OPPO Reno 2 First Impression | Goodbye Gimbal!

Less than 6 months after the release of the OPPO Reno, our friends from OPPO PH just had us play with the OPPO Reno 2! To celebrate this, OPPO Philippines whisked us away to somewhere up the mountains of Taytay Rizal for a rather bold challenge. Can their new device withstand the bumps, shakes and crazy terrain while going through an ATV (All-Terrain Vehicle) ride?

We were about to find out.

Prior to the adventurous ride, OPPO show-cased some of the main key highlights of the Reno 2 with the help of actor/YouTuber Mikael Daez. I will admit, I know of him but after his introduction of the OPPO Reno 2, I will say, the dude is a certified nerd – and we here at Ungeek approve! Good job!

Design

Much like the original OPPO Reno, the Reno 2 takes its design cues from its predecessor. Sleek, elegant and luxurious, the OPPO Reno 2 still aligns everything down right the center for a cleaner, more symmetrical look.

The OPPO Reno 2 has a crisp 6.5” Full HD+ display (1080 x 2440), and much like the original Reno, has zero notches because the front facing camera is housed on the shark fin pop-up contraption. This gives OPPO Reno 2 an impressive 93.1% screen-to-body ratio display size for better media consumption (read: Netflix/ YouTube Bingewatching).

To those who may be worried about the Reno 2 losing its phone jack, don’t; it’s still there along with a USB type C port.

Updated Power

The OPPO Reno 2 still packs a mid-range processor but this time it’s the Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G. If it’s anything like the 710, we know that the processor is exceedingly capable and from our short time using. Taking photos, videos and short-form editing, switching tabs and camera lenses every now and then, we hardly saw any slow-down from the phone. The 8GB RAM might have something to do with that as well.

Yes, that’s the premium case the OPPO Reno 2 comes with.

At the end of the day, after a grueling ATV ride and using the OPPO Reno 2 (for taking videos at 1080p 60fps primarily), I’m left with 50% charge thanks to the OPPO Reno 2’s 4000mah battery. If I need to charge it, the Reno 2 is equipped with OPPO’s proprietary VOOC Flash Charging 3.0.

That Camera Doe

The highlight feature of the OPPO Reno 2 is its video-taking capabilities. If you’re a content creator or someone who just loves taking videos, this phone is definitely for you. The OPPO Reno 2 has a quad-camera setup with the following configuration: 48MP (Main Camera and where the stabilization works) + 13MP (telephoto) + 8MP (ultra-wide) + 2MP Mono. All-in-all, everything you pretty much need to capture most subject matter.

For video, OPPO boasts that the Reno 2’s Optical Image Stabilization (OIS), mixed with its Electronic Image Stabilization (EIS) creates a stabilization that mimics that of a gimbal or an action camera. Raised eyebrows aside, we put the pretty pink phone to the test. And boy, did it deliver. Watch the video samples below:

Even with a condition that would challenge even the best mobile gimbal, the OPPO Reno 2 was able to stabilize my shots without using any device attachments. It’s hard to believe, but I think I have a new favorite video-shooting device. We put the device through various paces – Daytime, Low Light, Rough Terrains, shifting perspective and subject—and in most cases, the phone delivers.

We’ll continue to test the camera’s out (for photos, selfie, front-facing video recording, etc) and give you guys a more robust review soon.

Aside from the camera, we have to give it to OPPO for enhancing the native mic of the phone. Of course, having a third-party mic is still ideal but in cases that you find yourself needing to vlog or shoot something quick, OPPO Reno 2 has various mic settings in place. On such is directional zoom-in recording option where it pics up the main source of audio and focuses on it. This is great when you need to shoot “talking heads”. If you want a more ambient feel, it has a surround audio recording capability as well. Oh, and kudos on having an ambient noise-filter option to enhance better total sound recording.

For now, we love what see and we’re hoping that OPPO Philippine prices the Reno 2 in a very competitive manner –somewhere close to the range of the original Reno 1 (Php 26,990).

The OPPO Reno 2 and the OPPO Reno 2F will have its official launch come October 17, 2019 and will be available for selling within the month. Stay tuned to Ungeek for more on the OPPO Reno 2 and follow OPPO on their official social media platforms and website for further details.