Oppo Find X3: Experts give their opinion
Oppo is launching a trio of Find X3 series phones in the UK from April, all of which are 5G-ready and house cutting-edge cameras, the Chinese firm said.
The top-of-the-range Pro includes a quad-camera system and screen which Oppo says is industry-leading because it allows the phone to capture and then display up to one billion colours in a single image – 10 times more than the human eye can detect.
The £1,099 Pro is designed to take on the likes of Apple’s iPhone 12 and Samsung’s Galaxy S21 range, while the Neo and Lite will be aimed at the competitive mid-tier market, starting at £699 and £379 respectively.
Ben Wood, Chief Analyst, CCS Insight:
“Oppo has been making good progress in recent quarters overtaking Huawei to become the fourth biggest phone maker behind Apple, Samsung and Xiaomi. The Find X3 Pro, and the other products coming from Oppo, signal its intent to keep building global market share, grabbing share vacated by Huawei and taking the fight to rivals. Its biggest headache remains Xiaomi, which seems happy to sacrifice margins for market share gains. Ultimately it might come down to how much Oppo and parent company BBK are prepared to invest to close the gap with Xiaomi in a desire to grab the top three spot.”
“The Find X3 Pro comes at a time when there is a slew of similar launches from a variety of Android phone manufacturers offering flagship devices anchored around Qualcomm’s latest Snapdragon 888 processor and market-leading camera specs. The challenge for Oppo is how to stand out from the crowd when other brands such as Xiaomi and OnePlus are consistently delivering near identical products. It rapidly becomes a high stakes battle around who is prepared to spend the most marketing money and sacrifice the most margin to grab consumers’ attention.”
“The Find X3 Pro ticks all the boxes on specs, with a best-in-class processor, impressive screen, top-end camera, 5G support, fast charging and more. The challenge is that we expect every flagship smartphone announced in the first half of 2021 to tick these boxes too. This makes differentiation on specs alone almost impossible. Oppo will need to absolutely nail its marketing and go-to-market strategy to get an edge over rivals.”
“With component shortages biting, another challenge for Oppo and others will be ramping up enough volume while dealing with escalating costs. This will put even more pressure on Chinese phone makers locked in fierce battles with rivals which has led to cut-throat pricing and margin erosion.”
Ru Bhikha, mobiles expert at Uswitch.com, commented:
“With the ongoing sanctions on Huawei, Oppo is one of a host of rivals jostling for the much coveted third spot in the UK handset market.
“The Chinese manufacturer is hoping the launch of three Find X3 devices, which offer high-end performance at prices that don’t break the bank, will win the hearts of consumers.
“The Pro, Neo and Lite are united by excellent quad-cameras and super-bright AMOLED screens.
“The Pro’s 6.7-inch display outshines the iPhone 12 Pro Max by offering a 120Hz refresh rate, and its 32MP selfie snapper smashes the Apple handset’s 12MP front-facing camera.
“The periscope lens in the top-of-the-range Pro is accompanied by a 5x hybrid and 20x digital zoom, with the camera array housed in a sleek glass infinity design.
“Oppo faces stiff competition from other Asian tech giants like Xiaomi, OnePlus and Sony in its bid to become a household name in the UK, but handsets like the Find X3 Pro are a big step in the right direction.”
