It’s been so long since Oppo had anything ready for South Africa; we were beginning to wonder if it ever truly loved us, or if it was just using Saffas for their money. The jury’s still out on that after the company unveiled the Oppo Reno 16 F 5G yesterday, bringing with it a R17,000 price for what appears to be a decent mid-ranger.
Oppo’s looking for a winner here
That praise has to do with the 120Hz 6.57in FHD+ AMOLED display, sure, but the real hero is the 7,000mAh battery. Not to mention the 80W charging, too. “With the Reno16 F 5G, we wanted to give people more freedom to be creative with what they capture, while making sure the phone can keep up with how they use it every day.”
Whether the Dimensity 7300 Energy powering the Reno can keep up with the average Saffa remains to be seen. It’s more than two years old at this point, but it does provide 5G connectivity. As if the name didn’t give it away. It’s got 8GB of RAM to back it all up, with only 256GB of storage, though a microSD card slot makes up for it.
Read More: Oppo’s A7 Pro revealed in China, packing an SA-worthy 8,000mAh battery
Oppo’s making a big stink about the 50MP ‘Ultra-Clear Main Camera’ fixed to the rear. It’s sat alongside a 50MP 3.5x telephoto portrait, while an 8MP ultra-wide rounds out the offerings. In terms of design, the Reno 16 F looks like every other mid-ranger, though Oppo really wants you to think the ‘3D Pop Planet design’ is special. It isn’t. But we’ll never say no to an IP69K rating. The Reno 16 F is available in Pop White and Twilight Violet colourways.
All in all, it seems a competent mid-ranger undeserving of the R17,000 price tag. We’ll have more to say on the subject once the device makes its way to Stuff for review. If you’re not buying outright, Oppo’s selling the Reno 16 F 5G at Vodacom, Telkom, MTN, Cell C, and Takealot. It’ll be available on contract for R600/m over 36 months.
