The Oppo F5 and the Oppo F5 Youth are both smartphones manufactured by the Chinese tech company Oppo Electronics Corporation (known as Oppo). The F5 was released in October 2017, whilst the F5 Youth was released in November 2017, under Oppo's F Series. The series began in January 2016, with the release of the Oppo F1,^[1] delivering succeeding smartphones on a 6-month time interval with alternative variants such as the F3 Plus and F5 Youth. ^[2] These phones have a heavy emphasis on the capabilities of its front-facing camera.

These phones are made to be the successors of the Oppo F3 and Oppo F3 Plus, released in May 2017 and April 2017, respectively.^[3] Now, the F5 and F5 Youth have become the predecessors to the Oppo F7 and Oppo F7 Youth, as the company continues their production and development of the F series.

Specifications

Reception

GSM Arena have provided a very detailed review of the qualities which they liked and disliked about the Oppo F5. They have categorized the phone to be 'trendy', as it possessed the main features that most modern 2017 phones would have, such as trimmed bezels, face unlock, and ultra-wide aspect ratios.^[15] The reviewer found the display of the phone to have excellent color contrast along with sharp and precise images because of its 402ppi density. GSM Arena have tested the battery life of the phone and gave a 91-hour endurance rating when they conducted their daily tests and was described to be a good score based on their standards.^[15] Overall, GSM Arena have recommended the phone as a whole, but they believed it should have been priced better as a mid-range tier phone.^[15] GSM Arena did not provide their own review for the Oppo F5 Youth.

Andrew Williams from Trusted Reviews discussed his opinions about the Oppo F5 on 19 December 2017. He praised the phones' widescreen with thin bezels, which are uncommonly found on a mid-tier phone.^[16] In terms of performance, Williams finds that the phone ran decently, but struggled to compete with the processors of its competition. He said that it did however possess decent frame rates to play games and navigate through the phone smoothly without many issues.^[17] The front-facing camera is highly applauded by Williams, as it was able to capture detailed and accurate selfies. However the rear camera did not receive the same positive feedback, as he mentioned that it was heavily dependent on the lighting of the scenery, but was capable of capturing detail-rich images occasionally. The reviewer also states that the battery life of the phone was not an issue, however it did not last long enough to become one of its strengths. Williams concluded that the phone would be a solid choice as a budget Android operating phone, especially for those who enjoy taking selfies.^[18]

The Oppo F5 was also reviewed by Abhishek Baxi from Android Authority on 26 August 2018 in an article titled "Great selfies come at a premium".^[19] After spending two weeks with the phone, Baxi wrote that the phone did not fit well with its 'selfie expert' claim. According to the review, the phone's overall performance was enough to satisfy most people, but wrote that there were better and cheaper alternatives in the market. Baxi criticized the phone's plastic covered back and heavy weight, but commended the ergonomic build of the phone, noting the rounded edges and the ease of single-handed use. He claimed that the display had great viewing angles, showing clear and crisp color accuracy, despite being under direct sunlight. Baxi said that processor and chipset of the phone performed decently "if you don't stretch it too much".^[19] Again, the micro USB charging port has been criticized by the reviewer, as it did not support fast charging. His review of the camera has also claimed that it was heavily dependent on the lighting, as there is a noticeable quality drop in low lighting conditions, but is more than capable of taking high-quality images. ^[19]

In a heavily positive review, the Oppo F5 Youth was reviewed by Criss Galit from Gadget Pilipinas. Galit labelled the phone as "Great Value for Less".^[20] Galit started off by complementing the generous screen to body ratio and adds on to this by saying that "it doesn't feel like you're holding a 6-inch smartphone",^[20] as it feels comfortable when holding this in use. The reviewer describes the display of this phone as crisp, vibrant, and color accurate, even when placed under direct sunlight. He writes that the quality of the phone's audio is loud and crisp, with a present bass, but can sound slightly affected when playing at full volume. Galit applauded the operating system of the phone, as it is simple, clean, and pleasant to the eyes. Both the front-facing and rear camera are heavily commended by the reviewer, as they are capable of capturing sharp and accurate images with "true-to-life"^[20] color reproduction, even under low light conditions. The chipset of the phone was also praised by Galit, as it was powerful enough to run high-end games smoothly. He also briefly added that the battery life of this phone was not an issue, as one full charge was sufficient enough for a full day's use. Galit had come to the verdict that the Oppo F5 Youth was simply a more affordable version of the F5, as they possess very similar specifications, but was significantly cheaper for the performance it delivers.^[20]

Issues

Availability

Oppo has created two variants of the Oppo F5 and Oppo F5 Youth. The Oppo F5 can come with either 4GB RAM with 32GB of internal storage, or 6GB RAM with 64GB of internal storage. The Oppo F5 Youth offers either 3GB RAM of 4GB RAM, both with 32GB of internal storage.^[11]

The Oppo F5 comes in 3 different color options, black, red, or gold. The Oppo F5 Youth offers 2 color choices, which are black or gold.^[21]

Oppo has announced that they will be selling the Oppo F5 in the Philippines, India, Russia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan, and Nepal.^[22]

The Oppo F5 was unveiled in the Philippines on 27 October 2017, putting the phone available for pre-ordering until 3 November 2017. Its official release began on 4 November 2017 onwards, with a starting price of 15,990 PHP.^[23][24]

The market in India had launched the 4GB variant Oppo F5 on 2 November 2017, with a starting price of 19,990 INR.^[25] Likewise, Malaysia has also released the phone on 2 November 2017, at 1,298 MYR,^[26] and later released the 6GB variant of the Oppo F5 on 6 December 2017, available for pre-ordering at 1,698MYR.^[27]

Other countries that have also released this phone placed its initial pricing at similar ranges as Pakistan's, whose started at 39,999 PKR,^[28] while Nepal's had settled at 33,990NPR.^[29] Russia, in particular, have launched the Oppo F5 slightly later, on 10 November 2017.^[30][31]

References