Having run one of the most unusual pre-release marketing campaigns I’ve ever seen, the Oppo F1 is finally here with the strap-line “#HelloMetal”. Oppo‘s latest phone is an almost all-metal, small smartphone equipped with specifications you’d expect from a mid-tier Chinese-made smartphone.
The Oppo F1 features a 5-inch IPS display boasting a resolution of 1280 x 720 pixels, with a respectable pixel density of 294ppi. Inside, there’s a new Snapdragon 616 octa-core processor paired with 3GB RAM and 16GB of internal storage, which can be expanded by MicroSD card up to 128GB. Rear and front cameras are 13MP f/2.2 and 8MP f/2.0 respectively, while the non-removable battery holds 2,500mAh power, which should easily be enough to get through a day’s use in a phone this small.
At its thickest point, the phone measures just 7.25mm thin and comes in gold/white only. It runs Oppo’s ColorOS 2.1 on top of Android 5.1 Lollipop and is available to pre-order now from OppoStyle for $249.
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We first caught wind of the Oppo F1 when it passed through TENAA in China a few weeks ago. All the specs seem to match, suggesting the F1 will launch with model number, A35.
As $250 smartphones go, the Oppo F1 certainly seems competitive enough. Although it doesn’t have the full HD screen found in the OnePlus X, or latest budget BLU smartphone, it still has enough about it to be worth the outlay, presuming the software and UI experience is as enjoyable and reliable. Its design gives it a luxury/high-end look, which should go a long way to convincing buyers to part with their cash. Let’s just hope none of them watched the awful #GoodbyePlastic videos, that would put me off a company for life.
