Redefining the fashionable digicam cellphone

It’s no secret that I’m partial to OPPO’s fresh flagship smartphones. Between the In finding X’s distinctive design aesthetic, robust cameras, and large batteries, those telephones have frequently introduced one thing just a little other for your family’s flagship names with out compromising at the core smartphone revel in. However something lacking from OPPO’s world lineup lately has been its Extremely flagship fashions, which, for quite a lot of causes, were consigned to China. That each one adjustments this yr, with the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely, and I’ve had one in my fingers for the previous 3 weeks.

With a powerhouse Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 processor, 7050mAh silicon-carbon battery, 100W instant charging, 50W wi-fi charging, IP68/IP69 score, 4 rear cameras, 5 years of OS updates, and 6 years of safety patches, OPPO is keeping not anything again.

The query is, is the In finding X9 Extremely well worth the €1,699 that OPPO is charging in Europe?

You best wish to have a look at the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely to grasp its target market — that is, before everything, a powerhouse digicam cellphone. Whilst the cultured is constructed to house the large digicam housing, the textured again seems nice and provides much-needed grip. Proper out of the field, this appears like a top class handset.

OPPO has packed the telephone with 4 rear cameras, with top quality versatility being the purpose of the sport, from ultrawide out to 10x optical zoom. However don’t center of attention only on megapixels; all of those cameras boast huge symbol sensors, huge apertures, and a choice of the imaging trade’s newest {hardware} methods.

You’ll combat to discover a extra well-equipped digicam cellphone in the marketplace, and this setup makes the most recent iPhone and Galaxy digicam specifications glance definitely second-rate. However how do the images in truth dangle up? You’ll be able to to find the full-res samples of the images taken for this evaluate on this Google Pressure folder.

As you’d be expecting from any fashionable flagship smartphone digicam machine, excessive dynamic fluctuate efficiency, tremendous element seize, and white stability are superb. Whilst Hasselblad’s colour tuning can infrequently spice up saturation in positive scenes (normally with vibrant reds and oranges), the total aesthetic leans extra towards understated realism than synthetic pop and punch. I favor this glance, because it’s more uncomplicated to edit further colour in than to take it out, and there’s nonetheless sufficient vibrancy when you wish to have it.

Colour science is constant throughout all 4 lenses, although I’ve spotted shifts against this and saturation on the extremes. The ultrawide can push vegetables and blues a little bit too a long way, whilst the 10x zoom from time to time tendencies darker than the opposite lenses, most probably because of its smaller sensor. Keeping up uniformity throughout more than one cameras in one cellphone is all the time difficult — particularly right here, the place the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely combines 4 sensors from 3 other producers. For the reason that, the total consistency between pictures is spectacular.

The digicam’s use of enormous sensors and huge lenses signifies that those similar strengths switch to low-light pictures. Colours dangle up really well, although ins and outs can tackle a relatively oversharpened glance from OPPO’s tough post-processing. On that be aware, the HDR impact generally is a bit robust at evening with vibrant lighting, resulting in bloom and overly heavy distinction. The ultrawide and the 10x zoom are the weakest in low mild, however that’s a not unusual criticism.

Sadly, the ultrawide is the weakest digicam total and no longer simply in low mild. It will probably’t reasonably fit the primary digicam’s high quality. Main points aren’t as tough, the HDR impact is infrequently too robust, and there’s noticeable distortion on the lens edges and chromatic aberration round highlights. The effects nonetheless cross inspection at complete body, however the faults are simple to note whilst you crop in.

The OPPO In finding X9 Extremely’s ultrawide lens is not at all unhealthy to shoot with. If it’s any comfort, I doubt you’ll be achieving for the ultrawide very continuously, for the reason that the primary lens is already 22mm huge and plays that significantly better.

Returning to the great things, the double zoom lens features are the actual causes to shop for this digicam cellphone. Whether or not you’re capturing at 3x, 6x, 10x, or past, this digicam package deal has you coated, even in low mild.

Colours are remarkable, as is the extent of element from each the telephone’s zoom lenses. However the most efficient factor about this setup is solely how a lot a laugh you’ll be able to have with composition. As an alternative of the primary lens, I couldn’t assist however spend maximum of my time capturing with the 70mm telephoto. The mix of an enormous 1/1.28-inch symbol sensor and an f/2.2 aperture doesn’t simply produce technically nice photos; it additionally delivers superb background compression and pure bokeh for severe intensity, even at a distance.

The 10x lens could be smaller at simply 1/2.75 and with a narrower f/3.5 aperture, however its lengthy 230mm focal period guarantees various compression. Its 50MP too can crop into to supply appropriate pictures at 20x, however at 30x and past, softness and loss of mild get started seriously degrading the standard. Even OPPO’s AI diffusion tech can best modestly enhance the glance of actually long-distance pictures. If I’ve one criticism about OPPO’s 10x lens, it’s that it’s no longer superb in low mild. Shutter pace instances creep up, that means it’s a must to dangle the digicam nonetheless, however any small actions are exaggerated via the long-range zoom.​

The 3x lens’s 70mm focal period is at the higher finish of the best portrait focal period fluctuate, however you’ll be able to’t argue with the consequences right here both. Even the 230mm 10x has its position for capturing very far away topics.

The 3x or even 10x lenses’ soft-touch colour, dynamic fluctuate, and distinction proceed to make sure that topics are all the time nicely uncovered, no longer overly saturated, and flush with natural-looking element. As soon as once more, the huge sensors and huge aperture produce a pure comfortable bokeh this is absolute best for portraits with out the artifacts of software-based edge detection. That function nonetheless exists, in conjunction with filters and retouch choices, however, in all honesty, I don’t suppose you ever wish to contact the telephone’s portrait mode.

Check out the tremendous element within the eyes, hair, and pores and skin textures within the symbol and crop above. There’s a night-and-day comparability that makes all of the distinction in the case of digitally framing or printing your portraits.

A an identical degree of high quality is to be had from the Extremely’s selfie digicam. Dynamic fluctuate, publicity, and colour stability stay remarkable, even in tricky outside lighting fixtures stipulations.

I’ve notes at the selfie digicam, alternatively. The sphere of view is a long way too huge via default. I finished up hitting the 1x crop simply to get the framing proper, however the ensuing face shapes are nonetheless too slim. Moreover, pores and skin tones are worse right here, with oversaturation and blotchiness that I didn’t follow at the rear cameras. It’s nonetheless excellent, however no longer as excellent.

And what about video? Neatly, the ones 200 megapixels around the digicam array are available very to hand right here, too. 8K 30fps recording is to be had from 1x proper out to 10x. Want upper frames? 4K 120fps is to be had throughout the similar lenses, with 4K 60fps supported at the ultrawide too. The ones bountiful pixels additionally permit you to crop in for Extremely Stable stabilization, which fits really well at doing away with shakes.

On the subject of high quality, dynamic fluctuate is superb, as are colours and element preservation. OPPO additionally helps application bokeh all the way down to f/1.4 at 4K 30fps, which seems luxurious, however fast-moving topics can be afflicted by edge detection system defects. My largest gripe with the video setup is the transition between lenses, which is exacerbated via the sheer distance between them. The telephone does its absolute best to easily transition the view between lenses as you zoom in, however there’s an inevitable pop when the cameras transfer over. In lieu of an solution to lock recording to a selected lens (a guide video mode would assist shut the distance at the pictures options), you’re absolute best off sticking to urgent the preset zoom issues, as OPPO handles easy transitions for you.

I had excessive expectancies entering the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely evaluate, and the telephone has met them and even perhaps exceeded them. Smartphones have lengthy introduced excellent symbol high quality throughout an enormous fluctuate of environments, however there’s all the time been a relatively intangible high quality distinction with high-end mirrorless cameras — continuously a results of element processing and loss of pure intensity. The In finding X9 Extremely joins a make a choice few different fashionable Android flagship telephones that supply remarkable high quality, which after all closes the rest gaps within the devoted digicam marketplace. In conjunction with the Xiaomi 17 Extremely and vivo X300 Extremely, the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely has simply leapfrogged the most efficient cameras from Apple, Google, and Samsung.

Energy and battery lifestyles galore

As you might be expecting for a smartphone packing a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5, efficiency is top-notch. The chip already claims the name in our CPU efficiency benchmarks for 2026, and the In finding X9 Extremely comes out on height below extended graphical workloads. Whilst the 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy may have a non permanent lead, OPPO’s skill to resist an abusive 48°C (118°F) setting provides it the lead for excellent parts of 3DMark’s Wild Lifestyles Excessive Pressure Check.

Then again, this results in a very heat handset that may grow to be uncomfortable to carry all through longer classes, leading to considerably variable efficiency after about 10 mins. Whilst actual video games (most commonly) don’t pressure telephones this a lot, the warmth may purpose discomfort for lengthy, hard play classes, reminiscent of vintage three-D sport emulation. Moreover, there’s no longer a lot efficiency achieve available over the MediaTek Dimensity 9500 within the OPPO In finding X9 Professional. If truth be told, the Professional style runs cooler and leads in ray-tracing efficiency in my trying out. So I wouldn’t say efficiency is the one explanation why to improve to the Extremely, and that further warmth may also be a turn-off for avid gamers.

Talking of the X9 Professional, the In finding X9 Extremely additionally has a smaller battery at 7,050 mAh, in comparison to 7,500 mAh in its inexpensive sibling, but it surely’s nonetheless a slightly huge cellular for 2026 flagship telephones. Even though the Professional lasts longer, the Extremely nonetheless delivers very promising effects in comparison to different flagships in its worth tier.

Out of the 5 telephones I picked for comparability, best the OnePlus 15 rankings some wins over the OPPO, however best in video-heavy workloads like recording and playback. In a different way, it’s a blank sweep for the In finding X9 Extremely, which provides round 20% higher reasonable battery lifestyles throughout our assessments than the Galaxy S26 Extremely and a long way outlasting the Pixel 10 Professional XL in our key digicam seize and internet surfing assessments. It’s no wonder that the larger batteries win out right here.

The base line: the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely has the efficiency and battery lifestyles to simply take you thru a complete day, and reasonably most certainly two, ahead of you even consider achieving for the charger.

As good because the OPPO In finding X9 Extremely is in lots of regards, it doesn’t get the whole lot proper.

For starters, the emblem undermines all of the distinctive id that’s long past into the telephone’s {hardware} via cloning Apple’s Liquid Glass theme from iOS 26. Why OPPO believes this can be a smart decision is any person’s wager, and it appears like little greater than a gimmick given the X9 Professional didn’t release with this similar glance. I believed ColorOS had a good aesthetic lately, so this appears like a step backward for lovers of the sequence. It’s no longer gaudy sufficient to damage the revel in (ColorOS stays beautifully usable at its core), however in the event you’re hoping for one thing extra customizable or a extra conventional Android glance, the In finding X9 Extremely’s transfer to a tumbler theme may really feel just a little insipid. Likewise, I will be able to do with out the reasonably huge choice of pre-installed apps on a cellphone with this kind of steep price ticket.

The {hardware} setup isn’t reasonably absolute best both. OPPO’s SuperVOOC has a name for quick charging, however more moderen implementations haven’t been reasonably as instant because the very speediest competition. 56 mins to complete continues to be very decent for a cellphone with this kind of large battery, however only a few mins at the plug received’t web you as a lot rate as rival units.  If truth be told, the In finding X9 Extremely even unearths itself eclipsed via the newly minted 60W-capable Galaxy S26 Extremely.

After half-hour at the plug, Samsung’s newest flagship will succeed in 85%, whilst the OPPO shall be on a much more modest 64%. Even accounting for that larger battery, it’s nonetheless significantly slower than the Xiaomi 17 Extremely and OnePlus 15 in that very same period of time, owing to quicker temperature build-up and extra competitive energy throttling. Similar to ultimate yr’s style, the height 64W I may draw from an 80W SuperVOOC plug is continued for just a minute ahead of throttling again to a nonetheless decent reasonable of 33W throughout all of the cycle.

What I to find extra disappointing in regards to the In finding X9 Extremely is that it nonetheless calls for proprietary charging to hit its absolute best speeds. Plugging right into a extra common USB PD PPS plug drops energy to simply 42W, inflicting a minor hit to non permanent rate instances. That’s nonetheless excellent via normal phone-charging requirements, but it surely’s no longer dwelling as much as the tagline’s charging credentials.

In the meantime, the Xiaomi 17 Extremely can hit about 70W over that very same USB PD PPS protocol. Samsung’s newest 60W capacity is in keeping with the similar, extra common specification. The times of quickest charging requiring proprietary protocols are over; OPPO will have to get with that program.

The OPPO In finding X9 Extremely redefines the Extremely flagship, specifically within the digicam division. If it’s no longer the easiest digicam cellphone that cash should buy, it’s unquestionably within the height 3, because of its state-of-the-art digicam {hardware}, a formidable app, and a well-known collection of application smarts. I may no longer love each facet of the redesigned UI or overabundance of pre-installed apps, however the beautiful design, multi-day battery lifestyles, and top-tier efficiency make this extra than simply a super digicam cellphone — it’s a top class all-around flagship too.

In conjunction with the Xiaomi 17 Extremely (€1499 at Xiaomi) and vivo X300 Extremely (€1999 at Amazon), Chinese language digicam telephones are actually leveling up the cell pictures revel in. Those are indubitably OPPO’s closest opponents, as each have doubled down on huge, next-gen 200MP digicam arrays with spectacular long-range zoom features. In addition they be offering in a similar way robust processing {hardware}, super-fast charging, and big batteries that may stay you going for 2 days of forged use.

Both could be an appropriate choice, however one drawback all of them proportion is getting your fingers on them. Priced at £1,449 in the United Kingdom and round €1,699 in Europe (~$2,000), that is an unbelievably pricey piece of era. There’s no legit release for US shoppers, who face doubtlessly even steeper import prices and 5G band compatibility problems in the event that they wish to dabble in OPPO’s newest Extremely. For those who nonetheless need the majority of OPPO’s newest flagship revel in however wish to save just a little cash, take hold of the OPPO In finding X9 Professional ($1515 at Amazon). It’s best actually lacking the 10x zoom capacity, and its MediaTek processor is each bit as excellent as Qualcomm’s Snapdragon.

Out of doors of that, it’s onerous to counsel the Google Pixel 10 Professional XL ($1199 at Amazon) or the Samsung Galaxy S26 Extremely ($1299.99 at Samsung) as direct possible choices. No longer as a result of those Android flagship staples are unhealthy telephones; they’re nonetheless main the trade in AI features, be offering long-term updates, and carry out simply in addition to much more pricy fashions — for a standard purchaser, they’re the more secure, and arguably higher, pick out. Then again, they’re constructed for a relatively other shopper; they stability specifications, application familiarity, broader ecosystems, and value into nice if no longer specifically thrilling flagship telephones. They just can’t have the funds for to throw the rest and the whole lot on the wall and hope it sticks.

The OPPO In finding X9 Extremely, in contrast, is a no-holds-barred digicam show off constructed for the discerning photographer. If that’s you, then you definitely received’t feel sorry about spending the cash on one. This is likely one of the absolute best telephones I’ve ever used.