OPPO A98 5G 2023 – a class leader in many ways (smartphone review)

The OPPO A98 5G 2023 continues OPPO’s tradition of well-made, fully-featured, and well-priced smartphones. This $649 mid-range offers excellent value.

We test over 70 aspects of smartphones, and here are the things in the OPPO A98 that stand out.

• 43-minute charge and 67W charger inbox (shame on you, Samsung, Apple, Google, and Nokia)
• Typical use 2-day battery life and 1600+ full recharge cycles (most other brands have 300-500 cycles)
• One of the strongest phone reception antenna strengths we have tested. It is suitable for city, suburbs, rural and remote areas.
• Decent performance Qualcomm SD695 5G SoC and BT aptX codecs.
• 8+8GB RAM expansion, 256GB storage and up to 1TB microSD (most have 128GB and no microSD).
• Dual Hybrid SIM and microSD.
• Decent AI camera and an interesting 40X magnifying lens.
• Stereo speakers and 3.5mm 4-pole ear/mic port.
• 6.72” 2400 x 1800, 120Hz LPTS LCD screen.
• 2-year warranty, 2 OS upgrades, quarterly security patch updates for 3 years – 2+2+3

Let’s see how it performs.

Australian Review: OPPO A98 5G 2023

Website	Product page
Price	$749
Colours	Cool Black and Dreamy Blue
From*	OPPO Online, JB Hi-Fi and Officeworks *
Warranty	2-years ACL
Made in	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

We use Fail (below expectations), Passable (meets low expectations), Pass (meets expectations), Pass+ (near Exceed but not class-leading) and Exceed (surpasses expectations or is the class leader) against many of the items below.  These are based on the price bracket as well. You can click on most images for an enlargement.

Entry-level phones should at least score a pass mark against each category.

* Grey market – no Australian warranty, and 5G won’t work

We strongly advise you to buy a genuine model with Australian firmware. It is easy to identify the Australian version – under Settings>About Device>Regulatory, there is an Australian RNZ C-tick mark. There is also an RNZ C-Tick on the box. They use unique Australian 5G sub-6Ghz and 5G low-band frequencies, requiring local activation first. Read Don’t buy a grey market phone (guide)

First Impression – Pass+

Oh dear, another glass slab. That is not a slight against OPPO – 99% of smartphones from all brands use this format as it delivers more cost-effective features. OPPO has made a feature of its Camera bump (like the new Reno 10 5G) and, as usual, put some pizzazz into the PMMA rear panel – Dreamy Blue or Cool Black. This smooth, shimmering surface resists fingerprints, scratches and wear.

The fingerprint sensor is on the right-side power button and is reliable. 2D Face ID is also available. The volume up/down buttons and SIM slot are on the left side.

The screen is protected by Panda 1681 tempered glass. It does a similar job to Gorilla Glass 3 in that it provides good levels of scratch protection. Neither brand offers impact resistance.

Screen – LTPS at this price – Pass+

The screen is a Low-Temperature Polysilicon (LTPS) LCD screen, superior to other LCDs (IPS, TFT). It provides larger pixel densities, higher image quality and lower power consumption than standard LCD (TFT/IPS) screens.

This is a 2400 x 1080, 392ppi, 20:9, Adaptive 30/48/50/60/90/120Hz panel. It is very colour-accurate –the sRGB and DCI-P3 (movies) almost reach 100%. It is pretty bright at 550/680 Typical/HBM and will play HDR10 content downscaled to the screen’s Standard Dynamic Range (SDR) capability. It is daylight readable – not as much as AMOLED, but pretty good.

Summary: A bright, colour-accurate screen.

Processor – Pass+

The OPPO A98 uses a Qualcomm SD695 5G System on a Chip (SoC), providing plenty of power for typical smartphone use. You can read complete benchmarks here.

It is not a gaming powerhouse – you need to buy an SD8 series, but it will play PUBG and browser-based games at 40-60fps on medium settings.

Tests:

• Geekbench 6 single/multi-core: 912/2133 – this performs better than most SD695. It is similar to the MediaTek Dimensity 930 or Exynos 1280.
• OpenCL: 1372
• Vulkan: 1197
• CPDT internal storage UFS 2.2:
• CPDT microSD
• CPDT USB-C SSD

This has OPPO’s RAM expansion technology, which borrows up to 8GB of SSD for virtual memory; It helps smooth out multi-user Apps.

Throttling – Pass+

OPPO has nailed thermal management, and the SoC barely throttles. While it is not crucial for a mid-range, you can be a heavy user and still get full power.

• Maximum GIPS: 197,809
• Average GIPS: 190,292
• Minimum GIPS: 170,906
• Throttle percentage: 7%

Comms – Pass+

• It has a very strong antenna design, giving it excellent Wi-Fi signal strength out to 15m+ on the 5Ghz band.
• BT 5.1 supports multipoint and up to 30m signal distance.
• NFC is expected at this price.
• USB-C 2.0 (480Mbps) can use OTG for cut-and-paste access to an SSD or Flash Drive.

Phone – 4G and 5G – Incredibly strong – Exceed

It has a hybrid dual sim (one slot is microSD or sim). Not only does it find the four closest towers (few others do), but the phone’s signal strength is also excellent, reaching over 6pW (picowatt). Even the fourth, furthest tower away records usable strength signals.

Phone Summary: The OPPO A98 is for the city, suburbs, regional and rural use.

Battery – Exceed+

It has a 5000mAh battery and a 67W charger that fills it in 43 minutes – superb.

Tests:

• Video loop (50% brightness/volume/aeroplane mode: 27 hours
• PC Mark 3: 21 Hours office use
• Accubattery:  18 Hours mixed-use
• GFX Bench T-Rex: 505.9 minutes (8.43 hours) 3346 frames, gaming use
• Drain full load: 5 hours
• Drain idle screen-on: 450mA
• Drain 100% load screen-on: 1150-1200mA

The battery tended to charge at 33W until 50%, then dropped to 27W to 75%, and 18W for the remainder. This means the 67W charger is overkill (more about bragging rights), and 33W is enough. Ten points to OPPO for including the charger inbox.

In premium OPPO models (including this), it uses a custom-designed chip, Smart Battery Health Algorithm and Battery Healing technology called Battery Health Engine to extend the recharge cycle life to over 1600 and still hold 80% of the charge. This is in comparison to most Lithium-Ion batteries at 300-500 cycles. Apart from a longer battery life (well over four years), OPPO smartphones with this technology will retain better trade-in value.

Typical users will get two days between charges, and even heavier users will get over a day. At 43 minutes for a recharge, who cares?

Read – How to extend your smartphone battery life (guide)

Sound – Stereo – Pass

The OPPO A98 has an earpiece and bottom-firing speaker – a typical stereo phone setup. It uses the Qualcomm Aqusitic amplifier that can produce a maximum of 80dB (loud enough).

Real Original Sound by Dirac includes smart, movies, games, and music EQ settings. This works for speakers and headphones, although it impacts the latter most.

Hands-free is good, and two mics provide some noise cancelling.

Unfortunately, it has no low-or-mid bass and very slowly builds from 100Hz (high bass) to 700Hz. It is very Mid-centric: (bass recessed, mid boosted, treble recessed) – for clear voice only.

The sound stage is as wide as the phone in landscape. But a distinct bias to the bottom speaker means poor Left/Right separation.

Bluetooth 5.1 BLE is very good with SBC/ AAC/aptX/aptX HD/aptX TWS/LDAC Codecs.

Build – Exceed

OPPO has always had a class-leading build standard, and its resultant reliability is about 99% in an industry that thinks anything over 90% is good. Add a two-year warranty and excellent local after-sales support; you can see why it scores so highly in customer satisfaction ratings.

The OPPO A98 t is beautifully built, with Panda 2 front glass (like GG3), an iridescent and tough PMMA back, and only lacks a formal IP rating. While that is important, I can live without it – I have never toilet-dunked my phone.

Android 13 and up to 15 – Pass+

OPPO’s policy is now 2+2+3 – two years warranty, two OS upgrades and three years of quarterly security patches. This is great for a $649 phone.

ColorOS 13.1 is a valuable light overlay on Android 13 – it papers over the pure Android cracks.

It has all the Google Apps and OPPO substitutes (as OPPO cannot use Google Apps or services in China). OPPO has also drastically reduced bloatware, removing pre-installed Facebook, TikTok, etc.

OPPO A98 camera – Pass+

It has a 64MP (bins to 12MP) primary wide sensor. The 2MP depth is for Bokeh shots only, and the 2MP 20/40X Microscope is for fun – it works.

There is no ultra-wide angle; the digital zoom is 6X, and there is no OIS (but Qualcomm EIS). It is a good point-and-shoot camera. Video is a maximum of 1080p@30fps with EIS.

OPPO A98 Camera Comments

• 1X Day (slightly overcast): Primary sensor – the colours are accurate, natural, and have good dynamic range. There are good details in the background, shadows, and highlights.
• 2X Day: Primary sensor – perfect shot as per 1x
• 6X Day: Primary sensor – terrific detail for 5X digital zoom and the barest hint of background noise
• Ultra-wide: N/A
• Macro: N/A – The wide-angle sensor can take close-up shots.
• Indoor office light: Perfect, crisp details, bright shots, and accurate colours
• Bokeh Depth: A 2MP sensor helps for bokeh shots, and the subject is colour-accurate and bright, and the background is suitably blurred. There is a Bokeh Flare setting that creatively blurs background lights.
• Dark <40 lumens: The standard (not night mode) takes great shots with good colour and some detail. Night mode improves the detail and saturates the colour without adding much noise
• Selfie: The 32MP (bins to 8MP) selfie has natural skin tones, details, and a range of filters to enhance any image.
• Video (we are not video experts): You can shoot at 1080p@30fps with some Qualcomm EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation crops the image to the horizon) for a reasonably stable image.

Camera Summary: Versatile smartphone point-and-shoot camera. Exposure, dynamic range, colour, autofocus, and textures are all above par for this phone’s price level.

CyberShack’s view – OPPO A98 5G 2023 is a class leader in the <$700 space

For the price, it is an excellent Qualcomm Snapdragon device, has a terrific camera, long battery life (and a 67W charger inbox), incredible phone reception and Applesque enough to make people think it is one.

It gets our buy recommendation.

Competition (price in brackets is current discount)

The $600-699 space is crowded with 2023 and 2022 run-out models.

• OPPO A98 leads in storage (256GB) and price ($649)
• Google Pixel 7 128GB 2022 runout $999/699 (no charger inbox). CyberShack review Google Pixel 7/Pixel 7 Pro – high-class, almost identical twins
• Motorola Edge 30 256GB 2022 RUNOUT $699 CyberShack review Motorola Edge 30 – fantastic value 5G phone
• Motorola Edge 40 2023 256GB $699 CyberShack review Motorola Edge 40 2023 – Edge benefits at a lower cost
• OPPO Reno 8 5G 256GB 2022 $699 OPPO Reno8 5G – middle child excels at everything

The fact is that these are all excellent phones, and you would be happy with any. The OPPO A98 5G 2023 and Motorola Edge 30 5G 2022 are best for rural and remote area use.

Rating (as a $649 phone) 87/100

• Features: 90 – It has everything you need, including 256GB storage.
• Value: 90 – It is class-leading in features and value
• Performance: 80 – Not a flagship processor (but not expected at this price), 8/256GB is great, with minimal throttling and solid consumer performance.
• Ease of Use: 90 – Its 2+2+3 warranty/OS/security is quite good, although Motorola is slightly better.
• Design: 85 – I like the curved lines and screen. Dreamy Blue is an attractive phone.

Final Comment

We review most Australian smartphones. Some excite (OPPO Find X5/Pro), some are meh, and some are just good phones. The OPPO A98 is a good phone with no downsides. The excitement comes from knowing you got great value from a well-made, Qualcomm-based phone that will last the distance.

Pro

• Solid SD695 5G performance – not for gamers
• Superb battery life and 67W charger inbox
• Excellent quality build and 2+2+3-year warranty/OS/security with local support
• Front and rear cameras do a great job day or night
• Very strong phone antenna strength for city, suburbs, regional and rural use

Con

• Not for gamers (don’t expect it to be)
• Speaker performance is average
• No formal IP rating.

CyberShack Smartphone comparison v 1.8 (E&OE)

OPPO A98 CPH2529 8/256, Dual Sim Hybrid microSD

Brand	OPPO
Model	OPPO A98 5G
Model Number	CHP2529
Price Base	8/256
Price base	649
Warranty months	24-months ACL
Tier	Mid-range
Website	Website
From	OPPO, JB Hi-Fi and Officeworks
Country of Origin	China
Company	OPPO is now #2 in Australia for Android smartphone market share. It has achieved that by excellent product and after-sales service.
Test date	15-23 August 2023
Ambient temp	9-15°
Release	45047
Other models not for Australia (Don’t buy)	Look for the RNZ C-Tick

Screen

Size	6.72″
Type	LTPS LCD
Flat, Curve, 2D, 3D	Flat
Resolution	2400 x 1080
PPI	392
Ratio	20:9
Screen to Body %	91.4%
Colours bits	8-bit/16.7m colours
Refresh Hz, adaptive	60Hz or 120Hz Adaptive 30/48/50/60/90/120Hz
Touch Response	240Hz
Nits typical, test	550 (tested 557)
Nits max, test	680 HDM (tested 660)
Contrast	1500:1 (tested 1475:1)
sRGB	Natural 100% sRGB (tested 99%)
DCI-P3	Vivid 100% DCI-P3 (tested 97%)
Rec.2020 or other	96% NTSC
Delta E (<4 is excellent)	Approx. 2 (<4 is excellent)
HDR Level	HDR10 but downmixed to the panel’s SDR capability (True HDR is about 800 nits in 2% of the screen)
SDR Upscale	No
Blue Light Control	Yes
PWM if known	N/A
Daylight readable	Adequate – not as good as AMOLED
Always on Display	No
Edge display	No
Accessibility	Usual Android features
DRM	L1 FHD SDR Playback
Gaming	It is a casual gamer’s phone only. This is because the SoC and GPU are not overly powerful. It has Low Power Mode, Balanced Mode or Pro Gamer Mode.
Screen protection	Panda 1681 tempered glass (Similar to GG3)
Comment	Excellent, bright, colour-accurate screen. It has a colour temperature slider to add more warmth if you want it.

Processor

Brand, Model	Qualcomm SD695 5G
nm	6
Cores	2 x2.2GHz & 6 x 1.8 GHz
Modem	X51 5G
AI TOPS	Estimate 10 TOPS
Geekbench 6 Single-core	912
Geekbench 6 multi-core	2133
Like	Similar to MediaTek Dimensity 930 (Single Core) and Exynos 1280 (multi-core)
GPU	Adreno 619 840Mhz
GPU Test
Open CL	1372
Like	Similar to SD845
Vulcan	1197
RAM, type	8GB LPDDRX4 2133 PLUS up to 8GB virtual RAM expansion
Storage, free, type	256GB UFS 2.2 (208GB free)
micro-SD	Up to 1TB
CPDT internal seq. Read MBps	480
CPDT internal seq. write MBps	353
CPDT microSD read, write MBps	80/30 mountable
CPDT external (mountable?) MBps	31/29 OTG
Comment	All are fit for purpose.  Casual gamers only.
Throttle test
Max GIPS	197809
Average GIPS	190292
Minimum GIPS	170906
% Throttle	0.07
CPU Temp	51
Comment	Used in Realme 9 and 10 Pro, Moto Edge 30 Neo, Moto G71, Samsung A23, Nokia G60/X30/XR21, OPPO Reno 8 Lite, and many more.

Comms

Wi-Fi Type, model	Wi-Fi 5 AC supports Wi-Fi display and tethering
Test 2m -dBm, Mbps	-30/433 – maximum
Test 5m	-40/433
Test 10m	-48/433 (15m -58/433)
BT Type	5.1 BLE
GPS single, dual	Single L1
USB type	USB-C 2.0 480Mbps
ALT DP, DeX, Ready For	Wi-Fi casting and Chromecast
NFC	Yes
Ultra-wideband	No
Sensors
Accelerometer	Yes -combo with Gyro is very sensitive
Gyro	Yes -combo with Gyro is very sensitive
e-Compass	Yes
Barometer
Gravity	Yes
Pedometer	Yes
Ambient light	Yes
Hall sensor
Proximity	Yes
Comment	Wi-Fi 5 AC is strong and keeps the signal well to 10m

LTE and 5G

SIM	Hybrid Dual sim (retail model) shared with microSD
Active	Only one active at a time
Ring tone single, dual	Single
VoLTE	Carrier dependent
Wi-Fi calling	Carrier dependent
4G Bands	1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/13/17/18/19/20/26/28/32/38/39/40/41/66
Comment	All Australian 4G bands
5G sub-6Ghz	n1/n3/n5/n7/n8/n20/n28/n66/n38/n40/n41/n77/n78
Comment	All Australian sub-6Ghz and low-bands
mmWave	N/A
Test Boost Mobile, Telstra
UL, DL, ms	60/15/33ms
Tower 1 -dBm, fW or pW	-85/3.2 to 6pW
Tower 2	-90/1 to 3pW
Tower 3	-100/100-600fW
Tower 4	-102/50-100fW
Comment	Excellent strong signal for city, suburbs, regional and rural use.

Battery

mAh	5000mAh 19.45Wh single battery
Charger, type, supplied	67W SUPERVOOC 5V/2A/10W, 5-11V/6.1A/67W This means the USB-A to USB-C cable is rated at 6.1W or more – don’t lose it!
PD, QC level	PD 9V/2A/18W
Qi, wattage	N/A
Reverse Qi or cable.	N/A
Test (Adaptive mode)
Charge % 30mins	50% in 18 minutes
Charge 0-100%	43 minutes
Charge Qi, W Using Belkin Boost Charge 15W fast wireless charge	N/A
Charge 5V, 2A	Approx. 3 hours
Video loop 50%, aeroplane	27 hours
PC Mark 3 battery	21 hours Accubattery 18 hours mixed use
GFX Bench Manhattan battery	Out of Memory error
GFX Bench T-Rex	505.9 minutes (8.43 hours) 3346 frames
Drain 100-0% full load screen on	5 hours (confirmed by Accubattery)
mA full load	1150-1200mA
mA Watt idle Screen on	450mA
Estimate loss at max refresh	Tested on 120Hz High setting
Estimate typical use	Two days at typical use
Comment	It tended to charge at 36W to 50%, then drop to 27W to 75%, and top up at 18W. Excellent battery life. OPPO Battery Health Engine means 1600 full charge cycles before the battery retains 80%.

Sound

Speakers	Stereo (earpiece and bottom-firing speaker
Tuning
AMP	Qualcomm Aqusitic
Dolby Atmos decode	No
Hi-Res	No
3.5mm	Yes
BT Codecs	SBC/ AAC/aptX/aptX HD/aptX TWS/LDAC
Multipoint	Should support it
Dolby Atmos (DA)	No
EQ	Real original Sound EQ – smart/ movie/ game/ music and useless for a mono device
Mics	2 with some noise-cancellation
Test dB – all on EQ flat DA off
Volume max	80
Media (music)	70
Ring	80
Alarm	70
Notifications	77
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	Slowly building
Low Mid 200-400Hz	Slowly building
Mid 4000-1000Hz	Slowly building
High-Mid 1-2kHz	Flat
Low Treble 2-4kHz	Flat
Mid Treble 4-6kHz	Flat
High Treble 6-10kHz	Steep decline
Dog Whistle 10-20kHz	Steep decline
Sound Signature type	Mid-centric for clear voice. Missing all the important bass so that this is muddy, and missing all the important treble, so there is little character and directionality.
Soundstage	Stereo but distinct bias towards the bottom speaker.
Comment	Suitable for voice but not for music

Build

Size (H X W x D)	165.6 x 76.1 x 8.2mm
Weight grams	192g
Front glass	Panda 1681 secondary tempered glass
Rear material	PMMA
Frame	Plastic
IP rating	No rating
Colours	Dreamy Blue Cool Black
Pen, Stylus support	No
In the box
Charger	67W SUPERVOOC
USB cable	USB-A to USB-C 3W capable cable (33W)
Buds	No
Bumper cover	No
Comment	OPPO leads with 67W charger inbox.

OS

Android	13
Security patch date	45108
UI	ColorOS 13.1
OS upgrade policy	2 OS
Security patch policy	3 years of quarterly updates
Bloatware	OPPO App Market, Booking.com, Facebook, Games, Linkedin, Lock Screen magazine, My OPPO, O Relax, TikTok, Zen space and OPPO substitutes for Google Apps (and Google Apps).
Other
Comment	ColorOS is the light grease on Android wheels that makes it easier to use
Security
Fingerprint sensor location, type	On the power button – 8/ 10 test
Face ID	Yes 2D
Other	OPPO ColorOS has advanced security features
Comment

Camera Rear – OPPO A98

Rear Primary	Wide
MP	64MP bins to 16MP
Sensor	Omnivision OV64B
Focus	PDAF
f-stop	1.7
um	.7 bins to 1.4
FOV° (stated, actual)	79
Stabilisation	Qualcomm 5.3x crop EIS only
Zoom	6X digital
Rear 2	Microscope – 40X Magnification
MP	2MP
Sensor	Galaxy Core GC02M
Focus	FF
f-stop	3.3
um	1.75
FOV (stated, actual)	65
Stabilisation	No
Zoom	No
Rear 3	Depth
MP	2MP
Sensor	Galaxy Core GC02m
Focus	FF
f-stop	2.4
um	1.75
FOV (stated, actual)	89
Stabilisation	No
Zoom	No
Special	AI can use a bracket of shots to create a 108MP image.
Video max	1080p@30fps and Qualcomm EIS
Flash	Yes
Auto-HDR	Primary lens
	Nightscape, Photos, Videos, PRO, PANO, Portrait, Time-lapse, SLO-MO, Text scanner, Google Lens, Extra HD,
QR code reader	Via Google Lens
Night mode	AI

Front

MP	32MP bins to 8MP
Sensor	Omnivision OV32C
Focus	FF
f-stop	2.4
um	.7 bins to 1.4
FOV (stated, actual)	89
Stabilisation	No
Flash	Screen fill
Zoom
Video max	1080p@30fps or 720p@30fps (default)
Features	Photos, Videos, PANO, Nightscape, Time-lapse, Sticker

Comment

• 1X Day (slightly overcast): Primary sensor – the colours are accurate, natural, and have good dynamic range. Good details in the background, shadows, and highlights. • 2X Day: Primary sensor – perfect shot as per 1x • 6X Day: Primary sensor – terrific detail for 5X digital zoom and the barest hint of background noise • Ultra-wide: N/A • Macro: N/A – The wide-angle sensor can take close-up shots. • Indoor office light: Perfect, crisp details, bright shots, and accurate colours • Bokeh Depth: A 2MP sensor helps for bokeh shots, and the subject is colour-accurate and bright, and the background is suitably blurred. There is a Bokeh Flare setting that creatively blurs background lights. • Dark <40 lumens: The standard (not night mode) takes great shots with good colour and some detail. Night mode improves the detail and saturates the colour without adding much noise • Selfie: The 32MP (bins to 8MP) selfie has natural skin tones, details, and a range of filters to enhance any image. • Video (we are not video experts): You can shoot at 1080p@30fps with some Qualcomm EIS (Electronic Image Stabilisation crops the image to the horizon) for a reasonably stable image. Camera Summary: Versatile smartphone point-and-shoot camera. Exposure, dynamic range, colour, autofocus, and textures are all above par for this phone’s price level.

Ratings

Features	90
	It has everything you need, including 256GB storage and microSD.
Value	90
	Class-leading features and value.
Performance	80
	Solid performance/ no lag and 8/ 256GB RAM and storage.
Ease of Use	90
	Its 2+2+3 warranty/OS/security is good, although Motorola Edge is slightly better.
Design	85
	Dreamy Blue is an attractive phone.
Rating out of 10	87
Final comment	This is a good phone with no downsides. The excitement factor comes from knowing you got great value from a well-made, Qualcomm-based phone that will last the distance.

Pro
1	Adequate performance – not for gamers
2	Large/ bright/ reasonably colour-accurate LPTS LCD screen
3	Superb battery life and 67W fast charge
4	Excellent quality build and 2-year warranty with local support
5	Front and rear cameras are excellent for shooting day or night.
Con
1	Not for gamers (don’t expect it to be)
2	No formal IP rating
3	Speaker performance is average.

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