Oppo Reno12 5G review: Shimmery value

OPPO's Reno12 is a reasonable mid-range smartphone that promises a world of AI, which drags down an otherwise reasonable product.

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Pros

  • Great battery life
  • Unique design
  • Bright, vibrant screen

Cons

  • AI is useless
  • Underwhelming performance
  • Better phones at the same price

OPPO announced the Reno12 series of phones back in July with the promise of mid-range AI functionality.

Given the best smartphones in Australia can’t deliver reliable, useful AI, (or a strong reason to care about it) my hopes for the functionality on the $799 Reno12 weren’t very high.

And after a couple of months testing it out, that feeling has played out. The AI is underwhelming, and is better left avoided.

Fortunately, the AI functions are completely optional, and if you wilfully ignore them, you actually end up with a reasonable mid-range device.

There are better options on the market at that price, but that doesn’t make the Reno12 a bad offering. It’s just not the best offering at the price.

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