Oppo South Africa used to release the Reno versions every second model, but with the Reno13, Reno14 and now Reno15 out locally, we are receiving the same models as the international market. As a more compact upper-midrange phone, should the new Reno15 Pro be on your radar?

A smaller beauty

Size wise, the Reno15 Pro is a more compact device compared not only to the Reno14 Pro but also in general. While a 0.5” difference in screen size might not sound significant (6.83-inch on the Reno14 Pro vs the Reno15 Pro’s 6.32-inch screen), you can feel (and see) the difference, with the new model easier to operate with one hand. At 187g the device feels sturdy and protected by its aluminium frame, the Reno15 Pro comes across as a premium unit. 

Just a quick note on the case that Oppo – it’s a far more robust and rigid silicon that sets it apart from other in-box cases. However, this does add a bit more girth to the unit, which makes it feel larger than it actually is.

As can be expected, the 6.32” AMOLED screen is gorgeous, sporting a lush 460 pixels per inch, thanks to 2640x1216 pixels resolution and a 120 Hz refresh rate. Since it’s a smaller device, the density of the pixels contributes to a standout display.

While we received the black version to review (with an almost brownish tint in the right light) the Aurora Blue version is stunning, sporting an aurora-like glow, complete with “stars” on the camera unit. Oppo also adds “Reno AI CAMERA” on here, making for a design touch I’m less impressed by. 

Great camera system

One of the Reno15 Pro’s upgrades comes in the form of the camera system. The device boasts a 200MP Ultra-Clear Main Camera, alongside a 50MP Telephoto Portrait Camera and a 50MP Ultra Wide Camera.

The 3.5x telephoto is great for portraits, providing a perfect amount of compression while framing, with a quick touch 7x digital zoom also handy for macro photography (although in general a 7x crop into your available pixels takes a chunk out of picture quality).

The main camera deals well with colour, and you can very clearly see a difference in picture quality from this upper midrange unit compared to other midrange smartphones situated in a lower price category - for both the main and front facing systems.

Talking of which, the front facing camera now has a 100° field of view (in the region of an 18mm lens on a full-frame camera), which allows for far more friends squeezing into a selfie. If you’ve ever tried trying to fit a whole group of people into a selfie, then this is the smartphone for you. 

When editing images, Oppo provides a solid number of AI editing options. New is AI Portrait Glow, which comes in handy for incorrectly lit portraits. In general, this new function performed well, especially with underexposed portraits or when the subject’s face just needed a bit more light. 

Trying out the “Remove people” on photos proved highly effective, with Oppo also including “Prefect Shot” which can combine different face options for a perfect group photo (if you’ve taken a few shots to edit from). In general, AI edits can make a big difference to your photography, although some features are more effective than others.

Overall, this is a really impressive camera setup on the Reno15 Pro, rounded off with 4K HDR Video for both the back and wider front facing system.  

AI inside

Another feature to note is that the Oppo Reno15 Pro features ColorOS 16, which runs on the latest version of Android 16. This brings along deeper integration of Google Gemini AI, including screensharing, with which Gemini can “see” what’s on the screen and provide certain answers accordingly. Google lens is accessible directly from your photo gallery, which allows you to search the content of your images, screenshots or downloaded pictures.

Also new is AI Mind Space, a place where you can quickly save things you come across by swiping three fingers upwards. This stores a screenshot in the AI Mind Space app, where it contextually analyses the thing you save. While I initially thought it would be an interesting space to store all types of info and images from across the phone experience, it ultimately proved of little value, especially for web content, since it doesn’t save the URL of what was saved for later return.

Some more of Oppo’s AI features is AI Narration, where it can read articles on the web – very handy you don’t have the time to read but can listen. The AI Notes option can transcribe your recordings, although I see this is now limited to 100 minutes per month, a restriction that wasn’t there previously. AI Summary does pretty much what it says on the box, summarising content/articles from the web. It must be said that Oppo does its best to hide these AI options, AI Speak for example can be found while browsing in Oppo’s sidebar under the “All” grouping. 

Oppo Reno15 Pro (left) next to the Oppo Reno10 Pro+ (right).

Battery and chipset

With a battery size of 6200 mAh, the Reno15 Pro will last you a full day without charging. Typically, I would only do a quick recharge of the unit in the morning using the 80W SUPERVOOC capabilities, which charges 80% of battery life in about 40 minutes. 

While it contains the same chipset as the Reno14 Pro, the MediaTek Dimensity 8450 SoC is no slouch since operation felt smooth and quick, while also performing well in 3DMark benchmarks.

One to get?

The Oppo Reno15 Pro 5G is a well-built smartphone that is one of those midrange units that feels like it can easily manage three or more years in your pocket. Assuring hefty in hand, it includes most of the modern requirements such as great photography and a few interesting AI features - backed up by the hardware to push it past a two year contract cycle. It retails in the region of R19 500.

Strong competition for the Reno15 Pro’s will arrive soon in the form of the brand recognition of the new Samsung Galaxy S26. A quick glance at specs proves the S25 stronger in terms of processing power, but the Oppo has got it beat in terms of screen resolution, battery life, camera systems and price – it’s about R2k cheaper.  

But perhaps the Reno15 Pro’s biggest competition is its little brother – the perfectly capable Reno14 Pro. At R2k cheaper, the Reno14 Pro is also impressive, coming with a similar processor (MediaTek Dimensity 8450) and a bigger display, but with less battery life and a less impressive camera system.