But use the phone for a while and youll find that its surprisingly impressive for its price.
More on those later.
The A-series has often suffered from a lack of love compared to the Reno and Find lines.
An illustration of the bloatware on the Oppo A78. Other than Ecosia (our chosen browser, as Android asks you to pick), PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty: Mobile and City Smash 2, these apps all either came pre-loaded on the phone, or installed themselves during the set-up process.
But like a forgotten third child, A-series phones can often surprise you; thats the case here.
If youre a gamer on a budget, this mobile is well worth considering.
But lets put a pin in the compliments you were promised criticisms too.
Firstly, theres the pre-installed app situation (thats bloatware, to give it its less complimentary name).
Skip straight down to the Camera samples section if you want to have nightmares tonight.
Still, the size is useful for gaming or streaming.
It comes withAndroid 12, which has been replaced byAndroid 13these days.
There arent that many unique features here, but the swipe-down quick controls menu is more attractive than most.
The phone has a truly jaw-dropping number of pre-installed apps, though, more so than other budget phones.
Not a good look by any means, unless you like feeling alienated from your own mobile.
Snaps looked grainy and fuzzy, as though the whole world was made of Lego.
Plus there’s poor dynamic range and a deficit of sharpness.
An illustration of the bloatware on the Oppo A78. Other than Ecosia (our chosen browser, as Android asks you to pick), PUBG Mobile, Call of Duty: Mobile and City Smash 2, these apps all either came pre-loaded on the phone, or installed themselves during the set-up process.
The phone has an 8MP camera at the front.
theyre punchy and vibrant.
Video recording maxes out at 1080p on both the front and rear cameras (not simultaneously).
And while there are time-lapse and slow-mo modes, they offer little control over resolution and frame rate.
The RAM is at 4GB, a fairly low amount for a modern phone.
Clearly, it didnt matter much given the performance.
While this isn’t an artistic shot, zooming into the grass betrays all of the camera’s issues. It looks more like an optical illusion than a grassland.(Image credit: Future)
RAM expansion, which temporarily uses the phones storage space as RAM, helps a lot too.
This makes gaming and watching streaming services a much more enjoyable experience than on some rivals.
It packs this same heavy-duty power packet, and it performs just as expected.
London’s blocky architecture makes the phone’s grainy style seem natural.(Image credit: Future)
Should you buy the Oppo A78?
This is one for those who don’t even know what OS their current phone has.
Oppo A78 review: Also consider
There are plenty of fantasticbudget Android phonesout there.
Golden Hour lets you forget camera issues to an extent, but zoom into the grass or buildings.(Image credit: Future)
The lower cost gets a weaker chip and slower charging.
Moto G53Moto’s near-identical twins, the G53 and G73 straddle the Oppo A78 in terms of price.
This time isn’t included in the aforementioned test period.
In this park shot, the trees look blocky enough to be in Minecraft, with dynamic range issues making them all look like similar species.(Image credit: Future)
Read more about how we test
First reviewed August 2023
The natural quirks of low-light photography plaster over the Oppo A78’s issues.(Image credit: Future)
Selfies on the Oppo A78 are sufficiently bright, but scroll along to Portrait mode next.(Image credit: Future)
As you can see, hair is a little blurry at the edges of the face in Portrait mode.(Image credit: Future)
