Oppo Find N5 review

The competition

At the time of writing, we only have the Singaporean official MSRP of the Find N5, which is S$2,500 or just under €1,800. That gets you the 16GB/512GB version, which, for the time being, is the only one available internationally. This is quite similar to the official MSRP for a base Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6.

Since we are already on the topic of the Z Fold 6, let's start the list of available competitors with it. The official Samsung MSRP is a bit misleading since you can currently find a 512GB unit from Amazon for just over €1,500. The Z Fold6 is a bulkier phone but one that doesn't utilize its size nearly as well as the Oppo. Also, you get a newer, more powerful Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset with the Find N5 and notably better battery life. Other than that, the Z Fold6 is undeniably a great and well-rounded device. It even comes with Samsung's excellent promise of a whopping seven major OS updates.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold6 • Honor Magic V3 • vivo X Fold3 Pro • Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold

The Honor Magic V3 is a very thin device in its own right. It has a marginally smaller footprint than the Find N5, but it feels more compact in your pocket. Like Samsung, you get the older Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset here and a smaller battery. However, with the Honor, you get a more balanced camera setup - with a much better ultrawide.

The Huawei Mate X6 also deserves a mention here, though we can't outright recommend it over the Find N5 for the lack of native Google services and the higher price.

The vivo X Fold3 Pro is a bit more easily available, especially in the US and India. Just like the other competitors, it is based on an older Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 chipset, but other than that, the vivo is a really modern device. Some of its highlights include IPX8 ingress protection and a 5700 mAh Si/C battery with 100W charging, and also better cameras. It is considerably chubbier in comparison to the Find N5

Last but not least, if you enjoy vanilla Android and Google's excellent take on modern computational photography, then the Pixel 9 Pro Fold might be a good fit. You will have to live with slightly less performance from the Tenson G4 chip, but it's nothing most users will likely notice. Plus, you get excellent software support straight from Google.

Our verdict

The Oppo Find N5 more or less represents the pinnacle of current foldable tech. It uses the most modern Snapdragon 8 Elite generation of chipset, and more importantly, it is exquisitely crafted to be exceptionally thin while still packing in a big Si/C battery and an impressive hinge that makes for an almost invisible display crease. Oppo even found space for a versatile camera system.

The Find N5 is well-equipped through and through. It supports all of the latest connectivity standards, including some little extras like tri-band Wi-Fi 7 and video output via its Type-C port. The technological density on display here is really impressive. Oppo even found the space to fit in proper stereo speakers and even an IR blaster. Even Oppo's signature alert slider is present.

Having said all this, is the Find N5 a perfect device? Well, no, we definitely can't say that. It might be at the pinnacle of foldable design, but that comes with some sacrifices. Nothing too obvious, mind you, but little things, like the fact that the Snapdragon 8 Elite inside the phone is one CPU core short and doesn't retain its performance particularly well over time. Or the fact that the ultrawide camera is a bit sub-par.

Overall, if you appreciate the foldable form factor, there is no better option than the Oppo Find N5 on the market right now.

Pros

• Class-leading design with a very thin profile and great ingress protection.
• Big and bright, 120Hz displays with identical behavior and output.
• Great battery life.
• Excellent connectivity, including IR blaster, Wi-Fi 7 and DP video output over Type-C.
• Very good performance.
• Versatile camera setup with all-around solid image quality.

Cons

• This Snapdragon 8 Elite comes with a 7-core CPU instead of 8-core.
• The speakers are notably quieter than on the Find N3.
• The 8MP ultrawide camera isn't competitive.
• Charger is not included in some markets, and charging with regular USB-PD chargers is painfully slow.