn’t dare to go past it as Combat Mode will literally feel like combatting the phone itself due to how heavy the game is.

The only “remedy” for these hardware limitations? It’s none other than the Game Turbo mode that boosts graphics performance and input through Xiaomi’s software advancements. And it sort of helped make the gameplay smoother, but not fully.

For the rest of apps that are not graphics-intensive, the M8 Pro can breeze through various apps without hiccups, do split-screens, or multitasking along floating windows with ease.

I can truthfully say that the only thing dragging the POCO M8 Pro down is the software as a whole.

After experiencing the beauty of vivo’s OriginOS 6 and HONOR’s MagicOS 10, Xiaomi’s HyperOS still feels like an after-thought. While it can keep up with the modern-day Android features, its stability and optimizations simply don’t make the cut.

Besides, its built-in AI tools, device ecosystem, as well as cross-compatibility functionality aren’t as polished as what you get on other Chinese brands. Let alone, a rip-off from everyone’s fruit rival without much feature improvements.

Seriously, Xiaomi?

Worst thing? Maybe the ad slash bloatware infestation found not just on the lock screen. Even transferring personal files through Xiaomi’s native File Manager app plays an unskippable ad.

Battery: Eat it up! Eat it, eat it up! 🍝🎶

At 8.31mm, the POCO M8 Pro is as slender as it can get. How they were able to fit a 6500mAh battery inside its chassis is a true feat of engineering.

For the record, this is the first POCO M-series smartphone to have such a ginormous battery. It joins the same league as the POCO F8 Ultra, F7, and the X7 Pro (in India).

For added context, the M7 Pro, as well as the X7 with a similar form factor, only had a 5110mAh battery. But, numbers are just part of the story.

In day-to-day scenarios with light to moderate usage, the POCO M8 Pro can last you a full day — even more when you hit the bed with around 30% to spare.

As one would expect though, the biggest hogging can be felt when playing games.

During my gameplay stress test, downloading resources in Racing Master for about 30 minutes already consumed 5% charge (92% down to 87%). An hour of racing ate up 11 percent — from 87% down to 76%.

Letting it rest on my desk for 18 hours, the phone depleted to 51%.

At around 9 in the evening, I then started playing HoYoverse’s Zenless Zone Zero for exactly an hour. Battery charge went down further to 36%. Then, a 1.5-hour game in CoDM resulted to a 28% battery percentage. And, as of writing, the POCO M8 Pro still had a 3 percent charge left in its massive tank.

That said, the POCO M8 Pro comes with Xiaomi’s 100W wired HyperCharge speeds — adapter still bundled in the box.

By default, the battery charging speed is set in regular with the prompt / option to enable boosting.

In my GadgetMatch Charge Test results, it can be seen that the difference isn’t too far off.

	*Boosted HyperCharge*	*Regular HyperCharge*	*PPS Charging* (UGREEN 100W Nexode)
*START TIME* *From 0%*	1:11AM	3:10PM	4:06PM
3 minutes	10%	8%	1%
5 minutes	17%	11%	4%
*10 minutes*	25%	18%	13%
15 minutes	40%	23%	21%
20 minutes	46%	32%	28%
*30 minutes*	70%	50%	46%
45 minutes	88%	71%	67%
*1 hour*	99%	91%	84%
1 hour 15 minutes	–	99%	96%
*END TIME* *100%*	2:14AM 1 hour 3 minutes	4:27PM 1 hour 17 minutes	5:30PM 1 hour 24 minutes

PPS Charging is also possible. Although the device only showed “Quick Charge” while being filled up, it’s safe to say that it performs as fast as Xiaomi’s regular HyperCharge with a super close margin of only seven minutes.

Cameras: Surprisingly Satisfying

Prospective buyers of the M8 Pro wouldn’t have a hard time dealing with its conventional camera configuration: a 50MP f/1.6 main (wide) camera based on Light Fusion 800’s 1/1.55-inch sensor. That’s paired with a less outstanding 8MP f/2.2 UWA (ultra-wide angle) camera.

For the most part, the main camera does its job very well considering this type of device.

With the satisfactory 1x image sensor, 2x zoom is also possible, thanks to in-sensor cropping.

I honestly used the 2x mode more than I thought — especially when capturing my cats and food I devour.

You can go beyond the bounds. But, with obvious hardware limitations, the camera processing can only do so much.

Once that natural light disappears, it will be tricky to take low-light shots as this has NO dedicated Night Mode feature. No luck if you are using them indoors with artificial light around.

Instead, regular Photo Mode automatically detects a low-light subject and toggles Night Mode processing by itself.

While most results are satisfying, it’s also a testament that its cameras are far from being flawless.

Good thing, the flash exists for a funkier look in subjects that suit it — food specifically.

Portraits weren’t missed. Although it only relies on some software-based processing, it still gets the job done of separating the subject away from the background — humans and pets alike.

Personally, the aperture function was a bit of a nuisance.

For context, these shots were set to a low “f/1.8 aperture.” But, the M8 Pro rendered DoF (Depth of Field) that isn’t as shallow as what it’s supposed to show.

My frustration continues as the setting defaults back to f/4.5 after quitting and re-opening the camera app. That’s not even the standard lens opening when taking portrait photos.

And while we’re already here, selfies taken with its front-facing shooter.

Is the POCO M8 Pro your GadgetMatch?

While this isn’t the “flagship killer” most expect from a POCO phone, it’s hard not to go loco over how well-rounded yet wallet-friendly this POCO phone is — especially in the year 2026 where inflation is still unstoppable alongside the almost instantaneous and ridiculous RAM price hike.

ICYMI, the POCO M8 Pro has a starting price of GBP 299 / SG$ 389 / RM 1199 / PhP 16,999 (around US$ 279) for the 8+256GB configuration.

Meanwhile, the 12+512GB variant that I handle is priced at GBP 349 / SG$ 449 / RM 1499 / PhP 19,999 (approx. US$ 359).

Its closest rival is none other than the HONOR X9d. Coincidental or not, it was launched just a day after the unveiling of the M8 Pro.

Frankly, the only thing you’ll let go from HONOR’s sweet treat are its monstrous 8300mAh battery and more polished OS. This POCO-ffering blows it out of the water with a greater chipset, faster wired charging, bigger and better display, capable cameras, durability never forgotten.

Although it wasn’t totally highlighted, the POCO M8 Pro is undoubtedly a rebadged REDMI Note 15 Pro+ — Xiaomi’s midranger that heavily markets its “Titan Durability” capabilities.

The POCO M8 Pro has them all: from its sturdy aluminum frame, four IP ratings, even the fully-shielded front glass care of Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus 2. The biggest disparity? REDMI has a 200MP main camera over POCO’s 50MP shooter.

Despite some inconsistencies, the POCO M8 Pro is still an all-around midranger that will satisfy most users who want to purchase a shiny new smartphone without burning holes in your pockets.

It is a Swipe Right, Super Swipe, and a worthy recipient of the GadgetMatch Seal of Approval.