Following on from last year’s Oppo Reno 2, 2020 sees the launch of the Reno 3 and the Reno 3 Pro. In this review we are going to be looking at the more expensive of these new options the 3 Pro version.
Sadly, it has lost the great shark fin, pop-up selfie camera of the 2, replacing it with a cut-out in the main screen. The 3 Pro has a 6.4” Super AMOLED screen with 87.4% screen to body ratio, 405 PPI, 1080 resolution and a 20:9 ratio. It claims to have a max brightness of 800 nits, meaning it should be easily viewable outdoors in bright light.
The screen is Gorilla Glass 5, while the back and frame are plastic, which is surprising in a handset of this cost. This gives it a weight of 175g and despite the plastic back, a premium look and feel in the hand.
Mid-range internals
Inside the Reno 3 Pro is a mid-range Helio P95 processor backed up by 8GB of RAM and 128 or 256GB of expandable storage. This is all powered by 4025 mAh battery with fast charging that will give you a claimed 50% in 20 min. A 4000 mAh battery is becoming the norm in 2020, so this does not really stand out when you compare it to handsets like the upcoming Samsung M30S, with its giant 6000 mAh offering – and likely to be at a cheaper price.
It ships with the latest Android 10 and Oppo’s own ColorOS 7. It also has an under-screen fingerprint scanner, single speaker and 3.5mm headphone jack.
World’s biggest selfie camera
Finishing off with the cameras. The main array is a quad one mounted top left in a vertical line. It consists of a primary 64MP f/1.7 wide, 13MP f/2.4 telephoto, 8MP f/2.2 ultrawide and a 2MP f/2.4 black & white depth sensor. A combination that covers all the bases expected of a medium to top range handset in 2020.
On the front there are 2 selfie cameras in a neat pill-shaped cut out at the top left of the screen. These are a massive 44MP f/2.4 wide and a 2MP f/2.4 depth. The 44MP means the Reno 3 Pro is the first phone in the world to use this as size as a selfie camera. So, great things will be expected of it.
No-man’s land
Will this phone sell in what is now becoming a very crowded mid-range sector? I think a lot will come down to the price. If, as looks likely, prices will start at around £500 (and another £70 for the 5G version), it might be a bit costly for most people who are looking for a good mid-ranger, when you can get a lot (but not all) of its features for around £200 less. I think what is really off-putting at this price is the plastic back, you would expect glass for £500!
The Reno 3 Pro could end up being in a no-man’s land between the mid-rangers and the flagship killers without really sitting comfortably in either category.
