Review verdict: OPPO refined what’s good with the Find X3 Pro with the Find X5 Pro, incorporating external and internal upgrades, but we’re wary of its potential price tag when it arrives in the Philippines.
Pros
- Retains seamless design of the Find X3 Pro
- Best in class display
Cons
- Mirror gloss finish (on the black model) is a smudge magnet
- Lots of bloatware
- Post-processing can go overboard at times
OPPO Find X5 Pro Specs:
- Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor
- 12GB LPDDR5 RAM
- 256GB UFS 3.1 storage
- 6.7-inch Quad HD+ LTPO AMOLED display, 120hz refresh rate, 1000hz touch sampling rate, HDR10+
- 50-megapixel f/1.7 Sony IMX 766 main camera with Omni-Directional PDAF and 5-axis OIS, 50-megapixel f/2.2 Sony IMX 766 ultra-wide-angle camera, 13-megapixel f/2.4 telephoto camera with 5x hybrid optical zoom, Hasselblad color calibration
- 32-megapixel f/2.4 IMX709 selfie camera
- 3G, 4G, 5G
- WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, in-display fingerprint scanner
- Stereo speakers, Dolby Atmos, IP68 rating, MariSilicon X chip
- 5000mAh battery
- 80w wired charging, 50w wireless charging
- Android 12, ColorOS 12.1
It has been almost 3 months since the Find X5 Pro was announced in China, and it seems that OPPO will be bringing over its premium flagship to the Philippines soon. Ahead of its launch, we got our hands on an engineering unit to give our thoughts about it.
Design
Save for the obvious Hasselblad co-branding, the Find X5 Pro retains the unique design language of the Find X3 Pro–and simply refined it. Instead of glass, OPPO uses ceramic on the Find X5 Pro’s back panel, which helps the camera module integrate seamlessly into the main body, much more than its predecessor.
One thing we didn’t like about the new design for the Find X5 Pro is OPPO’s decision to use a mirror gloss finish on the black colorway we were lent for the review. It attracts smudges like you wouldn’t believe, and we’re thankful that the included case has a matte finish that is just as stylish as the ceramic back panel.
Since we’re talking about refining the design language of the predecessor, the button and port layout on the Find X5 Pro is the same as the Find X3 Pro, and the same pretty much applies to its ergonomics.
Display
While you appear to get the same panel used on the Find X3 Pro, the Find X5 Pro uses an LTPO 2.0 panel, which should translate to better power efficiency, and a more durable Gorilla Glass Victus protecting it.
Echoing our sentiments on the Find X3 Pro’s display, the Find X5 Pro has one of the best displays you can find on any smartphone right now.
Cameras
The Find X5 Pro’s cameras are practically the same as what you’d find on the Find X3 Pro, but you lose the unique (albeit gimmicky) microscope camera for the Hasselblad color calibration. Also new on the Find X5 Pro is OPPO’s Marisilicon X NPU, which is meant to improve the Find X5 Pro’s post-processing capabilities compared to its predecessor.
Factoring in that our review unit is an engineering sample, the main thing we noticed with the photos we took with the Find X5 Pro is that there are instances that the Marisilicon X NPU tends to apply too much post-processing, making the photos less natural than usual. We are optimistic that OPPO will fine-tune the Marisilicon X’s post-processing capabilities with the retail units.
Internals and Battery Life
As expected of any 2022 flagship, the Find X5 Pro comes with a Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 processor that’s paired with 12GB RAM and 256GB internal storage.
Considering that we’re reviewing an engineering unit, the Find X5 Pro performed close to other Snapdragon 8 Gen 1-powered phones in Geekbench 5 Single core and 3DMark Wild Life but trailed behind with Geekbench 5 Compute and Multi-core. There’s still room for improvement for OPPO to optimize the Find X5 Pro’s internals with the retail release, so we might get updated scores once we get our hands on a retail unit.
Speaking of optimization, we noticed that the Find X5 Pro did heat up a bit while we used it for extensive photography. Again, this may be addressed with the retail version, so it’s something you should not worry about for now.
The Find X5 Pro comes with Android 12-based ColorOS 12 out of the box, and one thing we immediately noticed is that it comes with a bunch of bloatware pre-installed–more than we expect on a premium flagship device.
You get a bigger 5000mAh battery on the Find X5 Pro, along with 80w wired charging and 50w wireless charging. While we could not run PCMark’s battery benchmark test properly on the Find X5 Pro, using it moderately gave us enough juice to survive a full work day.
Wrap up and Conclusions
OPPO went for a practical approach with the Find X5 Pro by refining everything that’s great with the Find X3 Pro. However, we’re still wary of its possible pricing here in the Philippines, considering that its image post-processing is not as refined as the engineering unit we used for this review.
OPPO Find X5 Pro Review Price Philippines
OPPO has yet to confirm if they will make the Find X5 Pro available in the Philippines as of press writing, but we will update everyone once the brand reveals pricing and availability details.
