Oppo R7 Plus hands-on review

Watch this space

At 6 inches, we could barely keep from dropping it. So it’s a good thing that it weighs just 203g, inclusive of battery. If not, we’d have dinged it up real good during our short time with it. But people with bigger paws will enjoy the spacious screen real estate this phone offers. It has a 1080p resolution, which translates to a pixel density of 367ppi – a significant smidge lower than the R7’s 445ppi, but unless you’re addicted to playing Where’s Wally or are a regular reader of fine print on your phone, it still makes for a more comfortable visual experience than a smaller smartphone could provide.

Its bezels might look almost non-existent when the display is switched off, but it’s a stylish illusion. Power the phone on and you’ll see a black border around the display. We feel slightly cheated but it’s still a nice touch to the general look of the phone. When it’s switched off, that is. We really couldn’t unsee it after noticing it.

Under the hood

Powered by a 1.5GHz Qualcomm octo-core processor, the R7 Plus also packs 3GB of RAM. Starting apps up was a breezy affair and swiping through the pages was smooth, but even then, the Oppo people were quick to remind us that the software is still being fine-tuned for the phone’s release. We’ll have to wait for a review unit before being able to tell you if the holy trinity of RAM, processor, and ColorOS 2.1 makes for a truly magical user experience.

The R7 Plus comes with 32GB of internal storage and the option to expand that externally, so you have the option of storing and enjoying movies on its large screen. A 4100mAh battery keeps it nice and fully loaded. And should you need to dash and realise you’ve forgotten to charge your phone, you can count on Oppo’s VOOC flash charging technology to bump up your battery life in a jiffy; we’re talking enough battery to keep you chatting for two hours on a five minute charge.

Flashy focus

The R7 Plus has the same 13MP rear camera and 8MP front-facing snapper as the R7. The main difference in their photography capabilities lies in the flash. The R7 Plus has a dual flash – but given that we were checking out the phone in the bright of day we didn’t have the chance to try this out to see how natural it makes skin tones look.

Apart from that, launching the camera and focusing were as fast as promised, almost instantaneous even, so split-second shots of hyperactive subjects are definitely possible with this phone.

Handy fingerprint sensor

Just under the flash lies another significantly convenient feature: a fingerprint sensor. The slightly concave square is strategically placed so that even for smaller hands, unlocking your phone isn’t too much of a stretch. Just place your finger in the groove to unlock your phone.

But bear in mind that you still have to switch on the screen first before being able to use your print to unlock the phone. We can’t help but feel that that’s a little counter-productive if you’re talking about strict one-handed use.

If you’re happy with using two hands or have huge paws, this is a fab steal for just £310.