Is Oppo Intentionally Trying To Ruin OnePlus?
Eric Zeman / Android Authority
Fans used to prefer OnePlus, but a lot has changed in recent years. This change has a lot to do with the merger between Oppo and OnePlus, with Oppo effectively holding power and influence in this setup.
Undoubtedly, there are fans who think that Oppo has ruined OnePlus. But is Oppo intentionally trying to undermine OnePlus? Or is this change because the parent sire doesn't know what to do with their smaller siblings?
Do you think Oppo is trying to deliberately destroy OnePlus?
1288 votes
OnePlus before the merger
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
OnePlus was far from a viable smartphone brand until the official merger with Oppo. However, the company's relationship with Oppo has always been the same, thanks to the similarity of the devices. But it certainly created a unique identity for a range of business and product solutions.
The company made a splash in 2013 with the release of the OnePlus One, which created some of the key selling points for the next OnePlus phones. You get a competitively priced flagship device, exclusive accessories and an intuitive alert slider, a clear developer focus, and a clean version of Android (first Cyan OS, then Oxygen OS). .
OnePlus initially made a name for itself with affordable prices, developer-friendly products, and sophisticated software.
OnePlus eventually became the top premium player in India in the second quarter of 2018, holding the title with few interruptions until 2021. It also has a small but active fan base in America and is the only officially licensed BBK brand in the market . In 2018, he managed to enlist the support of telecom operators in the United States, but to no avail.
This popularity among fans has led to closer scrutiny of the brand. The steady rise in prices over the years means that the 2019 OnePlus 7T and 7T Pro start at $600 and $830, respectively, while the 2020 OnePlus 8 series has jumped to $699 and $899. The "old" OnePlus has seen other controversies as well, such as B. long-standing hesitation about adopting the IP standard, camera claims, and benchmark scams. The company is starting to make things a little harder for hackers by asking people to fill out a form if they want to unlock their OEM device.
How Oppo changed OnePlus
Ryan Haynes/Android Authority
Oneplus in 2016 2020 has seen big changes with the release of several budget phones and the controversial Oxygen OS 11 update which is getting closer to Oppo's Color OS 11. Shortly thereafter, the two companies will announce the merger of their R&D departments in January 2021. Then a surprise followed in June 2021 when OnePlus teamed up with Oppo.
Co-founder Pete Lau said the integration will allow faster and more stable software updates, as well as access to additional resources. OnePlus has expressed concern about what will differentiate it from Oppo going forward, stating to Android Authority , "We are constantly tailoring the OnePlus experience to meet your needs in many ways, not just with a dedicated group of tech-savvy users." Unfortunately, many of the decisions made since the merger left OPOPP feeling like they were destroying everything that made them so special.
From a range of budget phones to the removal of the notification slider, Oppo has made many controversial changes to OnePlus.
Perhaps the biggest change is the removal of the brand notification slider from many OnePlus phones, including the flagship OnePlus 10T. OnePlus also introduced an update to Oxygen OS 13, effectively bringing some OnePlus-centric tweaks to Color OS 13. The company decided to launch the OnePlus 10 Pro in China two months earlier than the international market, and then repeated the first Chinese presentation with the OnePlus 11 (albeit with a month delay). This is a big change from the brand's previous global approach. While OnePlus initially made deals with camera makers before the merger, Oppo has rebranded Hasselblad for its flagship Find series.
OnePlus on Oppo has distanced itself from its developer audience. As reported by XDA-Developers , OnePlus has not fully or completely released the kernel sources for the device. Among other complaints, the Bug Bounty program was also removed.
A calculated bet or a deliberate bite?
Eric Zeman / Android Authority
It's easy to say that Oppo is undermining Oppo to create its own image at any cost. But some decisions have logic.
On the one hand, the drive to flood the market with OnePlus Nord devices, sometimes derived from Oppo models, could undermine the brand. But it seems to be part of a calculated attempt to gain market share. After all, at the height of the pre-Opo integration success, OnePlus struggled to get into the top 5 players in the world. As expected, Nord's budgeting strategy paid off early, as the company briefly overtook Google to number five in the US in the fourth quarter of 2021 with 524% year-on-year growth.
Oppo's decision on OnePlus seems sound for the most part, but it looks like the dice have to be rolled on a number of issues.
Counterpoint Senior Analyst Flora Tang gives the business reasons OnePlus offers Nord devices:
“India and Western Europe, the largest market economies for Android, have faced significant headwinds over the past two years due to the spread of Covid, exchange rate fluctuations, inflation and other geopolitical risks,” Tan said in an email response to the Android Authority. . . with requests. It seems obvious that it comes with tools."
This factor also shows that most people these days cannot afford to spend money on expensive phones. So by choosing the affordable path, these consumers can stick with the OnePlus brand.
Dhruv Bhutani / Android Authority
The decision to launch flagships in China seems strange at first, but again, it seems to have good reasons. China is a huge market for flagship phones, so success here could offset the brand's modest performance in global markets, giving companies more profit and more resources. An early launch in China will allow OnePlus flagships to be part of the first wave of devices using Qualcomm's high-end silicon, earning the company some PR points, albeit at the expense of consumers.
While OnePlus has stated its goal of becoming China's premium market leader in 2020, Tang has expanded OnePlus and Oppo's focus to China.
After the fall of Huawei in early 2021, both Oppo and OnePlus are starting to see profitable opportunities left by their bigger Chinese rivals. Oppo may use OnePlus' "premium" brand image to enter the mainstream segment, and OnePlus may rely on Oppo's channel resources to grow in China, and we believe this is one of the reasons for the brand merger.
The analyst said, "Even if some products are launched in China for the first time, this does not mean that overseas territories will be very important for OnePlus."
However, removing the warning slider is a more dubious move. At the time, OnePlus took a page from their book on 3.5mm jacks, claiming that the slider takes up a lot of space inside. According to the company, this newly released camera was used in the OnePlus 10T for faster charging, bigger battery and better signal. However, the slider OnePlus 10 Pro is actually a bit narrower and thinner than the OnePlus 10T while still offering the same battery size, solid wired charging and wireless charging. We imagine that by removing the notification slider, OnePlus can also easily adopt Oppo's design for a rebrand.
In fact, Counterpoint analysts highlight the possibility that OnePlus and Oppo will share more resources in the future.
We hope that OnePlus will gradually become the exclusive sub-brand of the Oppo group, like Iqoo is for Vivo at the moment.
For those who don't know, Iqoo is a performance-focused sub-brand of Vivo. Sub-brand phones lack features such as flagship-level sub-cameras and IP ratings. But otherwise, you can expect more power, a quality display, lightning-fast charging and a low price.
Oppo has challenged OnePlus by intimidating its small but ardent fan base.
However, this does not mean that OnePlus is hopeless at the moment. We've covered some great Nord phones around the world, Nord phones in the US remain an attractive option due to the lack of competition, and the OnePlus 10 Pro is still significantly cheaper than Oppo's flagships. But even the OnePlus 10 Pro seems like a step backwards for the brand. In our OnePlus 10 Pro review, we lamented the ultra-wide camera, poor low-light performance, inconsistent software, and no IP rating for the unlocked device.
In any case, it's clear that most of the gestures above are bets that could lower OnePlus just as easily as they can raise it. Oppo relies heavily on OnePlus to intimidate its small but noisy audience.
Where to go for OnePlus on Oppo?
Given the Color OS/Oxygen OS similarities, the OnePlus 11 looks like another upgrade, and what seems like an intense focus on the Chinese market, it's hard to shake the feeling that the OnePlus 2023 won't give up on Oppo. The OnePlus phone is, after all, the only Oppo phone with an Oppo-derived design, Color OS-derived Android skin, and no notification slider.
There are two other encouraging signs for the company. A new leak suggests the mid-range OnePlus 11R could bring the trademark warning back to budget phones. The brand has announced that it will fulfill Samsung's update commitments, albeit only for 2023 flagships. However, these are two small consolations in what seems to be a breakthrough year for OnePlus.
The big question is whether Oppo will be able to win this blackjack game. Because the loss of an enthusiastic audience without mass adoption would make OnePlus a dead brand.
More on OnePlus : what we want to see from OnePlus in 2023
