The Find X5 Pro is the absolute top series of the Chinese smartphone brand Oppo. With this, Oppo tries every year, but in vain, to offer a worthy alternative to Apple and Samsung’s smartphones. In this Oppo Find X5 review you can read whether it worked this time.
Oppo Find X5 Pro
Recommended retail price € 1,299
Colors Black and white
OS Android 12 (Color OS)
Screen 6.7″ OLED (3216 x 1440, 120 Hz)
Processor 2.5GHz octa-core (Snapdragon 8 Gen 1)
RAM 12GB
Storage 256GB
Battery 5,000 mAh
Camera 50, 50, 13 megapixel (rear), 32 megapixel (front)
Connectivity 5G, Bluetooth 5.2, Wi-Fi 6e, GPS, NFC
Format 16.4 x 7.4 x 0.9cm
Weight 218 grams
Website www.oppo.com/nl
6 Score 60 
- Pros
- Beautiful design
- Great screen
- Great camera
- Negatives
- Price
- ColorOS
- Update Support
‘Good device, excessively expensive’ has been the conclusion with the previous three generations of the Oppo Find X Pro: the Find X Pro, Find X2 Pro and Find X3 Pro. Generation four is skipped, possibly because it is a Chinese unlucky number. Oppo has not wanted to change the price with the Find X5 Pro, on the contrary. With 1,299 euros, the price is the most striking feature so far and the most expensive Oppo smartphones are not often discounted.
In this price range, you have to compete with the best smartphones you can get right now: the iPhone 13 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. How Oppo thinks the smartphone will stand out positively made the European announcement presentation crystal clear. Two themes took up almost the entire presentation: sustainability and the camera.
Green elephant in the room
When it comes to sustainability, there was a lot of talk about peripheral issues. For example, the box would contain less plastic and Oppo is looking more critically at the materials used for its smartphones. That already looks like greenwashingsince Oppo’s electronics are made in Chinese factories where environmental regulations are definitely out of date.
A nice saying ‘not words, but deeds’ could well have applied here. The major competitor Samsung did this with the announcement of the Galaxy S22 series, by simultaneously announcing that the smartphones (and older generations) will receive at least four Android version updates and five years of security updates. Competitor Apple has done this much better for years. With support, you can show how you, as a manufacturer, really dare to invest in sustainability. But also, for example, with a theme such as ease of repair. Unfortunately, Oppo remains silent in this area, the update policy remains at three years of version updates (note, so no mention is made here of the number of version updates) and four years of security updates.
The theme of sustainability does not seem to be much more than marketing for the time being. In this (for Oppo) important area, it does not keep up with Apple and Samsung. If you ask 1,299 euros for a smartphone, you have to offer this.
With support you show as a brand how seriously you really take sustainability.
ColorOS: full of apps
Fortunately, the Find X5 Pro just runs the most recent Android version. ColorOS, Oppo’s skin, runs on top of this. This skin also fails to convey the premium feel that a smartphone in this class should have. The smartphone is full of forced apps. Amazon, Booking, LinkedIn, PUBG, TikTok, AliExpress, Facebook. And then there are the so-called ‘tools’ from Oppo, which are all interchangeable. So much bloatware might be fair on a budget smartphone. But not in this price range.
Second trump: camera
Oppo’s other (predictable) theme during the announcement was the camera. In this area, Oppo manages to perform quite well with its previous smartphones, especially because the cameras are very versatile. But leading the way in this area is still a bridge too far. To bridge this gap with Google, (and again) Samsung and Apple, Oppo mainly focuses on the adjustment and computing power of the smartphone. During the presentation, there was a lot of talk about chips that should assist the cameras in the field of image recognition and lightning-fast processing.
Just like sister brand OnePlus, the Hasselblad logo now shows off on the device. Not much was said about this during the presentation. Oppo prefers to brag about its own camera technology. In addition, the Find X5 Pro has Sony sensors (just like almost all other smartphone brands). Hasselblad mainly has to play a role in the adjustment of these sensors. Although I suspect that the brand shows off more for marketing on the device.
Since Hasselblad was taken over by the Chinese DJI, the brand name is increasingly licensed and with the OnePlus 9 series, the collaboration between Hasselblad and OnePlus has not really brought the brand closer to Samsung, Google and Apple in the field of photography.
Camera in practice
The Oppo Find X5 Pro has three lenses on the back. In addition to the regular lens, a zoom lens and a wide-angle lens have been placed. It is therefore striking that the periscope lens has cleared the field, such a lens makes it possible to zoom in deeply. For example if you are far away from the object. The only zoom lens that is now on it can zoom in up to 3x and can be used for macro photography.
In general, the cameras take excellent pictures, in both dark and (day) light. Videos also come out well in low light. The secondary cameras also do well in difficult lighting conditions, although the main camera performs best in this area. In bright light, some colors seem a bit washed out.
Although the quality and possibilities of the camera are perfectly fine, it also applies here that the distance to Samsung, Apple and Google in the field of camera only seems to be increasing. That doesn’t make this camera bad, the opposite is true. But also in this (for Oppo) important area, the Find X5 Pro does not come along.
Premium experience
In many other areas, the smartphone lives up to expectations. First of all, the smartphone looks nice and the cameras are located in a rounded bulge in the back and a metal edge around the device. There is no room for a memory card slot or audio port in this, but the device is water resistant. The glass back begs for a case to prevent fingerprints and cracks.
Moreover, with a case you can disguise that the back is stamped from top to bottom with unnecessary logos. In the box of the Oppo Find X5 Pro you will find such a case, as well as a fast charging adapter.
For example, the screen panel used is perfectly fine. Here too, Oppo has to recognize its multiple in the Galaxy S22 Ultra, but that does not affect the image quality. In addition to good color reproduction and clarity, the 6.7-inch OLED screen has a 1440p resolution and a high refresh rate of up to 120 hertz. Unfortunately, this screen cannot handle a dynamic refresh rate, so you have to choose between longer battery life or smooth running image.
In terms of computing power, there is little to argue with the Snapdragon 8 chipset, which supports both 5G and WiFi 6e. In addition, with 12GB of RAM, there is more than enough on board to run all apps effortlessly, and to process photos and videos quickly. In terms of storage memory, you have 256GB available.
The battery life of the Oppo Find X5 is about a day and a half and does better than the battery of the Galaxy S22 Ultra. The screen and chipset seem to work just a little more economically. If you want to extend this battery life, you can lower the screen settings to a maximum of about two days. If desired, you can charge the smartphone wirelessly, or with the included fast charger that charges your smartphone in record time.
Alternatives to the Oppo Find X5 Pro
If you ask 1,299 euros for a smartphone, your competitors are clear from day one: the iPhone 13 Pro and the Samsung Galaxy S22 Ultra. Both competitors trump this Oppo smartphone on almost all points. That does not make the Oppo Find X5 Pro a bad smartphone. On the contrary. The device is simply insanely overrated in terms of price. It is a nice (but not necessarily better) alternative to the regular versions of the Galaxy S22 or iPhone 13, or the Google Pixel 6. Smartphones that cost between 600 and 800 euros in price.
By bringing the price down and playing the green card by increasing support with several years and versions, a purchase of this smartphone would be much more justified.
Conclusion: Buy Oppo Find X5 Pro?
Despite a beautiful design, beautiful screen and good camera and charging technologies: the Oppo Find X5 Pro cannot justify its insanely high price and therefore loses out compared to price peers such as the Galaxy S22 Ultra and iPhone 13 Pro. In particular, the software and support do not offer the experience you would expect. Just like the previous Find X Pro versions, you come to the same conclusion: Good device, excessively expensive.
†