Oppo is back. This time it’s launching the A78 5G in the South African market, a mid-range device that should get the job done without breaking the bank. Oppo’s A78 5G officially hits South African shelves later this week and it’ll do so at less than R9,000.
Sticking to a budget
First, the important stuff. Oppo’s thrown in a 5,000mAh battery that competes with Samsung’s latest flagship: the S23 Ultra. Where Oppo loses that edge is with 33W wired charging, something that Samsung just managed to beat with 45W wired charging. At least this one won’t cost you R31,000, right? And, if you care, Oppo has thrown in a plethora of features that it claims will improve battery life significantly. Whether you believe it or not is up to you.
Don’t expect anything special from the A78’s screen. It’s a fairly standard 6.6 IPS LCD, hitting that 720 x 1612 mark. It can reach a 90Hz refresh rate should you so desire, coupled with a peak brightness of 600 nits. It’s enough to muddle along with at the price Oppo is asking. We’d have expected a slightly better offering for the part of the phone your eyes have to look at the most. Still, it’s hard to complain when you’re keeping the budget below R10,000.
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One thing Oppo has gotten right is the inclusion of 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. That’s plenty for the average person, though if you’re choosing it for anything more than an everyday phone… don’t. Its MediaTek MT6833 Dimensity 700 chipset is just powerful enough to get you through a day’s tasks (and connect you to a 5G network). It’ll handle gaming, though we can promise you won’t be hitting any beautiful no-scopes on this thing.
The camera is really where the A78 5G shines. At least, that’s what Oppo wants you to believe. The smartphone manufacturer talks a big game, offering up features like AI Portrait retouching and the like. In reality, there’s not much to not like here. The 50MP main sensor is great, especially when with help from the 2MP self-portrait lens. Flip it over, and you’ll find a lone 8MP sensor. It’s not quite as good as other mid-range offerings we’ve seen recently, but it’ll get the job done.
Coming to a store (or service provider) near you
At first glance, everything may seem… sub-par. That’s by design on Oppo’s end, which was looking to create a decent smartphone for an affordable price. And… they’ve done that. Compared to Samsung’s latest flagships (which cost upwards of R20,000), the A78 5G’s starting price of R8,900 is nothing to scoff at. You could also throw that money at Samsung’s Galaxy A53, but that’s just a suggestion.
The Oppo A78 5G hits shelves later this week.