OPPO A98 5G review - A standard but beautiful mid-range phone for the casuals

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Believe it or not, OPPO's A series is rather popular in Malaysia due to its affordable pricing. And not too long ago, the new OPPO A98 5G was released in Malaysia with nice features such as a large FHD+ display, a 64MP AI camera and more.

The OPPO A98 5G has a very fancy design, and the unit we received for review was Dreamy Blue (such a beauty!). Anyway, let's get on with some key features in our review below. Here are all the pros and cons of the OPPO A98 5G.

 

Design - Premium and light

If you're familiar with OPPO phones, you would think that the A98 design is most probably inspired by the OPPO Reno8 T 5G (we think so too). The back cover is mesmerizing due to the colour-changing capability thanks to the refractive light, which gives it plenty of style points. So even though this is a mid-range device, it looks premium enough to stand out.

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The 120Hz refresh rate is great for watching videos and playing games

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Premium look

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The rear camera bump isn't that thick

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The sides and bottom

The chin of the screen is a bit thick, but it's not too distracting once you look past it. And as mentioned, the back refracts light. Depending on the angle, you can see colour combinations between blue, orange, yellow and white. Also, we're glad to report that the back cover doesn't attract fingerprint smudges.

With a display size of 6.72 inches, many would think it's hard to hold. But actually, it's the opposite since even ladies with small hands shouldn't have problems holding the phone with one hand. It's quite comfortable, thanks to the 3D curved back cover. And despite the thickness of the rear camera bump, it fits the design and doesn't feel like some big black void.

 

Tech specs and features - Standard mid-range tier specs

Here are the tech specs of the OPPO A98 5G:

  • Snapdragon 695 5G
  • 8GB of LPDDR4X RAM
  • 256GB of UFS 2.2 storage (expandable via microSD card up to 1TB)
  • Measures 165.6 x 76.1 x 8.2mm
  • Weighs 192g
  • 6.72-inch FHD+ (2400x1080 pixels) 120Hz LTPS LCD\
  • Triple rear camera - 64MP (main) + 2MP (mono) + 2MP (microscope)
  • 32MP front camera
  • Features 67W SUPERVOOC charging, Facial and Fingerprint sensors, 8GB Extended RAM, 108MP mode,
  • Supports NFC, 5 (802.11ac), 802.11a/b/g/n/, Bluetooth 5.1, SBC, AAC, aptX HD, LDAC audio codec, Type C, 3.5mm audio jack connection
  • 5000mAh battery
  • ColorOS V13.1 based on Android 13

Admittedly, the Snapdragon 695 5G is not the fastest chipset in its segment. But we think this phone is aimed at casual users. Not everyone plays mobile games or does heavy tasks, after all. So if you're just using it for browsing social media apps and taking photos, the A98 won't let you down.

Since it's a mid-range phone, it comes with a few compromises. There's no HDR on the display, but at least you can toggle between 60Hz or 120Hz refresh rate and the phone has 950 nits peak brightness. Moreover, it has a microscope lens that can zoom up to 40x, which can be fun to use (more on that later), and 8GB Extended RAM to further boost system memory.

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ColorOS 13.1 UI

Running on the latest Android 13-based ColorOS 13.1, the OPPO UI is getting more user-friendly. But it still has a couple of bloatware problems (as usual). We have mentioned this many times, but it would be nice if OPPO didn't include any pre-installed apps we wouldn't use. But overall, our user experience was quite smooth, so we were satisfied.

 

Performance - Enough for daily usage

You can't really expect the A98 to be that powerful for mobile gaming, but it's good enough to play some casual ones. It can also play Mobile Legends and PUBG Mobile at medium or high settings. But it's not recommended if you want the frame rates steady.

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Score from Geekbench 6

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Running mobile games on low to medium settings is good enough

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The speaker is quite powerful, able to boost the volume to 200%

In terms of battery, the OPPO A98 5G did well. If you spend the whole day playing mobile games, you could get around six to seven hours of screen time. And on average, the A98 can easily last more than a day with minimal usage. Moreover, the 67W SuperVOOC charger only takes 44 minutes to fully charge the phone.

Most casual users will probably use the A98 for taking photos and videos, so here's our take after using it for two weeks. Overall, we were surprised by the results. The phone can take low-light images quite well, and the macro mode is surprisingly good at delivering details. Well, check out the photos below and judge them for yourself.

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Normal camera mode

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Selfie

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Before using the microscopic mode

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The first zoom

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At 40x zoom

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Night mode

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Dual-view mode can come in handy

 

Conclusion – Suitable for casuals who want a good looking affordable phone

For RM1399, the OPPO A98 5G has a very competitive price for a mid-range phone. The advantages of this phone include a 120Hz screen, a long-lasting battery life, a unique microscope camera and an easy-to-use UI, making this a suitable device for most people. All in all, it's a budget-friendly 5G smartphone with pretty attractive features and functionality.

For alternatives, you can consider the realme 10 Pro for its higher resolution 108MP camera sensor for RM1299. Also, the OPPO A98 5G is comparable to the POCO X5 Pro 5G (check out our review here), which is RM1499 with a Snapdragon 778G chipset. So what should you go for? Well, the choice is yours.

Anyway, what do you think about the review? Do you feel that this is a smartphone you would be interested in? Let us know in the comments and stay tuned to TechNave for more reviews like this.