Only a few brands in the smartphone industry have managed to create a legacy through their products. While some have created great phones in the past, they’re not able to follow up with devices that carry the ethos of what made the original product work. One company that has successfully created a smartphone portfolio that comes with great designs, innovative technology, capable cameras, and industry-leading build quality is OPPO.
This is precisely why we were excited about getting our hands on the brand’s all-new OPPO Reno12. This phone has some AI innovations that elevate the user experience to a whole new level. Without giving too much away, let us just say that the handset exceeded our expectations in almost every single way in our limited time with it. As we continue to explore the amazing OPPO Reno12, here are some of its key features that have stood out to us already.
Elevate your photography experience with the power of AI
AI-Powered Photography
The Reno12 comes with solid specs across departments but in optics, the hardware goes up a notch. The handset comes with a 50MP primary Sony LYT600 camera with OIS support. This is a 1/1.95″ sensor with all-pixel omnidirectional PDAF and a 26mm ƒ/1.8 lens. The primary camera is assisted by an 8MP ultra-wide Sony IMX355 camera with a 16mm ƒ/2.2 lens and a 112-degree field-of-view. Alongside these capable shooters, you also get a 2MP OV02B10 macro camera with a 4cm focusing distance.
While you might already be convinced that this handset will blow the competition away in the camera department, the Reno12 showcases OPPO’s dedication to integrating AI across its smartphone lineup. The smartphone boasts a suite of AI-powered features that transform everyday snaps into professional-quality photographs. With the help of AI, the phone doesn’t just uplift the quality of the shots you click but also allows you to edit them later like a professional to get rid of any possible flaws or give them a whole new look.
AI Eraser 2.0 – Say Goodbye to Photobombers
Imagine you’ve captured the perfect candid moment with your friends at a birthday party, but an unexpected photobomber walks right behind you. While you might think that your picture is ruined, with AI Eraser 2.0, you can easily remove that unwanted guest from the background. No need to reshoot or settle for a less-than-ideal picture. This feature is also helpful for removing distracting power lines, street signs, or even a random lamp post that sneaks into your scenic vacation shot.
The diffusion model of AI Eraser 2.0 has been trained on billions of public domain images to offer up to a whopping 98 percent image recognition accuracy. This means it recognizes and removes unwanted human beings and almost any everyday objects from your pictures. It then uses Generative AI to remove distractions and fill that space. The resulting image ends up getting a professional editing touch without breaking a sweat.
AI Clear Face – Shine in Every Group Photo
Group photos can be tricky, especially when you have a large gathering. People tend to move at the crucial moment and asking them to stay still for a long time is just not feasible. In such cases, AI Clear Face comes to the rescue. When you take group photos with the front camera on the Reno12, it can automatically detect the number of people and switch to an optimization mode to get cleaner shots.
Let’s say you’re taking a family photo reunion. AI Clear Face ensures everyone looks their best. After clicking the photo, you can edit it in your album and use the AI Clear Face feature to enhance facial details, including facial contours, hair, and eyebrows, for up to a whopping 10 people!
While you might find some third-party tools that use cloud-based editing, the on-device processing used by the AI Clear Face produces impeccable results in just 1.8 seconds. With the Reno12, you’ll never have to face the frustration of waiting for a long time to improve your images!
AI Best Face – No More Closed-Eye Disasters
We’ve all been there – that perfect group selfie ruined by someone’s closed eye. Don’t worry, OPPO has come with a brilliant feature that removes this pain point for good. The AI Best Face feature identifies closed-eye expressions in group photos and corrects them through artificial intelligence-generated content (AIGC).
We loved this feature and managed to get great pictures even with those people who struggle with keeping their eyes open for pictures. One thing to note here is that this feature is only applicable to group photos of a least 3 people taken by the front or rear camera with Photo Mode.
AI Studio – Transform photos into cool avatars
In the present day and age, we must maintain a virtual profile. To make sure you don’t end up with a bland profile picture, the Reno12 comes with ‘AI Studio’. This feature transforms your real-life photos into unique digital avatars using the latest GenAI technology. I had a lot of fun trying different templates in this app, but my favorite ones were ‘Mecha Punk Boy’ and ‘CV Profile Picture’. When I changed my profile picture to these new digital avatars, my friends flooded my DMs with queries about the app I used to get these amazing pictures.
But this is an inclusive feature as it lets you even invite friends to join a group AI photo through an HTML5 link, regardless of their phone brands.
Other improvements
Beyond the core features, OPPO’s AI capabilities elevate your photography experience in several ways:
- Advanced tone mapping algorithms can automatically adjust lighting and colors in your photos, making that beach sunset look even more dramatic or adding a touch of warmth to a cozy cafe picture. We’re talking about Instagram-ready shots right from the camera roll!
- AI denoising eliminates motion blur, ensuring crisp, clear photos even if you have shaky hands or capture action shots. For those of you who take a lot of pictures while traveling, this can be a game-changer.
- Real-time facial recognition detects and enhances up to 296 facial features for a natural, flawless look. This can be especially beneficial for selfies and portrait shots, ensuring your skin looks smooth and even-toned. Give yourself a movie star-like social media profile with these amazing pictures.
Boost Your Productivity with the Built-in AI Toolbox
The integration of AI on the Reno12 goes well beyond capturing memories; it’s your everyday AI companion that enhances productivity. Powered by Google Gemini LLM, the AI Toolbox offers a range of features to streamline your daily tasks:
AI Writer: If you hate the task of crafting emails for work or a well-worded message to your boss, the AI Writer feature is made for you! It offers suggestions, completes sentences, and corrects grammar to help you communicate effectively. While using this phone, I had to send a quick email to a client regarding a delay in a meeting and while I was gathering the strength to finish this mundane task, I got the idea to use AI Writer instead. I just had to provide a brief outline of my message, and the AI ended up suggesting different ways to word it. The result was a clear, concise, and professional email that my English teacher would be proud of!
AI Summary: We all encounter information overload these days. The AI Summary feature helps you quickly grasp key information from lengthy reports, articles, or even web pages. I was researching a new travel destination online with the phone and the AI Summary provided me with a concise overview of the must-see sights, cultural experiences, and important details. This saved me a ton of time and allowed me to focus on planning my trip instead.
AI Speak: While reading any article, you get AI Speak recommended in the sidebar on the OPPO Reno12. This feature, much like the AI Summary, helps you get the essence of the article but it does so by reading it out loud to you. I found that in situations where I could not look at the phone constantly (while walking on a road, doing household chores, etc.) this feature came in extremely handy.
The OPPO Reno12 utilizes AI to enhance your overall smartphone experience. But more importantly, it does so in the background to improve almost every task that you do with your phone. Whether it is call quality, network connectivity, battery life, or even performance, you will feel the impact of AI integration everywhere. Here is how the handset makes use of AI to offer you an enhanced experience:
- Clear Calls: AI Clear Voice reduces background noise by up to 40dB while enhancing human voices. Enjoy clear conversations in noisy environments like crowded coffee shops, busy streets, or even at a loud concert venue. You can finally have uninterrupted phone calls with friends and family, no matter how noisy your surroundings are.
- Stay Connected with AI LinkBoost:Imagine you’re at a music festival with thousands of people trying to use the internet at the same time. This can lead to slow data speeds and frustrating lag. AI LinkBoost optimizes network usage and cuts data lag by up to 25 percent, ensuring you can still seamlessly share photos and videos with friends or live stream the concert without buffering interruptions.
- Extended Battery Life: We all hate running out of battery in the middle of the day. OPPO’s Trinity Engine leverages AI to identify app demands and adjust processor usage accordingly. This real-time optimization maximizes battery efficiency. Let’s say you’re on a long road trip and need your phone to navigate, listen to music, and capture photos. The Reno12’s AI-powered battery management ensures you have enough power to last the entire journey without needing to constantly search for a charger. The large 5000mAh battery and 80W SUPERVOOCFlash Charge also mean you can quickly recharge your phone when needed.
- Reliable Connections:Imagine traveling abroad and finding yourself in an area with spotty cellular reception. Beacon Link provides a dependable fallback during network outages. This feature allows you to make seamless one-to-one voice calls via Bluetooth, even if there’s no cellular signal. This can be a lifesaver if you need to make an important call but can’t connect to the regular network.
- AI Recording Summary: Save precious time summarising long meetings, lectures, or presentations. Record meetings in English or Hindi for up to five hours, and use the AI Recording Summary to generate notes, summaries, and transcripts with the touch of a button. This is a game-changer for students or busy professionals who need to capture key points from lengthy meetings but don’t have the time to take detailed notes themselves.
- Smoother Performance:RAM and ROM-Vitalisation technologies enhance app startup speeds and multitasking. OPPO also optimizes popular games and manages background processes to extend battery life further. For example, you can switch between social media apps, messaging, and playing games without experiencing lag or slowdowns. With the MediaTek Dimensity 7300 Energy at the helm and such amazing optimization, you get a butter-smooth experience each time you pick up the phone.
Designed to mesmerize
OPPO Reno12 brings along the perfect blend of elegance and durability. With breakthroughs in material science, glass processing, and structural engineering advancements, OPPO has managed to introduce a sleek Reno design. The phone comes with a Fluid Ripple Texture that creates a 3D visual effect on the glass back. While carrying the phone around, I was constantly asked about it as it looked remarkably different from other phones in the market. The phone is available in Sunset Peach, Matte Brown, and Astro Silver colors but I liked the Sunset Peach color the most. The cloud-like design and the striking color make it stand out from the crowd of standard-looking phones.
OPPO Reno12: Democratising AI for Everyone
OPPO’s commitment to making AI accessible to all is evident in the Reno12. This phone integrates cutting-edge AI features at an attractive price point, setting a new standard in the market. With a global goal of empowering 50 million users, OPPO is at the forefront of AI innovation, partnering with leading companies and investing heavily in AI R&D.
Whether you’re a photography enthusiast, a busy professional, or simply someone who wants to get the most out of your smartphone, the OPPO Reno12 with its suite of AI features is your perfect everyday companion. In my use, this phone didn’t just act as a great daily driver but essentially changed the way I use my phone with its innovative capabilities. It won’t be a stretch to say that if this is a sign of things to come, the future of smartphones looks extremely promising. The OPPO Reno12 is available in 8GB+256GB and is priced at INR 32,999. The devices go on sale across Flipkart, OPPO e-store, and mainline retail outlets beginning July 25th.
