Oppo Find X9 Review: Cameras That Can Wow You

Oppo has spent the last few years strengthening its place in premium smartphone photography, slowly but confidently inching into the space dominated by iPhones, Pixels, and Galaxy flagships. The Find X series has been at the centre of this push, and the Oppo Find X9 is another step in that direction. It is not Oppo’s top-tier flagship, sitting just below the Pro, yet the Find X9 comfortably stands among the best camera phones available today. For buyers who want flagship photography without crossing the ₹1 lakh mark, this phone deserves attention.

What’s Good

Design that feels refined and intentional

The titanium frame, frosted glass back, and rounded edges give the Find X9 a premium feel right out of the box. The redesigned circular camera island demands attention. It looks familiar (OnePlus 15 lovers will notice the connection), but on the Find X9, it feels cleaner and more mature. Compared to the flat slabs we now see on newer iPhones, the X9 breaks away from maximalism with a more fluid, polished look. While not feather-light, it is lighter than the Pro model, and the button placement is sensible. The highlight is the Snap Key, Oppo’s customisable shortcut button, perhaps the Chinese sibling of the iPhone's Action Button. Its main purpose is to trigger AI Mind Space, a haven for all the chaos your phone deals with when you record stuff, save screenshots, or just fire the Notes app to jot something down frantically. With customisation, it becomes even more useful.

Display made for watching, gaming, and everything in between

The 6.59-inch AMOLED panel is flat, bright, and one of the best I have used recently. The LTPO tech dynamically adjusts refresh rate to balance smoothness and power usage. Even under direct sunlight, reading messages was easy. With HDR10+ and Dolby Vision support, the display becomes a great canvas for streaming. Dolby Atmos-tuned stereo speakers take that experience up another level. They are almost as full-bodied as the iPhone Pro series, just slightly short on bass texture. Although the Find X9 is not being pitched as a high-performance phone, you can play most visually rich games on the phone without much hassle, thanks to the display and the phone's ergonomics.

Power where it matters

The MediaTek Dimensity 9500 handles everything without hesitation. App switching is seamless, AI features respond instantly, and photo processing speed is flagship-grade. It is incredibly powerful, and if statistics are anything to validate its prowess, the Dimensity 9500 outshone Apple's A19 Pro in raw benchmark tests. Still, its overall ability to offer the extreme flagship performance is undermined by Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5. But then again, neither Dimensity 9500 nor Find X9 is vying for the top spot on the performance charts. For everyday users, even power users, performance will not be a concern. The takeaway is that the Dimensity 9500 will not disappoint you, unless you are a hardcore gamer. I did not face issues during my not-so-long sessions with Genshin Impact. A fair warning, though: the phone does get slightly warmer than expected, and that is when the chip throttles the performance for self-preservation.

ColorOS 16 is polished, fluid, and feature-heavy

ColorOS 16 brings Android 16 with deep personalisation. Animations feel slick, UI elements are coherent, and the new Live Alerts sit on the screen like iOS Dynamic Island—functional and seamless. My food orders and rides were right there on the screen without requiring my separate attention. Much like on iPhones, you can share photos, videos, and a lot more by bringing two ColorOS 16-powered phones together. You even have Vehicle Motion Alerts to keep motion sickness during rides at bay. The standout, though, is Oppo’s AI suite. AI Mind Space kept my clutter in check, understood screenshots, transcribed notes, highlighted reminders, and nudged me when something important needed revisiting. For productivity, it becomes genuinely helpful instead of gimmicky.

A camera system that genuinely impresses

The Find X9’s triple 50MP setup is its strongest weapon. In daylight, details are stunning and colour science (built with Hasselblad, with which Oppo is continuing its partnership even though its sister brand OnePlus decided to go solo) feels natural and expressive. Up close, macro shots look artistic. The periscope telephoto offers clean 3x optical zoom, and even beyond that quality holds surprisingly well until you push it too far. Low-light performance is strong, too, especially if you are a little creative with exposure. Night shots do not look artificial or overly bright. Portraits have pleasing skin tones and depth, though backlit scenes sometimes waver.

The 32MP selfie camera takes good photos, though softening persists even with processing toned down. Video goes up to 4K 120fps with Dolby Vision. Footage looks vivid but occasionally saturated, and audio still picks up noise despite Oppo’s suppression claims. It is excellent for casual videography, but still not as reliable as the iPhone 17 for pro shoots.

A battery that keeps going

The 7025mAh battery consistently lasted a full day, even with mixed usage, gaming bursts, camera testing, and social media hopping. When it drains, fast charging helps you get back up swiftly, giving relief for heavy users.

What’s Bad

Gets warm under load

Extended gaming or heavy tasks push temperatures up. The chipset throttles slightly for self-preservation. This is not a dealbreaker, but noticeable.

Selfie softening and inconsistent noise suppression in video

Skin smoothing persists, and audio in video sometimes breaks through with background noise despite AI claims.

No periscope parity with Pro

The regular X9 loses the advanced telephoto system found in the Pro. You feel this in extreme zoom scenarios.

Verdict

Rating: 4/5

The Oppo Find X9 is one of the most compelling camera-first phones available under ₹1 lakh. It blends elegant design with a top-tier display, fast performance, and a photography system capable of producing results worthy of bigger flagships. It is not perfect, especially in video, audio and thermals during gaming, but if you want a phone that can wow you every time you open the camera, the Find X9, priced starting at ₹74,999, delivers confidently and consistently.

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