Oppo Find X9 Ultra review: More camera than phone?

Once upon a time you'd buy a phone to, y'know, make phone calls. What a distant memory that feels like. But we're all the better for it being distant – as today's best phones strive to do yet more than their predecessors, adding desirable features to stand out.

Oppo's latest mega-flagship, the Find X9 Ultra, is one such device. Embodying a world-first in the camera department, this handset is approaching being more camera than it is phone. Its high-resolution suite of large-sensor cameras and Hasselblad backing will certainly grab keen photographers' attention.

Oppo has been in the game for a long time, delivering innovation after innovation – it's just that many of those haven't been available to be appreciated outside the brand's homeland. The Find X9 Ultra's predecessor, for example, never shipped to European markets – marking this 2026 flagship as all the more important.

However, the Ultra remains a niche proposition. Such a camera suite means it's physically large and inevitably pricey. And with the earlier Find X9 Pro a more fitting flagship for most seeking a still highly capable camera phone, the Ultra's additional talents might be lost on some. Having lived with the handset for an extended week, though, I'm hugely impressed.

Price & Availability

The Oppo Find X9 Ultra's price was revealed at the brand's 21 April launch event. With an on-sale date set for 8 May (you can pre-register interest on Oppo's official store) it will retail at £1,449 – marking it at a similar level to the comparable Xiaomi 17 Ultra.

Do note that, like with other Oppo phones, the Ultra won't launch in the USA. This is a UK, Europe and (likely) Australia launch outside of core Asia markets. Wider pricing remains to be confirmed at the time of writing.

What's New?

• Will get international launch, unlike X8 Ultra predecessor
• Introduces Quintuple Prism Reflection Periscope zoom
• Increases camera resolution of main and 3x to 200MP
• Ups battery capacity from 6100mAh to 7050mAh
• Upgrades to latest Snapdragon chip (Gen 5)
• Tundra Umber / Canyon Orange finishes

As noted, the Find X9 Ultra updates the Find X8 Ultra – but that earlier handset didn't launch internationally. In some respects that makes the newer model feel even more standout, as we've never had anything like it before.

However, it's not a hugely different handset from its predecessor. It's got the same display scale, for starters, with some minor tweaks to allow for a faster refresh rate. The 6.82-inch panel dictates the phone's size, which is similar to before – just a mite thicker.

It's the cameras that get the real changes, though, with the all-new 10x optical zoom using a world-first Quintuple Prism Reflection Periscope Structure. The main sensor and 3x zoom also get enhanced to 200-megapixels apiece, too.

There's more battery capacity, an upgraded chipset bringing it in line with 2026, and new finishes that look more Hasselblad camera-alike – unless you opt for the 'very 2026' Canyon Orange finish instead.

Design & Display

• 6.82-inch ProXDR OLED display
  • 1440 x 3186 resolution (510ppi density)
  • 1-144Hz LTPO variable refresh rate
  • 3600 nits peak brightness
  • Dolby Vision and HDR10+
  • 2160Hz PWM dimming
• Measures: 9.1mm thick; Weight: 236g
• Tundra Umber, Canyon Orange

The Find X9 Ultra sure is a big boy, with that massive 6.82-inch display being a considerable factor as to why. It's a delightfully bright panel with oodles of resolution, though, so no complaints on that front at all.

But the other obvious factor in the X9 Ultra's size comes down to the protruding camera unit on the rear. This is the favoured large circular island style, which appears to have a 'lens ring' style around its edge – but which doesn't rotate or control anything, just to be clear.

That said, given everything crammed into this handset, that it measures 9.1mm thick isn't too shabby by any means. A Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra is 7.9mm by comparison, to give you an idea – and that doesn't have camera sensors even nearly as large as in the Oppo's setup.

As said in my teaser preview a week ahead of this review, the Ultra is designed to look very much like a Hasselblad camera in this particular finish. The Hasselblad logo emblazoned across the rear is part of that, but it's the segmented panels that further this aesthetic.

Not shown or tested are the camera accessories that also exist. The Hasselblad Earth Explorer Kit, for example, is a massive 300mm equivalent teleconverter for the Ultra's 200-megapixel zoom lens, equating to a 13x optical zoom. You can crop into images for even greater magnification.

This further labours my point that the X9 Ultra is really leaning into the camera side of its feature set – to the point that the 'phone' stuff is almost a side note. Not, that is, that this handset has pushed other core features by the wayside.

That brings pros and cons, though, which reflect similar criticism leveraged at the X9 Pro handset. The Snap Key (right side when facing) for Mind Space access to AI-assisted storage features, for example, is only half a success – just as I've said of other brands, such as Nothing, with its similar equivalent.

And while Oppo's ColorOS 16 software runs smoothly – mostly as an echo of Google's Android 16 – there are still some peculiarities in, for example, pop-up floating windows, default sharing options not including major apps, and a few stringent battery-saving controls limiting some apps.

Performance & Battery

• Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite (Gen 5) processor
• 12GB RAM as standard (16GB with 1TB version)
• 7050mAh silicon-carbon battery
  • 100W wired charging
  • 50W wireless

There's powerful hardware wrapped into that body beyond just the mega camera setup, though, with a performance that roughly mirrors the Find X9 Pro – just in a thicker format and without quite as extensive a battery life.

That's because the 7050mAh cell on board here doesn't match the 7500mAh megalith of the Pro version. But that's still 40% greater than what you'll find in a Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra. And it delivers the equivalent time percentage extra, too.

These silicon-carbon battery types that Oppo is using are undoubtedly impressive. That it's paired with 100W fast-charging means top-ups are speedy. There is a batch of battery-protecting features, too, to prevent the cell's untimely rapid demise.

Side note: you will need to acquire your own plug to achieve the maximum 100W 'SuperVOOC' charging speeds, as that's not included in the box. The same goes for wireless: the impressive 50W available without wires will require you to purchase the relevant pad.

So just how long does the Find X9 Ultra last? Oppo reckons it'll provide 30 hours of non-stop Netflix streaming. I've been using the display with brightness up, so wouldn't be achieving quite that, but with normal days of use I'm still getting to bedtime with 20% remaining – and that includes plenty of ad hoc mobile gaming.

This is a flagship handset with flagship power, just as you'd expect of the top-tier Qualcomm chipset. I've not found overheating a problem at any point, even when plugged into a mobile charger whilst playing games.

The only hiccup I've experienced has been choppy Bluetooth when streaming from SoundCloud to my Bowers & Wilkins Px& S3 headphones, when other phones recently tested don't have such 'clicky' playback. Likely an isolated oddity, as streaming from the VLC app (direct from file rather than cloud) has been absolutely fine.

Cameras

• Quad rear cameras (with fifth colour accuracy addition):
• Main (23mm): 200-megapixel, f/1.5 aperture, 1/1.2in size (Sony LYT-901), autofocus (PDAF), optical stabilisation (OIS)
• 3x tele (70mm; periscope zoom): 200MP, f/2.2, 1/1.28in (OmniVision OV52A), PDAF, OIS
• 10x tele (230mm, quintuple prism periscope): 50MP, f/3.5, 1/2.75in (Samsung JNL), OIS
• Wide (14mm): 50MP, f/2.0, 1/1.95in (Sony LYT-600), PDAF
• True Color Camera: 3.2MP, f/2.4
• Single front selfie camera:
  • 21mm: 50MP, f/2.4, 1/2.75in (Samsung JN5), PDAF

Anyway, on to the main event: the cameras. It's safe to say that the Find X9 Ultra's photographic arrangement is unrivalled compared to, well, any other phone you can buy. Okay, so Vivo wants a piece of the action with its X300 Ultra, but you can't feasibly buy that internationally, so it's a moot point.

The Oppo's cameras depend on a combination of large-scale sensors, high-resolution capture, and Hasselblad-backed optical clarity. Plus some other engineering skill, such as delivering a 10x periscope zoom that's far smaller than it otherwise would be – due to the light bouncing five times within the chamber in order to save on space.

It's all very clever stuff and, given the inclusion of a colour sensor, the results are generally well-matched across the board too. The jump to the 3x can present some balance differences, though, and there's a fair bit of 'jumping' in the app when switching between these lenses, so it's not 100% perfect, but is largely well managed.

Image 1 of 5

Above you can see a series of shots from ultra-wide, to the main lens, then 3x, 6x and 10x – as is available by default within the camera app. Consistency is fairly good, but it's more down to the additional details that can be viewed in a scene that most impresses. Check out the little bird ornaments in the window, for example, which you can barely notice in the wide shot.

It's not just far-away subjects where this camera excels, though. Take, for example, a quick snap of my evening dinner and this camera suite's ability to close-up focus – even from the longer zoom lenses. The macro result of my bowl of spaghetti shows up the garlic-salt sprinkles to an enlightening degree.

Image 1 of 5

In a similar breath, when working one day, a tiny red spider walked across my desk. It was about the size of a pencil tip, but the Find X9 Ultra camera was able to get usable snaps using the macro mode and 10x zoom lens – as you can see in the gallery below.

I will say, however, that there's notable processing going on here. There's a brief delay between when a shot has been taken and when all the processing is rendering – which you'll see flash before your eyes. It does a good job at pulling out extra details and sharpening results overall.

Not everything is well resolved all the time, however, with this camera sometimes getting moving subjects confused and delivering blurry results. The focusing isn't always 100% on point when left to its own devices either, as I found when shooting step-by-step zoom shots of Tower Bridge in London.

Image 1 of 7

All in all, however, the Oppo Find X9 Ultra's camera suite is quite unlike any other on the market. For those photographers who want to dig deep and extract the most possible from it, this handset will be a great match – especially if extra zoom potential is your main desire.

For most people, however, I think that the Find X9 Pro delivers plenty enough already. The Ultra was always going to be a niche upgrade, which will find its target audience, but I find the Pro a more well-rounded prospect overall.

Oppo Find X9 Ultra review: Verdict

While Oppo's Find X9 Pro impressed with top-tier cameras, the step-up Find X9 Ultra somehow manages to take that next level.

Sure, it's a niche prospect and will be a step beyond what most people need, but for those who demand zoom like no other, this Oppo has clear appeal. It's almost more camera than it is phone.

That said, it doesn't forego the core feature set. Flagship build, solid battery life, and undeniable power all sit in the Ultra's favour. It's quite large, owing to the camera setup and display, though, which is another factor to keep in mind – as is the inevitable high price.

Overall, the Oppo Find X9 Ultra delivers exactly what it sets out to: an ultimate camera experience. It won't be for everyone, but for photographers who just can't get the zoom quality they want from Samsung, Google, et al, the Oppo is where it's at.

Also Consider

Assuming the Ultra's price is as predicted, the brand's Pro model is still an exceptional camera – but for a cut of the price. It's more of an all-rounder, too, making it an ideal alternative to the obvious Samsung or Google staples.

Otherwise, the other major brand going all-in on cameras is Xiaomi, with the 17 Ultra, a similar comparison to the Oppo Find X9 Ultra. The camera does 'rattle' when the optimisation isn't engaged, though, and it also costs a small fortune. But its imaging abilities are undeniable.