OPPO has been a popular brand in NZ, especially since HTC and Huawei vanished from our shelves. Their latest offering is the OPPO Find X8 range, and I got to have some hands-on time with the Find X8 Pro. The Oppo Find X8 Pro is a powerhouse of premium hardware, featuring a sleek design, a luxurious 6.78-inch display, and the best mobile camera system I’ve ever used. Its smooth performance and refined UI animations make it one of the slickest Android experiences available, though its high price reflects that excellence.
That said, the Find X8 Pro takes heavy inspiration from the iPhone 16 Pro. While it arguably surpasses Apple in some areas—smoother software, superior cameras, and a more distinctive design—it still leans heavily on ideas first seen elsewhere. But if originality isn’t your primary concern, you’re left with an outstanding smartphone that stands tall among premium flagships.
The display is a standout feature, offering a sharp, colourful, and immersive experience. The 120Hz refresh rate, combined with Oppo’s new animation technology, creates an incredibly fluid interface that makes navigation feel effortless. At 6.78 inches, it strikes an excellent balance between size and usability. While its peak brightness of 4500 nits is excessive for most scenarios, it ensures superb visibility even in direct sunlight. However, the auto-brightness can be overly aggressive, occasionally dimming the screen too much indoors.
Cameras are the true highlight here. The 4x 50MP setup delivers exceptional results across all focal lengths, from ultra-wide to 6x optical zoom. Utilising the advanced software, the digital zoom can go as high as 120x – anything up to 30x is superlative, anything up to 60x is quite workable, but after that, the images become less appealing rapidly. Oppo has implemented outstanding software processing, ensuring crisp detail, vibrant colours, and well-balanced contrast. The phone performs particularly well in low-light conditions, where its night mode produces stunningly clear images without excessive noise. The Quick Button, a dedicated camera shortcut, makes snapping photos feel intuitive and immediate, reducing the time between pulling out the phone and capturing a moment. Video capabilities are also impressive, supporting 4K at 60fps with smooth stabilization and slow-motion up to 480fps.
Oppo’s image processing has seen a remarkable leap forward, thanks to its new HyperImage Engine. This advanced AI-driven system enhances dynamic range, reduces motion blur, and intelligently sharpens details without over-processing. Skin tones appear natural, and even challenging lighting conditions are handled effortlessly. The computational photography algorithms work in real-time, ensuring that even quick snapshots deliver professional-grade quality. The 6x periscope zoom retains exceptional detail, avoiding the common pitfalls of digital cropping, while the ultra-wide lens minimizes distortion better than most competitors.
Beyond its camera prowess, the Find X8 Pro delivers rock-solid performance. Powered by the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 chipset and 16GB of RAM, it breezes through multitasking, gaming, and AI-driven features without a hitch. The phone feels incredibly responsive, with apps launching instantly and animations remaining smooth even under heavy loads. ColorOS 15 is polished but somewhat weighed down by bloatware, which slightly detracts from an otherwise premium software experience.
Battery life is another area where the Find X8 Pro excels. Its 5,910mAh silicon-carbon cell easily lasts a full day of heavy use, even with demanding tasks like video streaming and gaming. Where the phone truly shines is in charging speed: the included 80W charger can refuel it to 50% in just 20 minutes and reach 100% in around 45 minutes. The device also supports 50W wireless charging and reverse wireless charging, making it one of the most versatile options for staying powered throughout the day.
The design of the Find X8 Pro is another testament to Oppo’s attention to detail. The Pearl White variant I tested features a stunning pearlescent finish that subtly shifts under different lighting conditions. It’s complemented by a polished metal camera housing, adding a touch of industrial contrast to the phone’s otherwise sleek aesthetic. The device is rated IP68 and IP69, ensuring resistance against both immersion and high-pressure water jets.
In terms of ergonomics, the Find X8 Pro strikes a comfortable balance between slim elegance and solid durability. At 215 grams, it has a reassuring weight without feeling unwieldy. The curved front panel enhances grip, though the glass back can be a little slippery. The buttons, including the new Quick Button on the lower right frame, feel satisfyingly tactile. The Quick Button is primarily used for camera functions, acting as a fast shutter or zoom control, but its potential for expanded functionality in future updates is intriguing.
Gaming on the Find X8 Pro is a delight. The combination of a large, high-refresh-rate display, powerful internals, and efficient cooling ensures smooth gameplay across all titles. Whether I was playing fast-paced shooters like Call of Duty Mobile or more relaxed RPGs, the experience remained fluid and immersive. The phone also benefits from excellent haptics, providing a more engaging feel in both gaming and general navigation.
Software enhancements further contribute to the Find X8 Pro’s seamless experience. Oppo’s AI-driven tools, such as background object removal in photos and real-time speech-to-text transcription, work efficiently without causing noticeable performance slowdowns. The phone also excels in day-to-day tasks, from quickly switching between apps to rendering high-resolution video edits on the go.
Overall, the Oppo Find X8 Pro is a phenomenal Android phone that manages to impress in nearly every department. While it borrows liberally from Apple’s design philosophy, it brings enough of its own innovations to stand as a worthy competitor. Its quad-camera system is best-in-class, its display is vibrant and immersive, and performance is buttery smooth. The fast-charging capabilities and long-lasting battery further cement its status as one of the most capable smartphones available. While some may question its originality, there’s no denying that the Find X8 Pro delivers an undeniably premium experience that stands among the best Android devices on the market.
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Disclosure Statement: Test unit/s supplied by OPPO NZ expressly for the purposes of review. No fee was offered or accepted for this independent review.
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