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Bend it like OPPO: Find N2 Flip foldable phone now available in SA
OPPO's battery life and hinge transitions outlast even some of the most famous celebrity marriages, flipping expectations on their head.
OPPO Find N2 Flip on display at the launch. Photo: Cheryl Kahla
Smartphone manufacturer OPPO launched its latest flagship phone and the brand’s first foldable in South Africa – the OPPO Find N2 Flip
OPPO also announced its collaboration with local fashion designer Rich Mnisi, who designed exclusive accessories to be sold alongside the Find N2 Flip to select customers.
Oppo’s Find N2 Flip launch
The event was held at the beautiful Cradle Moon Lodge in Mulderdrift, where Mnisi and acclaimed technology journalist Nafisa Akabor discussed the design elements and usability of the device.
Mnisi said he draws inspiration from nostalgia.
From a design perspective, the Find N2 Flip makes his life just so much easier.
Ease of use, friendship saved
Research and communication within his team is a breeze, and he jokes about how the Find N2 Flip’s larger front screen could save his relationship with a friend.
“This one time, Bradley was getting the angle wrong the whole time [during a photoshoot]. We fought for two days.”
He said it’s much easier to get the angle right with the Find N2 Flip – thanks to the larger screen and superior hinge.
“I think it will save friendships.”
WATCH: Unfolding that Flip
Larger-than-life screen
The Find N2 Flip currently has the largest cover screen on the market, which makes handling everyday tasks such as responding to emails and messages so much smoother.
In fact, it’s 70% larger than the competition and is large enough to easily place widgets or take selfies with the Find N2 Flip’s 50PM front-facing camera.
Yes, you read that right.
Gone are the days of cursing the inferior selfie camera (the lower-specced front-facing camera). You can now take selfies with the main camera.
However, the selfie camera is not to be underestimated either.
Flip and fold again and again and…
The durable folding mechanism – Flexion Hinge – has been tested and verified by TÜV SÜD to withstand more than 400 000 repetitions.
Speaking of, the fold crease is practically invisible, and the hinge can stay in any position between 45 and 100 degrees.
This makes it perfect for taking photos without needing a tripod, or for hands-free video calling and conferencing.
The Oppo Find N2 Flip is a fierce new contender to Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 4.
Find N2 Flip packs power
Both the Find N2 Flip and Galaxy Z Flip 4 are roughly the same size but the Find N2 Flip runs on a MediaTek Dimensity 9000+ chipset while the Galaxy Z Flip 4 is equipped with the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8.
Both chipsets are 8-core processors and score the same when it comes to CPU (central processing unit) performance and gaming capabilities.
WATCH: A flippin’ awesome phone
But, and there’s always a but…
The Dimensity 9000 is way more battery efficient than the Snapdragon, and it also has a larger cache size (across L1, L2 and L3).
In addition, it supports approximately 17% higher memory bandwidth.
End-user focused
But despite OPPO’s dominance in the industry, outperforming competitors is not the brand’s goal.
I spoke to OPPO’s head of operations, Liam Faurie, after the event, and he said there are two types of companies:
- The type that builds its existence on competitorship, and
- The kind that enriches their users’ life
Companies in the second group have no interest in what other manufacturers are up to; they will always compare their products to their own, not the competitors.
“That’s the company we want to be; that’s the type of culture OPPO brings.”
He said companies who fight each other neglect their customers, and that’s why OPPO will continue to be user-led.
“Everything we do is determined by our end user, and how to satisfy our end users’ needs. We don’t have a market share target because we are only in a race with our end user.”
Local sustainability for South Africa
Part of building this relationship with users and South Africans includes partnerships with local artists, celebrities, sports stars, etc.
“When we launched 2.5 years ago, we said we wanted to build a local sustainable company for South Africans. That’s the mission we set out.
“We have created jobs for more than 500 South Africans. We’re a local company, locally registered, that contributes to enriching the lives of our team and the lives of our end users.
“Everything we do will continually focus on South Africans, and we know what South Africans love; they love their football and they love their springboks.
Faurie said while they will continue aligning with sports brands, he is also excited about partnership within the fashion industry “because that speaks to different users.”
Quality over market share
Faurie said the focus is also on “quality, quality, quality, it’s of the utmost importance for me.”
This includes, to give just one example, OPPO’s battery health engine which supports 1 600 recharge cycles, with 80% battery health.
That means your phone’s battery will last longer than four years, and this in a time when most manufacturers design phones to be replaced every two years.
Faurie adds: “As a salesman, it hurts me to say this, it really does because our users are using their phones for longer”.
Cheryl: “But you have happy users.”
Faurie: “Correct. I would much rather have happy users than turning users and constantly turning phones.”
Faurie said while OPPO’s goal is to expand its user base in South Africa, it’s more important to build a strong and sustainable company.
“I am one for the environment, so it’s better for me to see users using their phones a little bit longer.”
The Find N2 Flip is available from Vodacom, MTN, Telkom and CellC in either black or purple from R1 199 per month. The recommended cash retail price is R29 999.
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