Hands-On

OPPO A92: The A9 2020 in a different skin

Makes you think it’s new

Published

June 22, 2020

There’s nothing particularly striking about the OPPO A92. In many aspects it’s… just right. The battery performance is stellar, and ColorOS 7.1 is in the running as one of my favorite Android skins. Everywhere else, it’s just solid.

It might seem underwhelming on paper, but if you think about it, it’s practically right in line with what you ought to expect from a smartphone at this price. Anything else that goes beyond this is a bonus.

Here’s a quick look at the specs:

OPPO A9 2020
Display	6.5” IPS LCD
Processor	Qualcomm Snapdragon 665
RAM + ROM	8GB + 128GB
Cameras	Quad rear (48MP + 8MP + 2MP + 2MP) Punch hole selfie (16MP)
Battery	5,000mAh
Unlock	Side-mounted fingerprint scanner
Other connections	USB-C, 3.5mm jack

To me, this represents the baseline of what you should expect from a midrange smartphone. Nothing too fancy, nothing gimmicky, just the right amount of performance to get you through whatever it is you need to get through.

Solid, steady performance

I used the phone for roughly a week. Coming from flagship smartphones, I can definitely feel the difference but it still did what I needed it to do.

Browsing social media and jumping from Facebook, to Twitter, and then Instagram, and then back to Twitter is relatively smooth. There was no significant slow down but, as I’ve mentioned, if you are coming from a flagship you will notice a difference. There’s a bit of a drag, but it’s negligible for the most part.

I didn’t really do a lot of mobile gaming on the phone save for a few Asphalt 9 races. Just like everything about this phone, the experience is… okay.

I did have some trouble when the things on screen I needed to press were located near the edge. The phone just didn’t respond right away and it caused mild stress on my part. Told OPPO about this and it might be an isolated case with the unit I was lent.

Is it really a binge-watch machine?

The short answer is yes. We partnered with OPPO upon the phone’s launch and our talking point is how this phone can probably last longer than you during binge-watch sessions.

With a 5,000mAh battery and no exorbitant features to eat-up that power, the phone does last long. In this video (which I will also reluctantly add in this article), I noted how I didn’t charge the phone after an overnight binge-watch test. I used it sparingly over the next three days and it still didn’t run out of juice.

I can confidently say this will probably get you to a day and a half, even with heavy usage.

That UI is so damn clean

Other than Samsung going from TouchWi to OneUI, ColorOS’ journey from an iOS-wannabe to embracing everything about Android has been one of my favorite Android skin transformations.

There’s still a fair amount of bloatware and an annoying AppMarket, but everywhere else, ColorOS 7.1 is clean, extremely customizable, and just smooth to use and navigate.

You can pick the icon shape and style, and dark mode can even force apps that don’t have a dark mode yet to, well, go dark. It’s still a pretty shaky execution but they do a better job than vivo’s FunTouchOS. That’s at least true for the forced dark mode on the Facebook app.

Is it really an upgrade from the OPPO A9 2020?

This is a rather tricky question to answer. In terms of succession, yes, this is a follow-up to the OPPO A9 2020, but the only real differences are its weight, design. Even the weight part is nearly negligible with OPPO A9 2020 at 195g and OPPO A92 at 192g.

Some significant changes though are the fingerprint scanner location (side-mounted on the OPPO A92 vs rear on the OPPO A9 2020) and the selfie camera (punch hole on OPPO A92 vs waterdrop on OPPO A9 2020).

Side-mounted fingerprint scanner/power button

Otherwise, you get the same quad camera setup (48MP + 8MP + 2MP + 2MP), the same selfie camera (16MP), the same processor (Qualcomm Snapdragon 665), and the same configuration (8GB + 128GB). They even share the same launch pricing (PhP 15,990 or US$320).

For the most part, it’s the same phone under a different skin. If you liked the look of the OPPO A9 2020, then go for that one as it should be cheaper now. Personally, I think that design had more of an identity.

The OPPO A92 exists to create the illusion that after only six months, the company might have something new to offer — which isn’t the case. It’s like your ex coming back dressed differently. But deep inside, it’s just the same person.

Hands-On

OPPO Reno15 F 5G hands-on

More question marks than exclamation points?

Published

March 6, 2026

Manila Connoisseur

The OPPO Reno15 Series 5G made its way to the Philippines last month, and reception has been pretty great so far.

With a powerful camera package, AI, and a slew of upgrades, there’s a lot to love and not much negative to say. But that’s with both the standard and Pro models.

On the other hand, with the Reno15 F 5G — the series’ supposed budget-friendly “lite” variant —there were more question marks than exclamation points.

I attack this piece once more from a consumer standpoint: shelling out PhP 23,000 to PhP 26,000 for a midrange smartphone that feels and performs like it’s a few notches below its segment doesn’t sound too pleasant.

Performance

With a Snapdragon 6 Gen 1 processor, the OPPO Reno15 F performs pretty much like any sub PhP 20,000 mid-ranger. It’s acceptable, but does not punch above its weight as expected.

No major hiccups for light and casual usage. But performance struggles a lot for demanding video games.

It also heats up significantly just 10 minutes into a title like Honkai: Star Rail. This is a stark contrast to the marketed 25℃ and up to 10 hours straight of smooth gameplay.

Although, the experience was still enjoyable with several wins and MVP runs in Call of Duty Mobile. It only means the F variant remains a more camera-centric phone rather than an a hard-hitting all-arounder.

As with other devices, the 7000mAh battery with 80W SUPERVOOC is a strong suit. You’re fueled from dawn ’til dusk, with much to spare. Recharging takes a breeze, too.

Display

The OPPO Reno15 F has a 6.57-inch 120Hz display, with a 92.8% screen-to-body ratio. At least, that allows you to focus on content on the screen.

Content leans more towards the cooler tone, so you’ll have to adjust it manually if you want a warmer or more vivid look.

The 397ppi pixel density is fine to ensure sharper visuals, while the 1400 nits peak brightness is helpful outdoors.

Camera

The device’s 50MP main camera captures decent quality. The color science leans on being natural anew, without being too dull nor washed out. You can pull off smooth portraits too.

I hardly used the phone for stills as I focused on videos, but here are some samples, on the occasions I was able to take the handset with me:

The 50MP front camera is an intriguing add-on, as it is capable of up to 4K video and a wide 100° field of view.

What this does is it essentially removes the need to flip your phone for the popular “0.5” shots. And the quality doesn’t get compromised given the pixel count.

Here are some selfies from different focal lengths:

To its credit, filming with the back camera at 60fps does look and feel smooth, although it can be improved.

Same with the front camera; and the zoom range can be switched from 0.6 to 2x without cutting the recording.

Although, it’s still best to use a selfie stick or small tripod if you’re just after talking head videos.

Speaking of which, here are a few I’ve made with just this device:

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♬ Kìa Bóng Dáng Ai – Pháo

@manilaconnoisseur

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♬ original sound – Manila Connoisseur – Manila Connoisseur

But for travel and on-the-go captures, as OPPO markets for the series in general, even the Reno15 F can cover a lot of background along with your or your groups’ faces.

Make no mistake, there are some useful AI editing features here. In particular, AI Portrait Glow gives your raw capture an effect to make it look it was taken with flash.

I do not recall the device heating up as well when taking many photos or videos, so you can say it’s more optimized for that task rather than gaming.

Connectivity issues

Meanwhile, AI LinkBoost 3.0, as in the case of the OPPO A6 Pro, doesn’t seem to punch above its weight either.

Once, I also played Mobile Legends: Bang Bang and the session opened to a jittery start despite being on Wi-Fi and having a stable connection. I don’t know what triggered this.

Design, feel

We got the Aurora Blue variant which does kind of resemble the northern lights when you tilt the phone a certain way and when light hits its back panel.

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The cursive “Reno” on the large, protruding camera island gives it more style.

However, it’s all just aesthetics. On the downside, the phone is all sorts of slippery.

I couldn’t hold it properly without think of it slipping away from my hands; nor could I put it on my lap with confidence.

So I guess it’s good that it has structural integrity and waterproofing, because you’ll need that.

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The 6.57-inch body does have a good balance between being too compact and too large, like ultras and pro maxes.

It has a squarish body and has already adapted to the premium, aluminum frame look from the sides.

Is this your GadgetMatch?

Sadly, the OPPO Reno15 F 5G is a Swipe Left unlike its bigger, more capable siblings. There are plenty of plus points for the camera package but take that away, and I don’t see much difference between the Reno15 F and something like the A6 Pro.

Granted, the asking price of this phone will drop significantly in a few months. But throw in a little more, and you’ve got a legitimate mid-ranger that’s more on the premium side rather than the cheap end of the spectrum.