SMARTPHONE MARKET – BUT THIS Oppotunity knocks
THERE’S NOT MUCH TO CHALLENGE APPLE AND SAMSUNG IN THE CHINESE OFFERING GIVES IT A REAL GO
THESE days it’s hard for anyone to get a word in edgeways in the mobile market – Samsung and Apple have more or less got it all wrapped up.
How do you compete with what these two tech titans offer? Samsung’s got the name in the Android space, and Apple continues to make the best smartphones you can buy.
If you want a piece of the pie you have to be better or cheaper than the big two at the very least. Preferably both.
Enter Oppo, then – the Chinese mega-brand that recently released a new flagship line-up of smartphones that we’ve been testing.
The Find X3 5G range features three phones – a cheap option in the Lite, and mid-range effort called the Neo, and a high end phone called the Pro.
We’ve had our hands on the devices at the top and bottom end of the line-up, and like what we see.
First the Lite – the cheapest in the range, it’ll set you back less than £400 if you buy it outright.
And it is an entirely usable and useful device for that money. The tech is not quite cutting-edge, but more than capable of getting the job done.
It looks good, too – coming in three pleasing finishes (blue, black, and silver) and feels good in the hand.
It’s just fast enough, and the cameras (four on the back, including a 64MP main unit; plus a 32 MP front-facing unit) are just good enough to produce acceptable results. The whole thing feels, for the price, competent.
However, two stand-out features elevate things – firstly, a great bright and vibrant screen with a fast refresh rate to keep things smooth, and the real eyebrow-raiser – a feature this phone shares with its big
brother the Pro – it’ll recharge to 100% in just 30 minutes.
The Pro obviously sports high-end features above and beyond that, and as a result also sports a high-end price – you’ll be paying more than £1,000 to buy unlocked – and obviously, you can get an iPhone 12 or a Samsung Galaxy S21 for less than that.
The Pro has a lot going for it,
from its bright and crisp 6.7in OLED screen with a super-fast 120 Ghz refresh rate, to its premium feel in the hand. The glass back is moulded around the camera bump, which makes for a more pleasing look than other devices’ protrusions.
Two big pluses are the speed of charging, and the fact the underscreen fingerprint sensor matches its rivals for speed and accuracy.
The camera unit on the back is great, differing slightly from those found on other devices – there’s a lack of really long zoom you’d find elsewhere (it tops out at x5 with a digitally-enhanced 10x option), but there’s a 2MP ‘microlens’ that can get very close in on subjects, picking out detail you can’t see with the naked eye.
Performance is excellent – there’s the very fastest Android chip you can get right now in the the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888.
Overall it’s a great phone – I’m not sure it’ll take a bite out of Apple or a slice of Samsung, but it’s got as good a chance as any.
Its little brother the Lite is better value for money, doing all most people will need a phone at a knock-down price.
The Oppo Find 3X Lite costs £379 unlocked or from £24 per month from Vodafone (£9 upfront cost) on a 36-month Phone Plan with a 24-month 2GB Airtime Plan
The Pro costs £1,099 unlocked, or from £35 per month from Vodafone, (£29 upfront cost) on the same plans. Find out more at oppo.com and vodafone.co.uk