Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G Review: An all-rounder AI-powered smartphone at just Rs.36999

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G Review: The Oppo Reno series is a mid-range smartphone series which offers several premium-like features at a very affordable price. While the company also provides great offerings with its budget and premium devices, the Reno series has been in talks for some time with its unique features. Now, the company has the new generation, Oppo Reno 12 5G series which includes Reno 12 5G and Reno 12 Pro 5G. Additionally, with the Reno 12 5G series, the company has integrated some advanced Artificial Intelligence (AI)- based features which may entice people towards buying the smartphone.

I have been using the Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G for over a week now and I can say that the smartphone checks all the boxes, making it a jack of all trades. The Reno 12 Pro excels in performance, camera, display experience, and more, providing competitive AI features in the mid-range smartphone market. To know more about the smartphone, check out the full review and know if it’s worth buying in the highly competitive market.

Also read: Oppo Reno 12 series launched in India at Rs.32999: Check out specs, features, price, and more

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5 Review: Design and display

Over the years, Oppo has been experimenting with several designs for its Reno series. However, every year I tend to get disappointed with its design innovation. While the Oppo 10 series includes a decent design, the Oppo Reno 11 series and the Reno 12 5G series did not match my expectations. However, it’s a highly opinionated perspective, as many may also like the two-tone matte-gloss design of the Reno 12 Pro 5G which I found somewhat similar to the Vivo V30e. The Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G is designed with Armour Architecture that includes Corning Gorilla Glass Victus 2 protection, Alloy Framework, biomimetic technology, and more to make it durable.

In terms of display, Oppo has included a significant upgrade with a “Quad-view Curved Infinite View screen.” The Reno 12 Pro features a 6.7-inch FHD+ flexible AMOLED display which provides an exceptional viewing experience. While using the smartphone for basic usage such as playing graphic-intensive games, or watching content on Netflix, Prime Video, or any other OTT platforms, it provides a punchy and crisp visual, enhancing your overall viewing experience. It offers features such as a 10-bit panel and 1.07 billion colours to provide users with a great visual.

Additinally, the smartphone offers a 120Hz refresh rate which makes navigation between the apps a breeze. Lastly, the Reno 12 Pro offers up to 1200nits peak brightness which is decent. However, competitors such as Nothing Phone 2a, Vivo V30e, and others offer increased brightness. Therefore, you may struggle a bit to use the smartphone during direct sunlight conditions.

Also read: Oppo A3 Launched with Snapdragon 695 5G SoC: Check price, specs, availability and more

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G Review: Camera

Now, comes the main attraction of Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G, its cameras. The smartphone features a triple camera setup that includes a 50MP Sony LYT-600 main sensor with OIS, a 50MP Samsung S5KJN5 2x portrait camera, and an 8MP Sony IMX355 ultra-wide sensor. In my opinion, the Reno 12 Pro 5G captures exceptional images. The main camera sensor captures subjects and scenes with great clarity and balanced contrast. However, in some instances or we can say lighting conditions, the camera takes time to focus or process the scene, making the final result processed or highly edited as it changes the entire skin tone or colours of the scene.

The 50MP portrait camera does a decent job and enhances the colours beautifully. You will not notice any noise or blurred images while using the 2x optical zoom. The 8MP Sony IMX355 ultra-wide sensor also captures great images, making it a fully balanced smartphone with great camera capabilities. I will not say that the Reno 12 Pro 5G has the best camera in the segment because there are other camera smartphones such as Xiaomi 14 Civi, Realme GT 6, and others which also do a great job.

In terms of camera AI features, it includes AI Portrait Retouching for Selfies, AI Clear Face, AI Best Face, and more but these were not available in my review unit. However, I was able to use the AI Eraser 2.0 which does an exceptional job of removing people and objects from the scene and retouching images for a clean final result. Additionally, its AI studio is another highlight which creates digital avatars of an image.

Also read: Oppo F27 Pro+ 5G Review: Good smartphone to buy at ₹32,999 that is built to last

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G Review: Performace

The Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G is powered by a custom MediaTek Dimensity 7300-Energy chipset fabricated with a 4nm process. The smartphone is also equipped with MediaTek NPU 655 to efficiently carry out AI-powered tasks. In terms of performance, the Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G does a very good job and provides a lag-free experience. This year, Oppo has integrated significant improvements with Reno 12 Pro 5G and the smartphone more smoother and faster even during multitasking or playing games at higher graphic settings. However, after extended hours of gaming, you may experience some frame drops. On the other hand, I did not experience any overheating issues, making it a decent-performing smartphone if not the best at the given price range.

The Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G is packed with advanced AI features, making it handle several complex tasks. while most of the features are dominated towards camera and editing, the smartphone also offers features such as AI Toolbox. The toolbox is powered with Google Gemini and supports three AI features: AI Writer, AI Speak and AI Summary which works effectively. Additionally, it also supports AI Speak and AI Summary which supports Google’s Gemini Ultra model. This feature can be used to convert speech to text and generate summaries from audio recordings. I used the featured during an interview and it worked out quite well for as as the transcription for quite accurate.

Apart from the performance and AI features, the Reno 12 Pro 5G runs on ColorOS 14 based on Android 14. While, the OS offers all the advanced features and File Dock, Smart Touch, and more, it comes with a lot of bloatware which is unwanted apps and games. While the bloatware can be uninstalled, it makes the overall experience cluttered.

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G Review: Battery

The Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G is backed by a 5500 mAh battery which is quite impressive for a mid-range smartphone. The smartphone easily lasts up to a day with a single charge even during multitasking. The Reno 12 Pro 5G also does not drain very quickly when playing at higher gaming settings, providing a smooth experience. The smartphone also comes with a 80W SUPERVOOC fast charging adaption which quickly recharges the device within 30 to 25 minutes.

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G Review: Verdict

Oppo Reno 12 Pro 5G is a decent smartphone that provides promising performance, camera experience, punchy display, plenty of AI features, and more. However, if you are not a fan of glittery smartphone designs like me, then you can avoid this device. Additionally, the OS experience was also average due to bloatware. Overall, the Reno 12 Pro 5G checks most of the boxes of what a user can expect in the given price range.