OPPO F11 Pro review: Shoot and use with ease

OPPO debuted its line of camera-centric smartphones—the F-series, with the F1 S back in 2016. Fast forward to today, the F11 Pro reinvents and upgrades the tech and design of its predecessors. Now, it is no longer just the “Selfie Expert” but promises to capture stunning, brilliant portraits. So, does it match up to its name? Lucky for you, I’ve tested it out. And with a lot of friendly competition going on between smartphone cameras in this issue, let’s see if the F11 Pro can truly take some shots.

Picture perfect. Keeping with the promise of the F series, the F11 Pro is packed with a 48-megapixel + 5-megapixel sensor rear camera and a 16-megapixel rising front camera (more on it later). For a midrange smartphone, it’s got an adequate set of features such as Expert mode (manual settings), HDR, panorama, and Dazzle Color mode to satisfy the photography buff in you.

Daytime shooting produces crisp, clear photos with accurate color. Its artificial intelligence-enhanced cameras on both the front and the back produce beautiful portrait shots that blur out the background. It also works well in group shots and intelligently picks out the subjects from the background.

Speaking of portraits, let’s talk about its pre-installed beauty filters. Personally, I absolutely hate using beauty filters because they make me look like a completely different, smudgy-looking thing. It’s like you can just tell that it’s there.

Well, the F11 Pro contains a full suite of plastic surgery-like choices in which you can smoothen your skin, make your face look smaller and thinner, shrink your nose and chin, and make your eyes larger. It also has a touch-up and 3D feature (that I don’t quite understand the purpose of but it is there for your perusal). Overall, the F11 Pro’s beauty setting does very well—so much that it actually made me consciously switch to it when taking a random selfie as it feels like a subtle glow up, not a complete redo. 

Finally, as the main selling point of the camera is its Night Mode feature, I tried pushing it to the limits to see how much it can deliver. Under only the warm glow of streetlights, I found that while the subject stands out against the darkness, the background turns out quite grainy. While shooting in low-light, I’ve observed that it enhances the lit areas, which can either drown out the subject or create well-contrasted cityscapes. As with all things, there is a certain threshold that the Night Mode works well with. The AI and its Tetracell technology work hand in hand to help widen that threshold. But if you want to take a photo of your crew at night under the stars with only a campfire for lighting? I’d recommend you go the old fashioned way and use flash.

Long live the battery. I once used the F11 Pro through a day that started at 10 a.m. and ended 3 a.m. the next day. I didn’t have a power bank and got back home with a good 21 percent of battery life left. Pretty good mileage, if you ask me. PCMark rated it at 12 hours, which is high up there with other efficient smartphones. Thanks to the 4,000mAh battery and its VOOC 3.0 fast charging technology—which promises a full charge in about 80 minutes—the F11 Pro can work with you all day, all night.

It performs very well through a full work day. It always manages to pull up with at least 15 to 20 percent of battery, even when I’ve been simultaneously playing RAM heavy games such as PlayerUnkown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) and streaming music. 

Screen’s like a dream. The F11 Pro features a 6.5-inch FHD+ notch-free screen, giving the device a 90.9 percent screen-to-body ratio. This phone’s able to achieve this feat thanks to the retractable front camera. This is makes it great to watch shows and movies or play games. However, one thing I’ve noticed while playing on full-screen is that the edges are overstretched and some areas are cut off from the screen. You’re forced to jab at the very edges of it to press the desired button.

Game-play wise, it performs great. It didn’t even heat up when I was 30 minutes into playing. It can handle graphics-intensive games thanks to its powerful MediaTek P70 processor, which ensures lag-free gameplay. The phone is pre-programmed with a Hyper Boost feature, which boosts up the system for a faster, more responsive experience.

It also comes with an application called the Game Space, which allows users to personalize game optimization parameters—from high performance mode, balanced mode, and low power consumption mode. I really like Game Space because it optimizes your network connection, ensures gameplay smoothness, and gives you the option to block banners and notifications for the best gaming experience. Mobile gamers out there know just how much of a pain it is to have to hastily swipe away notifications—especially if you’re in the middle of an intense session—and the Game Space feature helps solve that problem.

Smarter than the average smartphone. The F11 Pro gives you the option to choose between passcode, fingerprint, or face unlock. The face unlock is pretty accurate and can recognize your face even in dim surroundings. It also has an option not to unlock when your eyes are closed, so you can sleep easy.

One initial issue I had with the face unlock and using the front camera, in general, was the fear that I was going to drop the phone at one point and completely ruin the front camera. Thankfully, OPPO thought of that during production and developed a gravity sensor which can detect if the phone is falling and will automatically retract the camera before it even hits the ground.

Naturally gorgeous. While its large screen makes the perfect medium for entertainment, the F11 Pro feels a bit too bulky in my hands (hey, you can’t have it all), and one-handed typing puts quite a strain on the wrist considering the weight you have to support.  But of course, this is all subject to personal preference. 

I dig the back cover though, which comes in two colors: Thunder Black and Aurora Green. Both of which come in gradients. In line with OPPO’s design philosophy that they find inspiration from nature, the Aurora Green test unit we got had a gorgeous sky blue complemented with emerald—definitely reminiscent of the Aurora Borealis over wintry skies.

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Form factor: 8.5

Build quality: 8.5

Ease of use: 9

Performance:  9

Value for money: 8.5

OVERALL RATING: 8.7

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VERDICT

The OPPO F11 Pro is a great all-around phone that can keep up with you from day to night. Suitable for those who do everything on their phones and it’s a wonderful entertainment medium. The camera is a dream for the most part, while its highly marketed low-light feature could use some more work.

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SPECIFICATIONS

Display: 6.5” Full HD+ Panoramic Screen, 2,340 x 1,080 resolution

SIM: Dual nano

Operating system: ColorOS 6, based on Android 9.0 Pie

Processor: MediaTek Helio P70

GPU: Mali-G72 MP3

Memory: 6GB RAM

Storage: 64GB internal, expandable up to 256GB via microSD

Cameras: Rear – 48MP (f/1.8 aperture) + 5MP (f/2.4 aperture) depth sensor with PDAF, LED Flash; Front – 16MP motorized pop-up

Connectivity: & I/O ports: Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot; 4G/4G+; Bluetooth 5.0, A2DP, LE; NFC; A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS; microUSB 2.0; 3.5 mm audio jack

Other features: Rear-mounted fingerprint sensor, face detection

Battery: Non-removable 4,000mAh, 20W VOOC 3.0 fast charge

Dimensions & weight: 161.3 x 76.1 x 8.8 mm, 190g

Color: Thunder Black, Aurora Green

Price: P18,990