OPPO enters the foldables market with the FOLD N, launched alongside their new smartglasses, Air Glass

We’ve seen several manufacturers release foldable phones in recent years and just last year we got an exclusive look at a rollable smartphone from OPPO.  Rather than the rollable, OPPO’s new form factor will be the foldable and today they have showed it off to the world at their INNO Day in China.

OPPO Find N

The OPPO Find Z, OPPO’s first foldable flagship smartphone is the result of four years of research and development and follows on from six generations of prototypes.  Their new foldable form factor offers a novel approach to foldables in the size, hinge design, aspect ratios and more.

The new form factor offers a fully functioning compact smartphone that unfolds to “an intuitive and immersive landscape display”.  The OPPO Find N differs from other foldable displays this big in that it uses a landscape ratio for the inner display allow for a seamless change from the 5.49-inch outer display to the 7.1-inch inner display.  The inner display ratio makes it easier to switch to a quick viewing of videos, games or books without having to rotate the device.

The new hinge design promises to work seamlessly by widening the angle of the fold of the display resulting in an up to 80% less noticeable crease when compared to other foldable devices.  The hinge design also allows the device to freely stand when folded at any angle between 50 and 120 degrees.  OPPO has of course developed software to take advantage of this capability including the ability to sit the phone on one side and act as its own trips and record motionless 4K video at the same time.

The new display is covered with a 0.03mm layer of flexion UTG (ultra-thin glass) and the display itself can be folded over 200,000 times and not miss a beat — that’s 100 times a day for 5.5 years.  The display is also a high quality LTPO display capable of switching up the refresh ate anywhere from 1 to 120Hz based on what is displayed on-screen.

OPPO hasn’t missed on the camera either with a “flagship-level triple-camera setup” which includes a 50MP main sensor, a 16MP ultra-wide lens and a 13MP telephoto lens.   The Find N also includes selfie cameras on the inside and the outside display — of course, using the phone unfolded but looking at the rear of it you can use the triple camera to take a selfie while using the view finder on the outer display.

Notable specs also include a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 chipset, up to 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.  The 4,500mAh battery is charged using either the 33W SuperVOOC flash charge or the 15W AirVOOC wireless charging.  There is also support for 10W reverse wireless charging.

At this stage there is no word on if or when this will land in Australia but it will be available in China from December 23 this year.

OPPO Air Glass

Another product introduced by OPPO at their INNO Day event is their AR glasses — Air Glass.  Equipped with OPPO’s self-developed Spark Micro Projector, cutting-edge Micro LED, and a diffraction optical waveguide display it offers support for four different user interactions including touch, voice, head movement and hand motion.

Weighing just 30 grams OPPO Air Glass can be worn much like a pair of regular glasses with an eye-catching design offering a sleek, stylish look.  Using OPPO’s Micro Projector advanced Micro LED, and custom waveguide technology, OPPO Air Glass delivers “bright and sharp content whether worn indoor or outdoor, guaranteeing a superior AR experience at all times.”

The OPPO Air Glass do not include a camera thus offering greater privacy than some other smart glasses.  At this stage they can only be operated using the Smart Glass app on OPPO Watch 2 and an OPPO smartphone with ColorOS 11 and above.

OPPO Air Glass is due to launch in Q1 of next year, once again in mainland China only and will be available in black and white colours.  It is unlikely we will see these in Australia but we can only hope they, or their successor arrive Downunder sometime soon.