OPPO A96 – absolutely perfect at $399 (smartphone review)

The OPPO A96 is tangible proof that you don’t have to spend more to get a perfectly capable smartphone. This has everything you need and more.

To me, the perfect lower-cost smartphone needs:

• A reliable processor: Qualcomm SD680, Adreno 610 GPU and SBC, AAC, APTX, APTX HD, and LDAC sound codecs
• 4G: no one needs or wants to pay more for 5G plans
• Huge, bright, and colourful screen: 6.59″, 2412 x 1080, 90Hz, 16.7m colours, 100% DCI-P3 IPS display
• Lots of ram and storage: 8/128GB/dedicated microSD card
• Dedicated dual sim slots with very strong phone signal reception: Yes
• Good point and shoot day and night camera: 50MP primary camera, a depth sensor and 16MP selfie with OPPO’s excellent camera tech
• Big, fast charge battery: 5000mAh and 33W SUPERVOOC Fast charger and a bumper cover in the box
• Good comms and NFC PayWave: Wi-Fi 5 AC, BT 5.0, NFC and 3.5mm headphone jack
• Warranty: 2-years and superb local support

The OPPO A96 ticks all the boxes and then some.

OPPO A96 CPH2333 8/128GB/microSD, Dual Sim

Website	Product page
Price	$399 (currently $349 at JB September 2022)
Colours	Starry Black and Sunset Blue
From	JB Hi-Fi, The Good Guys, Officeworks, Bing Lee, Wireless1, Big W, Catch, TeleChoice, Amazon (OPPO official store), The Technology Store AU
Warranty	2-years ACL
Country of Origin	China
Company	OPPO is now #2 in Australia for Android smartphone market share. It has achieved that through excellent product and after-sales service.
More	CyberShack OPPO news and reviews

Deep-Dive review format

It is now in two parts. As this is a low-cost device, we will do a brief summary and a separate 300+ line database-driven spec, including over 70 tests to back up the findings. It also helps us compare different phones and features.

Most section headings have FAIL (did not meet expected standards), PASS (all you can expect) or EXCEED (better than you can expect).

First impression – The OPPO A96 is the $349 A76 on steroids – Exceed

We called the OPPO A76 OPPO A76 4G – honest, reliable and fast charging. It is one of those phones that won’t let you down, especially if it is all you can afford. It is not a spectacular performer, but the 33W fast charge really stands out.

The OPPO A96 has a larger 1080 screen, same processor, 8GB RAM, same comms, terrific phone signal strength, upgraded 50MP rear and 16MP selfie camera, and an excellent 1-hour charge – all for 50 bucks more. It is a no brainer to spend $399 to get this much in a phone.

OK, this is where we get back to Glass slab territory. Fortunately, the back is not a fingerprint magnet but has quite a slippery surface so use the bumper case.

There is a dual-camera (50MP Primary and 2MP Depth) and LED flash, stereo speaker and OPPO’s usual right-side power/fingerprint sensor and left-side volume rocker. It is relatively light at 164.4 x 75.7 x 8.4 mm x 191g.

Things that set it apart from the competition include a very long 30-hour battery life and a 1 hour, 33W charger inbox.

Screen: 6.59″, 2412 x 1080, 60 or 90Hz or auto step (30/45/50/60/90) Exceed

It is a bright (480 nit), colour accurate (100% DCI-P3), tempered glass screen capable of Netflix HD streaming.

The 90Hz auto setting refresh rate now includes five step levels, positively affecting battery life.

Summary: No better for the price.

Processor: Qualcomm SD 680 and 8/128/microSD – Pass for performance and Exceed for what it brings to the phone

It is fit for purpose, but it is not for games. OPPO’s excellent thermal management can deliver full power over 15 minutes with a negligible 8% loss.

OPPO also has a RAM extender that can add up to 5GB virtual to the 8GB physical RAM (RAM disk swap space). You don’t need it as it has twice what most phones have at this price.

We love that it still has dedicated microSD storage expansion to 1TB and that you can mount an external portable SSD via OTG, although being USB 2.0 means about 30MBps data transfer rates.

Comms – Wi-Fi 5 AC, BT 5.0 and NFC – Exceed

• Wi-Fi 5 AC is 433Mbps and gets a very strong signal more than 10m away from the router
• It has NFC, which is not expected at this price.
• GPS performance is adequate and accurate to <10 metres
• As it has a Qualcomm processor, it has SBC, AAC, APTX, APTX HD, and LDAC sound codecs, which means excellent Bluetooth quality over headphones and speakers.

Phone – Exceed for city suburbs and regional

It recorded some of the highest signal strengths ever and found two towers. You should have no issues using this anywhere in Australia.

Battery – 5000mAh and 33W SUPERVOOC charging – Exceed

You can probably get up to a week between charges (light use) and recharge in under an hour. But even better is that the charger comes inbox – something of a rarity now.

Sound – stereo with a nice sound signature – Exceed

You usually get mono sound, so stereo is a pleasant surprise. The sound signature has good high bass and relatively flat (good) mid and treble. Bluetooth and 3.5mm headphones are excellent.

It has some high-bass, so the music sounds reasonably good. Volume is excellent at 85dB – well above most phones.

Android 11 – you may get 12 – Pass

At this price, most phones are ‘sell and forget’. OPPO may upgrade it to Android 12 and offers two years of security updates. The Fingerprint reader is conveniently on the power button.

ColorOS is a light touch over Android and is very easy to use. It has all Google Apps and Google Play access.

OPPO build and warranty – Exceed

A well-made phone, IP54 rated and a 2-year warranty – hard to do better. It has passed 28,000 micro-drop tests and is a keeper.

OPPO A96 Camera – dual-sensor, but one does all the work – Exceed

It has a 50MP (bins to 12.5MP), PDAF primary lens/sensor and a 2MP depth camera.

• Day (well, an overcast one): Primary sensor – the colours are excellent with good dynamic range and good details in the shadows and highlights.
• Ultra-wide: The Primary sensor 50MP image is cropped to show ultrawide.
• Macro: N/A, but the 50MP handles this very well
• Depth: A 2MP sensor helps bokeh shots
• Daylight zoom: It is good at 2, 5 and 10X with low noise and good detail
• Office Light (<400 lumens): Good detail and natural colour.
• Bokeh (portrait) is excellent.
• <40 lumens: The standard (not night mode) takes great shots with good detail and colours. Night mode nicely saturates the colour and some details.
• Selfie: The MP selfie has natural skin tones and details and a range of filters to enhance any image. AI Natural Retouching includes blemish removal while preserving the user’s natural facial features.
• Video (we are not video experts): You can shoot at 1080p@30fps with EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation) for a reasonably stable image.

CyberShack view – OPPO A96 is a terrific class-leading, lower-cost smartphone

As we said at the beginning, it has everything you could want and more. No, it is not 5G, but despite the exaggerated porkies that Telcos exuberantly pedal, you don’t need it and will pay more for the privilege.

It has a lot of competition, but it is ahead on points in most categories – notably the Qualcomm processor, 8GB/128GB/microSD, camera and screen.

It gets our unreserved buy recommendation.

CyberShack Smartphone database comparison v 1.1 (E&OE)

OPPO A96 CPH2333

Brand	OPPO
Model	A96
Model Number	CPH2333
Price Base	8/128
Price base	$399
Warranty months	24-months ACL
Tier	Mid-range
Website	Product page
From	JB Hi-Fi, The Good Guys, Officeworks, Bing Lee, Wireless1, Big W, Catch, TeleChoice, Amazon (OPPO official store), The Technology Store AU
Country of Origin	China
Company	OPPO is now #2 in Australia for Android smartphone market share. It has achieved that through excellent product and after-sales service.
Test date	5/5/22 to 1/6/22
Ambient temp	18-23°
Release	March 2022
Other models not for Australia (Don’t buy)	China model PFUM10 5G Model OLED Screen model Any other configuration apart from 8/128GB Single sim Look for RCM C-Tick under settings, about phone, regulatory label.

Screen

Size	6.59″
Type	IPS LCD
Flat, Curve, 2D, 3D	Flat with slightly curved edges
Resolution	2414 x 1080
PPI	401
Ratio	20.1:9
Screen to Body %	90.8
Colours bits	8-bit 16.7m colours
Refresh Hz, adaptive	auto step (30/45/50/60/90) or select fixed 60 or 90Hz
Touch response	180Hz touch
Nits typical, test	480 (tested 472)
Nits max, test	600 HBM (tested 615)
Contrast	1500:1 (tested 1475:1)
sRGB	Gentle 100+%
DCI-P3	Vivid 100% of the 16.7m colour gamut
Rec.2020 or other	N/A
Delta E (<4 is excellent)	2.6
HDR Level	SDR
SDR Upscale	No
Bluelight control	Yes
PWM if known	N/A
Daylight readable	Yes, with the light theme
Always on Display	N/A
Edge display	No
Accessibility	No
DRM	L1 for HD SDR playback
Gaming	40fps at best
Screen protection	Holitech/BOE: AGC DT-Pro (Dragontrail like GG3)
Comment	Excellent bright, colour accurate screen

Processor

Brand, Model	Qualcomm SD680
nm	6
Cores	4 x 2.4GHz + 4 x 1.9GHz
Modem	X11 4G
AI TOPS	Estimate 7 TOPS (low-end AI)
Geekbench 5 Single-core	387
Geekbench 5 multi-core	1661
Like	Similar to older flagship SD845
GPU	Adreno 610 1.1GHz
GPU Test
Open CL	425
Like	Slow for games
Vulcan	586
RAM, type	8GB LPDDR4x 2133 4 x 16-bit
Storage, free, type	128GB (97GB free) UFS 2.2
micro-SD	Up to 1TB
Disk Test
CPDT internal seq. Read MBps	697
CPDT internal seq. write MBps	416
CPDT microSD read, write MBps	85/39 mountable
CPDT external (mountable?) MBps	21/17 OTG
Comment	Reflects fast UFS 2.2 and external speeds USB 2.0
Throttle test
Max GIPS	171463
Average GIPS	163232
Minimum GIPS	153973
% Throttle	8
CPU Temp	67°
Comment	Excellent thermal management

Comms

Wi-Fi Type	Wi-Fi 5 AC supports Wi-Fi display and tethering
Test
Test 2m -dBm, Mbps	-18/433 (excellent signal strength)
Test 5m	-39/433
Test 10m	-42/433
BT Type	5.0
GPS single, dual	Single
USB type	USB-C 2.0 480Mbps
Alt DP, DeX, Ready For	No cable but you can Wi-Fi cast and Chromecast
NFC	Yes
Ultra-wideband	No

Sensors

Accelerometer	Yes -combo with Gyro is very sensitive
Gyro	Yes
e-Compass	Yes
Barometer	No
Gravity	Yes
Pedometer	Yes
Ambient light	Yes
Hall sensor	No
Proximity	Yes
Other
Comment	Wi-Fi 5 AC is strong and keeps signal well to 10m

LTE (not 5G)

SIM	Dual sim and dedicated microSD
Active	Only one active at a time
Ring tone single, dual	Single
VoLTE	Carrier dependent
Wi-Fi calling	Carrier dependent
4G Bands	1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8, 20, 28, 38, 40, 41
Comment	All Australian 4G bands
5G sub-6Ghz	N/A
Comment	N/A
mmWave	N/A
Test Boost Mobile, Telstra
UL, DL, ms	22/17/38ms (good)
Tower 1 -dBm, fW or pW	-79/12-37pW (incredible strength)
Tower 2	-98/500fW to 2.5pW (ditto)
Tower 3	No
Tower 4	No
Comment	Found two towers at exceptionally strong signal strength. City, suburbs and regional town use.

Battery

mAh	5000 single battery 800 cycles still over 80% capacity
Charger, type, supplied	33W SUPERVOOC 5V/2A/10W or 5-11V/3A (33W)
PD, QC level	PD capable – Overcharge protection may influence charge times
Qi, wattage	No
Reverse Qi or cable	No
Test (adaptive screen)
Charge % 30mins	50%
Charge 0-100%	1 hour 3 minutes
Charge Qi, W	N/A
Charge 5V, 2A	4.5 hours
Video loop 50%, aeroplane	27 hours
PC Mark 3 battery	28 hours
GFX Bench Manhattan battery	645.5 min (10.76 hrs) 1800 frames
GFX Bench T-Rex	677.8 min (11.13 hrs) 2980 frames
Drain 100-0% full load screen on	6 hours 12 minutes
Watt full load	1000mA
Watt idle Screen on	130-170mA
Estimate loss at 90Hz	Expect about 20% less at 90Hz
Estimate typical use	Two to three days at typical use
Comment	Excellent battery life and a fast 33W charger make this a class-leader

Sound

Speakers	Earpiece and down-fixing speaker for stereo sound
Tuning	Dirac HD audio technology
AMP	Qualcomm
Dolby Atmos decode	No, but downscales Dolby Audio up to 5.1
Hi-Res	No
3.5mm	Yes
BT Codecs	SBC, AAC, APTX, APTX HD, and LDAC
Multipoint	Should support it
EQ	Real Original Sound Technology EQ – Smart, Movie, Game, Music
Mics	2 with some noise-cancellation
Test dB – all on EQ flat DA off
Volume max	85dB (very loud)
Media (music)	84
Ring	84
Alarm	85
Notifications	84
Earpiece	55
Hands-free	Decent hands-free and has 2 mics for some wind noise reduction
BT headphones	Excellent separation and volume with Qualcomm codec set

Sound quality

Deep Bass 20-40Hz	Nil
Middle Bass 40-100Hz	Nil
High Bass 100-200Hz	Steep build to 200Hz
Low Mid 200-400Hz	Flat
Mid 4000-1000Hz	Flat
High-Mid 1-2kHz	Flat
Low Treble 2-4kHz	Flat
Mid Treble 4-6kHz	Flat
High Treble 6-10kHz	Slow linear decline to 20kHz
Dog Whistle 10-20kHz	Decline
Sound Signature type	Bright Vocal (bass recessed, mid/treble boosted) – for vocal tracks and string instruments. But there is just enough high-bass to give a satisfying sound signature.
Soundstage	Wider than the phone
Comment	Mono is all you can expect at this price, so stereo is a real bonus. It is surprisingly listenable for most music genres.

Build

Size (H X W x D)	164.4 x 75.7 x 8.4 mm
Weight grams	191
Front glass	Dragontrail hardened
Rear material	PMMA Polymethyl Methacrylate (shatter-proof glass substitute)
Frame	Polycarbonate
IP rating	IP54
Colours	Starry Black Sunset Blue
Pen, Stylus support	No
In the box
Charger	33W SUPERVOOC
USB cable	USB-A to USB-C SUPERVOOC
Buds	No
Bumper cover	Yes
Comment	OPPO leads this class with a 33W charger – it is fast.

OS

Android	11
Security patch date	5/05/2022 (recent)
UI	ColorOS 11.1
OS upgrade policy	Should get Android 12
Security patch policy	Two years of security patches
Bloatware	A little too much – AliExpress, Amazon, Booking.com, Facebook, LinkedIn, O Relax, PUBG, Soloop Cui, TikTok, and OPPOs alternatives for Google Apps. All are removable
Other
Comment	ColorOS is the light grease on Android wheels that makes it easier to use
Fingerprint sensor location, type	On power button – 8/10 test
Face ID	Yes 2D
Other	OPPO ColorOS has advanced security features
Comment	Would have been nice to get Android 12 but at this price Android 11 is fine

Camera – OPPO A96

Rear Primary	Wide
MP	50 bins to 12.5
Sensor	Samsung S5KJN1
Focus	PDAF
f-stop	1.8
um	.64 bins to 1.28
FOV° (stated, actual)	77 (65.6-77.8)
Stabilisation	EIS for video
Zoom	10x digital
Rear 2	Depth
MP	2
Sensor	GalaxyCore GC02M1B
Focus	FF
f-stop	2.4
um	1.75
FOV (stated, actual)	89.1
Stabilisation	No
Zoom	No
Video max	1080p@30fps and EIS
Flash	Yes
Auto-HDR	Primary lens
Features	Photo, Video, Night, Expert, Panoramic, Portrait, Time-lapse, Text scanner, and Sticker
QR code reader	Via Google Lens
Night mode	AI
Front
MP	16MP
Sensor	Sony IMX471
Focus	FF
f-stop	2
um	1.0
FOV (stated, actual)	79.3 (68.4-80.4)
Stabilisation	No
Flash	Screen fill and 360° screen paint
Zoom	10X digital
Video max	1080p@30fps
Features	Photo, Video, Panoramic, Portrait, Night, Time-lapse, Sticker
Comment	Excellent primary camera – same as Motorola g51 but with a faster processor and AI.

Ratings – OPPO A96

Features	9
	Got it all
Value	9.5
	It really packs so much into a $399 handset.
Performance	9
	The Qualcomm SD6XX series are not speed demons. Performance is suitable for most needs.
Ease of Use	10
	ColorOS 12 is easy to learn and offers the much-needed grease over Android 11 wheels. But it should have come with Android 12
Design	9
	Another bland but nice glass slab
Rating out of 10	9.3
Pro
1	It is all you could want from a well-priced smartphone.
2	Large, bright colour accurate screen
3	Superb battery life and 33W fast charge
4	Excellent quality build and 2-year warranty with local support
5	Front and rear cameras are excellent for point and shoot in day or night
Con
1	None really for a $399 device
2	Android 11 (maybe 12)
3	Needs to use the OPPO 33W SUPERVOOC charger and cable to reach charge speeds
Final comment	At $399, it is all you need and fantastic value as the absolute class leader.

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