Oppo’s Reno series is quite interesting. While it’s not a high-end lineup like the Find X series, Reno phones typically have premium build quality and reasonably good performance at a lower price point. The new Oppo Reno 11 Pro is such phone, and it has a pretty darn good camera system to boot.

But priced at RM2,499, the Reno 11 Pro’s value proposition still isn’t its strong suit, and its software experience leaves much to be desired. Of course, depending on what you want out of a mid-range smartphone, there are plenty of things to love about the Reno 11 Pro, and I definitely see its appeal.

What It Is

On paper, the Reno 11 Pro has hardware befitting of an upper mid-range smartphone. It has a bright and vibrant OLED dual curved display with a 120Hz refresh rate, a pretty versatile triple camera system with three different focal lengths, along with a reasonably capable Dimensity 8200 chip.

For the Malaysian market, the Reno 11 Pro is sold in the sole 12GB + 512GB configuration. This is quite a generous amount of storage, which explains the slightly steep asking price of the phone for a mid-ranger. Nonetheless, let’s talk about what I like about the phone in the next section.

The Good Stuff

One aspect of the Oppo Reno 11 Pro that surprised me quite a bit is its camera performance. The triple camera system (50MP primary + 8MP ultra-wide + 32MP telephoto) can take great-looking shots in various lighting conditions, and the camera interface is quite responsive too.

That being said, the low light performance of the Reno 11 Pro’s ultra-wide and telephoto cameras do have room for improvement; their detail preservation isn’t quite as good as the 50MP main camera, for one. But overall, I’m quite happy photographing with the phone. Judge for yourself with these sample shots:

I’m also quite a fan of the Reno 11 Pro’s 6.7-inch 1080p OLED display. While I’m not thrilled with the dual curved nature of the screen – the ergonomics of the phone is sacrificed for this design language – it’s a pleasant display to look at. It has punchy colours, wide viewing angles, and true, deep blacks; qualities we’ve come to expect from an OLED panel.

Performance wise, the Reno 11 Pro’s MediaTek Dimensity 8200 chip can keep up with my demands…for the most part. While it’s more than fast enough to provide a smooth day-to-day use and multitasking, it does show its limits in more demanding tasks like gaming.

In Honkai: Star Rail, for example, the Dimensity 8200 can’t quite provide a stable 60fps frame rate with maxed out graphics settings, though it’s still very much playable.

As for battery life, the Reno 11 Pro is quite a long-lasting phone. On average, I can get about five hours of screen on time out of the phone’s 4,600mAh battery, and this is with a number of gaming sessions thrown in throughout the day. When I need to charge it up, I can do so quickly with the Reno 11 Pro’s 80W fast charging. It’s worth noting that the phone is bundled with a 100W charging brick as well.

Last but not least is the build quality of the Reno 11 Pro. Despite the fact that it has a plastic frame, it still feels solid in my hands. The glass back for this Rock Grey model also has a nice matte finish which looks and feels great to the touch.

The Bad Stuff

Software has always been my main gripe with Oppo’s range of phones, and unfortunately, this remains true with the new ColorOS 14 on the Reno 11 Pro. While it does bring some improvements, such as the ability to (finally) swipe down on multiple notifications from the same app to expand them, this gesture doesn’t work for notifications further down the list, for some odd reason.

Basically, Oppo’s software still doesn’t feel as polished as it should be, not to mention the fact that there are way too many bloatware pre-installed out of the box.

And then there’s the value proposition of the Reno 11 Pro. At this price point, there are quite a number of alternatives that offer either faster performance or more refined software experience for less money. Granted, the Reno 11 Pro’s generous 512GB storage does give it an edge over its competition.

Is It Worth It?

While I do wish the Oppo Reno 11 Pro is a bit more affordable with more polished software, it is still an upper mid-range smartphone that’s up to mark. It has respectable camera performance with versatile shooting options, reasonably fast chipset, and long enough battery life to get through a typical day of use comfortably.

If you like how the Reno 11 Pro looks – especially the Pearl White colour option with a unique pearl-like back panel – and you don’t mind paying a bit more for it, I’d say it is worth considering. Beyond its slightly steep asking price and middling software, the Reno 11 Pro really doesn’t have any major faults.