OPPO A57 Full Review
Since we are already finished with the unboxing and first impression of the OPPO A57, this review will further explore the capabilities offered by this smartphone and in turn, shall help you to decide whether this smartphone is the one you are looking for.
Launched last June, this A-Series smartphone comes with a 6.56-inch HD+ IPS display, 4GB of RAM plus 64GB of internal storage, a dual-camera setup, a 5,000mAh battery with a 33W Fast Charge, and runs on the Mediatek Helio G35 octa-core processor.
Design and Walk Around
The OPPO A57 comes in three colors - Glowing Green, Glowing Black, and Gold. The Glowing Black color found in my OPPO A57 uses the OPPO Glow Design that shimmers and glitters when light is reflected into it. I also like the matte texture because it protects the phone from scratches, and is less susceptible to fingerprint smudges.
At the front is OPPO A57 equipped with a 6.56-inch HD+ (720 x 1612) IPS display. At the top, is a waterdrop design notch that houses the front-facing camera and the earpiece. Like most smartphones in this segment, the side bezels are relatively slim but with a pretty thick chin. Although no glass-type protection is mentioned, my unit already has a pre-installed screen protector.
Found at the back is a rectangular-shaped camera module that houses a dual-camera set-up along with a single flash. The two cameras are the 13MP main and 2MP depth.
Found on the left side is the card tray with a 3-card slot for two Nano-SIM cards and a dedicated slot for a microSD card capable of up to 1TB of expandable storage, handy for users who want to further improve storage capacity. On the left and below the card tray, is your standard volume rocker.
The OPPO A57 features a side-mounted fingerprint sensor that is embedded in the power button on the right side.
There is nothing on the top part of the frame. At the bottom, you can find the USB Type-C charging port, a single downward-firing speaker, a microphone, and a 3.5mm audio jack.
In addition to its design, the OPPO weighs 187g and has a thickness of 7.99mm. The straight middle frame also adds sophistication and is easier to hold.
Display and Multimedia
The OPPO A57 comes with a 6.56-inch HD+ (720 x 1612) IPS LCD screen. The IPS display panel produces great colors; viewing angles are also decent and at 269ppi, the display looks sharp even though the display comes with an HD+ resolution. The screen can also get bright with up to 600 nits of peak brightness.
The audio quality of the OPPO A57 dual speakers is average. It can get loud; however, the sound at max volume maybe distorted. I recommend using headphones or an external speaker via Bluetooth and the 3.5 mm jack for better audio quality.
Camera
Rear Cameras
As for the camera, the OPPO A57 boasts a dual-camera set-up—consisting of a 13MP F2.2 primary camera and a 2MP F2.4 depth camera.
Quality from the rear cameras under bright lighting conditions is pretty good with accurate colors and sharp detail, though dynamic range can be better.
For low light, the OPPO A57 is a poor performer even with the Night Mode feature turned on.
Front Selfie Camera
The front camera houses the lone 8MP F2.0 selfie camera and supports different features such as face beautification and portrait mode.
For selfies, it produces good photos, especially in bright conditions. Background blurring for portrait selfies isn’t that perfect but it is already good enough.
Video
For video, the OPPO A57 captures videos up to 1080p@30fps with its main and front-facing cameras.
The recorded video from the main camera is shaky since there is no image stabilization, but is usable for casual social media postings.
ColorOS, Apps, and Security
OPPO A57 runs on ColorOS 12.1, based on Android 12 out of the box. The ColorOS 12.1 is a seamless, clean, and pretty UI that is easy to navigate. Pre-installed are the standard OPPO and Google suite of apps, as well as some bloatware apps.
In terms of security, OPPO A57 is equipped with a side-mounted fingerprint sensor that is embedded in the power button. It is also equipped with facial recognition for unlocking the device.
Both work well---the side-mounted fingerprint sensor is fast and accurate. However, the face unlock feature can slow down in situations where there isn’t much light.
Hardware and Performance
The OPPO A57 comes with a Mediatek Helio G35 (MT6765G) octa-core processor. This processor is made using a 12nm process and is equipped with four Cortex-A53 cores at 2.3GHz and four Cortex-A53 cores at 1.8GHz, along with 680MHz PowerVR GE8320 GPU.
My unit comes in a 4GB RAM variant. The performance of OPPO A57 is buttery smooth in casual and light tasks. The gaming experience in graphics-intensive games is playable and tolerable with slight stutters and lags, even with the use of the lowest available settings. Note that this isn’t a gaming-focused smartphone so don’t expect too much.
The OPPO A57 also supports RAM expansion that lets you expand your phone's RAM virtually by using the phone's internal storage. The OPPO A57 can make use of 4GB of its internal storage, giving it up to 8GB of total RAM.
OPPO A57 is available in the Philippines in one storage variant - 64GB storage (18.3GB used out of the box). If you need additional storage, you can further expand the storage up to 1TB via its dedicated microSD card slot.
Below are the benchmark scores from this device:
- AnTuTu v9.4.4 – 113,615
- AnTuTu Storage Test v9.4.4 – 9,098 (271.8 MB/s Seq. Read, 135.9 MB/s Seq. Write)
- Geekbench 5.4.4 – 177 (Single-core), 989 (Multi-core)
- PCMark – 5,343 (Work 3.0)
- 3DMark – 473 (SSE – OpenGL ES 3.1), 662 (SSE – Vulkan)
Battery Life, Charger, and Connectivity
One of OPPO A57’s key attributes is its large 5,000mAh which is good enough to last you a full day of usage without an additional charge. In the PCMark Work 3.0 Battery Life Test, the unit yielded a score of around 12 hours and 50 minutes.
With OPPO A57’s 33W SUPERVOOC charger, the 5,000mAh battery can be charged up from 0 to around 50 percent in just 30 minutes.
Deep software optimization like Sleep Standby Optimization, Optimized Night Charging, and Power Saving Mode is also available in OPPO A57 which could make a big difference in battery life.
Aside from the battery and charger, the OPPO A57 has your usual connectivity features, including dual SIM (Nano-SIM, dual stand-by), 4G LTE, dual-band WiFi 802.11 ac, Bluetooth 5.3, GPS, a 3.5mm audio jack, and USB Type-C.
OPPO A57 Specifications
6.56-inch HD+ (1612 x 720) IPS display, 269ppi
MediaTek Helio G35 (MT6765G) processor, 12nm
PowerVR GE8320 GPU
4GB RAM (LPDDR4X)
64GB of internal storage (eMMC 5.1)
microSD up to 1TB (dedicated slot)
Dual-rear cameras (13MP F2.2 main + 2MP F2.4 depth)
8MP F2.0 front camera
Dual-SIM (nano) / 4G LTE
WiFi / Bluetooth 5.3 / GPS, A-GPS
USB Type-C / 3.5mm audio jack
Fingerprint scanner (side)
IP54 dust and water resistance
ColorOS 12.1 (Android 12)
5,000mAh battery w/ 33W fast charging
163.74 x 75.03 x 7.99mm (dimension)
187g (weight)
Colors: Glowing Green, Glowing Black and Gold
What’s inside the box
If you haven't seen the unboxing of the OPPO A57 yet, the box contains the smartphone, SIM card ejector tool, protective silicone case, quick guide, and safety guide with warranty card, 33W USB power adapter, and USB type-C to USB-A charging cable.
Price and Availability
The OPPO A57 retails for Php8,999 (4GB+64GB), and you can purchase it nationwide in all OPPO Brand Stores, authorized dealers, and the OPPO flagship shop on Lazada and Shopee.
Verdict
Is this the smartphone you are looking for? Given its price and competition offering better specs for less, it’s a tough sell. But if you’re a casual user looking for a smartphone as your daily grind, you can consider this one. The OPPO A57 can satisfy your productivity and entertainment needs, with its decent performance, camera, dual speakers, and large battery.
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