Oppo Reno 4 Pro First Impressions: Insane Fast-Charging, Stunning Design, Mid-Range CPU

The Reno 4 Pro brings the fastest fast-charging solution in the market. The smartphone draws power from a 65Watt SuperVOOC 2.0 fast-charger which can refuel the phones' 4,000mAh battery in less than 40-minutes. Besides, the Reno 4 Pro's design is a head-turner and the phone flaunts a vibrant 90Hz refresh rate curved AMOLED panel with almost zero bezels. We have spent some time with the new Reno 4 Pro and here's what we have to say about the handset in our first impressions.

Design- It’s Sleek, Lightweight And Looks Stunning

The Reno-series by Oppo has always focused on design. The series has given some stellar looking handsets, except the Reno 3 Pro which was a missed opportunity. Thankfully, Oppo realized the mistake and made some significant changes with the new Reno 4 Pro. The new smartphone looks stunning with its curved screen, sleek profile and the unique anti-glare dual-tone matte finish rear panel which is fingerprint-resistant. The big quad-lens rear camera setup with glass base is hard to miss.

The Reno 4 Pro also gets the ergonomics right. It is mere 7.7mm thin and weighs 161 grams making it lighter and thinner than the Vivo X50 Pro which impressed me a lot with its stylish looks and form-factor. And guess what, the Reno 4 also comes equipped with a 3.5mm headphone jack, something you won't find in most of the sub-35K smartphones in the year 2020. There's no IP rating which is a letdown.

The Reno 4 Pro is available in two color options- Starry Night and Silky White. We are testing the Starry Night color variant that offers a silver and black gradient finish.

Display- 90Hz Curved AMOLED Display With Almost Invisible Bezels

The Reno 4 Pro flaunts a 6.5" curved E3 Super AMOLED screen with fluid 90Hz refresh rate. The 20:9 aspect ratio with 2400x1080p pixels resolution and 402 PPI feels livelier and vibrant that the OLED panel on the OnePlus Nord. Oppo claims that the screen has a peak brightness of 1100 nits. It does feel bright even outdoors but we will evaluate the bold claims in our full review of the handset.

The Super AMOLED screen has a punch hole at the top-left corner housing a 32MP selfie sensor. The surrounding bezels are mere 2.9mm in width which combined with the gentle curves creates an immersive viewing experience. Overall, the Reno 4 Pro offers one of the finest display in its segment for video playback and gameplay.

Quad-Lens Rear Camera And 32MP Selfie Camera

The Reno 4 Pro boasts a pretty standard quad-camera setup featuring a 48MP primary sensor along with an 8MP Ultra Wide-angle lens, 2MP Macro lens and 2MP Mono lens. For selfies, the Reno 4 Pro features a 32MP front-facing camera. The 48MP primary sensor and the 32MP selfie camera capture crisp and vibrant shots with an impressive dynamic range and good contrast. There's no OIS support on the Reno 4 Pro but the EIS, which the Oppo calls- Ultra Steady Video 3.0 is enabled on both front and rear cameras. The software backed steady video mode is also supported by the wide-angle lens which should allow you to record steady wide-angle videos.

Besides, there are several interesting camera modes and filters to help you make the most out of a camera-centric smartphone. I really liked the AI Color Portrait mode in videos. It highlights the subject in the frame by turning the background monochrome for a cinematic look. The Reno 4 Pro also features a high-resolution mode to capture images with 108MP resolution. The front camera is also aided by numerous camera modes and filters to step up your selfie game. We will explore the Reno 4 Pro's camera in detail in our comprehensive review.

Hardware- Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G + 8GB RAM/128GB ROM

The Reno 4 Pro is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 720G chipset which is paired with 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage. We haven't faced any issues so far while playing games and using the smartphone for day-to-day tasks. However, the choice of CPU is slightly debatable as you can easily buy a more powerful smartphone in the sub 35K price tag.

For instance, the OnePlus Nord draws power from the latest 5G-enabled Qualcomm Snapdragon 765 SoC. It makes the handset future-proof and at the same time more powerful for number-crunching tasks.

The Realme X3 SuperZoom is another good option if you care about performance. The handset offers the flagship Qualcomm SD855 at lower price-point. Other options include- Realme X2 Pro, iQOO 3 5G and the OnePlus 7T. We will stress test the Reno 4 Pro in our comprehensive review for a better understanding of its overall performance.

Software- ColorOS V7.2 Based On Android 10

As far as software is concerned, the Reno 4 Pro comes running the ColorOS V7.2 based on Android 10. Our review unit has just received the July 2020 Android Security Patch. The software runs smooth and looks visually appealing on the new Reno device. There's a fair amount of bloatware including some banned apps in India such as Helo and TikTok. Some useful pre-installed apps are- Soloop video editing app, Game Space, and Music Party. We will talk about the software performance in detail in our review.

Insane 65W Fast-Charging Technology

The Reno 4 Pro will blow your mind with its crazy fast 65W fast charging technology. The 4,000mAh battery cell draws power from a 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 fast charger which can fully charge the battery from flat to 100% in less than 40 minutes. The bundled brick refuelled the battery from 24 to 100% in just 20 minutes. The fast-charging tech by Oppo is quite impressive but it also raises questions on the phone's overall battery life and the charging process itself. The charging brick passes current at crazy fast speeds which need to be contained safely to prevent any miss happening.

Oppo mentions that the VOOC Flash Charge technology powering the Reno 4 Pro offers five layers of protection certified by German independent safety authority, TUV Rheinland. The built-in battery also has a dedicated protection chipset to monitor the voltage and current to ensure safety.

Should You Buy The Oppo Reno 4 Pro?

The India-first Reno 4 Pro brings the industry-leading fast-charging solution, a gorgeous design, vibrant curved AMOLED panel and a feature-packed camera setup. The price is a letdown when you compare the Reno 4 Pro with the competition. You can easily buy smartphones with similar and even higher refresh rate panels, flagship chipsets and better overall camera hardware in the sub-35K price bracket. We will stress test the smartphone and compare the performance with the competition in our comprehensive review.