Smartphones are a necessity, but beyond that, they are also accessories. And you’d want one that reflects your taste, at least that’s important to me. And I know some of you might agree. If you’re the type who wants a device that performs well but also looks good, OPPO is offering the Reno6 5G.
You can probably already tell one of the reasons I’m giving you for picking the OPPO Reno6 as your next phone. But there are still a couple other reasons why you’d want to buy this smartphone. Let’s dive into those, yeah?
You want an eye-catching, sleek device
The OPPO Reno6 is undoubtedly one of the most attractive phones I’ve used this year. The boxy, “ultra slim retro design” that OPPO mentions is a bit iPhone-esque to me in shape (at least those of years past). It has a flat-edged middle frame, smoothed edges, and comes in at 7.59mm thick and weighs 182g. It feels solid, compact, and as premium as it looks, and really, it’s that look that will hook you. At least it did that with me.
OPPO lent us the Aurora variant, and that ever-changing cool shade mimics the dazzling Northern lights the option is named after. The color shifting from that mint green, baby blues, and hints of orange is so beautiful. It’s the first phone in a while I didn’t want to put in a case. (The phone is also available in Stellar Black for those who want a more subtle look.)
The company applies its Reno Glow finish, giving that sparkling look to the matte glass. So, even with that shimmer, it isn’t a fingerprint magnet. I still opted to use the included silicone case on the phone, but I did so to offer a bit of protection and not to avoid getting smudges on it. That’s one less worry you’ll have with this phone.
In front, the OPPO Reno6 gets a 6.4-inch AMOLED screen with a 91.7% screen-to-body ratio, 20:9 aspect ratio, and a 2,400 x 1,080 FHD+ resolution. Bezels are really thin on the sides and just slightly thicker at the top and the chin. And the only other interruption is the cutout for the selfie camera. There don’t seem to be any weird display issues. It’s sufficiently bright when I’m outside and pretty dim if I’m using it in a dark room.
For a smoother browsing experience, it has a 90Hz refresh rate and up to 180Hz touch sampling rate. OPPO also equips this handset with a 360-degree light-sensing tech using two sensors that can detect ambient light. It’s designed to improve auto-brightness, which does seem to work quite well. The same goes for the under-display fingerprint scanner, which typically works. But to make logins faster, I’ve paired that with the face unlock, too.
You vlog and focus on portraits more
OPPO equips the Reno6 with a triple rear camera array and a single front camera. The rear setup includes a 64-megapixel main paired with an 8-megapixel wide-angle, a 2-megapixel macro, along with a color temperature sensor. In front, there is a 32-megapixel camera.
This setup makes sure you can get some awesome photos and videos. And it can really get you that. Low light performance is also pretty good, especially with the help of Night mode. Photo quality will take a dip, of course, but the Reno6 has different Night mode options to help you get your shot.
On a really bright and sunny day, you don’t even need to do anything to the photos you take. Those are easily shareable. If you want higher-quality images, you can use the full 64-megapixel resolution.
You get other camera modes like Portrait, Dual-View Video, Slo-Mo, Time-Lapse, Pano, Text Scanner, Macro, Sticker, and SOLOOP Templates. That last one can help you create TikTok or Instagram Reels-ready content. If you’re a bit savvier with the camera, there are also Expert and Movie modes. As you may guess, the former is for photos, and the latter is for videos.
But where the OPPO Reno6 shines is with its video and photo capabilities when taking portraits. The Reno6 is the “AI Portrait Video Expert” that you can pull out and record your subjects in the best way possible.
One way to do that is with the cinematic Bokeh Flare Portrait, which turns the background light of a cityscape or the light through trees into this dreamy, sparkling effect. The company’s AI algorithms pinpoint natural light sources in the background to create those bokeh light spots, imitating what professional cameras do when recording videos. You get a real-time preview of how the effect looks, so you don’t have to worry about post-editing.
The effect works relatively well. I haven’t really seen a smartphone camera that gets separation perfect, and so I’m not surprised that the Reno6 struggles a bit at some angles. The separation of the background and the foreground is pretty good, though. And the effect achieves what it sets out to do. It works with both the front and the rear cameras, and in tandem with its Beautification filters, so you can produce some dreamy-looking footage out of this mode.
Another way to get great videos is through a feature OPPO calls AI Highlight Video. It’s the AI icon at the top in between the Ultra Steady and Bokeh functions. It’s designed to improve overall video clarity and quality, whether you’re working against a backlit environment or at night or in low light conditions. It works to give you more detailed textures even in darker areas using AI Highlight Video’s Live HDR Algorithm. It tries to preserve the original color and detail of your footage.
I tried shooting with the sunlight hitting me from the back, and I could see it working to make sure I looked well-lit head-on. With the front-facing camera, you can use AI Highlight Video with Ultra Steady, which I think can work if you’re vlogging outdoors and want to make sure you’re easily seen and get stabilized video at the same time. The rear camera doesn’t allow for that, though. You have to use it separately. AI Highlight Video and Ultra Steady can record at 720p or 1080p with the selfie camera. The rear cam records AI Highlight at 720p or 1080p at 30 frames second, while it captures Ultra Steady clips at 1080p at 60fps.
LiTT Tip #1: Focus tracking is possible on the OPPO Reno6’s camera. It’s easy to enable, too. Head to Settings (the two dots at the top right corner when you’re in Photo or Video), tap on Settings, and then scroll down to the Video section. You will see the Focus lock option there with a toggle to enable it. So, when you’re shooting, all you need to do is double-tap on the area on the screen or the subject you want to focus on.
You need a phone that can keep up with you
Android smartphones have typically gotten good at offering all-day use, and the OPPO Reno6 is no exception. Yes, even as a 5G device, I could get a total of 24 hours of runtime with an average of six to eight hours of screen-on time. Granted, I’ve spent that time mostly at home with Wi-Fi. That could drastically change when I spend more time outside my home than in it.
But this handset also has fast charging to back it up. It supports OPPO’s 65W SuperVOOC 2.0, allowing you to charge the phone completely as quickly as 28 minutes. Granted, the OPPO Reno6 has a slightly smaller 4,300mAh battery capacity. But that’s still as quick as you can get with that fast-charging tech.
In my testing, it was typically around 35 to 40 minutes, which is still impressive. I work in a non-airconditioned room, and charging conditions are affected by different temperatures. I was checking in on the charging once and got up to 33% in just 10 minutes. So, if you only have time for a quick top-up, you can get a solid recharge from that already.
OPPO equips the Reno6 with a MediaTek Dimensity 900 with an integrated 5G chip, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage. The company brings its RAM Expansion tech into this handset, turning available storage or ROM into virtual RAM. You get the option to choose between 2GB/3GB/5GB. This offers you a smoother overall experience, even when you’re running multiple apps simultaneously or playing resource-hungry games. It will eat up that space in your storage, though, so if you have a lot of files on your phone, you might not be able to use this. That’s why it’s a bit disappointing there is no storage expansion on this phone.
I don’t really play mobile games much, but I’ve spent many hours on Brawl Stars and Cooking Battle without any performance drops. I switch between different social media apps, watch shows on Netflix and Viu and videos on YouTube, and check my Gmail or write on OneNote. Even the photo or video testing sessions didn’t really trip up this phone. It did heat up slightly while I recorded the video samples above, but not to an alarming extent. It runs as smoothly as I expect a phone in its price range to run. I also had 3GB RAM expansion enabled, which I think the phone has on by default.
Speaking of content consumption on this phone, the speaker volume is loud, but the quality isn’t that remarkable. It’s okay, but I just ended up using earbuds most of the time, especially since I can take advantage of Dolby Atmos profiles this way. It lets you choose profiles based on your environment (indoor, on-the-go, commute, and flight) and scenarios (movie, gaming, music, and smart).
And if you’re wondering, you can enjoy Netflix content in Full HD, but it doesn’t support HDR here. You can probably enable the Video Color Enhancer mode in the settings to get better colors on what you’re watching. OPPO also got an HD certification for Amazon Prime, so that should work fine there, too.
LiTT Tip #2: If you want to enable or disable RAM Expansion, head to Settings > About phone > RAM. Tap on the RAM information, and that’s where you can toggle the option on or off.
LiTT Tip #3: You might be on the go and busy most of the time. But OPPO knows you need to take some time to rest, too. OPPO released a new O Relax 2.0 app to help you unwind. You can use it to listen to soothing sounds or play mini-games that help relieve anxiety. Or try out the new Sounds of the Cities, which plays ambient, calming sounds from different locations worldwide.
What’s lit and what’s not?
What’s lit about it:
- Eye-catching design
- Solid build
- Highly customizable user interface
- Easy, one-click portrait-focused videos
- Pretty good low light photography capabilities
- Decent battery life with speedy charging
- RAM expansion for better performance
What needs the extra spark:
- So-so speaker quality
- Too many preinstalled apps
- Wishing for a larger battery capacity
- No storage expansion
Final thoughts
If I liken the OPPO Reno6 5G to a person, it mixes beauty and brains quite well. I have to repeat it because it really is one of the most attractive phones I’ve used this year. That’s paired with a reliable, speedy performance many typical smartphone users will be happy with. And then you get those handy camera features built for those who love taking portraits or recording memorable moments with loved ones.
The OPPO Reno6 5G retails for PHP 26,999 (around USD 534 converted).
* If you buy something from this link, LiTT may earn a commission, but it won’t cost you extra. Prices are subject to change without prior notice.