Love it or hate it, AI is indeed the future. And with OPPO’s Reno12 Series, AI photography the name of the game. We gave the brand-new OPPO Reno12 Pro 5G a whirl — and here’s what we think after two weeks!
First and foremost, let me start out by saying that I’m not the most excited about AI taking over our digital world. I am among those people who watched The Terminator one too many times and grew up believing AI is bad in pretty much any form — which, in hindsight, is rather harsh. AI has proven itself to be extremely helpful when it comes to convenience, accuracy, and saving a lot of time when there are too many tasks at hand. And, as is the case in the new OPPO Reno12 Pro 5G, making portrait photography that much easier and smoother.
The OPPO Reno12 Pro 5G marks the third smartphone by the brand I’ve gotten to review (after the OPPO Reno10 Pro+ and the OPPO Find X5 Pro), and what I still find impressive time and time again is OPPO’s camera capabilities. There is simply no equal to it when it comes to camera phones. So in that case, why the need for AI in photography? The key word here is ‘enhance’ — and as I tried and tested the various AI features that come with the new smartphone, I urge you to read on! The OPPO Reno12 Pro 5G comes in two sleek colourways: Nebula Silver and Space Brown. I recently got the chance to take the OPPO Reno12 Pro 5G in Space Brown for a whirl for two whole weeks, and here’s what I think about the device.
First (physical) impressions?
Definitely a premium build. The smartphone feels sturdy in my hand, perfectly While I was initially attracted to the Nebula Silver colourway — with its futuristic spacecraft-inspired matte tone and visual ripples on its body — the Space Brown does offer a more ‘classic’ look, especially with its two-tone matte-gloss design. The two halves of the back are separated by a chic metallic ribbon that runs across.
The first thing that caught my eye about the look of the phone, besides its colour, is the micro-curve design of the screen. I admit, I was a little wary about the screen, having been so used to a flat screen for most of my phones. But what OPPO does with the Reno12 Series is provide that impression of choice — a flat and curved screen in one. In other words, it has both the rounded grip of a curved screen and the accurate touch recognition and durability of a flat screen. Fewer accidental touches at the edge of the screen, while still fitting comfortably in my grip! (And after two weeks, speaking as a naturally clumsy person, I can vouch for that.)
Setting it up, and two weeks later…
Setting up the smartphone is a breeze. As an Android user already, it took absolutely no time to get the gears going, and soon enough I was jumping straight into the GenAI capabilities. What I’d heard a lot about — and what I was most excited to try — was the AI Eraser, which can remove passing strangers or even unwanted objects in photos with just a simple tap. And when I tell you it works like magic, I mean it really works like magic. A street as busy as Lorong Panggung in Chinatown on a weekend can look lowkey, all thanks to this feature’s ability to automatically identify ‘unwanted’ people and objects and remove them.
On top of that, the AI Smart Image Matting feature completely blew my mind the first time I tried it out. Erasing an image in the background is one thing — to be able to take that image and ‘paste’ it onto another photo while still making it look realistic? That’s when I had to give the point to GenAI. I’ll let the pictures speak for themselves — check out the attempt at Smart Image Matting by swiping through the images below!
Now, toying around with the AI features is one thing, battery life is another. As someone who doesn’t usually carry around a power bank or have a charger at hand, I always try to make sure my phone is all charged up before a day out. And I was surprised to find the OPPO Reno12 Pro battery still at more than half its capacity that same evening. OPPO had boasted that the Reno12 Pro has the highest energy density yet on a Reno Series phone. What this means is extended battery life, and apparently over four years of optimal battery condition. Talk about long-lasting. And how quickly the phone charges too — OPPO’s 80W SUPERVOOC™ Flash Charge lets the battery be charged from 1% to 100% in under an hour.
The final verdict?
It’s a real catch. I admit, the built-in AI is too good for me to just brush aside. I often found myself playing around with the many features, particularly the AI Eraser and the AI Image Matting, adding people as stickers and ‘pasting’ them into different photos that I took. It’s still so amazing to see how much AI has not only eased but enhanced the limits of photography.
Retailing at RM2,599 for the OPPO Reno12 Pro (12GB + 512GB) and RM2,199 for the OPPO Reno12 (12GB + 512GB), it’s definitely a steal, considering its AI capabilities — and everything else that’s packed into it.
The OPPO Reno12 Pro 5G is now available for purchase. Learn more about the smartphone HERE.
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Written by
Puteri Yasmin Suraya
Senior Writer, Features and Tech
Hailing from an English Literature & Creative Writing background, Yasmin has a deep love for fiction and poetry. When she’s not reading or café-hopping, she spends most of her time in the comfort of her own room binge-watching period romances, (badly) belting out show tunes, and curating Spotify playlists to match her mood for the week.
