Time flies so fast that OPPO is now celebrating their fourth anniversary here in the Philippines. Not your typical smartphone news post here in this blog as I took a lil diversity in my workstation as I am about to share to you my experiences and opened OPPOrtunities from one of the leading smartphone brands in the country.
April 2014 when I was also doing something for fellow local tech site Teknogadyet (and thanks to them) that I got the chance to be in the brand's first-ever media event in the country in Sofitel. I knew that from the vision of their lead executives that they have a vision to dominate the local smartphone market with their array of budget and their current high-end device at that time, the OPPO Find 7A. I can forgive them at first from their first version of ColorOS, their own take on Android but for sure it will improve in the years to come.
My guess was right as a year after, they put in another media launch with 3 new midrange handsets at that time which is OPPO Neo 5, the first OPPO smartphone that I owned and loved thanks to it's right form factor of 5 inch display, a decent front camera, good audio and battery life plus their consistency in terms of software updates. It was also the start of the streak that they were only one of the few brands that gave a chance to review their latest device on-time and not waiting for 2-3 months after the release date
It continued when they decided to bring a smartphone launch outside of the metro last 2016 in Pico Sands Hotel, just a few walking distance to the posh Pico de Loro in Batangas to witness their first-ever selfie-centric phone OPPO F1s set in a 2 day activity + event. I even had this shirt that I brought in from that launch The love to the brand went stronger as I love their execs at that time (even up to this point) as they tried to reach almost every single media personnel to have a chit-chat and also ready to listen to OPPO-related inquiries and questions
The relationship grew even further with their meet-ups. Happy to share that I enjoyed the second OPPO handset that I owned which is OPPO F1 Plus, my first dibs of a phone with AMOLED display and VOOC charging plus the audio inside made even better.
With my countless conversations from their past and present officials, what stands out so far - they are ready to listen for either negative and positive comments on the brand. Before, the most annoying thing for me is the notification which you had to swipe to the right just to get the entire message but hey, they are improving plus some surprises in the mix including a former high-ranking official (Hint: He was usually the face to those smartphone launch events in post-event interviews on free TV) as he was the one who brought the review unit that I am about to borrow despite of this busy schedule and had that not-so-formal interview in a Japanese restaurant. That handset was the OPPO F3
In between, notable mentions are some from their A series including OPPO A71 (2017) which is the only proper smartphone with that not-so-good SoC but somehow the brand somehow managed to run it smoothly. A joy to watch that they brought in thousands of O-Fans in a theme park in Sta. Rosa, Laguna for free as part of OPPO's first National Selfie Day
This 2018, that thing that I mentioned on the third paragraph. It continues and I am happy that are consistent to allow us to borrow a review unit either minutes after the launch or even days before the launch which is critical for me and the rest of my readers to check out the facts in our review or even those you may not gonna see on the specs sheet. I never experienced that I just got a unit months after the launch (which unfortunately, other brands must be aware of situation) 2018 was also the year that they are doing great so far with the surprising power and battery efficiency of OPPO F5 and OPPO F7 (which puts some shame on those consistent Mediatek haters). The ColorOS inside was far better than it was four years ago. I also love that they really prioritize OTG support in almost all of their smartphones since 2014 and having dual SIM connecitivity. That cool invite, too :)
For sure that at least I had a part of decision-making of their current and loyal customers, either viral posts or simple social media posts I usually see OPPO on one of their top choices either under 10k or going a bit more over 10K.
Right now, it's definitely #OPPO4U as they are giving it back with their ongoing anniversary sale until July 31, 2018 which there will be 4 winners of Php 100,000 plus more cash prixzes and even an Asian trip for two which you can check right at the photo
For sure you will gonna ask me, why I (the reader) must experience and buy an OPPO smartphone soon? Either there is a raffle or not, they are doing their Android phones right with the much-better ColorOS, timely software updates and easy to reach customer service support either offline or online, consistent good or great camera quality just right for the price, always having very good sound via the audio jack, innovation (Yup, I am looking at excited to see you OPPO Find X this Tuesday), almost always having dual SIM and OTG support and most of their models, good battery life especially with the currently available OPPO F7 line-up. For sure, wherever that fits you: the under 10k, over 10k or even your budget is sky's the limit, there's an OPPOrtunity that you may find an OPPO smartphone that will be your next main driver
Happy 4th Anniversary, OPPO Philippines!
