Review: Oppo R11
Priced at $720, the R11 is taking aim at Apple's iPhone 7 Plus and Samsung's S8+, though at half the price.
Oppo's new R11 smartphone takes what worked with earlier devices and adds some clever tweaks.
The result is a well-crafted device that delivers solid performance.
Oppo got off to a good start in New Zealand with the well-received R9s. Its successor, the R11, has Oppo upping both specifications and design, adding twin rear cameras and a 20MP front-camera.
Priced at $720, the R11 is taking aim at Apple's iPhone 7 Plus and Samsung's S8+, though at half the price. It's on sale in New Zealand now.
The R11 follows the release of two other Oppo smartphones in New Zealand, the A77 ($529) and the A57 ($399).
READ MORE:
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* Review: Oppo A77
* Review: Oppo R9S smartphone
DESIGN
The first thing you notice when powering up the R11 is its vivid 5.5-inch display. Colours pop while dark on-screen blacks and brilliant whites make everything crisp.
The R11 could be mistaken for an iPhone 7 Plus. This is thanks to a curvy design which features rounded edges. About the only thing missing is an Apple logo and the rounded home button on its front.
Its alloy body has a smooth sandblasted finish which gives the R11 a premium feel. The curved design also makes its 6.8mm thick body seem slim. About the only design trick missing with the R11 is a bezel-less screen.
There are also some very subtle design tweaks that you'd otherwise miss if you didn't look for them. A good example of this is the two razor thin antenna bands the curve around the top and bottom of the R11. On my black review unit, they were almost invisible.
Its curvy design also makes the R11 a slippery customer – I almost dropped it twice while setting it up. Oppo has realised this and a transparent case is included with the phone. It improves the likelihood that the R11 will survive involuntary drop testing.
Except for its dual rear cameras, the R11 feels very similar design-wise to the R9s. It's about the same size, and its controls feel identical.
FEATURES
There's plenty going on inside the R11. For a start, it supports dual SIM cards. This is super handy if you find lugging both work and personal phones about a bit of a chore. It also means that you keep your NZ number when overseas while using a local SIM card and not get hit with roaming charges.
The R11 has a generous 64GB of storage which is upgradable to 256GB thanks to a slot for a microSD card. A downside of this is that it uses the slot usually occupied by the second SIM.
The R11 runs a skinned version of Android that Oppo calls Color OS. It's tweaked for battery efficiency and smooth running. Underneath sits Android 7.1.
Color OS feels a lot like iOS. It is attractive and runs without bringing lag into the mix. It also makes the R11 the ideal device for iPhone users wanting to make the leap to Android.
The only real catch specs-wise I found was its lack of NFC. My phone does double duty as my Snapper card (which in Wellington gets me on buses and cabs). NFC also makes pairing many Bluetooth widgets a lot easier. Oh well.
One of the key selling points with the R11 is its twin rear 20MP and 16MP cameras and 20MP front-facing shooter. The pictures captured by both are the equal of a decent point and shoot camera.
The twin rear cameras deliver an optical 2x zoom. There's also a "Portrait" mode which applies image processing to enhance portraits.
Like the R9s, the R11's front-mounted fingerprint sensor is fast. Taping it is usually enough to unlock the R11. It uses a Qualcomm 660 CPU which gives it a stellar battery life. With light use, I got two full days' use.
It also has Oppo's VOOC fast-charging technology. In 30 minutes, it took the R11 from 15 per cent battery to an 80 per cent charge.
VERDICT
The Oppo R11 is an attractive and nice elegant smartphone. Priced at the upper end of the mid-range smartphone spectrum, it offers flagship features and feels well crafted. Considering its pocket-pleasing price and capabilities, it is a solid buy.
- Stuff
https://www.stuff.co.nz/technology/gadgets/96214598/review-oppo-r11
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