Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Review: Back in the Game?
Oppo’s Find X8 series, which consists of the Find X8 and Find X8 Pro, have been launched in India after a long break. The last Find X2 and Find X2 Pro were announced in 2020, and it’s been four long years since Samsung faced no real big-name challenger in the sub-Rs. 80,000 and Rs. 1,00,000 segments. This was until new products from the BBK umbrella and Google returned. Clamshell foldable, too, added some variety and colour to this segment, which is usually laser-focused on delivering the best all-rounders in the business.
Oppo’s arrival now adds to this growing selection of sub-Rs. 1,00,000 smartphones. The company’s latest smartphones are out to take on Samsung’s Galaxy S24 and Galaxy S24+ with the Oppo Find X8, undercutting the former by Rs. 10,000, while the Find X8 Pro retails at exactly the same price as the latter. Are Oppo’s latest flagships up to speed? Or do they fall short of their promises? Let me explain.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Design: Busy buttons
- Dimensions – 157.35×74.33×7.85mm (Find X8), 162.27×76.67×8.24mm (Find X8 Pro)
- Weight – 193g (Find X8), 215g (Find X8 Pro)
- Durability – IP68 & IP69 (dust and water)
The Find X8 has a no-nonsense flat design that looks and feels practical. The front and rear screens (Corning Gorilla Glass 7i) are flat, and the fit and finish are perfect, with no sharp edges, panel gaps, etc. Its design does feel very iPhone-like, but the edges of the flat sides are a bit sharper compared to what we have seen on the latest Apple iPhone 16 model.
Oppo’s Find X8 is a proper contrast to the Find X8 Pro in terms of design
The Find X8 Pro is a proper contrast to the Find X8’s design. It’s typically Oppo with a very stylish appearance thanks to its marble-like glass back. Its rounded corners and quad-curved Corning Gorilla Glass 7i screens give it a very premium feel. But its curved sides, along with its matte-finished rear panel, also make it very slippery.
I like the camera settings on both smartphones. It’s subtle, flatter, and colour-matched on the Find X8 but more prominent on the Find X8 Pro. The Pro’s camera module protrudes quite a bit because it has two periscope cameras included in its quad-rear-camera setup. The Find X8 Pro is certainly not as thick as the Find X7 Ultra, which was very camera-inspired with its faux leather and brushed metal design.
ExcessiveIP ratings aside, Oppo has also advertised a new Oppo Mag case, which lets you attach accessories like a cooler (fan) or a magnetic power bank (to the case), much like one would on a recent iPhone. However, the brand has been quiet about the pricing or availability of these accessories in India, and I did not get a chance to play with them at the global launch event either.
Oppo has given both smartphones a different design treatment for their respective cameras
The Oppo Find X8 Pro also incorporates another recent Apple idea: a capacitive camera button. As mentioned in my first impressions, the Quick Button is not exactly a button but a capacitive touch surface (the details of which Oppo refuses to explain). Unlike Apple’s Camera Control Button, made of glass, the curved patch on the frame seems to be made of metal.
You can double-press to start the camera in an instant and keep the button pressed when the camera app is open to capture pictures continuously (burst mode). You can also slide your finger over this Quick Button to zoom in and out. While this sounds like a delightful idea, it’s very tricky to seek and find the exact level of zoom (or focal length) you are looking to stop at.
The Oppo Find X8 Pro’s Quick Button is very different from Apple’s Camera Control button in terms of function and usability
Nine out of ten times, I would stop at 1.3x or 2.9,x as the button is just not sensitive enough for accurate control, making it a gimmick. To make things worse, I also ended up ruining my composition a few times because I accidentally placed my fingers on the button (which adjusted the camera’s zoom) while capturing a photo. While reviewing the phone, I often forgot it was even there, as I found the on-screen controls more accurate and fuss-free while zooming.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Display: As good as it gets
- Display size – 6.59-inch FHD+ (Find X8), 6.77-inch FHD+
- Display type – 120Hz, AMOLED,
- Display Protection – Corning Gorilla Glass 7i
I preferred the flat, no-fuss display of the Find X8 over the Find X8 Pro’s quad-curved panel. The flat display of the Find X8 provides distraction-free viewing outdoors and also lends the phone a very modern appearance thanks to its super skinny bezel, which is even on all sides.
As for the quad-curved display on the Find X8 Pro, its sole purpose is aesthetics. Its curved edges add more reflections when viewing content outdoors, which can get distracting.
Just like their designs, both the Find X8 and Find X8 Pro get very different displays
Both displays offer 800 nits typical and 4,500 nits peak brightness, which is more than sufficient when used outdoors. They showcase accurate colours when used with the default Natural screen colour mode and also support HDR10+ and Dolby Vision when streaming video content, which worked as expected.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Software: Jack of all trades…
- Software version – Android 15
- Software – ColorOS 15
- Software commitment (software + security) – 4+6 (Find X8) 5+6 (Find X8 Pro)
ColorOS 15 isn’t a brand-new mobile operating system but an overhauled version of the previous OS, along with some new additions and a fresh paint job. Personalisation now extends to the lock screen, letting you create new themes or pick from a vast selection of existing ones. However, these themes are only skin deep, as they only have a new wallpaper accompanied by a different preset clock style along with some vague captions on the lockscreen.
Oppo’s ColourOS 15 is super smooth and offers plenty of customisation options
Surprisingly, there is no new font, but a slightly modified OPPO Sans that appears lighter and not as heavy (in default settings) as the previous one. Icon selection now includes a new Radiance pack, which looks a bit different by adding a mild glow to native app icons. The Shadow icon pack is very subjective and aims to ape Apple’s dark mode icons by adding a black border to all icons along with minimalist-looking system icons.
While I appreciate Oppo’s efforts to give its ColorOS 15 a refreshed appearance, it looks awful when put together. This is because the bouquet of customisation options somehow fails to complement one another. And then, there’s this obvious obsession with aping Apple’s iOS 18.
Unlike Google’s Gemini or Samsung’s Galaxy AI, which are deeply integrated into their respective operating systems, Oppo gives you a set of tools for those who need to use it. There are some that made it into the previous ColorOS 14, while some new ones have been added to ColorOS 15.
AI Eraser still does not work as well as it does on a Pixel (Left: Edited on Find X8 Pro, Centre: Original, Right: Edited on Pixel 9 Pro XL) (tap image to expand)
The AI Reflection removal tool does a decent job of removing reflections from photos. The AI Image Enhancer’s results are no different from the blurred images I fed it. All in all, Oppo’s AI efforts with image editing are good if you haven’t tried some of these out on a Pixel.
On the other hand, Oppo’s non-image editing AI tools performed as expected. AI Summary works well for quickly summarising any text visible on your display. AI Speak is also a useful replacement for the Google Pixel’s Read Aloud feature. However, you can get the same functionality by downloading the Reading mode app.
AI Reply also manages to generate decent replies based on what’s in your chats. The only catch is that it will only be able to capture information or context from the visible portion of your chat, so it may miss the context of the previous conversation and a few messages above.
Oppo also goes with Google’s Gemini as its official virtual assistant for global markets but also packs in its own set of AI tools
Aside from native bloatware, FinShell Pay, FitBit, LinkedIn, Myntra, Netflix, Snapchat, and Spotify apps have been preinstalled. It is surprising to see so many third-party apps preinstalled on a high-end premium device like the Find X8 Pro, as most phones in this segment avoid going down that path. Out of these, you cannot uninstall the FinShell Pay app. Some may find these apps useful, but I usually prefer a clean slate like Google and Apple do on their devices. And if the third-party apps weren’t enough, there’s also a “Hot Apps” folder which you may or may not choose to indulge in.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Performance: Up there with the best
- Processor – MediaTek Dimensity 9400
- RAM – 12/16GB (Find X8), 16GB (Find X8 Pro) LPDDR5X
- Storage – 256/512GB (Find X8), 512GB (Find X8 Pro) UFS 4.0
You can fire up as many apps as you like, but ColorOS 15 does a fabulous job of keeping the software running smoothly. I faced no hiccups or even a hint of lag, and the 120Hz LTPO panels also made the transitions and animations appear fluid.
As for synthetic benchmarks, both smartphones with their MediaTek Dimensity 9400 SoCs performed really well as premium devices. However, neither could defeat the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite SoC that we recently tested in the Realme GT 7 Pro, which also outperformed the Apple iPhone 16 Pro Max (Review).
| Benchmark | Oppo Find X8 | Samsung Galaxy S24 | Google Pixel 9 Pro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Dimensity 9400 (3nm) | Exynos 2400 (4nm) | Tensor G4 (4nm) |
| AnTuTu v10 | 23,50,546 | 14,80,582 | 12,25,583 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 | 12,768 | 16,910 | 13,800 |
| Geekbench Single | 2,818 | 1,845 | 1,872 |
| Geekbench Multi | 8,494 | 5,771 | 4,227 |
| GFXB T-rex | 60 | 119 | 120 |
| GFXB Manhattan 3.1 | 60 | 119 | 107 |
| GFXB Car Chase | 60 | 109 | 62 |
| 3DM Slingshot Extreme OpenGL | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Slingshot | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life Unlimited | 23,380 | 13,576 | 2,615 |
| Benchmark | Oppo Find X8 Pro | Galaxy S24+ | Pixel 9 Pro XL | Realme GT 7 Pro |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chipset | Dimensity 9400 (3nm) | Exynos 2400 (4nm) | Tensor G4 (4nm) | Snapdragon 8 Elite (3nm) |
| AnTuTu v10 | 23,38,411 | 14,57,608 | 10,67,971 | 27,15,106 |
| PCMark Work 3.0 | 12,868 | 16,157 | 12,922 | 25,876 |
| Geekbench Single | 2,787 | 1,987 | 1,944 | 2,953 |
| Geekbench Multi | 8,391 | 6,137 | 4,667 | 9,094 |
| GFXB T-rex | 60 | 118 | 120 | 60 |
| GFXB Manhattan 3.1 | 60 | 120 | 105 | 60 |
| GFXB Car Chase | 60 | 108 | 54 | 60 |
| 3DM Slingshot Extreme OpenGL | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | FTR | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Slingshot | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | FTR | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life | Maxed Out | Maxed Out | 8,902 | Maxed Out |
| 3DM Wild Life Unlimited | 23,225 | NA | 9,294 | 24,042 |
I faced no heat-related issues when playing games like Asphalt Legends Unite, Call of Duty: Mobile, and Genshin Impact on either smartphone. I could max out graphics in all games, and the MediaTek Dimensity 9400 processor handled them well.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Cameras: A stop short of greatness
Find X8
- Primary camera – 50-megapixel, f/1.8, OIS
- Telephoto camera – 50-megapixel, f/2.6, OIS, 3X optical (shared)
- Ultrawide camera – 50-megapixel, f/2.0, AF (shared)
- Selfie camera – 32-megapixel, f/2.4 (shared)
Find X8 Pro
- Primary camera – 50-megapixel, f/1.6, OIS
- Telephoto camera – 50-megapixel, f/2.6, OIS, 3X optical (shared)
- Telephoto camera – 50-megapixel, f/4.3, OIS, 6X optical
- Ultrawide camera – 50-megapixel, f/2.0, AF (shared)
- Selfie camera – 32-megapixel, f/2.4 (shared)
Oppo’s Find X8 Pro’s camera setup is equipped with two pericope telephoto cameras
As explained in my first impressions, both smartphones share camera parts, as indicated in the specifications above. To give you a better idea about how well the Find X8 Pro’s camera performs, I have also inserted images taken from a Pixel 9 Pro XL for comparison.
Oppo Find X8 Pro ultrawide camera sample (tap image to expand)
The ultrawide camera left me unimpressed from the get-go. It captures images that are a bit soft in daylight and lack dynamic range, leaving out a lot of detail in the shadows. In low light, the image quality is not up to the mark, with objects lacking any texture in street-lit scenes. Lens-barrel distortion is also quite prominent. Overall, Google’s Pixel 9 Pro XL performs a lot better.
Google’s Pixel 9 Pro XL (bottom) manages better detail and overall image quality compared to the Find X8 Pro (top) (tap images to expand)
Oppo Find X8 primary camera sample (tap image to expand)
Oppo Find X8 Pro primary camera sample (tap image to expand)
With the primary camera, the Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro tend to go with a contrasted appearance, reducing details in the shadows especially when shooting contrasted scenes on a sunny afternoon. The Find X8 and the Find X8 Pro offer a brighter camera with a wider aperture, resulting in slightly better low-light photos. Meanwhile, Google’s Pixel outdoes both of them as it produces better textures and resolved detail, whether shooting daylight or low light. Google’s Pixel also seems to have mastered HDR imaging, which is something the Oppo Find X8 series seems to struggle with, producing unnecessary details that aren’t visible in the scene when shooting.
The Find X8 Pro’s primary camera (top) struggles with resolved detail compared to the Pixel 9 Pro XL (bottom) (tap images to expand)
I’ll go out on a limb and say that the Find X8 and X8 Pro’s telephoto cameras perform a lot better than their respective primary cameras in daylight. The 3X and 6X zoom cameras manage excellent detail and sharpness in daylight. The Pixel 9 Pro XL keeps using software magic and manages slightly less sharpness despite using its primary camera when capturing 3X shots. The 3X camera also performs well in low light, but the 6X camera, because of its narrow aperture, produces slightly soft and blurry shots. Google’s Pixel 9 Pro XL manages a lot better at 5X zoom, but the same cannot be said about 3X zoom.
Notice how the colours change when switching from the primary (top) to the 3X telephoto (centre) and the 6X telephoto (bottom) cameras (tap images to expand)
The Oppo Find X8 Pro’s 6X telephoto camera (top) snaps softer images in low light compared to the Pixel 9 Pro XL’s 5X camera (bottom) (tap images to expand)
About a year late to the AI imaging game, Oppo went all out and even added some AI capabilities to its zoom cameras. The 50-megapixel telephoto camera is good for quality images up to 10X in daylight. But just in case you do want to zoom into things on your next vacation, the camera will enhance resolution between 10X to 60X zoom using image diffusion models. Photos captured at 60X zoom and higher can take advantage of AI Zoom, which actually takes a second to reconstruct an image. While the feature does improve the quality of the already textureless photos, using AI Zoom can be risky as it adds texture and, at times, random objects or shapes to images that aren’t even there. All said the Find X8 does have an edge over the Pixel 9 Pro in terms of zoom reach thanks to its 6X optical telephoto camera that delivers usable shots to about 20X. The 9 Pro XL manages good photos to 10X.
In the above images, the texture of the stucco wall has been enhanced by AI, but the chipped paint on the right side has been “reimagined” in some sort of random shape. Meanwhile, the green cycle in the first image gets a “magical” cleanup.
As for selfies, the Find X8 and X8 Pro manage sharp selfies in daylight and low light. Edges detection is excellent as well. However, faces come out a bit reddish in general. Google’s Pixel falters with edge detection but is accurate with skin tones.
Selfies from the Find X8 and Find X8 Pro show good detail and edge detection but tend to have a reddish tone
Across cameras, I also found Oppo colour tuning to be inconsistent, which was not the case with the Find X7 Ultra I tested earlier this year. The same applies to mature image processing (sharpness, contrast, detail), which is not found in the Find X8 series but is available on iPhones, Pixels, and the Galaxies in this segment.
Photos aside, I was mighty impressed by the phone’s video capabilities. The Find X8 Pro edges out the Find X8 in terms of overall quality, but the differences are very minor. 4K video captured at 30 or 60fps appears sharp has good stabilisation, and excellent dynamic range. I also tried shooting in Dolby Vision, and the results showed good contrast without going overboard. However, the frame rate takes a bit of a hit with random drops when panning. Low-light video capture is equally impressive in quality and noise control, but the frame rate isn’t perfectly stable, as it is on an iPhone. I also loved how I could zoom through cameras from 0.6X to 6X when recording video, which isn’t available on most smartphones.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Battery: Impressive
- Battery capacity – 5,630mAh (Find X8), 5,910mAh (Find X8 Pro)
- Wired charging – 80W SUPERVOOC
- Wireless charging – 50W AIRVOOC
The new carbon-silicon batteries allow Oppo to pack in a higher capacity inside the same space. So, even if the battery capacity has increased, the phone’s don’t appear any thicker or feel too heavy.
The Find X8 Pro can easily last a day and a half on a single charge
With heavy use, which also includes gaming, video streaming and camera usage, the Find X8 and Find X8 Pro easily lasted over a day. With casual use, the Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro can last up to two days, which is impressive for smartphones that are this thin and light. In our video loop battery tests, the Oppo Find X8 lasted 22 hours and 15 minutes, while the Find X8 Pro lasted 25 hours and 9 minutes, both of which are good figures for premium devices.
Wired charging speeds are impressive, given the higher-than-usual battery capacities. The Find X8 charges from zero to fully charged in 1 hour and 8 minutes, while the Find X8 Pro manages the same 1 hour and 10 minutes.
Oppo Find X8 and Find X8 Pro Verdict
Given that the Find X series was missing in action for years, Oppo has priced its flagships well. Still, I wished Oppo would have taken its time and introduced an Ultra model instead of the Pro in India.
The Find X8 at Rs. 69,999 (12GB + 256GB) is an easy recommendation over Samsung’s Galaxy S24 (Review) and is a welcome addition to the rather limited selection of compact flagships we have here in India. It checks all the boxes for a compact flagship and has no competition when it comes to charging and battery life.
Things are a bit shaky for the Find X8 Pro, which is priced at Rs. 99,999 (16GB + 512GB). Firstly, its design feels premium, but it’s not as unique as the Find X7 Ultra (Review). Secondly, its camera performance isn’t consistent either, so those looking for a top-end Android flagship at around Rs. 1,00,000 are better off with a Galaxy S24+ (Review), a Pixel 9 Pro (Review), a Pixel 9 Pro XL (Review) or the Galaxy S24 Ultra (Review), unless all you are looking for is better battery life and fast charging.
