In 2017, Chinese smartphone manufacturers have taken over all but the highest-end smartphone market. They have done this by exploiting almost every niche and making phones that are stellar devices that are also great value. The A57 from one of China’s biggest smartphone brands, Oppo, is the perfect example of these two trends. The A57 is a beautifully made phone with a design clearly inspired by the iPhone 6/7. It’s an all-metal bodied phone with a screen-to-body ratio that’s even better than the Apple devices that inspired it.

The A57 also has some really excellent build quality that makes it lovely to hold in the hand. Unfortunately, the slippery finish and rounded design of the phone means that most of these phones will be used in designer cases for the Oppo A57. The phone has a powerful processor with eight cores, which should keep it running quite smoothly and have enough power for even the most demanding Android games.

It is the camera of the A57

So what is the niche that Oppo is trying to serve with the A57 you ask? The answer is in the camera. Not the 13-megapixel unit on the back of the phone. However, since we’re talking about the A57’s rear camera, let’s give Oppo kudos for the fact that the rear of the phone is completely smooth, with no camera bumps. What this means is that you won’t have to resort to Oppo A57 cases and covers to get a phone that can rest on a table. However, it is the A57’s front-facing camera that stands out from the device. The selfie camera, as Oppo calls it, is an incredible 16-megapixel! That’s right, the A57’s front-facing camera actually has a higher pixel count than the phone’s rear-facing camera.

There’s no question who the A57 is aimed at at the moment, it’s the people who take a lot of selfie photos or record selfie videos of themselves. If you’re one of these people, the A57 is the phone for you. In a market where many manufacturers still put 2-megapixel front-facing cameras on phones that cost more than the A57, the 16-megapixel camera is amazing. For the price you can buy the A57 online, the phone is the perfect pick for selfie addicts.