The fan favorite meets a worthy contender
With its interesting set of features and competitive pricing, the OPPO F5 can go head-to-head with the recently-launched smartphones in the mid-range segment. For this comparo, we compare the OPPO F5 with the new mid-range leader: Huawei’s Nova 2i. While it does not boast of a quad-camera setup, is the F5 a better buy compared to the Nova 2i? Here’s a quick look at their specs:
Huawei Nova 2i specs
- Kirin 659 octa-core processor
- 4GB of RAM
- 5.9-inch Full HD display, 18:9 display aspect ratio
- 64GB of storage, expandable via microSD
- 16-Megapixel and 2-Megapixel rear cameras with PDAF and LED Flash
- 13-Megapixel and 2-Megapixel front cameras with LED Flash
- Dual SIM
- 3G, LTE
- WiFi, Bluetooth, GPS, A-GPS, Fingerprint scanner
- 3,340mAh battery
- Android Nougat with EMUI 5.0
- Price: Php 14,990
Read: Huawei Nova 2i Review: Is it the Mid-range Smartphone to Beat?
OPPO F5 Specs
- 2.5GHz MediaTek MT6763 octa-core processor
- 4GB of RAM
- Mali-G71 GPU
- 6-inch Full HD+ Full-Screen IPS LCD Display; 1080×2160 resolution, 402 pixels per inch
- 32GB of expandable storage
- 4G, LTE
- Dual SIM
- 16-megapixel rear camera with f/1.8 aperture with LED flash
- 20-megapixel front camera with f/2.0 aperture with AI Beauty Mode
- WiFi, Bluetooth
- GPS, A-GPS
- Fingerprint scanner
- 3200mAh battery
- Android 7.1.1 Nougat with ColorOS 3.2
- Price: Php 15,990
Read: OPPO F5 Unboxing and Quick Review: A Smarter Selfie Expert?
Internals: Pretty debatable
On paper, the MT6763 processor on the F5 has a higher clock speed, as it has eight 2.5GHz cores compared to the Kirin 659 in the Nova 2i, which has four 1.7Ghz cores and four 2.36Ghz cores. Being a new processor by Mediatek, we will do a barrage of tests with the F5 to see if the MT6763 processor is superior to the Kirin 659.
As for the RAM, both have 4GB on board. When it comes to storage, however, the Nova 2i offers a bigger internal storage at 64GB.
Display: Just the same
No need to really discuss on this part, since both the F5 and Nova 2i use an 18:9 Full HD+ display. As for the size difference, the 0.1 inch differential is almost insignificant in real life.
Cameras: Does more mean better?
Among the standout features of the Nova 2i is its quad cam set-up. We have made a couple of articles talking about the potential of its cameras, and we were quite amazed at it. On the other hand, the F5 has a pretty interesting camera setup: for the rear, its 16-megapixel camera has a bright f/1.8 aperture, while the front is a 20-megapixel unit with a f/2.0 opening.
What makes the F5’s cameras interesting is its Beauty AI feature. People have been talking about how good this feature is, but we have to put the F5 through a series of tests to see if it can achieve great photos without going for the dual-camera (or quad-camera) route.
Battery: The Nova 2i gets it going
With 3340mAh, the Nova 2i is the clear winner in this department. In our test with the Nova 2i, its 3340mAh managed to last us through the day with a little juice left. We will have to put the F5 through the wringer to see if its smaller 3200mAh battery can get us through the day like the Nova 2i.
Verdict: A pretty tough call
With all the buzz the Nova 2i has received lately, we do think that the F5 has a fighting chance to go head-to-head against the Nova 2i, even if it is a thousand pesos more expensive than the latter. It may not boast of a quad-camera setup like the Nova 2i, but the F5 has a newer and more powerful processor, along with an interesting set of camera features like Beauty AI.
Check out some of our other articles about the two phones:
