OPPO readies 'big transition' to premium with camera-focused Reno

MANILA -- OPPO is bringing its Reno line to the Philippines in June, seeking a "big transition" to the premium segment with powerful zoom cameras that rival those on Chinese compatriot Huawei's offerings.

The top-tier Reno, like the P30 Pro, can zoom up to 10 times with minimal loss to image quality due to combined hardware and software capabilities.

The OPPO Find X from 2018, with its motorized selfie and rear cameras, heralded the company's expansion into the territory of Huawei's P and Mate series, Samsung's S and Note lines and Apple's iPhones, said OPPO Philippines vice president for marketing Jane Wan.

"This is where Reno will come to play," Wan told ABS-CBN News. "Reno will be unlike any of the other smartphone lines we’ve released."

The Reno's front-facing camera is concealed in a motorized, shark's fin-shaped module while 3 rear cameras are stacked vertically on its back. It runs Android 9 overlaid with OPPO's ColorOS 6 and is powered with Qualcomm's Snapdragon 855.

BIG TRANSITION

OPPO is releasing models with higher price tags after securing its place in the mass market segment and as Huawei, the world's second largest smartphone-maker, battles US sanctions that threaten to cut its access to Google's Android mobile software.

The Shenzhen-based brand is making a "big transition" to an "overall expert in mobile technology" from selfie-centered phones, Wan said.

Five years since its launch in the Philippines, OPPO accounts for roughly a quarter of the local smartphone market as of end 2019 and its share is "growing continuously," Wan said.

"Filipinos are becoming more and more critical of what smartphones they purchase. It has gone beyond buying a phone for its brand, but buying it because of its value for money. It’s all about which brand can offer more," she said.

A high-quality camera is important for Filipino consumers, she said.

Asked about the US crackdown in Chinese tech giants that has ensnared ZTE and Huawei, Wan said: "We believe that doing our own thing well is what’s most important... More than anything, we are most focused on continuously improving our technology and design innovation capabilities."

OPPO observes "strict provisions on the laws and regulations in every local market we are present in," she said.

The recently released F11 Pro, with a 6.5-inch screen, dual rear cameras, a pop-up selfie camera and 20-watt fast charging, is priced at under P18,990. Wan said sales exceeded the company's target by 20 percent.

OPPO, whose sales agents in green shirts are a common fixture in shopping malls, has 5,000 concept and retail stores in 21 regions. It is looking at expanding partnerships with finance organizations to grow sales, Wan said.

"The smartphone industry competition is cutthroat. There’s always something new coming out and everything happens fast," she said. "To keep up with the competition, we always have to offer something fresh and exciting."

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Flagship monsters: Huawei P30 Pro, Samsung S10+, Apple iPhone XS Max comparison

MANILA — Huawei was the only smartphone vendor in the world to grow shipments in the January to March period according to industry tracker IDC, seizing the number 2 spot from Apple and challenging Samsung for the crown in a saturated market.


With the quad-camera P30 Pro released last April, Shenzhen-based Huawei crossed the P50,000 price mark for the first time (the Mate 20 Pro was just P10 short), entering the territory of the iPhone XS Max and the Samsung Galaxy S10+.

It’s a three-cornered comparison that would not be possible 2 years ago, but Huawei paid its dues: a co-engineering partnership with Leica, Porsche design branding and celebrity endorsements.

We spent several weeks at a time with the P30 Pro, Galaxy S10+ and iPhone XS Max, using them for both work and play. At their highest price points possible, the world's three largest smartphone makers offer the best specs available.

DESIGN SIGNATURES

Except for the iPhone XS Max, the metal and glass slabs represent a refinement of a design signature that was at least 2 years in the making.

The gradient paint job on the back of the P30 Pro (and P30) are more eye-catching than ever. The "breathing crystal" variant shifts from light blue to purple to gold. The "amber sunrise" color, not available locally, shifts from red to the orange tint on Hermes products.

The effect is less pronounced on the Galaxy S10 line. The "prism white" gives the phone a pearl-like sheen while the "prism green" makes the handset look almost like a jewel.

The iPhone XS Max, unashamedly, is a blown up version of the iPhone X from 2017. The iPhone XS is a twin of the iPhone X, except for upgraded internals. Only the gold option makes the XS distinct from the X. Those who want colors outside gold, silver and space gray should look to the iPhone XR.

The iPhone XS Max is the heaviest at 200 grams, which will hurt a bit if it falls to your face when you use it lying down in bed.

Stacked side-by-side, the trio shows the evolution of the notch, from the wide cutout on the iPhone XS Max, to the dewdrop on the P30 Pro to the oval cutout on the S10+. All screens are around 6.5 inches big, making them ideal for media consumption.

Apple kept the display flat while Samsung and Huawei went for curved sides, which is more pronounced on the P30 Pro. Samsung has the sharpest brightest screen. It's so good at making display panels that it supplies panels to Apple.

It will be unfair to compare the P30 Pro's Full HD screen to the higher resolution QHD panel on the S10+ and XS Max. The P30 Pro's screen doesn't feel like a compromise unless you place it side by side with a QHD screen. A Full HD screen also saves battery.

LENS BATTLE

The P30 Pro packs the most camera hardware, with 4 rear sensors: a 40-megapixel wide angle lens with optical image stabilization, a 20MP ultra-wide lens, an 8MP telephoto and a time of flight or TOF depth sensor.


The 10x optical zoom and 50x digital zoom on the P30 Pro is unmatched, powered by the square-shaped periscope lens on the camera array. A recent software update now enables "Dual View," allowing users to take split-screen videos using the primary and zoom lens at the same time.

The S10+ has 3 cameras: a 12MP wide with OIS, a 12MP telephoto with OIS and a 16MP ultrawide. It has 2 front-facing cameras for wide-angle selfies, compared to a single lens on the front of the P30 pro.

Still, the S10+ takes bright and clear photos. Colors pop without looking too saturated, especially when taking food photos. Indoor and outdoor shots capture a great amount of detail especially with good lighting.

Side-by-side, the P30 Pro takes cooler photos with sharper contrats while the S10+ leans towards warmer tones.

The iPhone XS Max has 2 12MP lenses at the back, one wide and one telephoto. The twin cameras on the front allow Apple's excellent Face ID system to unlock the device.

Spoiled on the wide-angle shooter on the P30 Pro and the S10+, the iPhone XS Max's camera feels like a compromise when shooting panoramic views. Nonetheless, it takes clear, vivid pictures. It also lacks the excellent night mode of the P30 Pro.

TOP PERFORMERS

The 3 phones come with the best processors available on their respective platforms. Huawei and Apple packed their own chips, the AI-powered Kirin 980 on the P30 Pro and the A12 Bionic on the XS Max.

The S10+ is powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 or Samsung's own Exynos 980 depending on the market. All phones are blazing fast out of the box, but we have yet to see how these hold up with prolonged usage.

Huawei claims the AI smarts on the Kirin 980 will help the P30 Pro stay fast. Apple phones, on the other hand, have a reputation for slowing down when upgraded to the newest version of iOS.

Huawei's EMUI 9 overlay on top of Android 9 Pie is the most polished version yet, but still has its quirks. It's gesture-based navigation is among the most fluid for Android. Swiping from the center to return to the home screen and from either side to go back is intuitive.

On the S10+ the bottom of the screen can be swiped up from 3 areas, mimicking the layout of its "back-home-recent" on-screen buttons.

Apple's gesture navigation is the most fluid and the most intuitive.

Both the P30 Pro and the S10+ have in-display fingerprint sensors. We found the Huawei version faster than Samsung's. Face ID on XS Max is blazing fast. If you want face unlock on Android, the Mate 20 Pro is a good option.

The P30 Pro is the clear battery champion. For power users, this will matter more than its excellent camera set. The 4,200 mAh cell charges quickly at 40 watts and can reverse-charge other Qi-compatible devices.

The S10+ with 4,100 mAh and the XS Max with 3,174 mAh can last from early morning to late evening on a single charge, but will need a quick top up if you plan to use it all night. The P30 Pro doesn't come with battery anxiety. It will depend, of course, on how you use your phone.


WHICH ONE IS FOR YOU

Those who want a powerful camera and the best battery life on a flagship phone, wrapped in an eye-catching glass shell will not be disappointed with the P30 Pro. It's also the least expensive of the trio.

Those who use their phones to consume media will feel right at home with the S10+. It's the sexiest Galaxy yet, with a reliable battery and triple cameras, a first for Samsung.

Those who prefer the iOS ecosystem will be very happy with the iPhone XS Max. People stick to iPhones because they just work and they do so easily and beautifully. It's fast and intuitive with great cameras, just don't challenge the P30 Pro or the S10+ to a shootout. Or wait for the next iPhones in September.

source: news.abs-cbn.com

Huawei debuts P30 series smartphones, shoots for the moon

PARIS -- Huawei launched its P30 series smartphone series here Tuesday, seeking to lure an increasingly saturated market away from Samsung and Apple with rear cameras that can shoot the moon better than its rivals.

The top-end P30 Pro has four Leica-engineered rear cameras with up to 50 times digital zoom, allowing users to capture more detailed images of stars and heavenly bodies. The regular P30 can zoom digitally up to 30 times.

"The Galaxy phone cannot see a Galaxy," Huawei Consumer Business Group CEO Richard Yu said in a jab at Samsung's Galaxy phones, while showing the audience a photo of a star cluster.

The P30 series was unveiled in the French capital just hours after Apple CEO Tim Cook unveiled news and TV services and a credit card that will tie consumers deeper into the iOS ecosystem.

Shenzhen-based Huawei's newest flagships also came a month after Samsung launched the S10, S10+ and S10e, which saw the South Korean giant equip the S line for the first time with triple rear cameras (except for the S10e, which has two) and hole-shaped cutouts on the screen for the front-facing camera.

Huawei and Samsung, the world's number two and number one smartphone vendor in terms of sales, respectively, both unveiled handsets with folding displays and 5G capabilities last February, selling new features to a growing number of customers who are holding on to their phones longer than a year or two. 

The quad cameras on the P30 Pro matches the four lenses on the Galaxy S10 5G and improves upon the triple lenses on Huawei's own P20 Pro and Mate 20 Pro from 2018. Apple stuck with dual lenses on the iPhone Xs and Xs Max while Google kept it at just one lens for the Pixel 3 and 3XL.

Huawei consumer business group CEO Richard Yu posted a photo of the moon on his Weibo account weeks before Tuesday's launch, with the blurred watermark hinting at the P30 series.

It's the fourth year of Huawei’s partnership with German camera-maker Leica that started with 2016's P9 series. For 2018's Mate 20 series, Huawei swapped the monochrome lens for a wide angle sensor. 

Samsung also included a wide angle lens for the S10 and S10+ on top of the telephoto and standard lens.

Huawei, also the world biggest supplier of telecommunications equipment, is also unveiling new consumer products as it fights allegations of cyber espionage from the US.

Its founder, Ren Zhengfei, has denied that its equipment serve as a backdoor for Beijing. He also described the arrest of his daughter, Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou as politically motivated. 

Meng was arrested in Canada on the request of Washington, who accused of violating sanctions against Iran. 

source: news.abs-cbn.com