Oppo F21 Pro 4G/5G Smartphone Review – Oppo smartphones are the market leader in the Indian phone market. With this, the company comes up with new phones known as the Oppo F21 Pro 4G and F21 Pro 5G. Both devices arrive with decent specs and features. But at the same time, the company is trying its best in bringing value to the users.
Both the smartphones got released in April 2022 and lie in the upper mid-range segment. On the other hand, the phone is currently exclusively for India, and it is not known when the company will release the phone globally. But the question here is does the Oppo F21 Pro 4G and F21 Pro 5G worth your money? Only good specs are not enough to determine the worth of a phone. To find out, let’s head toward a detailed review of the Oppo F21 Pro 4G and F21 Pro 5G smartphones.
Table of Contents
Oppo F21 Pro 4G/5G Smartphones Review
Highlights
- Both the device appears with the standard 6.43 AMOLED display panel, while the 4G variant offers a 90Hz refresh rate.
- The software section is handled through Android 12 with the ColorOS 12 / 12.1 interface.
- The 4G variant brings the 6nm Qualcomm SM6225 Snapdragon 680 4G chipset, and the F21 Pro 5G offers a 6nm Qualcomm SM6375 Snapdragon 695 5G chipset.
- In terms of the camera setup, a 64MP triple-rear camera appears with a 16MP selfie lens for the 5G variant and a 32MP selfie lens for the 4G variant.
- Both the phones have a decent Li-Po 4500 mAh battery with a 33W fast-charging and reverse charging support.
Design and Display
The first impression of the Oppo F21 Pro and Oppo F21 Pro 5G smartphones is pretty superb. Both the devices have an attractive design layout that grants them a premium feel. Yet, the primary difference between both the phone designs would be the camera cut-out present on the back panel. The 4G variant offers the Sunset Orange shade option exclusively.
On the other hand, the Oppo F21 Pro 5G arrives with Rainbow Spectrum color, while the Cosmic Black is available in both variants. The build quality of the phones looks pretty attractive and the company also adds up water and dust resistant coating. On top of that, the makers ensure that you can use the device single handly with its slim and lightweight body.
Besides this, there’s an RGB ring placed around the camera module, that indicates notifications. Moving to the front, you get a 6.43 inches AMOLED display panel on both variants. With this, you will obtain decent colors and contrast while watching your favorite content. Furthermore, the 4G variant comes with additional perks such as the 90Hz refresh rate, 800 nits peak brightness, and Corning gorilla glass 5 protection, while the F21 Pro 5G offers 600 nits HBM brightness and Schott Xensation glass protection.
Memory and Internal
The performance of the Oppo F21 Pro 4G is handled by the 6nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 680 4G chipset, while the F21 Pro 5G offers a 6nm Qualcomm Snapdragon 695 5G chipset. Both the chipset grants similar performance, while the only difference is 5G connectivity. You can multi-task without hassle on both the phone, while the gaming experience would be average in the F21 Pro 4G. Although you don’t face any problems with this SoC, the chipset feels underwhelming as per the price segment.
But at the same time, both of the device’s visual graphics are average, so expecting anything from the beginning would be meaningless. Though there’s no issue with casual gaming, if you try to push the limits, you will notice overheating and lag issues in the long run because they are not gaming-centric phones. Anyway, let’s talk about the software end.
You will receive the latest Android 12 OS on both phones accompanied by ColorOS 12.1 user interface on the 4G variant, and ColorOS 12 user interface for the 5G variant. With this duo, you get ample experience and customization as per your desires. Still, some bloatware apps might be present in the interface skin. In terms of storage, both the devices are available in a single 8GB RAM and 128GB internal storage with support for an SD card slot.
Camera
Both the phones have a triple-rear camera module with a 64MP main lens that captures decent daylight photos with punchy colors. Alongside this, the AI software is on marks, so the image processing will give good results. The daylight photos bring dynamic colors and saturation to the images. Still, the remaining 2MP macro and 2MP depth are there just to add numbers.
Following this, you can apply various filters to enhance the overall background appeal of the photos. In terms of the low light, the night mode does its work accurately. Apart from the AI software, the company presents a 64MP triple camera that can click decent photos and videos of your family and friends. With that, you can make the small moments of your life special.
The F21 Pro 4G equips a 32MP selfie lens and the 5G variant offers a 16MP selfie camera. For video recordings, F21 Pro 4G can record 1080p videos at 30fps from both cameras, while the 5G variant can record 1080p videos at 30fps without any gyro-EIS support. The overall camera section of both the phones feels quite average as per price.
Battery and Others
The Li-Po 4500 mAh battery optimization is quite mind-blowing as you are getting 4+ hours of screen time on heavy usage. Also, the device backs your entire day on normal usage without any problem. With this, you can play games with medium visual graphics settings, while scrolling through the social media feed will happen smoothly. As far as the charging is concerned, you are getting a 33W fast charger inside the box that will fully refuel the phones in an hour. Alongside this, both devices support reverse charging too.
The Oppo F21 Pro and Oppo F21 Pro 5G carry an under-display fingerprint scanner for security. Now, let’s talk about the important part, the price point. The Oppo F21 Pro 4G arrives with a price tag of $300 (Rs. 22,990 in India) approx, while the 5G variant costs $350 (Rs. 26,990 in India) approx.
Oppo F21 Pro 4G/5G Pros and Cons
Oppo F21 Pro 4G/5G Specifications Detail
Down below you can see the full specifications of the Oppo F21 Pro 4G/5G smartphone.
| Specifications | Oppo F21 Pro 5G | Oppo F21 Pro |
| Network | 2G, 3G, 4G, 5G | 2G, 3G, 4G |
| Announced | April 2022 | Same |
| SIM | Dual SIM | Same |
| Dimensions | 6.30 x 2.88 x 0.30 inches | Same |
| Weight | 173 g | 175 g |
| Size | 6.43 inches | Same |
| Display | AMOLED 430-600 nits brightness 20:9 ratio ~409 PPI density | AMOLED 90Hz 430-800 nits brightness 20:9 ratio ~409 PPI density |
| Protection/Others | Schott Xensation glass IPX4, dust and water resistant RGB ring lights around the cameras | Corning Gorilla Glass 5 IPX4 water resistant RGB ring light around the camera |
| Resolution | 1080 x 2400 pixels | Same |
| OS | Android 12, ColorOS 12 | Android 12, ColorOS 12.1 |
| Chipset | 6nm – Qualcomm SM6375 Snapdragon 695 5G | 6nm – Qualcomm SM6225 Snapdragon 680 4G |
| CPU | Octa-core 2×2.2 GHz Kryo 660 Gold 6×1.7 GHz Kryo 660 Silver | Octa-core 4×2.4 GHz Kryo 265 Gold 4×1.9 GHz Kryo 265 Silver |
| GPU | Adreno 619 | Adreno 610 |
| Card slot | Yes (dedicated slot) | Same |
| RAM | 8GB | Same |
| Internal | 128GB UFS 2.2 | Same |
| Camera | 64 MP (wide), PDAF 2 MP (micro) 2 MP (depth) LED flash, HDR, panorama Max – 1080p@30fps | 64 MP (wide), PDAF 2 MP (micro) 2 MP (depth) LED flash, HDR, panorama Max – 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS |
| Selfie | 16 MP (wide) HDR, panorama Max – 1080p@30fps | 32 MP (wide) Panorama, HDR Max – 1080p@30fps, gyro-EIS |
| Loudspeaker | Yes | Same |
| 3.5mm jack | Yes | Same |
| WLAN | Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, Wi-Fi Direct, hotspot | Same |
| Bluetooth | 5.1, A2DP, LE, aptX HD | Same |
| GPS | Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS, GALILEO, QZSS | Same |
| NFC | Yes | No |
| Infrared port | No | Same |
| Radio | No | Same |
| USB | USB Type-C 2.0, USB On-The-Go | Same |
| Sensors | Side-mounted fingerprint, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass | Under display fingerprint, accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass |
| Battery | Li-Po 4500 mAh Fast charging 33W Reverse charging | Same |
| Colors | Rainbow Spectrum, Cosmic Black | Cosmic Black, Sunset Orange |
| Expected Price | $350 (Rs 26,990 in India) approx. | $300 (Rs 22,990 in India) approx. |
Conclusion
The conclusion of the Oppo F21 Pro 4G and F21 Pro 5G are great phones in the mid-range. But at the same time, they are not offering something new that will attract the interested buyer. Undeniably, both devices offer impressive features and specs. Both the phones feel overpriced, while there are a lot of better options available in the market.
The best alternative for both devices would be the Vivo iQOO Neo 6 smartphone as it brings better specs, decent refresh rate, and long-lasting battery life. But if you are looking for a better 4G option, we highly prefer you to take a look at the Vivo V23e 4G for the all-rounder attributes.
