Initial review verdict: OPPO has officially joined in the foldable race with the Find N which will hopefully make its way to the Philippines. The brand’s take on the foldable form factor is incredibly refined, though its success largely dictates how much it’ll be on launch.

Pros

• Incredibly refined for a first-gen foldable
• Good software and hardware integration
• The crease is almost non-existent

Cons

• A little smaller than the competition
• No IP rating
• It will likely be expensive

OPPO Find N Quick Review Philippines Specs:

• Snapdragon 888 processor
• 8GB/12GB LPDDR5 RAM
• 256GB/512GB UFS 3.1 storage
• 7.1-inch LTPO AMOLED foldable inner display, 120hz refresh rate, 1792×1920 resolution
• 5.45-inch AMOLED outer display, 1972×988 resolution
• 50-megapixel f/1.8 Sony IMX766 main camera with Omni-Directional PDAF and OIS, 16-megapixel f/2.2 Sony IMX481 ultra-wide-angle camera, 13-megapixel f/2.4 telephoto camera
• 32-megapixel f/2.4 IMX 615 selfie camera (inner display)
• 32-megapixel f/2.4 IMX 615 selfie camera (outer display)
• 3G, 4G, 5G
• WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.2, NFC, side-mounted fingerprint scanner
• Stereo speakers, Dolby Atmos
• 4500mAh battery
• 33w wired charging, 15w wireless charging, 10w reverse charging
• Android 11, ColorOS 12

The future is foldable. While many people still think that foldable smartphones are just overblown gimmicks, the form factor is here to stay. OPPO is launching their own stab at the foldable form factor with the Find N which will more than likely hit the Philippines when it’s eventually launched. The OPPO Find N is a remarkably polished phone for a first-gen offering as we found in our quick review in the Philippines, and will give rival Samsung serious competition when it makes its way to global markets.

Design

Comparisons with Samsung’s Galaxy Z Fold3 are inevitable when you’re talking about the OPPO Find N, especially since the Chinese brand’s approach to their foldable is similar. You have an external display on the outside, and a bigger display on the inside when you open the phone’s hinge.

The OPPO Find N is smaller than the Galaxy Z Fold3 though, and because of that the cover display only measures 5.49-inches big. We’ll get to the display in more detail later. While the smaller overall size of the Find N on paper seems like a downgrade compared to say, the Galaxy Z Fold 3, that’s not the case. The smaller size actually works in the favor of the Find N, as it’s actually more manageable to use, and feels a lot like the excellent ASUS ZenFone 8 in terms of ergonomics.

Like the Galaxy Z Fold3, the Find N uses a hinge to open up its inner display. The Flexion Hinge uses 136 components according to OPPO and has machined tolerances up to 0.01. The result is an extremely smooth opening action.

The hinge design goes beyond smooth folding actuation. OPPO used a unique, water-drop hinge design that widens the angle of the fold in the display, which directly affects how noticeable the crease is in the foldable display inside. The theory is sound–folding a paper by its side produces a bigger, more noticeable crease rather than gently rolling it, and the same concept applies here. The hinge design is gentler on the internal display, which results in a less noticeable crease. T

ake note that there still is a crease when the display is fully deployed, but it’s not as obvious as the one in say, the Galaxy Z Fold 3.

The phone, when folded, is almost the same thickness as the Galaxy Z Fold 3 (15.9mm VS 16mm). Ergonomics using the phone is the same–it’s a little chunky in the pocket and when used unfolded, but it’s not unmanageable.

The phone’s triple camera module is located on the rear, and the back of the phone uses Corning’s Gorilla Glass Victus to protect the finish of its three colorways: Purple, Black, and White. The phone uses an embedded fingerprint scanner on the frame of the phone, while the bottom houses a USB Type-C port.

One thing that the Find N doesn’t have is IP protection–because of OPPO’s hinge design, the brand couldn’t completely seal the phone enough to achieve an IP rating, so it’s vulnerable to water ingress. That’s a design trade-off: you get a better, almost creaseless display but a more fragile phone overall, as far as water ingress is concerned.

Display

The allure of a foldable phone is firmly rooted in how good its display is, and the Find N’s panels (both inside and outside) look very good. Let’s start with the external screen: the outer display is a 5.49-inch AMOLED panel that has a resolution of 1972 x 988, as well as a 2.5D curved Gorilla Glass Victus laid on top of it.

The inner display is 7.1-inches big, uses a special, flexible AMOLED LTPO display that’s paired with a layer of Flexion UTG.

The internal panel has a 120Hz refresh rate and paired with LTPO technology, allows for dynamic refresh rates depending on what you’re looking at. Unlike Samsung’s top-end foldable though, the Find N uses a traditional halo cut-out notch on the internal display, tucked in the upper-left portion of the device. That’s a weird move, considering OPPO was one of the first companies to demo an under-display snapper for their phones.

That notch aside, the displays look every bit as good as you’d expect from a top-end foldable from a brand like OPPO, thanks to its incredibly vibrant colors, deep blacks, and a peak brightness of 1,000 nits.

The only unknown here is the phone’s overall durability–while OPPO promises a lifespan of 200,000 folds at room temperature for the display, a number that the brand proudly proclaims as been verified by the TUV, we still don’t know just how tough the display will be when subjected to daily abuse.

Cameras

OPPO provides the Find N with a good camera package, but just like Samsung, they’re leaving their best snappers for their traditional, top-end flagships. The Find N comes with a 50-megapixel main camera that has an f/1.8 aperture and Sony IMX766 sensor, along with Omni-directional PDAF and OIS. A 16-megapixel IMX481 camera that has an f/2.2 aperture provides the wide-angle duties, while a third camera, a 13-megapixel f/2.2 Samsung S5K3M5 52mm telephoto lens is used for zoom shots. Both selfie cameras use 32-megapixel f/2.4 Sony IMX615 sensors.

We did not have time to take sample photos since our review unit was delivered late – we’ll update this section once we get images to share.

Performance, software, battery

It’s no surprise that OPPO’s new flagship comes with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor, and while we would have loved it if the phone came with Snapdragon 8 Gen 1, the realities of the silicon shortage and the new nature of the processor mean you’ll have to deal with the older generation of flagship chipset.

The processor is paired with either 8GB or 12GB of LPDDR5 RAM, and either 256GB or 512GB of UFS 3.1 storage–pretty standard fare as far as top-end internals go.

What’s really important in a phone like this is how the UI and software adapt and change to the fluid form factor. It’s a lesson that Samsung took to heart after the release of their first foldable, and it seems that OPPO was also taking a lot of notes.

OPPO has its own take on Flex Mode, Samsung’s name for the unique, form-following features of their UI. Dubbed FlexForm, the screen automatically adjusts depending on whether the phone is half-open, fully open, or closed.

While there are selfie cameras on both the external and internal displays, the software of the phone is set up that you can utilize the external display to help you take selfies, allowing you to tap into the 50-megapixel sensor instead of the 32-megapixel one.

Flexform also allows for easier multitasking with the bigger display, and content that you’re viewing on the external display is seamlessly transported to the internal one when you open it.

Hardware and software integration is a part of the smartphone equation that’s usually not addressed with new form factors like the Find N, but we’re happy to see that OPPO has done their homework with their new foldable.

As far as battery goes, the Find N’s 4500mAh battery isn’t chart-topping considering the form factor, but it likely should be enough to get you through the day. Charging speeds aren’t insane either (33W SuperVOOC wired charging and 15W AirVOOC wireless charging) but that’s par for the course for foldable phones nowadays.

Wrap-up and early verdict

Our OPPO Find N quick Review for the Philippines gives us a good idea of what the brand has achieved for its first foldable. It’s a remarkably polished first-generation device that has few of the pitfalls that plagued the offerings of its competitors.

The Find N is priced at CNY 7699(~Php 60.8k) for the 8GB/256GB model and CNY 8999(~Php 71.1k) for the 12GB/512GB model. While it is priced lower than the Galaxy Z Fold3, the Find N is available only in China, and there’s no word yet if OPPO will make it available in the Philippines.