Oppo just added another phone to their budget A-series. The Oppo A55 5G is an entry-level phone running on MediaTek silicon, wrapped in a tame, predictable design. While its competition is setting the bar higher than ever for what value phones can do, the A55 takes it down a notch or two.
Let’s get the only highlight of Oppo A53's successor out of the way first — the 5G chip. MediaTek Dimensity 700 that powers the Oppo A55 5G is the cheapest chip MediaTek makes. Its big cores operate on 2.2GHz. The CPU and gaming performance is comparable to the Helio G90T, but the Dimensity uses a far thinner 7nm that directly translates into battery life gains.
6GB of memory keeps the apps running in the background. And you get 128GB of storage, expandable with a microSD card. A55’s 5000 mAh battery lacks any fast charging, peaking at only 10W. The Android11-based ColorOS 11.1 runs on this device out of the box.
The phone’s design fails to stand out in a sea of similar-looking plastic slabs, looks like an Oppo A52 with a missing fourth camera sensor. We have a tear-drop notch for the front camera, bleeding into the screen. It’s a generic 6.5” 720P IPS LCD that can shine at 480nits.
The rear cameras live in a box-shaped black cutout. For quick unlocking, the Oppo A55 has a side-facing thumbprint scanner. A 3.5mm headphone jack is available. And the phone comes in black and blue colors.
The low-end chip, combined with an underwhelming camera makes for second-rate photography. The triple-camera array lacks a wide-angle lens. The primary sensor has a small 1/3.06” size, and it sits behind a narrow f/2.2 lens. Selfies are taken with an 8MP camera. The other two rear cameras are 2MP, aimed at portrait enhancement and macro shooting.
Oppo A55 starts from CNY 1,599 (~ Rs. 39,700). And it’s expected to go global in the coming months.