Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Oppo reveals the real reason it thinks foldables are being held back

Andy Boxall
By

Oppo has spoken out about what it feels must change before more folding smartphones can be widely launched, and it’s less to do with the hardware and more to do with the software. The comments came from Oppo’s Vice President of Overseas Sales and Service, Billy Zhang, during a roundtable meeting about the company’s recent performance and news of a greater push into the European market.

The Oppo Find N, the company’s first folding smartphone, was released at the end of 2021 and remains only available in China. It has seen considerable success, though, propelling the company to third in overall global foldable shipments for the first half of 2022, according to data it presented during the meeting. The Find N is great and has the potential to challenge Samsung’s dominant Galaxy Z Fold 4, due to its different size and impressive hardware.

Related Videos
Open Oppo Find N held in hand.
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

As Oppo’s planning a big push into Europe, will the Find N, or a successor to it, be made available?

Related

In response to Digital Trends’ question, Zhang said:

“When evaluating whether to bring a foldable to the global market, it has to do with overall thinking, as it’s not just about hardware,” Zhang explained. “Hardware-wise, we need to think about how to reduce the crease visibility or to improve the Flex Mode. From a software perspective, we need to think about how we can improve compatibility with third-party apps.”

Android 12L and apps

Zhang continued to add that he believes third-party developers need to improve the overall app ecosystem for foldables, and by doing so, this would really help the success of the Find N overseas. Currently, the Find N does not include Google Mobile Services (GMS), as it’s designed only for China. Adding GMS would be essential if the Find N is to see wide success internationally.

If you want a folding smartphone with GMS, you’re pretty much limited to the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 or Galaxy Z Flip 4 at the moment, the former of which uses Google’s Android 12L software specifically designed for large-screen devices. It’s also no secret Google has worked closely with Samsung to make more apps work on the unusual screens, and that it has done so since the launch of the original Galaxy Fold. It seems outside of this, third-party app developers have been slow to create or update apps to make them suitable for foldable devices.

4 apps running on the Galaxy Z Fold 4's screen.
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

It’s understandable in a way, as foldables represent a small section of the market, so committing to building apps made for the new format may not be the best use of time for many developers. However, this may be hindering the development and launch of new devices by companies that manage multiple operating systems made for different regions, depending on how you interpret Zhang’s words. Oppo continues to support the Find N itself, though, and the phone will be one of the first with ColorOS 13, based on Android 13.

Find N Fold and Find N Flip

Does that mean Oppo’s holding back on making a new folding smartphone? Not according to Zhang, who also shared what the company plans to improve on an as-yet unofficial Find N’s successor.

“Even though we have had success with the Find N, there is always room for improvement,” Zhang said. “For the next generation, we want to continue to improve the crease invisibility, develop better interactions, and to improve the battery life of the foldable. Please stay tuned for more progress.”

Opening the Oppo Find N.
Andy Boxall/Digital Trends

While there’s nothing official about the next Oppo folding phone, rumors have gathered over the last months. It’s possible the company plans to launch two new models, potentially called the Find N Fold and the Find N Flip, mirroring Samsung’s approach to the market with two different types of devices. Although no dates are confirmed, they may arrive before the end of the year. However, unless the software situation dramatically changes soon, it appears China may be the only place to buy them.

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Oppo’s Find N is great, but I still like the Galaxy Z Fold 3
Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Oppo Find N open from the back.

Samsung largely pioneered the foldable smartphone segment with the launch of the first Galaxy Fold device in 2019. While it wasn't the best in terms of usability, it was certainly one of a kind, and with the latest Galaxy Z Fold 3, subsequent refinements have almost perfected the device. Fast-forward to 2022, and we have clamshell foldables and smartphone-tablet hybrids, as well as up to 17-inch laptops displays that can bend in half and were showcased during CES 2022.

However, that concept of having a tablet in your pocket folded into a smartphone size has much or less remained the same. That is, until the Oppo Find N debuted earlier this year, and we got our hands on it. I have used the Oppo foldable for about a week alongside the Galaxy Z Fold 3, mostly for web and media consumption.

Read more
The Galaxy Z Fold 3 isn’t better than the Oppo Find N, and that’s a good thing
Galaxy Z Fold 3 and Oppo Find N closed in hand.

If the Oppo Find N is one of the most important smartphones released this year, due to its chance to truly challenge Samsung’s current dominance in folding phones, how does it really compare with the Galaxy Z Fold 3 when you use them each day?

Since the Oppo Find N arrived last week, I’ve been using it alongside the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3, initially expecting to come up with a solid answer about which one is the best at being a folding smartphone. However, as time passed, I found neither of them is better than the other, and then realized this was the best possible outcome. Here’s why.
The differences
Before we get into how the two phones work alongside each other, we need to talk about the differences. Although both the Oppo Find N and the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3 operate in basically the same way, there are some differences that change the way you use both phones.

Read more
Why the Oppo Find N is one of the most important phones of 2021
Open Oppo Find N held in hand.

Oppo has dipped its toe into the world of folding smartphones with the Find N. Despite several manufacturers making folding smartphones at the moment, most will associate the technology with Samsung, due to its success with the Galaxy Fold and Galaxy Flip, but what Oppo has done is come up with a phone that despite looking very similar, is actually different in several key ways.

Due to this -- and a lot more -- what you’re looking at is one of the most important phone releases of the year, and it has given me hope for the future of this still young technology.
What’s different?
You'd be forgiven for thinking the Oppo Find N is basically the same as the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 3. After all, it follows the same basic recipe: It has a small outer screen, and then the whole device opens up like a book to reveal a much larger screen.

Read more