From vision to action
How consumers inspire OPPO’s smartphone innovations
Most consumer technology brands have a decidedly top-down approach – they bring a device to the market, and customers decide on its merits with their wallets.
OPPO has taken a different path, pursuing a research-driven development process that is proving key to winning the hearts of consumers. Earlier this year, OPPO became the best-selling smartphone brand in China for the first time ever, capturing 21 per cent of market share, according to Counterpoint Research. Tarek Zaki, senior product manager for the Middle East and Africa for OPPO, says the company follows a glocalisation strategy, and its main route to developing products is market research at the local level across international markets.
“From this research, we identify major customer pain points such as slippery devices – especially in the hot conditions we live in, fingerprint smudges or annoying scratches on the surface. This customer feedback is injected into the design process,” says Zaki. Customers also struggle with taking photos and videos in either low light or very bright conditions. The Reno5 Pro 5G comes with the Sony IMX766 sensor which OPPO co-developed with Sony. “The 50-megapixel sensor is one of the biggest sensors available today on a smartphone. By allowing more light inside, the sensor delivers amazing photo and video quality even in low light conditions,” Zaki says.
But perhaps the biggest grievance from smartphone users is battery life, or the lack of it thereof.
The Reno5 Pro 5G comes with OPPO’s 65W SuperVOOC 2.0 fast charging technology, adding an extra kick to an already powerful 4500mAh battery. This safe and fast-charging technology takes your phone from 0 to 100 per cent in just 35 minutes. “Five minutes of charging gives the equivalent of four hours of video playback. This alleviates low battery anxiety as users can simply charge their phones back rapidly when out of power,” Zaki says.
In control
Serious gamers don’t appreciate being interrupted mid-game because a phone call or a text came through.
“Gamer Mode in the Reno5 Pro 5G allows users to control what notifications are allowed through when playing games, or they can alternatively opt for the bullet message feature, which floats texts harmlessly on top of the screen while the game continues uninterrupted underneath”, Zaki explains. Adding to the gaming bona-fides of the Reno5 series, PUBG Mobile’s publisher, Tencent Games, has named both the Reno5 Pro 5G and Reno5 5G smartphones as the official designated smartphones of 2021 edition of the MEA tournament for their immersive and fluid gaming experience.
Customisation
On top of the latest Android 11 platform, OPPO has engineered ColorOS 11.1 which adds new customisation options for a differentiated user experience. “Users can choose a design of their choice for the Always-On display, so their screen does not look like every other one on the table,” says Zaki.
ColorOS 11.1 also introduces DropFlex which adds floating windows for multitaskers. “For example, you could be having a zoom call on the mini window while replying to an email at the same time,” Zaki adds.
“Ultimately, we want to keep our consumers happy by delivering the latest and greatest of our innovations and technology,” Zaki concludes.