The Mad Catz Strike 4 – stylised as ‘S.T.R.I.K.E. 4’ – is Mad Catz’s latest flagship model of the famed Strike series of mechanical keyboards. It’s the bigger brother of the much cheaper Strike 2, and comes complete with Cherry MX Red RGB keyswitches.
Priced at around £130, the Strike 4 sits in a mid-range price bracket for mainstream mechanical keyboards, along with the likes of the Razer Blackwidow 2019.
Design and build – The Mad Catz Strike 4 looks both premium and flashy
The Strike 4 is presented in a fantastic manner, opting for a ‘skeleton’ open-housed design. The 16.8 million RGB colour radiating from the backlight look all the more visible thanks to the skeleton design, which looks great when synced with all those RGB fans and RAM inside your gaming PC.
Lock lights are in the typical top-right location you’ll find on most keyboards, but Mad Catz has been smart with its design. As opposed to having the quite frankly useless ‘Scroll Lock’ light in its typical place, it has been replaced with a ‘W’ lock light, designed to signify the Windows keys being locked or unlocked, which should make life a lot easier for gamers.
The Strike 4 comes with a metal top-plate, as opposed to the plastics and metal-feel plastics some manufacturers offer – like that on the Alienware AW768, for example. Having a proper metal plate makes the keyboard a lot sturdier, minimizes body flex and feels premium.
Another major win are the doubleshot keycaps and plastics. Seeing two-shot moulded keycaps on a gaming keyboard such as the Strike 4 is pretty rare, harking back to the days when keyboards were much better built and lasted a lot longer. In a way, the Strike 4 could be seen as a throwback.
The advantage of having two-shot moulded keycaps means there is no printing or laser-etching needed in the manufacturing process, meaning letters will never fade or wear off. Unlike printing, doubleshot keycaps are made when two layers of plastic are moulded into one another, which makes for a more premium feel, especially considering the legends can’t be felt under finger.
Unfortunately, there are no additional macro keys, which are arguably must-haves in the modern market, especially with the scope of the competition. And while there are multimedia keys present, you have to hold down the Fn key to activate them, which is a pain when rival keyboards boast dedicated keys for pausing and fast-forwarding through media.
The left hand side of the Strike 4 includes an open housing and aluminium top plate
Performance – The Mad Catz Strike 4 keys are absolutely perfect for gaming
The Strike 4 boasts Cherry’s MX Red RGB keyswitches with clear plastic housings, allowing the RGB backlighting to shine through.
MX Reds are linear switches, meaning they have no tactile feedback, unlike the MX Brown’s ‘bump’ or the MX Blue’s loud ‘click’ that are reminiscent of older keyboards with either buckling spring or ALPS switches. There’s the standard 2mm actuation point and full 4mm travel, meaning there’s nothing fancy here, not that you’d need it.
The actuation force of these MX Reds is 45cN, meaning they’re light and easy to push down which is ideal for gaming. Indeed, in a few runs on CS:GO, and even trying out Assetto Corsa, the Reds worked like a dream, especially with the typo-detecting N-Key Rollover and anti-ghosting, allowing me to take out terrorists and run Ferrari F40s up the Goodwood Hill Climb with greater ease.
The MX Reds switches are ideal for gaming, although competitive gamers may prefer MX Speed Silvers switches. With a higher actuation point of 1.2mm, requiring even less effort to push keys down, Silvers tend to give people a competitive advantage. That being said, the Reds do the job perfectly on the Strike 4.
For general day-to-day typing, some people may find the Red switches a little too light, but that’s personal preference really.
The Strike 4 comes with some lovely Cherry MX Red RGB keyswitches and doubleshot keycaps
Software and backlighting – The Mad Catz Strike 4 backlight offers a stunning 16.8 million colours
Mad Catz’s dedicated software for the Strike 4 is easy enough to set up. The ZIP file install is small, unlike that of Razer’s 300MB Synapse software. The software should be easy enough to use, allowing you to program every single key to a set list of system functions, or giving you the ability to set up your own macro keys. Granted, there aren’t any dedicated macros here, but one plus point is that you can create them pretty easily.
However, some users may find the software too simple, and one drawback I’ve found is you can’t program the lighting for individual keys. For backlighting, it’s a handy list of preset functions. What’s more, the backlighting feels cheap in this open-housed design, whereas in typically ‘closed’ keyboards it can look cleaner and slicker.
That said, the lights shine through the keycaps nicely and the scope of colour provided is excellent. Other manufacturers could learn a lesson in backlighting by going with clear plastic housing switches, as opposed to those with small LED mounted atop a black plastic-housed switch.
A wider shot of the Strike 4 showing off its excellent design and brilliant RGB backlighting
Should I buy the Mad Catz Strike 4?
If you’re looking for a sturdy and well-made keyboard from a name you recognise, complete with some of the best keyswitches on the market, look no further than the Mad Catz Strike 4.
Verdict
The Mad Catz Strike 4 boasts fantastic construction, quick keyswitches and intutive software, all for a great price.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e is an Android tablet, and one of the best alternatives to an iPad.
It’s currently Samsung’s top 2019 tab and in some ways a successor to the Galaxy Tab S4. But it uses a lower-end processor to help bring down the asking price to below £400 (for the 64GB version).
As such, it will appeal to those looking for just a tablet, as opposed to a device to replace their laptop. Its design and screen are delightful, too.
The main issue is the current standstill state of Android tablet progression. Tablets are great devices to entertain younger kids, but the Samsung Galaxy S5e is arguably far too fancy to fulfil that demand. A new feature such as Google Stadia support would give tablets, in general, a renewed sense of meaning.
Samsung’s previous top-end tablet followed the design philosophy of many a flagship smartphone – it featured a glass back and metal sides. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e sticks to a more traditional tablet style. It’s aluminium all-round, apart from the glass pane above the screen, of course.
Cheaper to manufacture it may have been but I prefer this design to last year’s glass-backed device. Anodised aluminium has a finely textured grain that feels great in iPads, and so it does here as well.
Samsung has trimmed down the screen borders too, although there remains sufficient room for your thumbs to rest whether you’re holding the Galaxy Tab S5e on its side or upright. This trim down also makes this 10.5-inch tablet smaller (in most dimensions) than a 9.7-inch iPad.
It’s super-slim at 5.5mm and its 400g weight is light for a 10.5-inch tablet. Slim, trim and light the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e may be, but a tablet with this screen size can only be so petite.
If you’re after a device for young kids, we’d recommend a smaller tablet. Or at least a larger one with the kind of protection offered by a Kindle Fire for Kids.
Would you want to take a tablet of this size on the train? Six years ago, in the golden days of Tesco Hudls and the Google Nexus 7, I’d have said no. But today, when you occasionally see a 12.2-inch iPad on the commute, I’d say why not?. The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e is just about light enough to hold in one hand to read an article or comic book.
Note that there’ no headphone jack, though, so you’ll need to use an adapter or a wireless pair of headphones. Not ideal.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e has many of the same peripheral features as a mid-range phone. Storage starts at 64GB, which can be upgraded to 128GB for £60. There’s a fingerprint scanner on the side – it isn’t as fast as those found in new phones, but then you’re likely to use it on only a handful of occasions through the day; certainly not as often as on a phone.
You can switch to face unlock if you prefer, which works reliably enough, presumably using the same backroom software as a phone such as the Samsung Galaxy S10. There are Wi-Fi-only and 4G versions, too, costing roughly an extra £100 for the latter.
Samsung offers a keyboard folio accessory for around £115. While I haven’t used this particular unit – Samsung didn’t send one in – I’m not a huge fan of using a tablet such as this as a replacement for a MacBook or Windows laptop; it simply doesn’t offer the same feel.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e – Screen
For a long time, Samsung was the master of OLED screens in phones and tablets because the company was responsible for making the panels themselves. Several other companies now produce such screens but this is still just about the best you’ll find in a sub-£400 tablet.
It’s a 10.5-inch, 2560 x 1600 AMOLED display with, in my estimation, around 450 nits of brightness. I took the tablet out to a park on a sunny day during the 2019 UK heatwave and the screen remained perfectly visible, enough to play a game comfortably.
Contrast is superb, colour vivid and sharpness excellent. You won’t find a traditional Windows laptop around this price with as capable a display.
In addition, Samsung provides a choice of colour profiles. These are the same as those in Samsung phones and they roughly track with several professional colour standards. The modes are Basic (sRGB), AMOLED Photo (Adobe RGB), AMOLED Cinema (DCI-P3) and Adaptive Display, which unlocks the full native colour spectrum of the screen for eye-popping colour.
The absence of a stylus is the one (potential) major downside. You can use one of Samsung’s active S-Pen styluses but one isn’t supplied. It’s further proof that the S5e is intended to be less of a do-it-all powerhouse than the Galaxy Tab S4.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e – Software
You needn’t be too put off if that’s what you’re really after, mind, as the Galaxy Tab S5e has a special software mode called DeX. It sits in the notification dropdown and turns the tablet’s Android-based interface into something closer to Windows or Mac OS.
It runs apps in floating windows, makes better use of the screen space and puts more information and shortcuts at your fingertips. You may only want to use DeX if you use a keyboard with the S5e, since it strips away the casual feel of Android. Nevertheless, it makes one of the best arguments going that a tablet can be treated like a “PC” when paired with the right accessory.
Jump out of DeX and the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e seems more like a supersized Samsung phone. You have home screens and an apps drawer, which look just like those of the Samsung Galaxy S10, albeit with an extra column of icons in the drawer.
Android doesn’t make great use of larger screens such as this but it’s still a great interface for casual tasks. Fewer apps are forced on you here than by a Samsung phone. The Galaxy Store and Game Launcher are installed out the box but you can choose whether or not to add Samsung’s other apps of your own volition.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e – Performance, gaming and speakers
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e feels great in use. It’s responsive, with only a marginal speed difference in its Android user experience compared to a phone or tablet with an even more powerful processor.
But what you may not be expecting is that the Tab S5e has a slower CPU than last year’s Galaxy Tab S4, because it’s part of the mid-range “e” series. There’s also a Galaxy S10e phone. It doesn’t have a cut-down CPU compared to the standard S10 but does have a smaller, flatter screen.
The processor of choice here is the Snapdragon 670, instead of the Snapdragon 855 or 855 Plus seen in top-end Androids. What’s the difference? Its cores are less powerful, with two Kryo 360 Gold performance cores and six Kryo 360 Silvers.
GPU power is perhaps more important. The Snapdragon 670 includes an Adreno 615 graphics chipset, which is only half as powerful as the Snapdragon 855’s Adreno 640.
If your budget only stretches to £400, the entry-level iPad is actually a more pertinent comparison. The Samsung scores 1511 in 3DMark’s Sling Shot Extreme test (957 using the OpenGL graphics standard). This is way below the iPad, which manages 2611 points.
How does this play out in actual games? Most run very well on the Galaxy Tab S5e. PUBG runs at “high” visuals, and both Asphalt 8 and 9 play without obvious compromise. Ark: Survival Evolved shows up the mid-range GPU, though: max out the visuals and the frame rate becomes jerky.
This matters, of course, it does – but so does context. Currently, there isn’t a tablet that comes with a Snapdragon 855, and most phones with such a processor are significantly more expensive than the Galaxy Tab S5e. Some believed Samsung would announce a no-holds-barred Galaxy S5 tablet with such a processor in August, although it looks like this theory will now materialise as the rumoured Samsung Galaxy Tab S6, instead.
There are other gaming advantages to a Tab S5e over an iPad too. Its speakers are far more powerful, with greater top volume, four drivers and much richer bass. They’re closer in quality to those found on the iPad Pro, and you won’t find a new model of that for under £400.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e – Camera
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e has one camera on the front and one on the back. Both are fairly basic but have the essentials needed to provide a useful camera experience.
For example, the rear camera doesn’t have a flash, but it does use autofocus. Some low-cost tablets have fixed-focus cameras that won’t let you shoot close-up photos. The sensor here is reasonably fast to shoot, too, and auto-tweaks your images with HDR processing. This stands for ‘high dynamic range’ and stops the brightest parts of an image from looking blown out, while bringing out more detail in the shadows too.
Daylight shots from the primary 13-megapixel camera aren’t too bad, either. But let’s re-align expectations.
This is a solid camera for a tablet. It doesn’t fare too well if you compare it to Android devices in general. Exposure metering is nowhere near as smart as that of Samsung’s best phones, detail is just okay and low-light performance is pretty poor.
Manually tweak the exposure and you can capture some reasonable images
The maximum resolution of video capture is only 1080p (Full HD), there’s no 4K mode and while it looks like there’s some software stabilisation, it isn’t particularly effective.
And, as with any 10-inch tablet, shooting photos with a Galaxy Tab S5e just looks a little silly.
Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e – Battery life
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e has a 7040mAh battery, just a little smaller than the Tab S4’s 7300mAh cell. Samsung claims it will last an incredible 14.5 hours.
An hour of Netflix streamed at 50% brightness consumed 7%, suggesting full charge stamina of 14 hours. A half-hour of Real Racing took off 6%, indicating that the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e will last for around eight hours of gaming.
Both are great results and actually beat the entry-level iPad.
Should I buy the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e?
In recent years, Samsung’s reaction to a tablet market running on fumes has been to take an Apple-like approach. You could get fairly high-end tablets designed for hybrid-style use, and the low-end options were all pretty depressing.
The Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e is what I’ve been wanting: a mid-priced model with some higher-end touches. You don’t have to sell your laptop to justify the expense but it absolutely isn’t a toy intended to keep the kids quiet.
Until now, the Huawei MediaPad M5 10.5 was your best option among Androids. Now it’s the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e. It has a great screen, excellent speakers, a charming aluminium body and scope for life as a breezy laptop-like computer – if that’s what you really want.
The cameras aren’t dazzling but this is rarely ever true where tablets are concerned. The processor isn’t top-end but the Samsung Galaxy Tab S5e gets by just fine anyway.
Verdict
This is the best mid-priced Android tablet you can buy, but an iPad is more powerful.
After months of delays, Samsung has finally announced that the Galaxy Fold will ship out to customers, in a slightly redesigned form, from September.
A statement from Samsung read: “At Samsung, we’ve always focused on pioneering the next generation of mobile innovation: new products and technologies that push the entire industry forward and help users do what they can’t. Earlier this year, we announced Galaxy Fold—Samsung’s first foldable device, and the beginning of an entirely new mobile category. Since then, we’ve made improvements to Galaxy Fold to ensure consumers have the best possible experience.”
Samsung Galaxy Fold hands on
A few months have passed since the Galaxy Fold was announced alongside the Galaxy S10 and a week before the Huawei Mate X, kicking off the foldable phone future in the process.
Samsung Galaxy Fold Design and Screen – What’s it like to use?
I spent about an hour playing with the Galaxy Fold during a Samsung briefing event in London and while I don’t think it does everything right, it has certainly got me excited about the uses foldable phones can offer – even if this does feel like a true first-gen product. We should point out we did not have long enough to confirm reports of breaking screens ourselves.
The first thing you’ll notice is how well built it is (ironically). The folding motion is smooth and clicks into place; it feels thoroughly satisfying and I couldn’t help but just sit there folding and unfolding it multiple times, staring at how unique a flexible display looks. How well it lasts over time, of course, should be of concern, especially when the price is within touching distance of £2000/$2000, but Samsung seemed confident, proclaiming that the Fold is a device that’s built to last.
The Galaxy Fold packs two screens: a 4.6-inch, HD+ Super AMOLED outer display with a 21:9 aspect ratio, and a 7.3-inch, QXGA+ Dynamic AMOLED inner “Infinity Flex” display with a 4.2:3 aspect ratio. The Fold opens up like a book, and when closed it essentially looks like two phones stuck together. It feels like it too, and you’ll notice it’s much bulkier in a pocket than pretty much any other flagship phone.
Holding the Fold when it’s closed isn’t what I was expecting at all. The small outer screen is tiny by today’s standards and it has a comically large top and chin. Thing is, it’s so narrow and easy to hold I can see this being used solely for checking the odd message, taking a call and keeping an eye on your route. Almost every other action will likely be done with the phone open. This clearly isn’t the ideal look Samsung is going for, though, and really feels like a sacrifice that had to be made for this first-generation product.
The near-square display is most comparable to an iPad Mini – broken only be a very annoying notch towards the right side – and anything you’re looking at on the front screen mirrors to the larger panel when you open the phone up. If you’ve got Google Maps open and you unfold the device then it instantly switches the big screen without any fuss or lag.
The phone is super narrow and long when folded
The 4:3 aspect ratio isn’t ideal for video, however, it’s great for browsing and reading. Samsung’s tweaked its multitasking software heavily here and as a result you can keep three windows open at once. As an example, I had a web page taking up half the panel, a YouTube video boxed out in the lower right and a notepad nestled in at the top.
The idea that I can unfurl the Fold when I am sitting on the train or bus without getting another device out is arguably the one killer reason for foldable as a class of device. I’d say Samsung wants the Fold to replace both a tablet and phone and in some ways it works. The problem is that the biggest sacrifice feels like the phone part.
One slight issue with the display, and I am not yet sure whether or not this will be obvious in normal use, is the very visible fold line down the middle. Look at the screen directly and you’ll likely miss it; a glance from an off-axis angle and the crease left by the fold line becomes very obvious.
The hype surrounding the Fold felt like it dipped as soon as Huawei launched the equally foldable Mate X. The Mate X’s single screen folds outwards, as opposed to two external and internal screens on the Fold, and the whole way it fits together feels so much more complete than the Fold as a result. I could see myself jumping straight into using the Mate X, while I think they’ll be some major adjustments needed to help with the Fold feel familiar.
The Galaxy Fold might be all about the design and the completely different form-factor but that’s not to say this isn’t going to stand out as one of the most specced-out smartphones of 2019.
Inside you’ll find a Snapdragon 855 chipset across all regions and a whopping 12GB of RAM, as well as 512GB of internal storage. That large amount of RAM is needed to ensure multiple windows can be kept open without running into any issues.
Samsung Galaxy Fold vs iPhone XS Max
There’s not one but two batteries − one on each half − that will work in tandem. Samsung says the Fold’s total battery capacity is 4380mAh which feels a little on the small side if I’m being honest. There’s a seriously large amount of phone here that needs powering and if the Fold has the same endurance issues as the Galaxy S10, then getting through a whole day without additional charge time might be an issue. Again, first-gen products tend to have obvious issues and battery life could very well be one here.
The Galaxy Fold can be used to wirelessly charge another device via Wireless PowerShare. AKG-tuned speakers are on board, too, as well as UFS 3.0 support. There’s no microSD card slot, however, and the fingerprint scanner is a physical unit on the side rather than the in-display variety. Having disliked the ultrasonic sensor on the S10 and enjoying the side-mounted one on the S10e this feels like more of an upgrade than a sacrifice.
You’ll find six cameras dotted about the Fold. On the rear there’s a 16-megapixel, f/2.2 ultra-wide camera, a 12-megapixel wide-angle camera and a 12-megapixel telephoto sensor; on the inside is a 10-megapixel f/2.2 camera and an 8-megapixel f/1.9 RGB depth camera; on the front sits a 10-megapixel f/2.2 sensor.
There are three cameras on the back when closed
Optically things are mostly the same as the S10 and one would assume the pictures will look pretty similar too.
Samsung Galaxy Fold – Price and release date
The Galaxy Fold was originally supposed to be released on April 26 in the US and May 3 in the UK. This is no longer the case as Samsung has delayed release. It’ll now be available in September.
The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom boasts flagship internals, an attractive design and a killer camera setup, but does it pose enough of a threat to more established global players like Samsung, Apple and Huawei?
The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom has been a long time coming, with the company first teasing a smartphone zoom camera concept back at Mobile World Congress 2017. The company showcased a follow-up technology demo one year later, which appeared to be part of a nearly complete (but at the time still-unnamed) Reno test device.
The finished article looks to bring some interesting design and hardware elements to the table beyond its titular camera feature; not to mention a new build of the company’s own software and improved Oppo staples, including updated VOOC fast-charging technology.
Camera – The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom’s snapper is it’s biggest feature
As its name suggests, the camera is the phone’s biggest selling point. It’s actually a three-sensor arrangement, comprised of the ubiquitous 48-megapixel sensor that the likes of the Xiaomi Mi 9 and OnePlus 7/7 Pro use, a 13-megapixel telephoto sensor and an 8-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor.
Diving deeper, the 48-megapixel IMX586 features OIS (optical image stabilisation), a half-inch sensor size, an f/1.7 aperture, 26mm focal length, 0.8µm pixels and supports pixel-binning to condense four-times the amount of image data into a more refined final 12-megapixel image. All that image data also plays a part in helping resolve fine detail when zooming in.
Speaking of zooming, the 13-megapixel telephoto sensor sits along the phone’s body, rather than pointing straight out. A unique D-cut periscopic lens rotates its line of sight through 90-degrees. It’s this that helps grant the phone its long-distance vision without adding any significant thickness or a Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom/ K Zoom-style motorised lens onto the back.
Similarly to its most like-minded rival, the Huawei P30 Pro, the sensor is capable of lossless optical zoom and works in tandem with the phone’s main sensor at higher magnification levels to retain as much detail as possible. The sensor sports an f/3.0 aperture and, like the primary camera, OIS too.
Taken on the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom
Last but not least is the 8-megapixel f/2.2 ultra-wide angle lens, which features a short 16mm focal length – one of the two boundaries Oppo uses to define the phone’s 10x zoom capabilities (as it can shoot between 16mm and 160mm at full 20x ‘hybrid’ zoom), there’s no OIS here, however.
Tech specs out of the way, in actual use, the raw image quality that the Reno 10x Zoom captures is encouraging. With so many phones using that 48-megapixel main sensor in 2019, there are plenty of existing samples to compare it against.
Zero magnification10x zoom60x zoom – the phone’s maximum zoom level (the Huawei P30 Pro maxes out at 50x magnification)
In the case of the Reno, Oppo’s imaging technicians have done a fantastic job in granting it some of the best quality imagery across the board for a phone using an IMX586 sensor. It pips both the aforementioned Mi 9 and the latest OnePlus phones to the post, based the consistency it offers.
A testament to the quality of the camera experience, it’s so good that it even gives the Huawei P30 Pro’s similarly impressive photographic setup a run for its money.
While low light shooting on the Oppo isn’t bad (above), it pales in comparison to results from the Huawei P30 Pro (below)
Both have astounding maximum zoom levels and both are versatile shooters. The P30 Pro wins out for its unrivalled low light performance (although the Reno did far better than I’d expected), and generally offers a wider dynamic range. The rest of the differences fall more to preference than empirical superiority.
The Oppo Reno captures shoots with a warmer, natural finishing compared to the Huawei – making it better suited for those who don’t want shots to look too processed – which is evident with its softer detail capture and the flatter results it tends to produce. It trumps the Huawei in artificial light, with regards to overall composition, even if grain is more prevalent and fine detail is lacking.
Imagery from the Oppo’s camera (above) isn’t as heavily processed and adopts a natural, warmer finish compared to the Huawei P30 Pro (below)
So, while Huawei’s top dog might still clinch it in the eyes of the many (as the brand is far more established in the UK), the savvy few will still undoubtedly appreciate the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom’s superb camera setup.
It’s also important to mention one of the phone’s most distinctive physical features, in its ‘pivot rising camera’ – a wedge-shaped segment of the phone’s top edge that rises up by way of a motor to reveal the phone’s 16-megapixel f/2.0 front-facing camera. It’s here that you’ll also find twin LED flashes – a soft front-facing flash and one meant for use when trying to illuminate shots via the main camera on the back.
Snapping a selfie, using face unlock or relying on the rear flash will all summon the phone’s ‘pivot rising camera’
Selfies are decent but the need to raise this whole module when using the rear flash means I seldom bothered with it, preferring to shoot in Night Mode where possible instead.
Performance and software – The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom’s internals are impressive
If you opened up the Reno 10x Zoom, there’d be no doubting its flagship credentials. Head-turning camera array aside, the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset and up to 8GB of RAM promise impressive performance.
Sure enough, in real-world use, there’s little sign of struggle whether you’re just browsing the web, streaming video or gaming. With such comparable fluidity against the gamut of similarly-specced 2019 flagships, the question really falls to whether Oppo will ensure that this phone keeps pace from a software and updates perspective.
Gamers should also take note of this phone’s robust cooling system, which makes use of a copper heat pipe, cooling gel and layered graphite to dissipate heat more efficiently than your average phone.
Speaking of software, the Android 9.0-based user experience has been overlaid with a reworked version of Oppo’s own ColorOS, dubbed ColorOS 6. Aside from the aforementioned algorithmic camera talents, it packs in a number of technologies under the ‘HyperBoost 2.0’ moniker, designed to reduce app load times, system speed and latency when gaming. There’s a dedicated gaming mode with a few notification and performance tweaks on offer too.
While steps have been taken in the right direction since last year’s Find X, ColorOS is still an undeniably heavy-handed overlay. It moves away from standard Android tropes and presents a fairly distinct user experience as a result.
Not everyone may gel with the decisions Oppo has made within ColorOS – how it handles notifications and the style and layout of elements like the quick settings and app search feature, to be specific – but it’s cleaner than it’s ever been and we hope Oppo continues to ease up on the throttle when it comes to trying to define a distinct aesthetic.
5G – The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom has it’s very own 5G version in the Oppo Reno 5G
There’s also the matter of connectivity, which by default includes support for Bluetooth 5.0, Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac and up to 4G+ mobile browsing speeds (depending on your region). If that still isn’t enough to cut the mustard, those willing to pay a premium can live on the bleeding edge by picking up a 5G variant of the 10x Zoom complete with Qualcomm’s X50 5G modem onboard, a.k.a the Oppo Reno 5G.
Beyond the improved data speeds, Qualcomm and Oppo are hoping that the Reno can serve as a flagbearer for 5G in 2019, mainly through demonstrating the benefits of the technology on compatible networks by supporting experiences, such as virtual or augmented reality streaming and multiplayer gaming, anywhere.
The Reno line was originally teased in partnership with Swisscom, primarily as a result of the phone’s 5G credentials and the newly-implemented 5G infrastructure in the region, but the likes of EE in the UK now offer the Reno 5G as one of the few 5G-capable handsets.
Battery – The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom boasts a big battery and impressive longevity
To supplement the demands of that high-end chipset (and 5G, where applicable), the Reno 10x Zoom is equipped with a capacious 4065mAh integrated battery. That figure alone should instil confidence out the gate, not just because it’s paired to the phone’s Full HD+ display resolution and use of AMOLED technology.
In addition to AI-driven power management, the 10x Zoom also comes complete with Oppo’s signature VOOC fast-charging technology. While still rated at the same wattage as its predecessor, version 3.0 of Oppo’s VOOC technology addresses the trickle charging state that takes place on a device when trying to fill the last few ounces of its battery’s charge.
As a result of a more efficient algorithm, Oppo has effectively doubled the charging speed during the last stage of battery replenishment, meaning more power, quicker, without sacrificing safety (and apparently, long-term battery health).
The Reno 10x Zoom consistently granted me two days of use, landing it at the more impressive end of the current battery life spectrum. All the more impressive was that this included a whopping 6 hours of screen-on time to boot – that’s Huawei P30 Pro territory.
Design – The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom looks pleasantly clean and premium
It should be clear that Oppo has fit a heck of a lot into the Reno 10x Zoom, but the company should also be commended for the package in which it’s wrapped all this technology too. A metal frame comes sandwiched by rounded Gorilla Glass 5.0 on the back and lightly-pillowed Gorilla Glass 6.0 across the phone’s expansive 6.6-inch display.
The finish is pleasing too, with either a Jet Black or Ocean Green colourway on offer, both of which employ a mix of shiny and textured glass that play with the light in interesting ways.
As far as flagship handsets are concerned, the phone is a lot thicker than the status quo (at 9.3mm) and carries a lot of heft at 210 grams. Despite this, I really enjoyed studying the fit and finish of the 10x Zoom close up.
The body could best be described as a ‘glass tank’, and while the mechanised pop-up camera negates any chance of water resistance, the phone looks premium and feels extremely well put-together.
The company was quick to try and ease concerns about the pop-up mechanism’s reliability by stating that it’s guaranteed to operate as intended for at least five years; based on the premise of the camera being raised on average 100 times a day.
There’s also something called ‘free-fall detection’ onboard, so should the phone slip from your grasp while the front-facing camera is out, it’ll quickly retract before impact to mitigate any real damage to the mechanism or camera hardware inside.
Zero camera bump is another bonus, with the phone boasting a perfectly flat back… almost. While such cleanliness is refreshing, the phone does feature what Oppo calls its ‘O-dot’ – a small ceramic bead set into the rear that raises the phone when on flat surfaces that would otherwise scratch up the main camera arrangement up.
It’s an odd, but decidedly thoughtful inclusion, and despite its questionable name, grants me peace of mind when setting the phone down on a table ‘naked’ when I’d only ever be inclined to do the same with other handsets, so long as they were case-clad.
Screen – The Oppo Reno 10x Zoom has a beautiful notch-free display
The whole reason for the phone’s unusual pop-up camera mechanism becomes clear when you realise the screen is completely devoid of a notch or hole-punch camera and terminates impressively close to the edges of the phone’s body.
Testing high frame rate, high-resolution HDR content on the Reno 10x Zoom was a treat
With bezels that measure just 1.35mm on either side, and a chin of just 3.5mm, the large 19.5:9 aspect ratio Full HD+ AMOLED display dominates the phone’s front – with a 93.1 percent screen-to-body ratio to boot. The technology at play grants great colours and perfectly deep blacks, while testing HDR content also yielded pleasing results.
Oppo has implemented a few extra features into the screen to score it extra brownie points too. For starters, there’s an optical in-display fingerprint sensor, which the company says is twice as fast as first-generation iterations of the technology.
I’d be inclined to agree, but I’d also flag that its reliability and consistency is far behind the tech that companies like OnePlus and Samsung have brought to the table.
Should I buy the Oppo Reno 10x Zoom?
Oppo’s moved away from the premise of its last flagship, with the Reno 10x Zoom serving to showcase absolutely every one of the company’s most innovative and impressive technologies, even at the expense of a little extra thickness and weight.
Taking into account the battery life and the impressive quality of the performance in everything from the camera to the fluidity of the user experience, I think it was the right move to make.
This is a sizeable device that’s great for media lovers, mobile photographers or those who are looking for a Huawei P30 Pro alternative that doesn’t rub the US government the wrong way. So long as you can handle its specific brand of software and some specific design quirks, Oppo’s made an impressively-strong play for one of the better phones of 2019.
Verdict
Oppo has delivered a well-rounded and exciting new flagship that doesn’t do as you might expect. It has the potential to take on some serious camera phone contenders too.
The OnePlus 7 Pro has the best display currently available on a phone, the latest internals and a design that takes a lot of inspiration from the Samsung Galaxy S10. It’s also the priciest OnePlus phone yet, moving away from the company’s idea of offering high-end specs for a bargain price.
Despite starting life as a plucky underdog, however, OnePlus has had to grow up fast and nothing highlights the momentum the company has amassed like its debut entrants into the phone market for 2019: the OnePlus 7 and OnePlus 7 Pro.
The OnePlus 7 Pro is for those who want the best the company has to offer and a phone that packs in enough to compete with the latest rival flagships; devices like the Samsung Galaxy S10 Plus and Huawei P30 Pro.
OnePlus 7 Pro design brings a new level of attention to detail
The OnePlus 7 Pro looks and feels unlike anything the company has produced thus far. While the standard OnePlus 7 bears more than a passing resemblance to last year’s OnePlus 6T, the Pro model is a wholly different beast.
The lessons that Oppo learnt creating its Find X 2018 flagship may well have played a part in the engineering used by OnePlus’ new star player (as OnePlus uses Oppo’s production facilities to build its phones), based on not just its looks but the way it feels too.
Almost bezel-free
An expansive and near bezel-free curved display stretches across the phone’s front, granting it an impressive 88.6 percent screen-to-body ratio; one of the highest of any current smartphone. Essentially, when looking at the front of the 7 Pro, all you’ll see is screen, especially thanks to the display’s curved edges.
With a curved Gorilla Glass front mirrored by the phone’s curved glass back, the metal frame that sits within this sandwich is decidedly thin, but in spite of this, the phone still feels sturdy and well-built.
There’s still room for OnePlus’ signature physical alert slider along its right side – a defining feature on the company’s phones that lets you quickly switch between ringing, vibrating and silent sound profiles without having to look; it’s a small but important bonus that you’d miss, were it taken away.
With no notch or hole-punch camera to speak of, OnePlus has instead opted for a motorised pop-up front-facing snapper, akin to the one found on the Vivo Nex (although this one looks and feels a lot more robust).
It’s quick enough for face unlocking and, as with every phone that’s integrated such a system, comes with claims of rigorous testing and reliability.
OnePlus states that the phone’s front camera mechanism has withstood some 300,000 actuations during testing, without any sign of lag, slowdown or breakage. There’s fall detection in there too, which will pull the camera back inside the moment the phone detects itself hurtling towards the ground.
Collectively, you should feel comforted by these assurances, but as ever, in the real world, I still have my doubts about the longevity of any moving parts on a phone, especially one a delicate and intricate as a motorised camera unit.
For all the care and attention OnePlus has poured into the aesthetics of the 7 Pro, such beauty does come at a practical sacrifice that some might not be willing to overlook.
For a start, with a 6.67-inch, 19.5:9 display; this is a very big device – OnePlus’ largest ever. It’s almost identical in width to its predecessor but notably taller, plus those narrow metal sides give you less purchase, making one-handed use precarious.
Add to that a complete lack of any one-handed mode within the software and elements at the top of the screen within apps (such as the placement of Instagram’s story ‘bubbles’) require two hands or a risky shimmy up and down the phone’s body to be pulled in reach of a thumb.
There’s also the matter of the finish of the phone. I appreciate OnePlus’ decision to shy away from a boring all-black body, instead offering up three colours at launch (partially tied to different RAM and storage configurations).
For the base 6GB RAM/128GB internal storage SKU your only option is ‘Mirror Gray’ – an understated colourway for those uninterested in flash and flare, or ideal if you’re looking to slap a case on it immediately. This is the closest thing to black on offer from this generation of OnePlus.
Fork out for the 8GB/256GB model and you have the full gamut of colours available to you. Mirror Gray is accompanied by ‘Almond’ – a mix of polished gold metal and an iridescent cream tone set behind glass, similar in styling to a gold iPhone XS. Nebula Blue is arguably the biggest head-turner and the finish that my review unit (pictured) came in.
While all three looks deserve praise for their ‘understated cool’, if you’re planning on going caseless, ergonomics once again come into play. The gloss finish of the Mirror Gray and Almond models backs attract fingerprints as readily as any of their competitors, while the finely-textured glass given to the Nebula Blue model will remain comparatively smudge-free.
The trade-off is that the blue model’s treated rear also lacks grip which, paired with it’s already unwieldy form, pushes the chance of the phone slipping from your fingers way up. While I haven’t asked OnePlus directly, I have no doubt that the 7 Pro’s fancy new screen isn’t cheap to replace. You have been warned.
The OnePlus 7 display is the first truly competitive mobile HDR screen
On a more positive note, that display is nothing short of exceptional. Out the box, it may not be as accurately tuned as some of its rivals’ screens but there are plenty of tools to customise the viewing experience should you wish to tinker around.
The company also lauded the screen’s A+ rating from independent body DisplayMate, before the 7 Pro had even officially launched, just in case there was any doubt about its capabilities.
HDR visuals on 6.67-inch display are stunning
It’s the first time we’ve seen a OnePlus screen transcend above Full HD+ resolution. This Quad HD+ panel is also HDR10 complaint, with approved support for services like Netflix – a popular service that previously only offered limited support for OnePlus devices.
The ‘Fluid AMOLED’ panel, as OnePlus calls it, gets its name not just from the inky blacks and vivid colours it can push out, but the intriguing 90Hz refresh rate that it supports.
Although you can manually dial it down to 60Hz, as most phones use (or have it jump down when battery saver mode is activated), the 7 Pro’s screen remains fixed at 90Hz. The result is an effortlessly smooth-looking user experience that lends itself perfectly to the idea that this is a cutting-edge handset.
Seeing really is believing, especially as only a handful of other devices offer anything close to what OnePlus has cooked up here.
Apple’s ProMotion technology, along with the Asus ROG Phone‘s OLED and the Razer Phone series’ IGZO displays all have the ability to operate at refresh rates notably higher than 60Hz, but in the smartphone space, the OnePlus 7 Pro might be the most approachable and mainstream handset to showcase such technology.
There are known concerns around the impact on battery life leaving the smooth 90Hz setting on all the time might have, but based on the longevity I experienced without ever switching it off (or rather, down to 60Hz), I’d just enjoy its inclusion and how it elevates acts as simple as swiping around the interface.
The worst thing about the feature? You really notice its absence when using any phone that doesn’t support it.
The display smarts don’t stop there. There’s also the integrated optical in-display fingerprint sensor – an evolution on the feature that OnePlus introduced with last year’s 6T.
This time around, OnePlus has enlarged the sensor’s read area and reduced latency; all I can say is that it feels much faster and more reliable than its predecessor, even if it can still be tripped up by particularly cold or wet hands.
With next-to-no bezel, there’s no notification LED to speak of, so instead light pulses down the curved edges of the display in the corresponding app colour to great effect – a feature that both Samsung and Oppo have used on curved-display laden devices.
OnePlus 7 Pro camera has greater versatility, but is that enough?
OnePlus has kept up with principle imaging trends in the realm of smartphone photography, and the OnePlus 7 Pro makes the same move that many of its contemporaries already have; implementing a triple-sensor on the back.
The 7 Pro’s three-lens arrangement is comprised of a 48-megapixel main snapper with OIS (optical image stabilisation), an 8-megapixel telephoto sensor, again with OIS, that grants the phone 3x lossless optical zoom, while a 16-megapixel ultra-wide angle sensor, with an impressive 117-degree field of view, rounds things out.
OnePlus has worked hard to ensure the hardware is put to good use, with the phone boasting enhanced versions of the company’s Nightscape (version 2.0) scene mode and pixel-binning technology (condensing the image data of four pixels into one to reduce shake and noise) as a result of that huge 48-megapixel main sensor.
The ultra-wide angle sensor lets you fit more in-frame, only adding to the 7 Pro’s photographic versatility.
The quality of the telephoto snapper also left me impressed, with pleasing detail retention. Its narrower aperture means images do, however, suffer in low-light shooting
Main sensor (left), telephoto (right) – drag the white slide bar to compare the two images
As for low-light photography, I was surprised by the results produced by the phone, but not in a good way. OnePlus worked hard to improve the low light capabilities of last year’s OnePlus 6 and 6T, but this new hardware is clearly trickier to tune. As before, we’ll likely see subsequent software updates that rectify the phone’s current low light capabilities which I’m hoping will improve with time.
The newly-updated Nightscape mode certainly helps alleviate general low-light shooting but over-corrects, with hard-hitting sharpening and mismanaged colour correction that give shots an unnatural finish.
For a true deep-dive into this phone’s imaging capabilities, jump over to our full OnePlus 7 Pro camera review.
The OnePlus 7 Pro performance is stunning
The OnePlus X notwithstanding OnePlus isn’t in the business on skimping on performance. When you buy a OnePlus phone, you know you’re getting a top-notch processor and complementary smarts to match. Never has that been truer than with the OnePlus 7 Pro.
I already mentioned the memory and storage options that the 7 Pro is available in, which range from generous to pure excess (with up to an additional £150 in tow) but speed and power are everywhere within the phone’s internals.
The latest and greatest 7nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 chipset takes charge, which is also how OnePlus is able to convert the 7 Pro into the OnePlus 7 Pro 5G – the 5G-capable brother to the standard model that also integrates Qualcomm’s complementary X50 5G modem.
Then there’s the inclusion of Universal Flash Storage 3.0. OnePlus has managed to beat Samsung to the punch after the Korean tech giant had to pull its first foldable, the Galaxy Fold, before launch as a result of engineering and reliability issues.
With the Fold out of the way, it looks as though the OnePlus 7 Pro will be the first phone on the market to support UFS 3.0, with Samsung following with the rumoured Galaxy Note 10 later into 2019.
The technology is theoretically up to twice as fast when it comes to read and write speeds, which affects everything from app load times to file transfers.
There’s so much powerful hardware here that I can’t find fault with the 7 Pro’s performance, and this new addition only serves to help the 7 Pro take the lead in an area that its pricier competitors still haven’t ventured.
OnePlus 7 Pro battery life goes beyond expectation
The story of speed on the OnePlus 7 Pro doesn’t stop with the phone’s fluid user experience and raw performance; it sports suitably solid fast charging technology too.
We first encountered the company’s Warp Charge feature on last year’s OnePlus 6T McLaren Edition and it’s now become part of the mainstream offering here.
The 30W Warp Charge adapter and complimentary cable are unquestionably sizeable (although the previous generation Dash/Fast Charger wasn’t really any more compact) but the convenience they bring nullifies the hassle of carrying them around.
The 7 Pro’s large footprint means it’s also able to carry a hefty 4000mAh battery within its belly and, with the included Warp Charger, that sizeable cell can be refilled from flat to full in under an hour and twenty. What really impresses is the initial charge rate, however.
A third of the battery can be filled in just 15 minutes and more than a day’s worth of juice can be replenished within 30. Most of the battery can be charged within an hour too, so you never have to wait long to give the 7 Pro a meaningful top up.
While quick in their own right, OnePlus’ fast-charging capabilities are no longer industry-leading; Huawei has instead taken that crown. The OnePlus 7 Pro does also lag slightly behind due to its lack of any form of wireless charging – an absentee feature that the company has explained may never be part of the equation on its devices.
As for longevity, the OnePlus 7 Pro, left me thoroughly impressed. While charging the OnePlus 7 Pro is a lot less painless an experience compared to some phones (I’m looking at you Apple), not having to charge it all was an even bigger win.
I was consistently reaching two days of use and up to 5 hours of screen-on time on a single charge, which is well above most modern phones’ more approachable promised day-long endurance.
If I had flipped the refresh rate down to 60Hz or relied on battery saver mode at all, there’s every chance the phone would have lasted even longer.
Little has changed with OnePlus 7 Pro software, and that’s no bad thing
Android 9.0 underpins the software experience on this generation of OnePlus phones but the company’s OxygenOS overlay (version 9.5.2 as tested) is what you’re actually navigating around. It’s a great tweaked take on base Android that’s slick and clean, easy-to-use and powerful.
Integrated gestures make it easier to summon the notifications and quick settings (particularly useful with the 7 Pro’s tall display), as well as activating features like the camera and the flashlight without ever having to wake the phone up.
‘The Shelf’ is a dedicated space for iOS-like widget placement which keeps things tidy, and there’s a hidden ‘second space’ where you can place apps that you want to hide from prying eyes should you hand your phone to a friend. These are all pre-existing features, however.
Notable new additions for the 7 Pro include an enhanced gaming mode that silences notifications and locks screen brightness down, or by enabling ‘fnatic mode’ the phone directs all CPU, GPU and memory usage to your current gaming session and nowhere else.
The new Zen mode was born from the mindfulness practices of OnePlus’ senior staffers and takes a hard stance on pervasive phone checking by locking down everything, save for emergency calls, incoming calls and camera access, for 20 minutes at a time.
Not even restarting or powering the phone off and back on can you escape out of this experience, so make sure that you’re ready for the break, before committing.
The feature feels like OnePlus’ extension of Android Pie’s native digital wellbeing toolset and as with much of what makes the 7 Pro decidedly OnePlus, it’s an odd inclusion but one that I appreciate nonetheless.
Should I buy the OnePlus 7 Pro?
When I first took delivery of the OnePlus 7 Pro, I wasn’t told how much it would cost (that information came later), and I was a little worried.
This phone is undoubtedly feature-packed, the richest the company has ever made, but its higher price warrants greater scrutiny. Previous OnePlus phones have always been pit against the flagships of the time but the comparative affordability they’ve offered has absolved them of any minor shortcomings that would otherwise have been met with disappointment or beratement.
Even so, the OnePlus 7 Pro still undercuts the majority of the 2019 flagship pack (by several hundred pounds in some cases), meaning I can forgive the absence of features like (certified) water resistance and wireless charging – this phone will still leave you impressed (and with more money in your pocket).
Where Huawei’s P30 Pro takes the cake for smartphone camera and battery ability, the OnePlus 7 Pro’s screen is easily one of the nicest I’ve clapped eyes on, plus OnePlus’ user experience is among the best skinned Android experiences you’ll find out there.
The OnePlus 7 Pro shows that the company is able to grow, bring about meaningful changes and greater competition without losing what makes the brand and its devices so uniquely appealing.
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