The $328 A57 is OPPO's latest bang-for-buck smartphone

OPPO is well on track to launch a phone every two months this year with the release of its new entry-level device, the A57. Following January's midrange R9s and March's supersized R9s Plus, the $328 OPPO A57 is an aggressively priced smartphone with better-than-expected hardware under the hood.

Key specifications include a 5.2-inch 720p display, an octo-core Snapdragon 435 processor, 32GB of expandable storage, 3GB of RAM, a front-facing fingerprint reader, a 13MP rear-facing camera, a 16MP front-facing camera, and a 2,900mAh battery. It runs a customised version of Android - ColorOS 3.0 - based on Marshmallow.

On paper, these specifications are pretty good for the class, and in most cases, match or beat the competition. The two areas where the A57 could potentially fall down are the dated, heavily customised version of Android, and the 720p display, especially given that we're not starting to see 1080p resolutions in this category. Of course, we'll reserve our final judgement until we get some hands on time with the device.

If you're eager to get your hands on one straight away, the OPPO A57 is on sale from today from JB Hi-Fi and Officeworks in a choice of black or gold. It will set you back $328.

Alex Choros

Managing Editor + Group Telco Editor | X | Instagram | Threads | LinkedIn

Alex Choros is the Managing Editor of WhistleOut Australia and an award-winning journalist. He's been writing about consumer technology for over a decade and is an expert on the Australian telco sector, to the point where he knows far too many phone and internet plans by heart. In addition to leading the WhistleOut editorial team, Alex is responsible for ruining the office Sonos with his troubled taste in music.

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