Set to launch on 18 March 2022, the OPPO is going strong with its latest addition to the A series lineup. So what does the OPPO has in store for us with its new A96 midrange android? Well, you came to the right place as we have received one unit from OPPO to test out its features. So if any of you has been following us you’ll know we’ve done an unboxing session for the A96. But for any of you who missed out, fret not as we got you covered right… HERE (OPPO A96 Unboxing and First Impression)
DESIGN
As per mentioned in the previous unboxing, the OPPO A96 is geared more toward a stylish design and aims to attract users with a taste in a modern and simplistic design. From the feel, the aura, the layout, and the grip, I could definitely tell the entirety of the design is influenced by the requirement of modern-day fashion demand. If you’re an influencer or lite content creator with a budget in mind, this phone is definitely for you. The A96 is made with OPPO Glow Design diamond-cutting technique, simply put it, the phone is made to have a shiny, smooth surface with high-quality matte plastic. Carrying it around would definitely catch some audiences’ attention due to the brilliant shimmers. Just don’t hold the phone up while letting the back face against a busy road because the light reflection is rather eye-blinding during the broad daylight, and it could easily distract any drivers on the road. Moreover, the phone is resistant to fingerprints, scratches, and also dirt. In addition to that, OPPO also claims the A96 has pressure resistance of up to 15kg as well as an IPX4 level of water resistance. That being said the phone could withstand water splashes from any direction, but that doesn’t mean you can bring the whole phone into your shower room.
The entire phone is considered lightweight as it weighs 190.9g (6.734 oz) and has a rather roundish edge layout. That being said it’s easy to carry, easy to hold, and easy to maneuver for people of all ages. It has a dimension of 104.54 cm³ (164.4 x 75.7 x 8.4 mm).
For the front side of the phone, the screen comprises a 6.59″ 1080 x 2412 FHD screen, topped with a 16 Mega-Pixel IMX471 front camera that can capture photos up to 4624 x 3468 (4:3) Mega-pixels as well as a face recognition unlock feature. As for the back of the phone other than its shiny back, you’ll find a square-ish bump with an approx. dimension 1.38 cm³ (23 x 40 x 1.5 mm, based on spot measurement). With 2 cameras situated within the bump, one 50 Mega-pixel main camera has a 12 Mega-pixel photo output by default, and its pixel binning technology increases to 50 Mega-pixel through settings. Followed by a 2 Mega-pixel bokeh camera and also a LED flashlight. I would say the bump and the camera aren’t an issue at all as they won’t cause any inconvenience while carrying or sliding into any place.
Moving on to the right-hand side of the phone you have your usual power button that has a side fingerprint technology feature, which allows you to unlock your phone by just slightly touching the power button. Flipping to the left side of the phone and you’ll find the 2 volume button along with a dedicated NanoSIM slot. On the top side of the phone is just a voice-canceling microphone. While the bottom of the phone consists of a 3.5mm headphone jack, a primary microphone, a set of dual speakers, and finally a type-C charging port.
PERFORMANCE
Camera
The OPPO A96’s 50 Mega-pixels front camera performs quite as expected, as in on par with many other midrange phones out the current market. Personally speaking, both daytime and evening shots are rather crispy and clear-cut, whether it’s the default 12 Mega-pixel or set to 50 Mega-pixel. Details wise is excellent, even by zoomed-in standards. The image quality is still considered quite a on par when the zoom settings are set between 2x. But the image quality will start to dilute from 3x onwards all the way until 10x. Night shots are not too shabby, the lights and shadows are quite balanced when you ask me, especially when you’re photographing in a busy street dazzled with lights and pedestrians. However, having a shakey hand may affect the night shots quality but not to a point where it’s unbearable.
As for portrait mode, photos are mainly captured through the 2 Mega-pixels Bokeh camera you’ll be given the freedom to adjust the bokeh settings between 0-100%, personally, I took 2 photos with one being 50% and another being 100%. The results are decent, to say the least. One issue is that sometimes the camera AI will have a bit of struggle on the focusing part, but give it a few taps, move closer or farther a bit and everything would be good. Selfies-wise, there’s no particular issue even while using portrait mode. It’s rather quite on par as expected from a midrange phone.
As for the video, a few testing shows that the resolution is capped at 1080p and 30fps . So far I do not experience any shutter problems so overall it’s acceptable. The following is the video sample I have taken with the OPPO A96 :
Display
As mentioned above, the phone has a 6.59″ screen display, considered standard for a midrange phone. It also has a 90Hz refresh rate and 180Hz touch sampling rate so scrolling through your phone is butter smooth with no staggers or delays. The colour display is rather vivid, even for a phone that’s composed of an FHD screen display that I must agree on.
Furthermore, the phone also supports up to 60fps video playback and also gameplay as well. So personally speaking I really have no issues with esports games like Call of Duty and PUBG. Of course, you know, generally speaking, midrange phones aren’t exactly the best device for high resource gaming such as Genshin Impact, but it’s passable if you set all the resolutions to “potato” mode, that is, the lowest resolution settings, while at the same time throw in some mixed-medium display settings. It will still run like a charm, but anything beyond that would cause obvious staggers or lags. One thing for sure is that the A96 has no overheating issues, at worst is just slightly warmish due to long hours of gaming and watching videos (at 1080p above 30frs at least). To be fair it is bound to happen since it is a midrange phone, but personally speaking, it is still workable, and it does have its own perk, so I would say it’s decent.
Audio
OPPO A96 speakers are rather loud, and clear even when I jacked the volume all the way to maximum. Even with just a set of dual speakers at the bottom, it still delivers what it’s supposed to deliver. I wouldn’t say is immersive but it does a pretty good job as it has no obvious sound stutters. Of course, the performance I experience is all based on vanilla settings, the A96 has Dirac HD audio technology integrated into the device’s audio system so users could customise the optimisation for various audio systems to their heart’s content.
Battery, Storage, and Platform
OPPO A96 has a 5000mAh battery life, could hold for 5 days straight (or even more) without doing anything, and at least 8-9 hours with surfing, photo-shooting, and a few rounds of PUBG matches. Super power mode will kick in when the battery level is at 5% and below and allow up to 58 minutes of WhatsApp texting as OPPO claims. Even if your battery runs out, fret not, as all you need to do is charge the device with the 33W SUPERVOOC™ charger that comes with the package and all it takes is just 30 minutes of plug-in and the device battery level will reach up to 55%, while full 100% takes around 71 minutes.
Storage wise the A96 offers up to 256GB (or 128GB) of internal storage and 8GB of RAM with extensions of up to 5 RAM to minimize background apps and close down unnecessary background processings, thus making switching between productivity apps to gaming apps with little to no issues, to say the least. For photogenic users, you could go all the way out and get an SD card to store all your photos and video since the device supports SD cards up to 1TB.
Moving on, the A96 is powered by Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 680 4G Octa-core and runs on Android 11 as well as ColorOS 11.1. The Game Assitant feature is enabled whenever you boot up a game and allows you to perform a number of tasks with just a single thumb like messaging, screen recording, bullet notifying, and call rejection just to name a few.
Benchmark
You may refer to the benchmark chart attached below for the device’s overall performance. Graphic wise and storage wise are decent, well not the best but enough to meet productivity requirements.
SPECIFICATIONS
| Features | OPPO A96 |
| Mobile Platform | Qualcomm® Snapdragon ™680 4G Mobile Platform |
| RAM | 8GB + 256GB |
| ID | Material: 3D sheet (battery cover) Length: approx. 164.4 mm Width: approx. 75.7 mm Thickness: approx. 8.4 mm Weight: approx. 190.9 g |
| Display | 6.59 inch screen; Resolution (HD): 1080×2412 FHD; 90Hz refresh rate; 180Hz touch sampling rate; 96% NTSC wide color gamut; 90.8% screen to body ratio |
| Front Camera | 16MP Camera |
| Rear Camera | 50MP Main Camera 2MP Bokeh Camera |
| Unlock | Side Fingerprint Unlock + Face Recognition Unlock |
| Battery Life | 33W SUPERVOOC TM 5000mAh Long Lasting Battery |
| Network | 4G |
| ColorOS | ColorOS 11.1 |
| Colors | Starry Black Pearl Pink |
VERDICT
There’s a few mixed feelings while using the OPPO A96 for the past few days, it’s decent enough to perform all the necessities, and some of the features are on par with most of the midrange phones out on the market. However, I still felt that some of the performances are quite lackadaisical. But credits must be given where credit is due, it is a rather stylish device suitable for individuals that are more into fashion sense, as well as for productivity usage. Still, a recommendable device if you want something more simplistic to carry on your daily task.
So before we end things up, let’s talk about the price. The current price for the OPPO A96 is RM1,299. If any of you are interested, you may check out the link HERE.
TL:DR
Pro
- It’s stylish, suitable for lite content creators or vloggers
- Anti-dust, anti-fingerprint
- Decent camera performance
Cons
- Runs on Android 11.1 rather than 12
- Video capped at 1080p 60fps