Device Review: Oppo Find 7a

The Oppo Find 7a is the successor to Find 5, and the younger brother to the Find 7. The Find 5 was an amazing device with a 5” 1080P display, and the Find 7a is even bigger at 5.5”. The Find 7a was released to international markets in April 2014, and you can only buy the device from Oppo at this point. The Find 7 with the higher specs will be released in June this year.

The internal hardware of the Find 7a US is based on the Snapdragon 801 SoC (MSM8974AB) at 2.3 GHZ, whereas the Find 7 model features the MSM8974AC version of the Snapdragon 801 SoC at 2.5 GHZ. Aside from different screen resolution, RAM amount, and bump in CPU speed, the Find 7a is a powerhouse that can compete with any flagship out there today.


Here’s what’s in the box:

• OPPO Find 7a US device
• US 2 pins standard plug fast charger (VOOC)
• USB-Micro USB Cable
• OPPO Dirac Headphones
• User Guide (English language)

HARDWARE

The phone packs a quad-core 2.30 GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 801. This is one of the most powerful processors on the market today. The 5.5-inch device weighs in at 6.03 ounces and has a display resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, which equates to approximately 403 ppi. The panel itself has touch on lens technology that is protected by Corning Gorilla Glass 3.

The Main Device specifications are:

• 2.30GHz Qualcomm Snapdragon 800
• 5.5” Screen 1080×1920
• 6.01 x 2.95 x 0.36 inches
• 6.03 oz
• 2 GB RAM
• 16 GB storage options (also includes a Micro SD expansion slot up to 128GB)
• 2800 mAh battery is Replaceable
• 13 MP Camera back / 5 MP Front
• Android 4.3 Jelly Bean with Color OS UI
• Bluetooth 4.0
• NFC/ Wi-Fi Direct
• 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi (802.11n 2.4GHz and 5GHz)
• FDD-LTE: Bands B1/4/17
• UMTS/HSDPA/HSUPA/HSPA+/HSPA+42 (850, 900, 1700, 1900, 2100MHz)
• GSM/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900MHz)

Over the course of a week of testing, the battery of the Find 7a demonstrated impressive longevity. On average, it lasted a solid day (18 hours) with heavy use, and could go to 30 hours with light to moderate usage. The weight of the Find 7a gives the device a premium feeling in hand. The processor is very fast, especially for those coming from the Samsung Galaxy S 4, Note 2, or Oppo Find 5, which features the Snapdragon S4 Pro. The user interface makes using the device a pleasure.

Overall, the phone is very well built and should provide a great experience when holding and using it on a daily basis.

If you want to see the inside guts of this device check out Adam’s Unboxing the XDA Way!

SOFTWARE

The phone runs Android 4.3 skinned with Color OS UI. The implementation is visible in every aspect of the phone’s interface. Because of this, if you are looking for a phone that provides the pure Google experience, the Find 7a is not for you. However, much of the added tweaks are intended to help the user be more productive.

You can launch apps and tools from almost anywhere on the device, even when the screen is off. We get App Ops out the box for control of our apps’ data usage. We get an FTP/DLNA server with a default file manager out the box. You have access to Oppo’s Theme servers, for Launcher mods and Lock screen designs galore. I come from a long line of Samsung devices, and I like Color OS.

The camera is great for a smartphone. It shoots at 4K resolution, and can take 50MP stills (using software stitching) with the Sony 13 MP EXMOR sensor. Sadly, there’s no dedicated night mode. The notification shade was made to work with the extra space on the phone when in landscape mode.

It’s likely that those who use the device for a few days will grow to enjoy the little changes, and added screen real estate. However, if you want a pure Google experience, get a Nexus 5 or install a custom Launcher like Nova.

DESIGN

The Find 7a certainly shows its Oppo Find series lineage, with many design traits similar to those seen on the Find 5. The phone’s dimensions are 6.01 x 2.95 x 0.36 inches, and it weighs in at 6.03 ounces (Find 5 was 5.82 oz). We will have more gesture controls, as well as the use of a magic cover when the update to Color Rom 2.0 is out of beta.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The Find 7a is a big device in a sea of phablets. I switched to this device from the HTC One M7. I saw the main benefits of the Find 7a the moment I took the device out of the box and charged it to full in 70 minutes. While the Find 7 will not be available until June, I would argue that the Find 7a gives all the flagships currently on the market a run for their money for now.

The lack of Android 4.4.2 on the device at release is a bit disheartening, but it’s important to remember that Oppo takes care of their devices with speedy updates, and I have received updates even since I have had the device in hand.

Make no mistake: The Find 7a is not made to be a one-handed phone—although you can try to use it as such. The VOOC charger is great and I wished it had a longer cable. It gets you up and running very quickly, so you can live with the length for now. If you’re interested, go over to Oppo website and check out this amazing device.

source: xdadevelopers