OPPO A18 review: Affordable, yet functional

We review the OPPO A18, a budget smartphone with decent performance for its affordable $219 price tag.

OPPO A18 review: Affordable, yet functional

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Scores

  • Design: 8.5/10
  • Performance: 8/10
  • Overall: 8.3/10

Pros

  • Screen is bright and responsive, even in full sun
  • All-day battery
  • Nice, if unexceptional design

Cons

  • Limited performance
  • Camera is average
  • So. Much. Bloatware.

Cheap phones are never the most exciting phones to review. You know from the ticket price that you’re making sacrifices in performance and functionality. The real challenge is whether the phone sacrifices too much and becomes barely usable.

The OPPO A18, I’m happy to say, does not. This is still a remarkably functional device, despite its wallet-friendly $219 price tag.

While the OPPO A79 I reviewed last month managed to find that ideal balance between price and performance, the A18 is not quite so robust. It can be slow to react, the visuals don’t pop as much, and the camera itself is best described as “average”.

But, it costs $219. And when you compare it to cheaper devices like the Aspera AS8 I reviewed last year, it offers significantly better performance.